Animals as well as humans have long used natural illness prevention strategies like therapeutic herbs. The phenomena is so typical that it has its own name: zoopharmacognosy. Creatures will use all means necessary to maintain their health, whether that be consuming vegetation, other animals, or even rubbish. Numerous animals, ranging from microscopic insects to huge apes, display this behavior. Here are some of the most fascinating instances.
10 Elephants
Although some species are more devoted parents than others, animals care for their young in the same way that humans do. Additionally, they strive for the healthiest pregnancy possible. Animals that are pregnant utilize plants in the same manner as a pregnant human would take medicine.
There are several reasons for accelerating the gestational period, including the risk of birth abnormalities and the mother’s physical exhaustion from the pregnancy. Elephants in Africa are known to consume herbs that make people work that the locals also utilize. Elephants have a long gestation period, and even if there is no medical reason to shorten it, the poor animals could just be sick of being pregnant.
9 “Geophagy”
As indicated before, there is a term for the entire process of animal self-medication. However, many different types of animals utilize more focused procedures to lessen their suffering. They also receive a name based on how frequently they are observed. While some may appear strange, they offer legitimate advantages.
Most animals carefully select their meals as a form of self-medication. Geophagy, the practice of eating soil and rocks, is practiced by many animals, including apes and elephants. The animals who use the technique get a lot from it. It can improve their nutritional status, keep their stomachs healthy, and do much more. Instead of dismissing it as an odd trait of the species, people should think about the possible medicinal advantages the next time they see an animal eating dirt.
8 House Sparrows and Finches
The majority of instances of animal self-medication include components of nature, such as plants and other animals. Animals, on the other hand, are resourceful beings that will make use of everything they can discover in their surroundings to enhance their own health. Even some animals have been known to use human waste as medicine.
Nowadays, birds frequently inhabit areas that are crowded with people and their waste. Fortunately, there may be times when the animals benefit from this. According to one research, house sparrows and finches use used cigarette butts in their nests to keep mites away. It goes without saying that a bird free of mites would be healthier. It is amazing that an animal might find a method to use the items humans waste to better their health, even if it is still not recommended to callously dump cigarettes on the ground.
7 Wood Storks and Starlings
The same plant may benefit several species and treat a wide range of illnesses. By imitating an animal’s self-medication behavior, people can get the same therapeutic benefits from the same medications that are used to treat a variety of illnesses. The nearly similar behavior of two distinct bird species demonstrates this.
Even though the wood stork and the starling have quite distinct appearances, they both want to maintain their health and avoid getting sick. The same plants that starlings utilize to treat a variety of skin conditions including ulcers, sores, and dermatitis are also used by wood storks to line their nests. By engaging in this action, the birds both enhance their own and their offspring’s health. People have begun to recognize the possible advantages. In their own skin treatments, pharmacists utilize herbs that are comparable to those used by wood storks and starlings. It works like a therapeutic cycle and can simultaneously help three distinct species.
6 Orangutans
Animals experience limb fatigue in a similar way as humans. This is especially true for people who must continuously hold a baby. Apes are intelligent animals that have developed strategies to reduce their own suffering.
In order to lessen the burden of lugging a newborn through the bush, orangutans have evolved a technique. The moms (and occasionally the men) make a paste out of the medicinal plant’s leaves and apply it as a painkiller to their painful arms. Any exhausted human mother would comprehend the rationale for this action.
5 Wood Ants
Many animals live in colonies or groups and cooperate for the good of everyone. This is frequently the case with insects, the honeybee hive serving as a well-known illustration. Ants are well recognized for creating mounds and coexisting, but they also display activities that have therapeutic advantages for the entire colony.
In close-knit societies, disease transmission may be accelerated. Wood ants employ pine resin in their nests to ward off parasites and other hazardous germs since they are susceptible to infections. As with a human village deciding to vaccinate kids to stop the spread of sickness, this improves the health of the entire colony. The resin-coated nests’ usage by all ants reduces their susceptibility to disease.
4 Woolly Bear Caterpillars
It’s possible that certain animals lack the mental capacity needed to participate in self-medicating activity. However, even the tiniest species, such as insects, may enhance their own health. One illustration was found when researching woolly bear caterpillars.
The majority of animals appear to be aware of all the resources in their surroundings that might help them stay healthy. The study’s caterpillars hunted for plants with poisons that kill tachinid parasite flies. These little insects are used as an illustration of how nearly every species can self-medicate.
3 Monarch Butterflies
Not only woolly bear caterpillars may an insect enhance their own health. These animals need to boost their chances of survival in every manner they can given their limited lifespans. The stunning monarch butterfly is another illustration of an insect that uses self-medication.
For many species, including butterflies, parasites are a prevalent issue. Because milkweed has compounds that fight the parasite Ophryocystis elektroscirrha, it is consumed by them. By doing this, they improve both their own and their offspring’s chances of surviving.
2 Chimpanzees
Humans and apes share a close genetic heritage. This may be the reason why zoopharmacognosy research has mostly concentrated on them, as it can then be more easily transferred to humans. As chimpanzees are also known to participate in comparable behaviors, orangutans are not the only primates who self-medicate.
Being intelligent animals, it shouldn’t be surprising that chimpanzees can treat their own illnesses. They consume the same bitter pith in Africa that locals use to prevent worm infections. Although it is uncertain which species originally made use of the plant, it is evident that they are both capable of self-medicating.
1 Sheep
Animal self-medication is frequently influenced by parasitic illnesses. Sheep are an example of this. When given the freedom to choose, people will eat things that will keep them healthy and free from disease.
Although a shepherd normally watches over the sheep, there are several natural habits that the animals have that should not be disturbed. They consume meals high in tannins when parasite-infected in order to eradicate the invaders. There is also some evidence that suggests the young may inherit this feature. Lambs also consumed diets high in tannin, indicating that they recognized it would help avoid illness. Although sheep are not noted for their intellect, they do exhibit enough foresight to look after their own health.