The Ingraham Institute’s 2008 Certificate and Diploma courses combine a unique mix of home study with practical experience so that students can learn at their own pace. Students can elect to focus their study on dogs or horses or both species.

The Certificate course aims to give students a basic level introduction to zoopharmacognosy (the study of how animals select their own plant substances for health maintenance), to enable them to confidently treat their own animals with aromatics, and have a practical knowledge of the different substances. To achieve the Certificate the student must complete 6 or 10 days of the practical courses, either:-

Equine One: October 11th - 12th 2008 Bath £200.00

Theory: March 14th - 15th 2009 BDH London £200.00

Dogs & Cats One: March 16th - 17th 2009 BDH London £200.00

Essential Oil Chemistry: April 25th - 26th 2009 BDH London £200.00

Dogs & Cats Two: April 27th -28th 2009 BDH London £200.00

Equine Two: Bath TBC

The Certificate course can count towards the Diploma if a student decides to further their studies.

The Diploma course allows students to become IIZ approved animal aromatics practitioners, teaching owners to work with their animals with aromatics through a consultation process. These students need to examine the scientific efficacy of the discipline in more depth, have a more thorough understanding of the oils and  animals, and learn about professional procedures. To achieve the Diploma the student must complete 8 or 12 days of the practical courses, following the same pattern as that for the Certificate students above, plus the extra 2 days practical on Essential Oil Chemistry. They must also complete 4 home study modules.

Students will be set assignments appropriate to the modules taken and also be required to complete a number of case studies in the field.
The modules are as follows:-

Home Study Module 1:  Essential Oils  In Depth :Onstream in September

Students will receive samples of 15 essential oils for in-depth study in this module. Together with their tutors, an examination will be made of the first 7. The others are for students to research on their own initiative and produce their own studies.

Home Study Module 2: Botany and Secondary Metabolites*Onstream December

Secondary metabolites and evolution; animal-plant interactions; secondary metabolite synthetic pathways and the medicinal families.

Home Study Module 3: Macerates, Minerals and Aromatic Waters: Onstream February

This module will follow much the same pattern as Essential Oils In Depth, looking at the wealth of other substances available to help animals with their health

Home Study Module 4: The Pharmacology of Secondary Metabolites: Onstream Spring 2009

Pharmacokinetics: this section deals with the administration, distribution,
metabolism and excretion of secondary metabolites.
 
Pharmacodynamics: How do oils produce their medicinal effects? Some directly kill microbial infections in the body but others interact with the body to heal it. This section looks at how secondary metabolites interact with receptors in the body with a special emphasis on those found in the brain.

Practical’s cost £100 per day; home study modules cost £100 each. The “starter kit”, provided by the Institute, which includes The Animal Aromatics Workbook plus the oils and other materials for home study modules 1 and 3, is an additional £285.

It is the students’ own responsibility to acquire other recommended reading.

To secure your place please complete the attached application form and send a deposit of £200. 

If you have any further questions regarding the course please do not hesitate to contact me.

By the end of the course students will
• Be able to describe why, when and how animals self medicate in the wild.
• Understand how self medication is affected by domestication -recognise the ways in which animals naturally deal with poisons.
• Be able to differentiate between primary and secondary metabolites.
• Understand the different methods of essential oil and plant extracts, including maceration, distillation, expression and solvent extraction.
• Be able to describe the different pathways of application - olfactory, topical and oral.
• Understand the action of basic chemical constituents of essential oils and plant extracts -terpenes, alcohols, phenols, alderhydes, ketones, esthers, oxides, lactones, coumarins and acids.
• Have a working knowledge of key essential oils/plant extracts and their role in treating cat, dog and horse behavioural and physical disorders.
• Understand the contraindications of essential oils.
• Recognise when to call a vet.
• Know how to offer essential oils in a way that will not cause harm to the animal.
• Be able to use kinesiology as a means of supporting essential oil and plant selection
• Have practiced conducting a client consultation.

Acute Aromatic Care: Aromatics for infection: Essential oil research and therapeutics for working with pain, inflammation and trauma . Fungal, bacterial and viral infections: research, modes of action of essential oils and practical guidelines for use. Review of key principals concerning infectious diseases.

Essential oils were used in agar tests using Escherichia coli (gram negative), and Staphylococcus aureus (gram positive) bacteria: