The use of herbs and other alternative remedies for the treatment of a wide range of human illnesses has rapidly gained popularity over the past two decades. Herbal remedies are especially popular among patients with chronic diseases such as cancer, arthritis, and gastrointestinal ailments. Also, some herbal treatments appear to be beneficial for treatment of psychiatric symptoms such as depression, anxiety and insomnia. It is logical to think that if an herb or botanical preparation can help a human with a psychiatric disorder, then it might also help a pet with a behavioral problem.

Before going into specifics on what is known about improving animal behavior problems with natural herbal remedies, a word of caution is in order. Clearly, the increasing popularity of alternative remedies is partially due to the fact that some of these products work well. Unfortunately, much of the increased use of alternative therapies is due to hype and propaganda from companies that manufacture and sell such treatments. To separate fact from fiction, it is important to rely on information from objective, reliable sources like the scientific and medical literature rather than from dietary supplement websites and promotional pamphlets.

There seems to be an increasing number of false claims for products labeled