What is Castor equi?
Castor equi is a homeopathic remedy. It is made from the small horny pad on a horse's front leg. Old books call this pad the horse's thumbnail, or the horse's hock.
It is a single remedy, not a mix of several. Its Latin name is Equus caballus, and the part used is the rudimentary thumbnail.
People use it most often for sore, cracked nipples while breastfeeding. It is also used for weak, split or sore nails, and for warts.
Like all homeopathic remedies, it is made by diluting the starting material over and over. At 30C there is no horse material left in the pill at all.
Trials do not show this kind of pill doing more than a dummy pill (placebo). Long use in homeopathy is not proof that a remedy works, and that is true here.
How does Castor equi work?
The honest answer is that no one has shown a way it could work in the body.
Homeopathy rests on the idea of "like cures like". A substance that could cause a symptom is given in a tiny dose to treat that same symptom.
The starting material is shaken and diluted step by step. Homeopaths say this leaves a kind of trace or "memory" in the liquid. Chemistry and physics do not back that idea.
At 30C there is nothing of the horse material left to act on you. So any change you feel is most likely down to time, care and belief.
What forms does Castor equi come in?
It comes in a few simple forms.
The most common are small sugar pills or pellets you let melt under the tongue. Liquid drops in water and alcohol are also sold.
Strengths are written as 3X, 6C or 30C. The higher the number, the more it has been diluted.
Low strengths such as 3X are ground-up powder mixed with sugar. These still hold a trace of the starting material, so use them only on a practitioner's advice.
Some shops sell creams or mixes that list Castor equi with other remedies. This page is about the single remedy on its own.
Where it comes from:
Castor equi was written up in homeopathic books in the 1800s in Europe and the United States.
Homeopaths of that time gave it to healthy people and wrote down what they felt. They call this a "proving". From those notes came its use for cracked nipples, poor nails and warts.
It has stayed a small, rarely used remedy. It is not one of the well-known staples of homeopathy, and it is not used in any other healing tradition.
Who should avoid Castor equi?
- Do not use it in place of a medicine your doctor has prescribed.
- Do not rely on it if your breast is red, hot, hard or painful and you have a fever; this can be mastitis (a painful breast infection) and needs a doctor.
- Do not use it alone for a cracked nipple that bleeds, weeps pus, or has not healed after a few days.
- Do not use it for a new breast lump, a nipple that has changed shape, or any discharge from the nipple; see a doctor instead.
- Do not give the pills to a child under two years old; they are small and hard and can choke a young child.
- Do not take lactose-based pills if you have severe trouble digesting lactose (milk sugar); ask for a sucrose form.
- Do not take the alcohol-based drops if you avoid alcohol, are pregnant, or have liver disease.
- Avoid taking many sugar pills a day if you have diabetes (high blood sugar) without checking with your doctor first.
- Do not use low strengths below 4X unless a practitioner who knows homeopathy has advised it, as a trace of the raw material remains.
- Do not take it if you have ever had a rash or swelling after a homeopathic pill.
When should you see a doctor?
See a doctor if your breast becomes red, hot or hard, or if you get a fever, chills or aching like flu while breastfeeding.
Get checked if a cracked nipple bleeds, oozes pus, or has not started to heal within a few days.
Book an urgent appointment for any new breast lump, a nipple that pulls inward, or fluid leaking from the nipple.
See a doctor if a nail turns dark, lifts from the skin, or changes shape. Also get any wart checked that bleeds, itches, grows fast or changes colour.
Call for emergency help if you get a swollen face or tongue, a spreading rash, or trouble breathing after taking any pill.
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