“The hair of the dog that bit ya.”

Jordan said he had first heard this saying from his now 29-year-old brother who lives and works in Los Angeles. Jordan said that; “the hair of the dog that bit ya is a saying that tells of a remedy for a hang over.” By that, Jordan said, he meant that; to cure a hangover on the next day, one could drink a little bit of the same alcohol that caused the hangover the night before. That having that extra drink in the morning would eventually save one from a pounding head caused by a hangover. In his explanation, Jordan said that; the dog that bit ya refers to the long night of drinking and its hair is a small amount of alcohol the next morning that will help cure the awful hangover.

Analysis.

I do not know to what extent this remedy works, but I have heard it a couple of times from friends. It seems to be a popular remedy especially among drunkards, which does not surprise me. Personally, I do not think that extra consumption of alcohol would heal the hangover. I think it would only worsen the matter. First of all, I do not think that remedy is actually scientifically tested. On the other hand, just because it is not scientifically tested does not necessarily mean it does not work. After all, most scientifically proven drugs we use are often derived from folk medicine. Therefore, given the popularity of this folk remedy, I would not be surprised if it worked for someone or for most alcohol consumers.

In addition to that, because “the dog that bit ya” is used by a certain group of people, then it creates identity.  This remedy can distinctively separate two different people, it can also bring together two same people. If one drinks and actually believes in this remedy, then he or she belongs in a group. On the other hand, a non-drinker might never know about the remedy unless he associates with a folk group that uses that lore.