STAR

Being able to work with so many animals at Remus has been a privledge and an honour. Recently, with the help of many other Reiki practitioners we were able to help a shetland pony called Star. She is a beautiful pony who I have worked with for over three years, with such an out going character. She would often get me into trouble when I would be offering herbs to the other ponies, she’d sneak up behind me, catch me un-awares, cause me to drop the  bowls, so she could munch merrily on her favourite herbs. She caught me out every time, how ever well prepared I thought I was. Bless her little cotton hooves.

Just after Christmas she became very poorly with acute Laminitis, it was so painful she found it very difficult to walk, she’d spend most of her day in her stable lying down. During this time, I have been very fortunate to have other Reiki Practitioners join my team of healers, each week there are about two or three of us available to the animals to offer group healing. Star was one of the ponies that we always spent a  lot of time with. She loved the Reiki and soaked it up like a sponge, she would lie flat out on her stable floor, mouth open, eyes glazed taking in as much Reiki as she could. Offering Reiki to Star was always a pleasure, there is something so satisfying when watching an animal enjoy reiki.

Over the weeks it became obvious that her quality of life was very limited. She had become too ill to leave her stable, too ill to interact with other ponies and too ill to move around. Yet she was a fighter, her eyes always so bright, her character always so defiant, she was a pony who truly had a love of life, even though it was so compromised . After the Reiki sessions, we would see improvements where she would stand up and walk around, she would eat and drink and seemed very positive but she would then settle back to lying on the floor. During this time, she had been diagnosed with an abscess on her pedal bone, which added to her pain. This however healed very quickly due to the Reiki sessions. The Remus vet had been very amazed at how quickly it had healed, considering how poorly she was.

As the months passed, her health carried on deteriorating , the vet came one Thursday to see her a few weeks ago and it was decided that she would have to be put to sleep on the Monday. We were all so upset as we had all grown so attatched to her and could not imagine going to Remus without seeing our beautiful Star. Sue put a message that evening on Facebook to ask Reiki healers to send healing to her, every Reiki healer I knew wanted to save Star,  with special thanks to Brenda for sending so much Reiki to her.  A Reiki healer called  Alison also spent over two hours offering Reiki to her on the Saturday. I went to say my goodbyes too with great sadness and a heavy heart, Alison and myself both feared that this would be the last time we would see her.

On the Monday I received a text from Sue to say that the vet had not put Star to sleep as she had been far too well! We were all so happy that our beautiful Star was OK and was able to fight another day. I truly believe that something very special happened that weekend. Star had been surrounded by Reiki, she had been  caressed and had  been able to bathe in the beautiful energy that had been sent or offered to her. She has continued to improve week by week and is now able to spend time with her pair bond Tango from whom she had been separated. She has her mojo back and is taking the world by storm, Star is back shining brightly, brightly, brightly…..

Ruby and Peggy

Ruby and Bimbo

The first thing I would like to do is to tell you about the amazing award that Remus Sanctuary won on 4th March 2011. They won at the Wetnose Awards as the best Horse and Donkey Sanctuary in the United Kingdom. Well done Remus!

It made me think about what makes Remus different and great at what they do, in this blog I would like to give my opinion on what I think makes them truly amazing and how Reiki has been part of this wonderful journey too.

I feel Reiki is amazing at releasing past trauma, helping with injuries and aiding relaxation. However without understanding the whole situation, Reiki will be like a sticking plaster holding things together, if an animal is in a daily stressful situation, it makes the job we are trying to achieve a hundred times more difficult. I feel as a Reiki Practitioner maybe a little more understanding is needed about what is natural for the species, for example; in the wild horses would live in herds, dogs in packs, to keep these animals without contact from members of their own can only add to their stress. Understanding of nutritional needs of a species is also needed to help the ‘whole’ animal, cats are carnivours, with the best will in the world it would be very difficult to maintain optimum health in a vegitarian cat.

What is stress or should I say the stress response? Well it is an animals  natural response/reaction to the threat of danger, whether real or imagined, it is their survival mechanism. When a stressful situation is on-going, with no way to relieve it,  it becomes chronic stress which can lead to a variety of problems. All animals are hard-wired to deal with a certain amount of acute stress but when animals meet our world and we don’t truly understand their needs here lies the problem.

Going back to Remus; what makes them so good at what they do? Firstly they have a knowldege of the needs of the species they are working with. Take for example Ruby who is the horse I saw at Remus yesterday. She was the pair/soul bond of Bimbo the horse I wrote about in my last blog. Bimbo very sadly had to be put to sleep about 6 weeks ago, leaving poor Ruby his pair bond of over 20 years. Never a day or night spent without each other. Seeing Ruby, I saw the twinkle back in her eyes, I saw a beautiful shiney coat, I saw confidence ousing from every pore. I have to say, I have been there every week since Christmas offering Reiki to her but what had Remus done to make the transformation complete?

1. They Identified her stress, even before Bimbo was put to sleep, Remus knew this was a real possibility. The stress could have brought on Ruby’s Laminitis which can be life threating and she could possiblely have died. Loosing two horses would be too much to bare. I feel too that this is where the Reiki came in to give both Bimbo and Ruby the emotional support they both needed.

2. They addressed her diet they made sure she had constant access to hay and water. This is a basic physioligcal need. They made sure she was fed the correct diet for her needs as she has laminitis. She is fed on the highest quality feed available for a horse of that age. On a daily basis she is given a variety of over 15 herbs that she self selects, chosing for that day what her body needs not what people think she needs.

3. They addressed her pain, she had an operation before Bimbo died to help her laminitis, if at any time she had been in stress, this would have complicated her healing and put it in jepardy if she should get laminitis. Thus making  sure she had recovered from her operation before Bimbo had to be put to sleep. This is where the weekly Reiki Sessions have helped to relieve pain and aid relaxation.

4. They addressed her need for a companion (Understanding the species they are working with) Horses naturally need a pair bond.  Initially Ruby and Bimbo were paired with Tango another Shetland pony but this was not succesful (They recognised that Ruby needed to choose.) Ruby was then paired with Peggy another Shetland pony. Although a slightly rocky start, with the help of Reiki they seem to be forging a forever bond. Again Reiki has been instumental here in helping to open them up to each other.

5. They addressed her bordom just as too much stress can cause problems, so can too little. She has a constant flow of human visitors who talk, stroke, feed, much out and of course offer Reiki.

This blog started with the news of Remus winning an award for the best Horse and Donkey Sanctuary in the United Kingdom. Hopefully like me, I hope you can see what makes them stand out from the rest.

It is difficult to get people to change  and it is not our place to tell people what to do. However having too many deposits into the stress bank can make for ‘one stressed out animal’ Being aware of the whole picture can only add to the understanding of what is truly going on and help us to be a better Reiki Practitioners. All my own opionion of course:)

Level I Reiki and Animal Reiki Class at Happily Ever After Animal Sanctuary

I had the privilege of teaching a Level 1 Reiki and Animal Reiki class with eight volunteers and staff at Happily Ever After Animal Sanctuary’s Green Bay Adoption Center near historic Lambeau Field, home of the Green Bay Packers. After creatively planning around the NFL playoff schedule and other sanctuary events, the final class session was held on February 5, 2011, the day before the Packers won Super Bowl XLV. Even with the excitement and anticipation of the Super Bowl the next day, we successfully completed the class and received a valuable, basic lesson from five beautiful cats.

The lesson taught by the five cats is that we want to allow each animal to choose how they wish to receive Reiki energy at that time. For a guided treatment, the cats were brought into the small room where the class met. The class sat in a circle, and we created our Reiki space to include the area inside the circle. Each cat responded to the Reiki energy differently.

Two of the cats almost immediately chose to jump up on the laps of the four people sitting on a futon couch, with one lying directly on the heart center of one of the class members offering Reiki back to her. The other three cats wandered around the room for a few minutes, with one of them eventually joining the two on the futon. Another cat continued to walk around the edge of the Reiki space, and finally lay down under the futon where we could not see him. The other one jumped up on a cat tree that was just outside the Reiki space curiously watching everyone in the circle – he was experiencing the energy, but not yet ready to fully join the circle. Each cat was accepting of the energy, but chose to receive from a different place or from a different person.

I want to thank these five cats for helping me teach my class this basic lesson in offering Reiki to animals – allow each animal to choose and each will likely choose differently.

Following are a couple of comments received from the class:

“I just really thought the way you taught the class was wonderful. You were so organized and structured, but at the same time, the class was actually relaxing to attend! I just really feel confident that I can DO this – now I just need to make more time. I have no suggestions – other than to keep doing what you’re doing.”

“I thought the class was fantastic…..You made the class fun, fast paced enough but not too fast. Loved the stories that helped me relate to what you were teaching.”

Ann Noyce

My shelter, the Animal Protective Foundation (APF) of Scotia, NY in cooperation with the Schenectady (NY) Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) sponsors the Pet Guardian Program. Basically, the APF takes in pets belonging to battered, abused or otherwise compromised women who seek shelter at the YWCA. The APF provides for the care and feeding of these pets in a secure environment, accessible to the women and select APF personnel. As the Shelter Animal Reiki Association (SARA) representative at the APF, I approached APF management and proposed that Reiki be offered to these animals. The APF agreed and granted me and my wife (also a Reiki Master) access to these pets.

As we entered the room used for housing these pets, we found two dogs (one female about two years old and one male about six years of age) and a Cockatiel. Randomly my wife selected to male and I took the female, named Queenie Sue. She took one look at me, six foot and 200 pounds, and became extremely agitated, barking and running around the pen. I assumed that I resembled the abuser in some way and Queenie Sue wanted nothing to do with me. My wife had to problems offering Reiki to the male dog. Given Queenie Sue’s greeting, I thought that a distance treatment, to start, might be the best way to go.

I went outside the room, into the hallway, and offered Reiki to Queenie Sue. I sensed that the offering was being accepted but did not go back into the room. My wife completed her treatment and met me in the hallway. She indicated that Queenie Sue had relaxed and was taking a Reiki nap. I returned in a few days and repeated the distance treatment on Queenie Sue. After about three to four distance treatments I ventured into the room and was able to offer Reiki to Queenie Sue directly. In fact, I was able to get her out of the pen and into my arms.

My wife and I continued to offer Reiki to both dogs and the bird. We were subsequently told by the APF that all three were surrendered to the APF by the owner (she could no longer take care of them), put up for adoption and all three adopted.

George Belev

A series of treatments with a cat at the Fox Valley Humane Association taught me the value of allowing the animal to determine how they wish to receive Reiki energy. This cat is a sweet 8 year old black and white tuxedo kitty named Boots. Boots came to the shelter because her family had too many animals and could no longer take care of her. She had been at the shelter for quite awhile when I met her and her suite-mate Smudge. After one session with Boots and Smudge, both soon left for their forever homes.

Unfortunately, at my weekly visit a couple of months later, I learned that Boots had returned because she wasn’t fitting in well with the other animals at her new home. Boots was sad and felt rejected, and had been screaming in her cage for a couple of days. For our first solo session, I took Boots into a small sunny room where she could roam around and offered Reiki energy to her. At first, she was a bit nervous wandering around the room, sometimes sitting in the corner and at times brushing my legs. She eventually jumped on the table a couple feet from me and sat in the sun looking out the window. Her eyes then closed as she sat there peacefully, and by the end of the treatment, she had lied down and fallen into a deep, snoring sleep. As I approached Boots to thank her, she licked my hands and arms saying “thank you for helping me.” She was so calm and grateful – it was beautiful.

Our second session was similar to the first. By our third session, Boots was much more confident with Reiki and with me, and came right over to my feet, looked up at me with those loving kitty eyes and began meowing. I invited her to sit in my lap if she wished, an offer she immediately accepted. She at first licked my hands and arms, and then lied down with her body cradled in my hands. She remained in my lap for the entire treatment, purring and then sleeping. We spent a wonderful hour together offering each other a space of calm and harmony.

It is now my turn to express my gratitude to Boots for teaching me that it may take multiple sessions before an animal is comfortable enough with the energy and with me to ask me to touch her. And animals appreciate that we allow them to decide how they wish to receive the Reiki energy. We need to remember that they truly do experience and benefit from the energy even though we may be sitting a few feet apart. Thank you, Boots, for teaching me this important lesson!

Ann Noyce

One day in early spring, I walked into RCHS and noticed a cage on a table with a towel over it. Jess, the manager, told me there was a cat under the towel. He had been trapped and brought to the shelter. He was traumatized by the event and the towel was to help him feel secure. He was a long-haired orange boy whose fur was all matted and dirty.

My first session with Jared took place before I even got a look at him. I sat outside the cage wanting to lift the towel a bit and take a peek. I resisted and began offering him Reiki sitting quietly in meditation and focusing on the flow of the energy. I found it a little difficult at first, not being able to see him, but I felt the Reiki moving through my hands and relaxed into the session.

The next time I came in, the towel was lifted on the front end and I got a look at Jared. Because of the condition of his fur he had been shaved and he looked like a little lion! He huddled in the back corner of the cage. The staff thought he was a little embarrassed by his new do. I settled down for the session, careful not to face him directly. I offered him Reiki, letting him know he was in charge of how much he would receive, set the intention and began. I checked in with him periodically, taking quick sidelong peeks. He never took his eyes off of me and seemed to relax a bit.

I was looking forward to working with him again and checked on him first when I arrived at the shelter. To my surprise, he was dressed in little blue sweater. The staff was concerned that without all his fur he might be cold and they put him in a cat sweater. He was adorable! I began the session as before, only this time I sat facing him. He was very receptive to the Reiki and seemed to be coming out of his shell. He came forward, curious about the energy.

We worked together every week, continuing after he had been integrated into the cat room. Naturally, the introduction caused him some stress and he continued to be shy with the other cats. He enjoyed Reiki when I offered it for a few weeks, although unlike other cats, Jared wasn’t likely to get in my lap in those sessions. His hair was growing back nicely and he seemed to be gaining confidence. Then one day he declined my offer of Reiki.

The next week I was told he had been moved next door to the office where he was free to roam the building with another cat. This suited his loner personality, I think. Shortly thereafter Jared was adopted and found his forever home!

Kelly McDermott-Burns

Macy is a beautiful brown Cocker Spaniel with a bit of white on her. She was recently brought to Animals in Distress having just had a litter of seven puppies. One of the puppies had made its transition by the time they got to AID. The other six seemed to be doing all right.

When I arrived at AID for my weekly visit two weeks ago, Lori, the kennel manager, had just left for the vet with one of Macy’s puppies. She returned just before I left for the day and asked that Reiki be offered to the pup as well as Macy and the rest of the litter. In the ensuing week, that puppy made its transition and was followed by three more. The fifth puppy was rushed to the vet shortly after I arrived last week.

I began my visit by asking for Lucy, the little Chihuahua who is one of my regulars. Lucy likes to snuggle in her towel in my arms soaking up Reiki as we make the rounds of the hospitality center and the cat wing. This time, we stopped at Macy’s enclosure and offered Reiki to her and her remaining pup from outside the enclosure.

I performed a healing attunement on the pup and on Macy, as well. Of course, I hope the pup survives, but it is now in the hands of Reiki and the universe. The cause of the pups’ illness has been identified as a herpes virus. According to information I’ve researched, pups contract this virus through the mother who is an asymptomatic carrier of the virus. Most pups who contract the virus do not survive and those who do typically become carriers, as well.

The point of this story, however, is to illustrate yet another situation where we as Reiki practitioners must detach ourselves from the outcome. Naturally, the staff at AID has taken the pups’ transitions hard. They want to save every animal that comes through their doors and it is their dedication to this mission that keeps them going day after day and on weekends and holidays when the rest of us are enjoying family time and time with our own animals.

We offer Reiki to the animals and to the staff and then we must let go and let the outcome be what it will be. This is another example of “getting out of the way” and letting Reiki do what it will do. We never know the “big picture”, so to speak, so we accept that whatever happens is the “right” thing in the eyes of the universe, our personal opinions notwithstanding.

The blessing is that as we learn to step out of our judgments and let be what will be, we are better able to serve the animals and people to whom we offer Reiki. We also find that we become more grounded and peaceful ourselves, which benefits all connected with us.

Update: the 7th and last puppy made its transition the Saturday night after I was there last. I saw Macy today and got the picture above. She’s a very sweet little girl. She’ll stay in the cat wing a short while longer, then move to the dog wing to await her forever home.

Tara and me

The start of this Summer had not been how I had expected, in April I had to have a major operation which took the wind out of my sails. For the first few weeks I was bed ridden which was something that I found very difficult to cope with. It was during this time that I was  able  to reflect on my own Reiki Practice. I decided to use my time in a positive way, I had all of the time in the world to read Reiki books and to do self healing. I started with The Reiki Sourcebook which I have to say is a good place to start for any Reiki beginner. I learnt so much more about Mikao Usui and the type of person he was, who he met and how his Reiki journey began. The Reiki Sourcebook chronological history of Reiki was fascinating and demystifying of so many misconceptions about Reiki. It explained beautifully how Reiki in the West was very different from the way Mikao first taught Reiki at the beginning of the centuary.

I have had a lot of time to reflect on the Five Precepts too and to think how I was living my life and how important it was to live ‘for today only; ‘ living in this very moment in time I  started not worrying about yesterday or tomorrow. I was able to get through my days where the precepts became no longer targets to be reached but became absorbed into each of my actions, their influence on my thoughts becoming automatic. I made sure I had a copy of them, which I could meditate on and I also placed copies around my home so I could focus on them on a regular basis. The precept which I found hardest to meditate on was ‘for today only, I will not worry’ as I was worried about taking time off from my job. By living in this very moment in time I was able to let any memories or worries of work be a fleeting thought and let the worry float over me.

Having had my big operation, this was the perfect opportunity for  my self healing to be a big part of my life. To self heal I feel, is taking responsibility for everything that happens at all levels to my body, mind and heart. To self heal is my inborn ability which  should be an important part of any daily Reiki Practice. Each day since my operation I have spent half an hour daily giving myself a self treatment. It has also been a time when I have been able to look at what I eat, drink and how I live my life. I have enjoyed being reflective and having the time to spend being kind to  myself has been wonderful. I have also been lucky to receive Reiki which has been sent to me from other Reiki Practitioner.

My sister came to visit me too, which was lovely as she lives in Ireland and we usually only get to meet once a year. We had a lovely time and enjoyed lots of laughs and hugs. I used our time together to practice attunements. The energy created was beautiful. What I found most interesting was that my older dog Megan, who does not usually like reiki would not leave the room when I was practising my attunements. She infact sat under the chair soaking up as much energy as possible, my other dog Tara loves  Reiki and is definitely a Reiki sponge.

The weeks have flown by and I am due to go back to work soon, although having an operation had been a set back. Having the time at home with my dogs and family has been so precious to me. I feel so lucky to have been able to go back to the basics with  my Reiki and feel so much better for it. I went to Remus last week where I was able to offer Reiki to people at their open day to raise money for the animals. It was the final jigsaw in my Reiki Practice where I was able to get out and meet people and the animals and to feel part of the world around me. Reiki is an amazing gift which I am truly grateful for.

I find working with animals in a shelter environment to be extremely rewarding, as do many others. Those of us in SARA have made it our mission to bring Reiki to as many animal shelters as possible. Of course, there are more shelters than there are SARA members, so it’s very important for us to find other Reiki practitioners willing to share Reiki with shelter animals.

This is not as easy as it might seem. It’s not difficult to find a Reiki practitioner who will offer Reiki over distance to a shelter or a particular animal if requested. The difficulty arises in finding those Reiki practitioners who are willing to visit shelters and work with the animals and staff directly.

I’m sure you have encountered people who say things like “Oh, I can’t go to the animal shelter. It just breaks my heart to see those poor animals!” Many can’t bear the thought of animals in some shelters being euthanized. Still others find themselves frustrated because they “can’t take them all home.” At the heart of all the reasons people give is the fear of their own emotions.

Reiki practitioners are not immune to these fears. We as healers have as our first duty to heal ourselves. We can’t create a healing space for others if we do not have the ability to create that inner space for ourselves first. That does not mean we have to be completely healed in order to offer Reiki to others. If that were the case, virtually no one would be offering Reiki! What it does mean is that we must be able to recognize when we are out of balance and practice bringing ourselves back to a more grounded place.

The more we practice offering ourselves Reiki, the better we’re able to achieve the balance we desire. The more confidence we gain in being able to balance ourselves, the less fearful we are of our emotions running out of control. The key is to practice before putting ourselves into potentially stressful situations.

If you are considering offering Reiki to shelter animals, but have had difficulty in the past coping with the shelter environment, you will need to research the shelters in your area to find one that is a good fit for you. Not everyone can work in a euthanizing shelter. For them, a no-kill shelter is obviously a better choice. Fortunately, there are more no-kill shelters today than ever before so the chances of finding one nearby are much greater.

Once you have found a shelter that seems to be a good fit, start slowly. Visit the shelter occasionally and get to know the environment before making a commitment. Observe your reactions to different situations and evaluate them as objectively as you can to see if you’re simply reacting or if there’s something deeper going on. Often we react to things based on past history instead of seeing each experience as new and different.

Don’t expect to be devoid of emotion. We humans are emotional creatures. If something upsets you, acknowledge it and remove yourself from the situation as much as possible. Try looking at it another way. For example, many people say they feel great sadness about all the animals in the shelter. Rather than being sad for the animals in the shelter, be grateful that they are safe and cared for and have a place to sleep. Appreciating the shelter’s service toward its residents will help turn the negative view into a positive one.

If you or someone you know would like to help shelter animals, but are hesitant, I hope the above will help convince you to give it a try. The animals and shelter staff can use all the help they can get!

…posted by John Sawyer

Larry is a brindle boxer of indeterminate, but apparently advanced age. He came to Animals In Distress several months ago riding in the bed of a pickup truck along with another dog with whom he’d been wandering in a rural area nearby. An elderly woman saw them and ordered her sons to go get them before they were hit by cars or otherwise harmed.

Larry and his traveling companion had obviously been dumped out in the country and had no idea where to go or what to do. It’s fortunate for them that they were seen and brought to AID. Both were emaciated and full of sores. They were taken for veterinary care and afterward, with the love and support of the AID staff and volunteers, began their healing process.

Larry did well, putting on weight and gaining a healthy shine to his beautiful coat. Then, after a time, Larry began to limp on is right foreleg. X-rays and other tests determined that he has bone cancer which has spread to his lungs and elsewhere. He now has a pronounced bulge in his right shoulder that continues to grow. The cancer is aggressive and resistant to known treatment methods. The vets gave him a very poor prognosis and estimated he would live another three months.

I began working with Larry shortly after his diagnosis. After being introduced, we went into the introduction room to get better acquainted. Larry was interested in me for a few minutes, but then was distracted by conversations and laughter going on out in the reception area. I quickly learned that Larry is a very curious fellow and likes to know what’s going on at all times!

It’s not unusual in the beginning of my relationship with animals at the shelter for them to be interested in Reiki for a very short time. Many of them grow to enjoy it more as time goes on. Others love it from the first moment and soak it up. Still others are receptive at first, but then make it clear that they have better things to do that receive Reiki.

My first session with Larry was perhaps 5 minutes. He was becoming more agitated and clearly wanted out of the room to go see what was going on out in the reception area. So, out we went and Larry thoroughly investigated the situation.

After several sessions that played out essentially the same way, I came to the conclusion that Larry simply wasn’t receptive to Reiki. I stopped seeing him on my weekly visits and focused on other dogs and cats that were referred to me by the shelter staff. I always ask about Larry and the report iss always the same: he’s doing fine with regular pain management and is as curious as ever.

One day one of the shelter staff, a Reiki student of mine, pulled me aside and told me of an experience another of my students on the staff had had with Larry recently. She had been sitting with Larry in his run petting him and had gone into a sort of meditative state. She felt Reiki begin to flow through her and realized that Larry was drawing Reiki energy! She said she felt a wave of sadness pass over her and had the feeling that it came from Larry. He continued to draw Reiki for a few minutes, then it stopped.

Clearly, Larry had set his own criteria for his Reiki session. It was completely in his control, as it should be. My student had created a healing space and Larry chose to enter it, albeit for a brief time.

I was reminded when hearing this story of how we as practitioners must remember to simply create the healing space and let the animals choose to enter it or not. I had to admit that I had not done as good a job of that as I could have when working with Larry. I had let my expectations that he would gradually accept Reiki more readily take precedence over my primary task. Larry had been trying to tell me not that he wasn’t interested in Reiki, but that he wanted it on his own terms in his own time.

All the animals, our own and those we work with, are our teachers. It is our obligation to honor their wisdom and acknowledge their spiritual being. If we may offer them Reiki, so much the better, but that is for them to decide.