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Discussion: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
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trish.e |
An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 11 2008, 8:55 AM EDT
I started my Reiki journey because of my dogs and cats, seeking a way to help them that was outside western medical protocol. My experience is largely with dogs and cats: I have not treated many horses, birds , fish, or other critters. Now I work professionally to provide Reiki treatments to others.In my experience with working with my own and my friends' animal companions, I have found the advice of Usui Sensei in his Reiki Ryoho Hikkei to be of great value. In his words, "Ki and light are radiated from the healer's body, especially from the eyes, mouth and hands. So if the healer stares, breathes on or strokes with hands the affected area... pain will be gone." I have found that most dogs and cats are extremely sensitive to Reiki, and direct hand positions are uncomfortable for them. Rather than try to work with specific hand positions, I find that if a dog or cat will allow me to pet them, then the stroking motions that you would use to comfort an animal companion anyway are usually very well accepted. Consciously direct the gaze and breath with the intent of sharing Reiki, and the treatment occurs without having to "confine" a pet with specific hand positions. An advantage to bringing in the gaze and breath into our Reiki work is that if the dog or cat is unfomfortable with the touch of unfamiliar hands (as was my Indi when I rescued him) then the treatment can still occur without forcing touch. Combine the above with sensitivity to whether the "patient" is willing to receive the treatment. Just because they can't vocalize 'no' does not imply an automatic yes. When unsure of permission in a professional treatment setting, I "intend" to offer the Reiki to the animal, and acknowledge that they will take only what they need. 7 out of 7 found this valuable. Do you?
Keyword tags:
Animals
Hand positions
Reiki treatments
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cartsort |
1. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 11 2008, 10:01 AM EDT
I agree with some of what you said about worksing with animals. Reiki for animals needs to be approached differently than when working with humans. The first step is to ask their permission by saying something like, "would you like some Reiki right now?" If you have not learned to 'listen for the NO back" just practice. Everyone has the ability to telepathically communicate with animals. We do it all the time, but just practice and listen for the 'yes' or 'no' and then respect their wishes. If they say NO then tell them you will come back later. If they say YES then you can move forward. I teach all of my level one Reiki students to always begin offering Reiki hands off. This empowers the animal and allows them to come to you or stay at a distance. This is perfect when working with shelter and/or rescue animals. I teach my students to use the Hara breathing technique (you can find this on the IHR website) and just breathe into your hara center, expand the Reiki energy through your body and out. The animal just love this and will respond in kind by relaxing where they are or coming to you and placing the body part in your hand(s). That is a clear signal that they are ready for hands on healing. As far as the "staring". I would never do that with an animal. We all know what it feels like to be stared at. It is very uncomfortable. Animal are even more sensitive than we are. Frans and Bronwen's teachings make Reiki very simple. So all you have to do is the Hara breathing and the animals will take what they need for their highest good in that moment in time. How good is that? Do you find this valuable? |
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trish.e |
2. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 11 2008, 10:40 AM EDT
cartsort said: "The first step is to ask their permission by saying something like, "would you like some Reiki right now?" If you have not learned to 'listen for the NO back" just practice. Everyone has the ability to telepathically communicate with animals. We do it all the time, but just practice and listen for the 'yes' or 'no' and then respect their wishes. If they say NO then tell them you will come back later. If they say YES then you can move forward."My experience is that animals are not always certain and may not give definitve answers. Especially with damaged or abused animals, the bulk of my pet clientele, I find that even when in need, trust is a big issue! I have often received a non-answer. I was simply sharing what I have found to be the most effective and the least intrusive in a professional treatment setting. With this approach, the dog's dignity and privacy are respected. I always communicate this type of exchange with the human care-giver, to avoid any future misunderstanding. cartsort said: "As far as the "staring". I would never do that with an animal. We all know what it feels like to be stared at. It is very uncomfortable." Direct eye contact is inadvisable, with aggressive dogs especially. However, in my own practice, I have found that gazing upon on an affected area to be an important and effective component of the treatment. I should add here that I find gentle gazing to be vastly different than staring. The use of the word "staring" was in making a direct quote from the translation of the Hikkei that I own. I think perhaps neither Usui Sensei nor the translator of the Hikkei had dogs in mind when that word choice was made! Still it is a good reminder to avoid direct eye contact with certain dogs, since it is part of their "posturing vocabulary" that helps establish dominance, and is considered confrontational. 1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
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cartsort |
3. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 11 2008, 2:14 PM EDT
Hi Trish- My name is Janet Dobbs. I am enjoying our exchange about Reiki and working with animals. It sounds to me like you have worked with shelter and rescue animals. This is very important work. You might be interested in the work that Kathleen Prasad www.animalreikisource.com is doing at this moment. She is in the process of writing a curriculum that will be used to teach shelter volunteers and workers how to work with their animals and Reiki. As you know, Reiki is the perfect modality to us with animals in shelter/rescue situations because you don't have to touch them. I have worked with animal massage, healing touch and many other modalities with these animals and always come back to Reiki as well as animal communication. The animals response to this work is amazing. You said, "My experience is that animals are not always certain and may not give definitve answers. Especially with damaged or abused animals, the bulk of my pet clientele, I find that even when in need, trust is a big issue!" I always receive some kind of information from an animal in this kind of situtation. You might have to distance yourself (physically) and then open to their communication, but it will come with patience and counseling skills. Sometimes just being in the quiet Reiki energy and not doing anything else is all that they need. Yes, trust issues are huge with many of them. I have worked with some of the most fear ridden and abused animals and if you just sit in the Reiki space they will quiet and respond by actually falling asleep. As you know, that kind of a response in a noisy shelter is to me a miracle. As you know, gaining their trust takes time and patience. How lucky they are to have someone like you. You said: "I have often received a non-answer." That can happen sometimes, but usually the have answered in some way. Like you, I alwasy respect them if they don't want to talk about a subject. Thank you for posting this thread. Do you find this valuable? |
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trish.e |
4. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 11 2008, 8:31 PM EDT
"Sometimes just being in the quiet Reiki energy and not doing anything else is all that they need. Yes, trust issues are huge with many of them. I have worked with some of the most fear ridden and abused animals and if you just sit in the Reiki space they will quiet and respond by actually falling asleep. "Hi Janet! I am enjoying this too, very much! It seems that Reiki for other-than-humans is becoming more popular and "main stream". =-) You know, I actually do not consider myself to be an animal communicator, or really any kind of psychic in the "conventional" sense. (Is that an oxymoron?) I know there are those of you who have this gift, and I do believe it is possible to increase psychic abilities with practice. Certainly, I rely on intuition when I share a Reiki treatment with anyone at all, regardless of species. But with four-leggeds, I tend to fall back on more mundane tools, like observation and listening to the human companion. As a result, I don't teach anything resembling animal communication in my Reiki classes. We do talk about using intuition, though, for Reiki treatments in general. To date, I have not yet taught an "animal Reiki" class specifically, but include a section in my level 1 classes. (That may change soon, though. A local dog club has asked me to organize a class for them, so I've been working on a lesson plan for that.) So Janet, in your classes, when you are teaching your students to "communicate", how do you deal with the temptation diagnose with Reiki, by mixing it with communication? Seems that it might be hard to keep the two separate? "Just being in the quiet Reiki energy" is at the heart of what I was saying earlier today. Like you, I've observed this relaxation response by just being there and, as Usui put it, "radiating Ki and Light". It's wonderful to see and be part of, isn't it? Do you find this valuable? |
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cartsort |
5. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 11 2008, 10:14 PM EDT
"Hi Janet! I am enjoying this too, very much! It seems that Reiki for other-than-humans is becoming more popular and "main stream". =-)Hi Trish - How do you put the quote into your message? I am new to this. Ha! Reiki for our animal companions, wild animals and animals in general is not as common as Reiki for humans, but there is a movement afoot. :-) You are a big part of it. This is such an exciting time. You have asked some very good questions and brought up some good points. Have you read Kathleen Prasad's book Animal Reiki? Kathleen doesn't claim to be an animal communicator either, but she is, and there are several places in the book that mention communication from animals that are receiving Reiki.. We all have this ability. We are all born with the ability to communicate with our animals telepathically. You mentioned that you do this. It is very natural when you are sitting in the quiet Reiki space to receive information from the animal. It may come as words in your head, pictures in your head, a sense of knowing in your heart or gut, as well as through all of your senses such as physical sensations in your body that you know are not yours. I don't teach animal communication in my Reiki classes, but the two go hand in hand if you ask me. Yes there are people that have a 'gift' of intuition or mediumship, but with practice we all can receive communication from our animals. How great is that? I am sure that you receive messages and information without realizing it. The animals love you so much. You say that you use the tools of body language and the animal's human companion. Well you can go even deeper with your connection. You just have to trust yourself and open. Reiki will help you. :-) I'm so happy to hear that you will be teaching animal Reiki soon. I teach human Reiki on one day and the following day complete say level I and the work with the animals the rest of day two. It is so much fun. I never 'diagnose" In my state only a lic. vet. can do that. As you know, Reiki and 'intuition' go hand in hand. All my best - Janet Dobbs 0 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
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trish.e |
6. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 12 2008, 8:52 AM EDT
"Have you read Kathleen Prasad's book Animal Reiki? Kathleen doesn't claim to be an animal communicator either, but she is, and there are several places in the book that mention communication from animals that are receiving Reiki... We all have this ability. We are all born with the ability to communicate with our animals telepathically. ... I don't teach animal communication in my Reiki classes, but the two go hand in hand if you ask me. "I have to confess... I thought I was clicking that I found your post useful, but somehow it came up as "0 of 1 found this useful". I *did* find it useful, so please accept my most humble apology!!! =-O I have not read Kathleen's book YET, but is on the list! Currently re-reading 'The Japanese Art of Reiki' while I work through the Three Diamonds course. I teach yoga too, and something is coming up for me that I want to share. In the Yoga Sutras, the sage Patanjali devotes an entire chapter (there are only four) to the Siddhis, or "special yogic powers". These include things like defying gravity, being in two places at once, special healing abilities, ability to hear the thoughts of others, knowledge of the contents of people's hearts and souls, and so on. It's a pretty long and remarkable list. The gist of the chapter is that "if you meditate regularly and deeply, you may begin to experience some of these effects." But after describing these meditation "side effects" in great detail, he issues a warning: pay no attention to these things! They may be useful, and certainly spectacular, but they are not the goal of practice! The goal is union with the All, with the Divine. These meditative "side effects", if we become attached to them, can actually divert us right back into the ego, and away from our spiritual path. I can see a parallel between the Siddhis and the development of tenohira and intuition in Reiki spiritual practice. I wonder if, by linking about Reiki and psychic abilities too closely, we may be clouding the fact that the practice enhances tenohira and increases intuition... but that these things are not prerequisites to practicing. I wonder too, that if emphasis of special abilities may cause students to doubt the veracity of their Reiki practice if they feel they aren't receiving "communication." 3 out of 3 found this valuable. Do you? |
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trish.e |
7. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 12 2008, 8:55 AM EDT
"Hi Trish - How do you put the quote into your message? "Oh.. click "quote and reply". The quote shows up below your message box, and you can edit out anything you don't need! :) Have a lovely day, off to my corporate life now. (I'm a technical writer for a water testing company.) Love and Reiju! Trish 1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
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cartsort |
8. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 12 2008, 11:21 AM EDT
"I have not read Kathleen's book YET, but is on the list! Currently re-reading 'The Japanese Art of Reiki' while I work through the Three Diamonds course.Hi Trish - I am also working on the 3 Diamonds course. When the time is right you will read Animal Reiki. Remember that it was written before Kathleen met Frans. Like Frans, Kathleen (me too!) had changed her practice and teaching. I am so grateful that I met Frans and Bronwen. The Shinpiden course changed my life as well as the way that I teach and practice Reiki. Their teachings go perfectly with working with animals and Reiki. As I sat through the Shinpiden course the first time I keep thinking to myself, "Yes, that is how I work with the animals." 1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
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cartsort |
9. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 12 2008, 12:10 PM EDT
" In the Yoga Sutras, or "special yogic powers". These include things like defying gravity, being in two places at once, special healing abilities, ability to hear the thoughts of others, knowledge of the contents of people's hearts and souls, and so on. It's a pretty long and remarkable list. The gist of the chapter is that "if you meditate regularly and deeply, you may begin to experience some of these effects."Thank you for sharing this about yoga. I have never taken a yoga course, but keep receiving a 'message' to do that.I love that Reiki works and compliments so many modalities. I find what you share about the Siddhis facinating. It is very important to keep our ego out of our Reiki practice as well as an animal communication practice. I have seen several very talented communicators that have allowed their ego to get in the way, get slammed and are no longer practicing professionally. I subscribe to Penelope Smith's (www.animaltalk.net) strict code of ethics as well as Kathleen Prasad's Animal Reiki code of ethics. It is very important to always remember that we are just facilators (sp???), the Reiki flows through us, but we are not "doing" it to them. Also when I am having a conversation with an animal, I am JUST the translator, like a translator translating a forgin (sp??) language. I love what Frans teaches in the Shinpiden course: just observe what ever comes up and say something like, "On that's nice" or "That's interesting" and let it go. Don't make anything out of what ever comes up. I feel this is a powerful teaching. I imagine that like yoga practice, our Reiki practice will also take us to the same levels and experiences that you mention in the Siddhis. So if we remember to stay grounded in all that we do we will learn how to use the wonderful side effects (such as healing abilities, hearing thoughts of others, etc) in ethical ways for the highest good. Continuing to work on our self practice, everything will fall into place. Again mentioning what Frans teaches, we do our self practices and the side effects are hands on healing as well as all that you mention. I guess I am saying that I am in total agreement with what you said. Continued in the next post...... 1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
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cartsort |
10. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Jun 12 2008, 12:15 PM EDT
"I wonder if, by linking about Reiki and psychic abilities too closely, we may be clouding the fact that the practice enhances tenohira and increases intuition... but that these things are not prerequisites to practicing. I wonder too, that if emphasis of special abilities may cause students to doubt the veracity of their Reiki practice if they feel they aren't receiving "communication.""To continue the above thread..... Our self Reiki practice enhances hands on healing as well as intuition and many other things. I tell my Reiki students not to focus on communication, but their self practices. Everyone wants to do the hands on healing, especially with their animals. I just bring them back to the Hara breathing exercises. That one exercise is the key to our Reiki practice, I feel. It is just that simple. All we ahve to do is breath the Reiki energy into our hara and as we breath out send the energy through out our body and then out and expand with each breath. Usui became the energy and his students would just sit with him and receive what they needed. There was no touching. That is how we work with the animals, especially the shelter animals. The animals are so sensitive to energy and they will come to us if that is what then need, and actually place a body part right in your hand. Other wise they will just lay down (or stand if a horse) and take what they need. We just have to do our practices, breathe and expand the energy. Everything else is magic. 1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
Denisedm4 |
11. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Aug 21 2008, 9:30 PM EDT
Thank you so much for the idea to use Hara breathing when doing Reiki on animals. I have a very beloved cat of 16 years who has had chronic renal failure for 4 or 5 months. She gets sub-q fluids twice a week. I feel a little desperate at times to give her Reiki, but unless she is very very ill she will not allow me to do hands on sometimes. When she is at her worst she wants my hands on her for an hour or more. Otherwise she just walks away. Lately I've been using a teddy bear to give her Reiki. I put all the symbols on her then the teddy bear and sit next to her. I intend the Reiki energy to go to her and put my hands on the bear where ever I am guided to. The Reiki flows quite strongly and my kitty Buttons seems to relax right into it. I am willing to try anything to help her. She is such a sweet girl and I love her so much. I don't want her to die from renal failure. I know she is not going to live forever but I would love for her to be here for a couple more years if that is at all possible. I'm going to try the Hara breathing exercise next. Buttons and I would appreciate your distance healing as well. Our warmest regards and deepest gratitude to you for any assistance. Love, light and many sacred blessings, Denise and Buttons Long Beach, CA. USA 1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
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wilfpalmer |
12. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Feb 21 2009, 6:09 AM EST
I find placing one hand on the shoulder and one hand on the top of the head really sends my great dane into almost mditaion mode who knows maybe she is, there is def a big sigh, and the bonding is strong , wilfpalmer, jook
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trish.e |
13. RE: An alternative to hand positions with dogs and cats
Feb 21 2009, 1:37 PM EST
"I find placing one hand on the shoulder and one hand on the top of the head really sends my great dane into almost mditaion mode who knows maybe she is, there is def a big sigh, and the bonding is strong , wilfpalmer, jook"Hi Wilf, Yeah, I know that big sigh. =) Trish Do you find this valuable? |
