TTouch and Reiki with Mayor's Alliance Rescue Cats, March 28

There is a bigger gang of kitties at the boarding facility where I work with the Mayor's Alliance rescue cats these days, so I had my hands full when I went there. Blackie is a friendly cat, but I think she was a bit over-excited today and she started to hiss after a few TTouches on her head. So I decided to back off, and did Reiki with her from a short distance away (about a foot). Within a fairly short time, she really became relaxed. Buddy is a gentle, very sweet cat. Initially he was in the back of the cage, but after a few TTouches he came to the front of his cage. He was in a relaxed mood, and seemed to feel like staying in his cage this time. I did gentle TTouches around his ears and forehead, which he found to be very calming. He has such a wise, kind face! Honey was extremely shy last week when I worked with her. She is still a bit shy initially, so I worked with her very gradually. She was comfortable with TTouches on the head, but seemed a bit startled when I started to work in some TTouches on the body. To help her relax, I backed off doing TTouches on her in the cage, and instead offered her Reiki from a short distance away. After a few minutes, she walked out of her cage and came right towards me. She rubbed herself against my corduroy pants (around my shin area - and betan walking back and forth, rubbing against me. I decided to try moving my legs in a circular motion as she did this, then did some very light llama TTouches going from her head to her back as she walked by. What helped her really turn the corner today was backing off, offering her Reiki and letting her come to me as she was comfortable. I continued sending her Reiki energy as I did the TTouches on her as well. Kobie, is a friendly, but active little guy. As I did some TTouches on him, he laid on his side for a bit, then got up and ran around for a bit again. As he is generally pretty high energy, I try to use slow, calming TTouches, so I used the abalone TTouch on him (circular TTouches using the whole hand), then tarantula pulling the plough, which helps to connect down the back, and some slow zigzags. I offered him some hands-on Reiki as well, which helped to calm his energy. Maddie is very friendly, and gets so excited for contact that she actually drooled while I was interacting with her. She walked back and forth across my lap as I did abalone TTouches and slow mouth TTouches with her. Marette is so cute and quite a character, as you can see from the photo above :) She is still somewhat shy and can get startled easily though. I used a small one-inch foam brush to do some small circular TTouches around the outside of her mouth and around her ears and head. After this, she decided to come out of her cage, so I did some slow TTouches on her, just a few at a time, and offered her Reiki as well. Munchie still shys away from contact initially but then starts seeking contact. He is very playful. After I opened his cage, today he started rubbing himself against the cage instead of staying at the back of teh cage. He batted at the back scratcher when I started to use it with him, but then was more receptive when I used two long feathers to work with him. He played with one feather while I touched him with the other feather. When I do TTouches using a feather, I do very light circular touches, making the usual circle and a quarther, starting at 6 o clock and going all the way around and back to 9 o'clock. I intersperse these with straight strokes going down the body or stroking on the head. Nene is a gentle, sweet cat. He can get a bit frightened of the other cats, and today he seemed to feel like staying in his cage, so I did TTouches on him there. I did very slow, soothing Abalone TTouches on him, as well as ear strokes. These helped to calm and settle him. Pedro, who had initially been a bit reticent, is now extremely friendly and comfortable. He came right up to me and rubbed his head against my head. I did slow TTouches on his forehead, which can be a great place to do calming TTouches. He came out of the cage and came to me when I called him from the couch and settled on my lap I did slow abalone TTouches on him while he stayed there. Great to see him so outgoing and affectionate. Spock (above and below) is a very engaging, friendly new tuxedo cat, seems to be a very young cat. He had been meowing and waiting at the front of his cage for attention. I sat on the couch and called to him and he came and spread himself out right on my lap, very sweet. I did little raccoon TTouches on his head and ears, then did clouded leopard TTouches going down his body on either side. I also did some slow zigzag TTouches for a very connecting, calming feeling. Tango (below) has been there for a while. He has a bit of trouble using his back legs completely (thought to perhaps be a neurological issue), tends to swing them around his body instead of fully bending and using them, but his walking has been getting easier, more natural and smoother little by little each week. I have used a Ttouch wrap on him a few times, but he really was not interested in having the wrap put on him this week, so I did very slow octopus TTouches (like double zigzag TTouches) going all over his body from front to back and down his legs as well, sort of like a slowly moving wrap going around his body. This can have a similar effect to the wrap in that it gently increases body awareness and connection. I also did slow connected clouded leopard TTouches going down either side of his back. Mack (below) is an extremely gentle, sweet cat. Sometimes he is a bit reluctant to come right out of his cage, though, as you can see, he waits right at the front of his cage for attention. He is very friendly and receptive to touch when I bring him out of his cage and is completely fine with being picked up. I did gentle ear strokes with him, which can be extremely calming. His ears are on the big side, and he especially responds to the ear strokes. I also did slow, connected clouded leopard TTouches down his body to give him more body awareness and confidence. When I had finished working with all the cats, I spent a little time standing in the middle of the room, sending gentle Reiki energy to all of them. Much love to all these cats and hoping for them all to go to wonderful forever homes soon.

TTouch and Reiki at BARC shelter: update on Dr. Teeth

Dr. Teeth is a very shy female cat who arrived at BARC shelter some time ago along with a bunch of other cats whose owner had passed away. She was the shyest of all these cats. I have been working with her very quietly, and she has very gradually been getting more comfortable in general and more comfortable being touched.
She is more comfortable with being touched on the body than on the head, so that is usually where I start. For quite a while, I was only touching her with a long-handled paintbrush, doing little circular touches and strokes going down her body, starting just a few touches at a time, taking a break, and continuing. I could see her realizing that these touches were actually very relaxing, so she became very comfortable with me doing this.
The next step was to start incorporating touches with my hand, so I did a few touches with the brush, then some circles with the back of my fingers or back of my hand, then back to the brush, still mostly doing TTouches on the body. Then I started integrating a few touches around the base of the neck, working up to doing touches on the head.
Last Saturday I decided to try a bit of Reiki with her before I began doing the TTouches. First I held my hand slightly over her body, above one side of the brachial chakra. Chakras are energy centers of the body, and the brachial chakra is one that apparently only animals have, that is located near the two shoulders. That is a good place to start, as it connects to other energy centers. Then I held my hand slightly over her heart chakra, and this seemed to be a really important area to work, as I felt a real response and relaxation by her there. Below you will see a video of me doing a bit of Reiki with her over this chakra, and she really settles after a minute of doing this. Sorry it is dark and a bit hard to see. I alternated between doing the energy work over this chakra and doing some circular TTouches with my hand down her body, and then working in some TTouches around her neck and forehead. I felt a relaxation as a result of the Reiki that I had not felt with this cat before.

When I next came back into the shelter on Tuesday, Dr. Teeth greeted me at the front of her cage, which is something really new for her, to see her seeking human connection. When I was doing Reiki with a cat next to her, I saw her watching me, as though she was watching and feeling the energy waves.
Then when I worked with her, again I alternated between doing energy work with my hand slightly off of her, then doing some TTouches. When my hand first touches her, she still will move to the back of her cage initially, then settles into it. She doesn’t hiss anymore. And then when I do energy work with her, she starts to move forward in her cage again, settling.
When a cat starts to really settle like she is now, I can feel her personality starting to come forth, and in this case I felt that balancing the heart chakra helped me to start to feel a deeper, more tangible connection.When I left, I thanked her for trusting me enough to make that connection. I look forward to working with her again.

TTouch and Reiki with Mayor's Alliance Rescue Cats: March 21

Fun day today with the Mayor's Alliance Rescue cats through Tavi & Friends' TTouch-in-Rescue program, some new cats and some cats I have been friends with for a while. It is great that the setup often allows for the cats be let out of their cages to work with them. The first cat I worked with today is Blackie. She is a cat who is sensitive being touched on her back end, she will grown a bit if you go there. I did manage to work in a few slow abalone touches in that area, gently working down her back. Then I went back to working on her upper body, and did some raccoon TTouches on her forehead, and some ear strokes. I work very gently and slowly, giving her breaks, as she is quite sensitive in general and can become overstimulated. I worked with Honey a couple of times during my session there today. She is new, and was rather frightened, so I first did TTouch on her head, then did some Reiki with her, focusing on the key chakras and heart chakras. Hands-on seemed to be too intense for her, so I then moved a short distance away from her, and she was very receptive. When I came back to her later in the session, she rubbed her head against my hand as I did some TTouches with her. I kept that session short as I didn't want to overwhelm her. I've worked with Kobie (above) for a while, and he is always excited to come outof his cage, waiting for me with his paws up against the front of his cage. I did some llama TTouches and chimp touches on him here and there, as he was really more in a mood to play today. Mack is very familiar and friendly with me now, and was in the mood to play, so I mostly did some TTouches on him with the back of my hand, calming his energy a bit. Maddie is new. She was in the back of the cage initially, and slowly came towards me, meowing when I opened the door to her cage. I wasn't quite sure whether it was a friendly meow or not so I was a bit cautious with her at first, but soon she was rubbing her head against my hand, and even sitting up on her back legs and pushing against my hand. I did Chimp TTouch, Llama, TTouch, Noah's march using the back of my hand as she came towards me and started walking back and forth, rubbing herself against me. Turns out it was indeed a friendly meow at that! Magette was also new, and is rather skittish. I started out using a foam brush, doing little circles on the outside of her mouth area, which is a great area to work on fearful cats. She was very responsive to this. I also tried using the back scratcher with her, but she seemed to think this was too large a surface and seemed frightened of this, so I stopped. Then I was able to do a few TTouches on her body using my hand, but I kept this short. Munchie is new, and was hiding in the corner initially. I began doing some circular TTouches on him, using a plastic back scratcher, and he really responded to this. Within a short time, I was able to work my hand down the handle of the back scratcher to do some TTouches directly with my hand on him. Later I was able to do more TTouches on him using my hand, and he was very responsive, rolling around and looking very comfortable. Mack is a very sweet, gentle cat who can get a bit startled around other cats. I find that with him, the TTouches he responds to the most are abalone TTouches, done very slowly going down his body. He finds these very relaxing. Pedro is quite a character. Sometimes he puts his paws on my chest and comes right up to say hello. I did connected clouded leopard TTouches and abalone TTouches on his body. I also found he really responded to Reiki - I worked on the key chakra, heart and solar plexus chakras, and he really settled into the energy. He can be a bit on the tense side, so this worked really well.

With Tango, I used the Tarantulas Pulling the Plough touch, clouded leopard TTouches down his back, and the zigzag and octopus TTouches. All of these are great for connecting the front and back ends of the body, which is especially important for him as he has a bit of an issue with his back legs, which seems to be easing up as time goes by. I also put a folded-up ace bandage across his back (instead of doing a body wrap with him using the bandage) just to remind him of his back, and help bring him back into his body. Sometimes I have done a half-wrap with him, but this time I felt that placing it over his body was enough.

Thank you one and all, look forward to seeing you soon (unless you get adopted, which would be even better)!

Connecting with Krishna

Hi folks, recently I had a call from a woman named Rebecca who had picked up my card in a local pet store.

Her lovely black cat, Krishna, is about two and a half years old. He used to be friendly with his owners and with other people, but ever since they went away on a week-long trip about a year ago (with a cat sitter staying in the apt with him), he reacts to anyone other than Rebecca or her fiance by swatting and scratching. They would love to be able to have him more comfortable with other people so that they could go away without too much of a trauma, and it would be great to have him comfortable enough to connect with friends who come to visit.

He is a highly intelligent, playful, inquisitive being, and is extremely comfortable around Rebecca and her fiance. They pet and handle him even in more touchy areas like around his teeth, etc., without being scratched.

I took with me a variety of tools (paintbrushes, feathers, wands, paint rollers, makeup brushes, a dowel with an ace bandage wrapped around it, etc), as well as two stuffed cats so that I could show Rebecca the TTouches if it was not possible to touch the cat.

I have to admit that when I saw Krishna, I felt so pulled towards him that I couldn't help but try to touch him gently using the back of my hand, oops! He wasn't ready for that, so he did give me a swat, but nothing serious. So then I gave him a little break, and then started in the way I should have started with him, using the tools. :)

First I tried a few circles using one of the TTouch wands. He batted at it a bit. I tried a couple of times, then decided to show Rebecca some TTouches, which we did, using the stuffed animals. Krishna was watching us, very curious about the stuffed animals and about what we were doing.

Then I tried a few of the tools, to see what he was most comfortable with, and where he was most comfortable being touched. I found that he was very comfortable with a paintbrush which had a rounded tip and was not too soft, but not too stiff. I started to stroke under his chin just the tiniest bit, and do little circles around his mouth. I would just do a little bit, then stop and let him have a break for a minute, then start again. At first he was biting a bit at the brush, but as I continued, he realized that the strokes were actually feeling pretty good :)

His tail was going back and forth, but he was also blinking at me, so it seemed like he was both curious and cautious at the same time. Rebecca was very tuned in to all of Krishna's signals, it was clear how truly connected she and Krishna are.

Little by little, Krishna started to be more responsive to the little circles and strokes, and I began to work in some strokes down the body. He was coming closer and closer to me as well. I also worked with him using a thin wooden dowel with part of a 2" ace bandage wrapped around the end (in TTouch we call it a "corn dog"). Krishna was responsive to this surface as well. I did little circles on his skin, as well as rolling the "corn dog" along his body, and stroking him with it.

Krishna's tail was not whipping back and forth now, and he seemed much more calm. He came towards his food bowl, which was right next to where I was sitting, and when Rebecca gave him some food, he ate it with no hesitation or concern that I was sitting so close.

From where Krishna was at the beginning of the appointment, I thought this was wonderful progress for him. I told Rebecca to make sure that when her friends use the paintbrush or the wand and corn dog with him, to make sure to use a light touch, and just do a little at a time. I also gave her a Bach Flower remedy which combined several flower essences which should all gently work to help Krishna to be feel more comfortable and safe.

I feel confident that with a combination of them doing the TTouches on him and the friends trying to touch him with the tools instead of their hands, eventually Krishna will be more confident. I look forward to hearing what happens next.

TTouch with the Mayor's Alliance Rescue Cats: March 14

Blackie is a female kitty who recently arrived at the boarding facility where I work with the rescue cats from the Mayor's Alliance through Tavi & Friends' TTouch-in-Rescue Program. She looks a little serious in the above picture, but I think that is just a reaction to the camera, as she is actually extremely friendly. She started purring right away when I started doing TTouch on her, and as I wanted to slow her energy down, I used LLama TTouch (circular TTouches using the back of the hand) and abalone TTouch a circular TTouch done using the front surface of the whole hand. I did these quite slowly. The more slowly these touches are done, the more relaxing they can be.

Brie tends to get over-stimulated, so I work with her quite slowly and let her dictate how much contact she is in the mood for. Our usual pattern is for me to offer the back of my hand to her, and she rubs her head against it. Then I did some chimp and abalone TTouches going down either side of her back. I didn't do this for too long, and then tried again in a bit. Then I did Reiki on her from a short distance away, maybe a couple of feet away. I could see her eyes starting to close and she got quite settled as I sent her the calming energy.

Kobie is extremely playful, and the TTouch is very relaxing to him. He is comfortable being touched most places on his body, but today he especially responded to raccoon TTouches done on the outside of the mouth. This area connects to some emotional centers of the body, so it can be extremely soothing to work there. He is an extremely gentle cat, and unlike many rescue cats, he is gentle with his paws and already seems to know how to play with people without extending his claws. I was able to do some TTouches around his paws, which can be a difficult area for some cats, but it is a great area to work if you can, as it can get a cat used to being touched there, which is helpful when you want to clip the claws.

Mack is such a sweet, friendly cat, and now is always eager to come out of his cage for some attention. I sit on the couch and he comes right up on my lap. He especially responds to ear strokes, really leaning into them. He also responds to llama TTouch and clouded leopard TTouch, but the ear strokes really bring his energy into calm focus.

Nene is very sweet with people but seems to be a little startled and frightened of other cats. When I am working with him outside of his cage, when he sees or smells other cats, he may growl or hiss. However, after I did TTouch with him out of his cage on the couch for a while, he got SO comfortable. Sometimes he licked my hand. I did very slow abalone TTouches on his back, and he began purring and purring. I also did Llama TTouches and Noah's March with the back of my hand, then more abalone TTouches. What a sweet face.

Pedro is new. He was strongly seeking attention, meowing a lot. When I opened his cage, he leaned against me, purring. As he leaned and rubbed against me, I did clouded leopard TTouches and abalone TTouches on his back. I also offered him Reiki, putting my hands first on the brachial or key chakra (near his shoulders), then held my hand slightly over the heart chakra, which can be an especially powerful energy center to focus on for rescue cats. I could feel a lot of heat there, and could feel him really soaking the energy in.

I did a half-wrap with Tango again (below see link for how to do this)

http://www.youtube.com/sarahsuricat#p/u/23/N83oXBZy0KM

Again, I put it on him a little at a time, first placing it folded across his back, then putting it on part way and taking it off, etc. until I had it all the way on him. As he has done before, he seemed a bit confused by the different sensation of the wrap. He walked a few steps, then stretched out on his side with the wrap on. After I took the wrap off, I did notice him walking a bit better, using his back legs more fully. I also did Octopus TTouch with him, which is like a double zigzag touch. It is a wonderful TTouch for connecting the body. I did it going down his front legs, around his body and then down his hind legs. He really responded to this TTouch and it appeared to make him feel very good. Before I left, I also did some Reiki with him while he was back in his cage, and I was outside his cage, about a foot away. I could see that it really was soothing to him, and he stretched out and put his paw up to the plexiglass on the front of the cage, as if to make better contact with the energy.

Thanks to all you cats! and look forward to seeing you again soon.

TTouch and Reiki at BARC Shelter: Update on Adele B

Adele is one of the most gentle, quiet, sweet souls I have met. She is a rescue cat at BARC shelter. She is about 15 yrs old, had been found by someone and it was found that she was microchipped. When her owners were contacted (they were out of state), they didn't want her back. She has a number of health issues, including kidney problems and hyperthyroidism, and is quite frail. The wonderful staff and volunteers at the shelter are making sure that she receives a lot of love and, of course, the food, medication, fluids and veterinary attention she needs in order to keep her as healthy and comfortable as possible. Her spirit is strong -- the other day it seemed she was taking a turn for the worse, but then a couple of days later when I arrived at the shelter, she had rallied and was right in the front of the cage, eating and waiting to come out onto my lap. Her eyes seemed brighter and she actually doesn't seem as frail as she did a while back. Below is a picture of her with Mary, a very dedicated and wonderful volunteer at BARC, who is very connected with Adele, as I am. As I have been doing Reiki with her several times a week over a few months, Adele recognizes me and usually comes to the front of the cage when I greet her, and waits for me to open the cage so that she can come out onto my lap for Reiki. She really absorbs the energy, and lately she has not wanted to go back into her cage even after receiving Reiki quite a long time. I give her a good long session, and then after working with the other cats, try to come back to her for a little more time. I also incorporate some very gentle TTouches along with Reiki when I am working with her, and yesterday when I began to do the TTouches, she gave me such a sweet little kiss (see below). This cat who is so appreciative of every bit of attention you give her and never complains, has taught me so much about the importance of appreciating the moment, and appreciating the beauty of that indescribable heart connection which you can have with an animal.

TTouch and Reiki at BARC Shelter: Diamanda

Diamanda is a young kitty who was surrendered. When she came into the shelter she was terrified, sticking to the very back of her cage. The first couple of times that I tried doing a little TTouch using a couple of the tools - first a back scratcher, then a long-handled brush that looks like it's used for basting barbeque - she hissed and batted at the tools. So I just would do a few TTouches, then back off. I did this a few times for a couple of days.

Next I tried a long-handled brush (probably used for basting barbeque) on her when she was in a sleepy mode, just stroking a little bit under her chin and small circles around her whiskers, and she really relaxed into it. The shelter was very quiet at that time, so that was helpful too.


The next couple of times I continued working with her using the long-handled brush, just a little bit at a time, giving frequent breaks. Each time I put in the brush to work with her, she has been more responsive. First I start out with little circles and strokes under the chin, around the mouth area, on the top of the head and around the base of the neck.



Little by little I worked in some strokes down the body as well, just doing a couple of strokes, then going back to the head, etc.

Yesterday when I went into the shelter, she was sitting alert in her cage, looking around, instead of being crouched hiding behind her litter box. Again I worked with the brush with her, and she completely stretched out her body, lying on her side, even on her back as I touched her with the brush. I worked with her several times during the day, and each time she was more comfortable. The last time I worked with her, I started doing some of the touches directly with my hand, and she didn't flinch at all. She remained in the middle of the cage, got quite comfortable, and was prompted to come towards the front of her cage to eat after I worked on her for a while, which was wonderful to see.

She also sat straight up in her cage a few times, which was a new posture for her. And something interesting, when she did this and I was able to see her more completely, I realized that she reminded me (not so much in markings, but in coloration, body shape and personality) of my sweet pal Jimmygirl, who just I mentioned recently.

Thank you so much for trusting me Diamanda, I am so happy to see you being so much more at ease. Look forward to seeing you tomorrow at the shelter :)

TTouch and Reiki with Mayor's Alliance Rescue Cats: March 7

The first kitty I worked with today was Tango. He is a sweet, friendly cat, but does walk a little strangely (the vets think it could be neurological), so I have been doing what I can to increase awareness of his whole body from front to back. I did connected clouded leopard TTouches going all the way down his body and legs, as well as zigzag TTouches stroking down his legs and all around his body.

Last time I tried a wrap with him. This time I didn't get the wrap all the way on him, but I did just drape it on him several times, which did make him slow down and made his walking a bit more focused.

I also very lightly did very tiny circles with his tail, moving my hand down his tail as I went. I never pull the tail, just did very subtle, small circles moving down his tail, in order to increase his awareness down there.
Each time I see him he does seem to be walking a little more smoothly and evenly.

Sorry about the blurry picture above! Brie is most often more in the mood for playing than for being touched, so I let her out in the room, let her tear around for a few minutes, then sit down on the floor to see what she is in the mood for. Usually if I call to her, she will come and rub her head against me. When she does that, I do some llama or chimp touches on her head and a few strokes or circles down her body using the back of my hand. As she is quick to be over-stimulated, I most often do the TTouches which use the back of the hand, as there are less intense. When she settled into sitting in a cozy place, I offered her Reiki from a short distance away. She responded to this, becoming very relaxed, closing her eyes.

Kobie is a young boy cat, he is quite a character. He sometimes will run away when you first start to move towards him, but is actually friendly and affectionate when you touch him, and very gentle with his paws and claws. As I did clouded leopard TTouches on him, he laid down on his side. He also really responded to abalone TTouches and llama TTouches, which, since they use the whole hand, are often more calming. As he is so young, of course he is peppy, but these touches can help to make his energy calmer and more focused.

Mack, who started out a bit shy, is now extremely friendly. He waits right at the front of his cage and can't wait to come out.
I let him out of the cage, then sit on the couch in the room and he comes right up on the couch with me. I did slow chimp and llama TTouches (both are touches which use the back surfaces of the fingers and hand) in order to calm his energy down. Then I did ear strokes, which really worked to calm him. There are acupressure points in the ear, so stroking the ears really feels good for most cats. I start out with a light touch, then gauge the pressure according to what the cat responds to.

I also did some little raccoon TTouches on the outside of Mack's mouth, working back to his jaw area. These were quite calming as well.

You can find demos of a lot of these ttouches on my youtube channel:

http://youtube.com/sarahsuricat

Above and below you see Nene. He is very sensitive, and can get frightened if there are loud sounds. He also seems to be cautious of other cats. He is quite friendly with me though now, though I still start very casually and slowly with him til he warms up.

The TTouch he responds most to is the abalone TTouch, a circular TTouch done using the whole hand. Many cats find the large surface of the whole hand to be very soothing. I also did some ear strokes and some mouth work with him.

He was so sweet and, as you can see below, he even gave me kisses today!

Buckley is a new kitty (see the still photo below, as well as the video).

He is actually super-friendly, but he is so excited that he can get over-stimulated and start meowing loud and hissing. So with him, I actually backed off and used a paintbrush to do TTouches on him, to be able to touch him in a less intense way, and to keep a distance just in case he decided to swat. What a funny cat! I think he was just really excited for contact.

Thanks to all of these cats for how much they teach me. I look forward to seeing them soon, or, even better, to hearing that they have been adopted :)

Reiki with Garbanzo at the Vet

Hi folks, my kitty Garbanzo is now 17 years old - doesn't he look terrific? He has hyperthyroidism so from time to time I need to take him to the vet to get his blood levels checked. He is on medication, also receiving natural supplements, good food, and Reiki and TTouch, of course :)

When I took him to the vet the other day, I was giving him Reiki when he was on the table, to calm him, especially as we had an extra-stressful trip there. It was pouring rain and there wasn't a cab in sight, so we had to take the bus part way and walk in the rain part of the way. I always do TTouch with Garbanzo on the vet table, but this was the first time I really had strong Reiki flowing to him during this time.

Garbanzo really was calming down as I did this, even in the midst of the examination. While the vet was taking his heartbeat, I noticed that he stayed there with the stethoscope longer than usual. When he took the stethescope away, he told me that he had waited because Garbanzo's heartbeat was slowing down as he was listening. I told him that I was doing Reiki with him, and he said it was definitely calming him down. Once the heartbeat had stabilized, it was quite close to what it generally is at home, which is a huge difference from what it usually is at the vet. This was wonderful to see, and also I thought it was great for the vet to experience this as well.

Thankfully, Garbanzo is doing well, especially considering his age and hyperthyroidism. I am so grateful for this. And grateful that I could help the vet experience to be not as stressful for him.