Connecting with Krishna, February 2012: Day 4

I've been cat sitting for Krishna, who is quite a shy guy, but I feel we get a little closer every time I see him. Today was the last day cat sitting for him.

When I entered the apartment, he was sitting on the windowsill, looking out the window. He surprised me so much when he looked at me, then jumped off the windowsill and came running right up to me. He actually seemed to want to play first, and then eat, so we played our game where he chases the light from the flashlight around on the living room rug.

After that, he ate some, and I told him his people would be back later in the day.

We then played some more, and he then settled quite close to where I was sitting.


I took out the soft brush which I used yesterday - a soft paintbrush that looks like a makeup brush with a long handle - and this time instead of directly touching him with it, I let him come to the brush, and he rubbed his nose against it, then rolled on the ground rubbing his face against the brush.

He was OK being stroked under the chin with the brush, but what made him most comfortable was if I just put the brush on the ground and let him rub his face against the brush.

Doing this helped him to be extremely comfortable being right next to where I was sitting. Below you see him looking up at me as though to say, "I can't believe I'm right next to you!" During the whole time, I was sending him Reiki energy - he is so receptive to it, it helps him to feel very at ease. Sometimes with him I am completely silent, and other times I speak to him in a soft voice, telling him he is very loved and very safe.

Even though it is hard for him when his people are away, and he still gets frightened once in a while, I feel that we got closer to each other over the past few days, and it feels like a big step for him to be able to be just hanging out right next to where I am without being afraid. I think the combination of interactive play and the very quiet TTouch and Reiki work is a good combination for him. Hope to see you soon, little guy! xo

Connecting with Krishna, February 2012: Day One

Hi folks! Krishna is a wonderful kitty I have worked with for a while, and occasionally I have the opportunity to cat sit for him. He is very shy, and it is hard for him when his people are away. I approach him very quietly and gently.

Today when I went, it was the first day of cat sitting him, and I wasn't sure whether he would be a bit miffed to see me. I began to send him Reiki energy as I was on the subway traveling to his apartment. For those unfamiliar with Reiki, it can be done remotely or hands-on. When I arrived, he was actually pretty calm, given the situation. He sat down near his food bowls and waited as I prepared his food for him. I was sending him Reiki energy as I got his food ready, cleaned his box etc. He ate a bit, then was ready to play.

He loves to chase the light from a flashlight, so this was a great way to get any pent-up energy out and get him more relaxed. He really got going chasing the light around, and when I stopped for a minute, he did something he usually does, went up to the flashlight to sniff it, as if to prompt me to continue.

He appears to know that the light comes from the flashlight, but that doesn't diminish his enjoyment of the game!

After he had enough, he seemed much more relaxed. He was very cute, started rubbing his face against the legs of an easel that was near where we were playing.

He then went to eat some of his food with gusto, unconcerned that I was sitting nearby. After he was done, he sat off to the side of his bowls, and I did some Reiki from a short distance away. I could see him relaxing as I did this. I tried something which I recently did with a feral at the shelter - I used a paintbrush and just gently made a stroking motion a few inches in front of where his whiskers are.

The feral cat had found this relaxing, and he responded to it as well. He is so sensitive that it was as if I was actually touching him.

He then went to eat some more, and I got ready to go. I had explained to him how many times it would get dark before his people returned, reassured him that they would return, and told him that I would be there every day to give him food, play with him etc. Thanks a lot Krishna, it was such a pleasure to spend time with you once again.

Connecting with Krishna: Helping Him to Feel Safe

Today I went to cat sit for Krishna, a beautiful cat who I have worked with and cat-sat for before a number of times. He is generally very fearful of people other than his human mom and dad, Rebecca and Tim, and I have been working with Rebecca and Krishna to help him to become more at ease in general, and more at ease around someone other than Rebecca and Tim. When I went to do a session with him on Friday, I think he was a bit miffed as he assumed that my presence meant that his people would be going away soon, so he went under the bed. I did have a good Reiki session with him there though, as I just calmly sat right near the bed, sending energy to him, and he visibly calmed little by little as I did this - I think we even heard a few snores from him as the session progressed!

Today when I went to cat sit for him, he greeted me with a hiss and meow, but once I began to speak calmly to him and sent Reiki to him, telling him that I was here to give him food and that everything was going to be all right, that his "dad" was coming back tonight, etc, he began to calm. When I first put down the food for him, he hesitated to eat, but once I put a couple of greenies leading to the food bowl and continued to send energy, he began to munch away.

After he was done eating for the moment, I took out a flashlight that I have used to play with him before (he loves to chase the light), and he perked up and began to chase the light around the living room. After a bit, I put the flashlight down and started to send him Reiki again. He wanted me to continue playing with him so, as he has sometimes done before, he walked up to the flashlight (which was a few inches away from me) and began to sniff it.

Then he looked at me as if to say, "OK, I'm ready for more!"

So we continued the chasing the light game for a while......
When he was finished, he got very brave and came up to me and began to sniff me, first my boots....

Then my sweatshirt...
I sat very very still as I did this, continuing to send Reiki, and in my mind telling him he was very loved and very safe. Even though I was talking to him with my mind, my voice was very soft and speaking slooowly.

Then he seemed like he wanted to hang out near me, but in a more protected spot, so he went underneath a high stool, which is one place he feels safe. I was just a foot or so away, continuing sending Reiki all the while. He grew more comfortable , and his eyes began to relax. He has very big eyes, which look about twice as big vertically as they do in the photo below when he is frightened or over-stimulated.

A bit later, I went to get him his dry food, and I was delighted to see him sitting nearby, quite comfortable, and then he stretched out completely, extending a front paw in my direction. It touches my heart so much when an animal who is generally very fearful becomes brave enough to start to trust.

As I gathered my things to go, he went under the bed, where he felt safe, and I told him his "dad" would be home tonight, and that everything was ok. Thank you so much Krishna, much love to you and look forward to seeing you soon.....

Taking it Slooow and Easy With a Shy Cat: TTouch, Reiki and Cat Sitting with Krishna: Day 2

Today when I arrived to feed and work with Krishna, he was sitting in his usual place on the couch. He got off the couch right away and started walking towards me. When working with him, I always start sending Reiki to him before I get to the apartment, and continue when I am entering the apartment. It is especially important to do this with him, as when it's someone other than his people entering the space, he can be very frightened and sometimes pounce. The Reiki energy seems to lessen his concern, and he has not pounced on my feet yet.
After giving him his food and water, we settled down for a little play, TTouch, and Reiki. First of all I engaged him in a bit of play to get out some of his pent-up energy. He loves to chase the light from a flashlight. This is a great toy to use with him, especially for someone other than his people, as you can do this and be quite far away if necessary. However, I actually was in quite close proximity to him most of the time I was there today. Quite often today when I would give him a break and stop playing or doing TTouch etc, he came closer to me all on his own, to sit closer to me or sniff me or, in once case, he actually pawed my sweater a bit as though to get me to continue.


After chasing around the light for a while, I gave him a short break and did a bit of TTouch with him using a paintbrush. As he can become easily overstimulated, I would just do a few TTouches and then stop, then start again. Though his tail was twitching, indicating he was rather ramped up, it seemed more in a playful mode rather than a terrified mode. He was rolling around and doing little somersaults, which seem to be part of his play mode. Another thing he did occasionally was let out a little "brrrring" or chirping type of sound, which felt like he was telling me he was ready to play.

I also did some TTouches using a thin dowel with a bit of ACE bandage wrapped around the end, but as he can sometimes want to pull the ACE bandage off, I went back to using the paintbrush. I continued to give him breaks and during the breaks I would also be sending Reiki to him to continue the flow of calm energy.

I could tell that he was still somewhat wary of me but curious at the same time. I'm sure that he misses his people too, which affects his mood. When cat sitting, I always make sure to tell the cat how many times it will get dark before their people return, and reassure them that the people are going to return.

So, back to the events today During the breaks as I sent him Reiki, he would often come up to me to sniff me a bit. I stayed very still while he sniffed me, so as not to startle him. One of the places he likes to go to, where it looks like he feels safe, is underneath a chair. I did a few TTouches on him with the paintbrush while he was under the chair, then gave him a break again, and he came back out from underneath the chair. When working with the paintbrush, I do circular TTouches and straight strokes on him, sometimes rolling the paintbrush on its side, improvising to see what the cat responds to the most. Today I was just working on Krishna's head area, as it seemed it would be too much to work on his body today.

After giving him a break and taking care of his litter box, I sat on the floor again with him. This time I made a conscious effort to slow the TTouches down a substantial amount as I did them on his forehead, and it really made a difference. This time he really settled into the TTouches for a while. I saw his body relax, and his eyes close. After we were done, I looked at him and he blinked at me, always a wonderful sign!
Rebecca texted me when they got back, saying that Krishna was doing great, which is always so lovely to hear.

Love ya Krishna, hope to see you soon!

Connecting with Krishna: Day 13, One More Time!

When I entered Krishna's apartment today, he was meowing a lot. I think he was sensing the excitement and energy of his people people coming back.

He did calm down after eating, and then we settled into our usual routine, as he drank some water from the bathtub faucet, then we went to play (incorporating some TTouch and Reiki too).

Today, as I have done recently, I distracted him a bit by shining the flashlight on the floor, keeping it pretty much in one place for a while. While he was looking at the light on the floor, wondering where it would go next, I did a little TTouch on his head using a paintbrush, then worked my hand down the paintbrush, TTouching his head with my fingers. I did this keeping the handle of the paintbrush so that I was holding it out of his line of sight, behind his head, so my hand wasn't scaring him by being in front of his face.

I also tried doing some TTouch using a couple of long feathers, but he tended to want to play with the feathers more than being touched by them, so I went back to TTouching him with the paintbrush.

After a while, he had tired of playing and went under the bed, which is a place where he sometimes goes to feel safe, also a place he feels comfortable resting. I sent him Reiki as I sat on the floor right next to the bed, sending the energy to him from there. I felt a strong connection and a lot of energy flowing out of me.

I reassured him again that the people would be coming back later that day. I will seeing him, I've gotten used to seeing him every day :)

Rebecca texted me when they arrived back at the apartment, and said it was the first time they had arrived back from being away that they found Krishna to be relaxed, affectionate and not angry at them. Below is a picture of him, blissing out the morning after Rebecca and Tim returned :)

Connecting With Krishna, Day 12: Balancing Play and Relaxation

I was happy to be able to tell Krishna today that his people are coming back tomorrow. I can tell he misses them, and he's probably starting to feel the energy of them getting ready to come back soon. Today when I arrived, he started rubbing his head on their shoes!


Each day I am trying to balance the energy work and the playtime with him, so he can feel the different types of connection that are possible, and I am trying to really stay in the moment and not push him too hard, to really listen to what he is ready for. I do feel him more comfortable and getting closer each day with me, though of course I know that it is all somewhat complicated by the factor of him missing his people who he loves so much.



Today, he became intrigued with the little sparkly ball pictured here, and as it is very light, I discovered he likes to play catch with it, so we did that for a while. I'd throw it to him, and he'd either catch it and throw it back or just hit it back to me.



I also played with him using the flashlight and again, while I held the light still, he calmed and was comfortable with me doing some TTouches with the paintbrush and a bit with my hand, mostly on his head. I just do a few TTouches at a time with him, the "less is more" approach which most often works best with cats who tend to be fearful. Again, at certain points he came right up to me and sniffed me. I so wanted to touch him at those moments but just stayed very still, so as not to startle him.


OK Krishna, one more meeting tomorrow and your people will be back! xo

Connecting with Krishna, Day 11: More Contact

Hi folks, I have been cat-sitting for Krishna while his human mom and dad have been away on their honeymoon. He usually will not allow anyone other than them touch him, and often bit the legs or feet of previous cat sitters. I can tell that he misses his people a lot, but am pleased that he has felt comfortable connecting with me through Reiki, TTouch, and play, particularly when it comes to his new favorite game, chasing the light from the flashlight. Ever since I started using this with him, if I set it on the floor near me, he will come up to it, touch it with his nose and yesterday he pushed it towards me til it was touching my hands.



Today, again we played with the flashlight, and got in some Reiki energy work. I also discovered something new with him. If I shone the light on the floor and held it still, Krishna was pretty mesmerized in watching it, and in this state he was receptive to being stroked and TTouched with a paintbrush. After a while, I was also able to sneak my hand down the paintbrush and do some TTouches and strokes on his head and even on his back today.

Then, intermittently I would move the light and he would play with it, then I'd hold it still and he would settle again.

At one point he actually came right up to me, sniffing my hand, then my arms, and my hair, which was a complete surprise. He surprised himself I think! After he sniffed my arm, he let out a little hiss and meow, then backed away for a minute, then settled down again.

Thank you Krishna, I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.

Connecting with Krishna: Day 9, Keeping Calm and Casual

Today I went again see Krishna, who I am cat sitting. I have also been offering him Reiki, giving him some playtime and generally doing what I can to make him feel at ease while his people are away.

We have a bit of a routine going now. I enter the apartment, he comes from wherever he is resting (usually on the bed, on the cound or sometimes under the bed) and as I send Reiki energy to him, he generally sits down near where his food bowls are, waiting for me to wash them and put new food and water in. Then, after he eats some wet food, either we go into the bathroom or I lure him with the flashlight into the bathroom, where I run a trickle of water and he goes into the bathtub to drink the water coming from the faucet. While he does this, I scoop the litter in the litter box. Then when he's finished, we go into the living room.

Today we played using the flashlight again, he loves to chase the light! I vary the speed and direction of how the light moves. He is very fast!

After we had played a bit, I realized I had a message on my phone (I mute my phone when working with animals, as the sound often scares them), so I had to make a quick call. He seemed to be calmed by just hearing me talking to someone (I was trying, too, to keep my voice on the low-key end!).

After I hung up, he came up to the flashlight and nudged it in order to get me to play with him again, which I did. After that, I sent him Reiki from a short distance away. He seemed to be still a little stimulated from running around, so I didn't touch him with my hand today, but maybe we'll try that tomorrow! I think it does help him to keep a casual attitude about how much direct contact is made. Slow and steady!

Connecting with Krishna, Day 8: Reiki and Play

When I went to feed Krishna today, the poor boy initially seemed more stressed than he has been. I think it was a combination of missing his people, and me getting there a bit later than usual and so he was hungry. This is the longest they have been away from him, and I'm sure it is hard for him.
Anyway, there were some angry MEOWs when I first entered. I started sending him Reiki energy right away, and he started to calm, and of course after I got some food out for him he started to chill a bit more.

Once again, as I have been doing every day, I reassured him that his people will be coming back, and told him how many times it will get dark before they return. I think this does help them.

He likes to drink from the bathtub faucet and he seemed hesitant to go in there, when I realized that he wanted me to pull the curtain from the end of the tub away from the faucet instead of near the faucet, as he wanted to jump in there. So sure enough, once I pulled it there, in he went to drink his water.
Then we went into the living room, where I sat with him and offered him Reiki from a distance. First he was sitting with his tail switching, but little by little he came closer and closer to me and his tail stopped twitching. Again I had brought a flashlight with me, as he loves to play with the light from it. I had set it on the floor near me. I was trying to decide whether to play with him today or just keep calming him w/Reiki, when he let me know what he wanted to do by coming near the flashlight, as you see, and he touched his nose against it and rubbed against it. So I turned it on and he started chasing the light around. It is so interesting that he seems to realize it is all a game, that the light does emanate from the flashlight, as opposed to it being something alive all on its own. He is so smart!!
When we were done, I gave him his mouse to play with, thanked him and gave him his dry food, which he loves, so it is always a great way to end my time with him. Love you Krishna, and thanks for all you are teaching me!

Connecting with Krishna, Days 6 and 7

Krishna is a remarkably alert, smart, soulful cat who I have been cat sitting for. I have also been offering him some Reiki when I go to visit him, as well as a bach flower remedy, both of which are helping his comfort level while his people are away.

This is the longest span of time they have been away from him, and I am sure he misses them a great deal, as he is so attached to them. He generally does not allow anyone else to touch him or pet him. I feel privileged to have been able to do a bit of TTouch and petting on his head. I haven't been pushing the issue at all, sending him Reiki energy and following his lead as he comes towards me. Occasionally he will let me know with a hiss that I have gotten too close for comfort. But the past few days I have been engaging him in play and I think he has suprised himself at how close he has gotten to me, as you see above!

The day before yesterday I discovered that he was fascinated by the light that shines on the floor when I take a picture with my cell phone, so I decided to bring a small flashlight to see if he wanted to play with the light. Indeed, yesterday when I brought it out, he just couldn't get enough of chasing the light around. When we were done, I gave him one of his "actual" toys so he could feel he "caught" something.

Today , after feeding him we went into the living room area and I had put the flashlight on the floor. He came right up to the flashlight (which was right next to me) and sniffed it, pushing it a bit with his nose as if to ask me to play with him with the light. So we did - it was lovely to see him enjoying himself. I feel when I'm there with him now, it is good to allow some time for play and some time for energy work, especially as he is a young cat and he obviously enjoys getting some exercise.

Another interesting thing, I noticed that if I wanted to lure him to where I was, he would immediately respond to and follow the flashlight if I turned it on, even if he was in the process of going under the bed, which I think is a place he retreats to from time to time just to feel cozy and safe. He is definitely a hunter! and it is interesting that this instinct seems to override some of his scarediness. The flashlight seems to be a really useful tool in getting close to him, in addition to doing the TTouch and energy work. When he is playing, he sort of forgets to be scared, and often ends up sitting right next to me after the play session.

He was a bit too revved up today to try TTouch, but we'll leave that for another day.