Reiki at BARC Shelter: Adele: RIP

Adele was a gentle, sweet lady - one of the most unassuming beings I have met. Her owners had moved away, and she arrived at BARC many months ago at 15 years old and with a number of health challenges: hyperthyroidism, kidney problems, and possibly a tumor. She was kept in as good condition as possible with medication, hydration, monitoring of her food intake, etc. She was well-taken care of by BARC staff, vets and vet staff, and BARC volunteers. She was much-loved by everyone and I would often arrive at the shelter to see her on someone's lap.

She touched my heart so deeply, this beautiful, graceful soul who was so grateful for every bit of attention she got. Sometimes she would show her gratitude in such sweet, gentle ways: extending a paw, sometimes putting both paws up on my chest, and occasionally she would do a little "circus cat" move where she would put both paws together and move them up and down.

She went through phases where she seemed to feel better and phases where her energy seemed low. She was very responsive to Reiki - for a long time, she would come right out on my lap and I would do hands-on Reiki with her. She would stretch out and really relax into it. Later on, when she wasn't feeling so well, she would stay in her cage, and I would hold my hands slightly off her and I would feel her connect with the Reiki energy and become very comfortable. Nearly always, afterwards she would want to eat, which was great, because it was hard for her to keep her appetite up. I would always mix different treats with her food to help to get her to eat.

I always looked forward to spending time with her, though at times I would become conscious that, though she had her better days and worse days, she did seem to be on a gradual downward slide, as her physical issues were taking their toll. Through it all, though, she maintained such a sweet, gentle spirit, as though to say to me, "hey, it's ok, don't worry about me." Above you see her giving me a kiss, after a Reiki session.

Right about the same time it became apparent that Animal's condition was deteriorating, it was apparent that Adele was reaching the time for her gentle exit. So, the same Thursday when I said goodbye to Animal, I also said goodbye to Adele.
I spent time with her twice while I was there, for a longer while when I first arrived, and a shorter time right before I left. She seemed to want to remain in her cage, as her energy was very low. So I reached in and offered her Reiki from just a short distance off her body. I felt such calm in her.

I told her it was ok to leave her body. I thanked her for teaching me so much, and thanked her for her gentle sweet spirit. I wanted her to know that she was not and would not be alone. I told her she would be surrounded by angels and light. I told her how loved she was.

Thanks to all the BARC people (staff, volunteers, veterinary folks, etc.) for all you did for her and for all you do for the animals every day.

I will miss you greatly Adele, and think of you often. A gentle hug to you, sweet lady.

Reiki with Jinx: August 28

I went to do Reiki with my friend Jordyn Thiessen's (http://dancingminddesign.com) cat Jinx today - last night was when Hurricane Irene came through, definitely not with as much force as was expected, that's for sure! but storms can have an effect on the animals, big or small. Jinx has been having mobility problems - his back legs don't seem to have much sensation in them, so he can't use them quite properly (either a disk problem or tumor).

Jinx actually seemed to be in relaxed condition when I got there, he was resting in a crate that he enjoys. I sat outside the crate and began to offer him Reiki from a short distance away, maybe 6-8 inches. Initially, the front part of his body was nearest my hands, but he soon shifted his position so that my hands were sending the energy to his back legs and lower back, which is something he has done before. Sometimes animals prefer to have you send the energy to a part of the body other than the one having the most trouble, as it can be too sensitive there, but Jinx regularly has usually shown me by shifting his position that he wants me to send the energy right there. He really stretched out and relaxed, taking a little Reiki nap.

One of Jordyn's dogs, Petey, who can often be very active and "in your face" for attention, calmly fell asleep right behind me as I did this :)

After a time, he shifted again, so that one hand was sending energy towards his abdomen and the other, more towards his head and towards where the heart chakra is on the front part of the body. His eyes relaxed and he got very cozy there for a time.

He shifted position a couple of more times, and I had thought he was done but then for a few minutes I felt more energy coming out of my hands towards his heart chakra again, so I stayed there briefly and his eyes relaxed.

After we were done, he got up and walked slowly towards the apartment door. One of the activities he really enjoys is walking out in the hallway, and I was happy to see that he wanted to do this, - that even though he walks rather gingerly, he still is motivated to do the things he enjoys.

Reiki with Jinx: August 23

I have been doing ongoing Reiki treatments with my friend Jordyn Thiessen's (http://dancingminddesign.com/) cat Jinx, as he has been having trouble walking and using his hind legs, due to either a disc problem or tumor. In general, though of course it is apparent that this issue is troubling to him, he seems to generally be more alert and more engaged in the activities he enjoys, and can get around, though he is wobbly. I have showed Jordyn a number of the TTouches so that she is able to do them with him as well.

Today Jordyn took a number of photos (thanks Jordyn!) and so the photos pretty much show the story of what happened today during the Reiki session.

As I usually do with Jinx (and with most animals, unless it is clear that they are comfortable with hands-on Reiki), I started out a short distance away from him, offering gentle Reiki energy. He had his back end closest to me, which was interesting, as this is the area which is giving him trouble. As time passed, he eased more and more into the energy, so I got a bit closer, keeping one hand still facing his back end, and the other slightly over the area of his heart chakra.

Gradually he turned around and faced me, and I continued to move gradually closer, as he seemed more comfortable.

He has very big, soulful eyes, and it is very intense sometimes when our eyes connect with each other!

At one point, as he often does, he extended one of his front paws out to me, to make that connection for a while. And as we continued, he contined to relax and stretch out.

much love to you Jinx, look forward to seeing you soon!

Reiki with Jinx: August 19

I have been doing Reiki treatments with my friend Jordyn Thiessen's (http://dancingminddesign.com) cat Jinx for the past few weeks. He has been having trouble using his back legs, either due to a tumor or disc problem.
When I went today, I saw that he is still having trouble getting around and it is clear that something is not right with him but generally he does seem to be more engaged than he was a few weeks ago. He's managing to get around and to do some of his usual routines, which is good.
One thing that is really sweet is that he and one of Jordyn's dogs, Buddy, are hanging out together a lot. Today while I was doing Reiki with Jinx, Buddy was always nearby, as you see in the picture below.
Today Jinx mostly preferred the energy to come to him from a distance. I could feel him relax into it, particularly in one position when he was resting in a sun patch. I felt the energy coming out of my hands extremely strongly and it seemed to be going to his abdomen area. Often during this session, he positioned himself so that my hands were directing the energy to his lower back and legs, where he is having trouble feeling sensation.
Today after the session, Jordyn commented on how his coat even looked better, which is something I have noticed with Jinx and sometimes with other animals after a session. I am wondering if this is because the skin relaxes?? In any event, it is interesting! much love, Jinx, and see you soon!

Staying in the Moment with Krishna: And Getting Ready for a Move

Krishna is a lovely cat who is very comfortable with his people, Rebecca and Tim, but extremely fearful of most other people. I have worked with him very slowly and gradually he has come to trust me more and more, though I still have to always give him time to warm up to me.

Rebecca asked me to come for a session with him, as they are getting ready to move to a new apartment. This is a change that can be stressful, especially for animals who are fearful. I made a bach flower remedy for Rebecca to give him, and made a spritzer bottle of Rescue remedy (10 drops of Rescue Remedy, the rest water) which she can spray in his carrier, and around in the new apartment, to help him feel more at ease there.

I was very happy to see Krishna, who I hadn't seen in a while. Rebecca said that he does seem to be less stressed now when people come over - and it makes a difference too that she has told them not to try to pet him, as he needs a lot of time to get accustomed to a person - it is a real accomplishment just to sit calmly in near proximity to him. Then the next step would be to gently touch him with a tool. Another approach would be to gently engage him in play with something like a flashlight, which doesn't require you be in very close proximity, but is another way to connect with him.

I tried a few TTouches using the paintbrush, but decided it would be most beneficial for this session to do Reiki with him to help him really relax. I started sending him energy from a couple of feet away, and got closer and closer. He grew sleepy quite soon, and went to lie down in one of his favorite cozy places, on a quilt on the couch (as pictured above), and he laid down and went to sleep. Animals will often nap while they are receiving a Reiki treatment, and this generally means they are really accepting and taking in the energy, which I truly felt today. Slowly I moved closer and closer to him, til my hands were just inches away. I felt waves of heat coming out of my hands, and felt him absorbing the energy, as though my hands were being pulled towards him.

This went on for a very long time. I was very close to complete contact, but still kept my hands just an inch or so away, afraid to startle him. I felt the energy going to several different chakras during this period of time, but especially to the heart chakra. I felt a lot of heat in that area, and felt something really let go in him. I saw him do a very deep sigh a couple of times, which is always such a pleasure to see animals do - like they are realllllly letting go.

All of a sudden Krishna woke up and was staring at me. I had wanted to get up so I was sitting on the couch so my face would not be so close to him but hadn't wanted to move too much as I didn't want to startle him. At any rate, I think he was surprised at how close I was to him. He told me that it was too much with a hiss and he sort of jumped at my arm, but didn't leave a mark of any kind. I really think it was just too much for the moment and he needed to tell me to give him some space.

I moved away for a bit, then very quietly sat on the couch a couple of feet away from him. Rebecca told me she often sits on the couch next to him to pet him, so this seemed like a good place for me to be. I slowly began to send energy to him again, trying to keep the stream of energy less intense than it had been. He began to get sleepy again, and rolled on his side. Sometimes he opened one eye and sometimes he closed both of them. I did a few TTouches on his forehead area with the paintbrush. As Rebecca noticed, he ALMOST really let go there when I did it, he seemed like he was just not quite ready to do that. I backed off and finished up the Reiki session.

I slowly moved away from him and as I spoke with Rebecca for a short while, I was happy to see that he was in a very relaxed mode, as though he could easily drift off into another nap.

Krishna teaches so much to me every time about how important it is to really listen to what the animal is ready to do, and to truly stay in the moment with him.

Sending you best wishes for a smooth move, and look forward to seeing you sometime soon in the new place!! xoxox

Animal: R.I.P.

Sadly, we had to say farewell to two of the cats at BARC shelter in this past week, Animal and Adele. The shelter did everything they could to help these cats, giving them wonderful veterinary care as well as so much loving care from the BARC staff and volunteers. But their diminishing quality of life had come to the point where the kindest thing to do was to let them go. As each one of these cats was so special, I am doing a separate blog post for each.


Animal was a very shy but sweet little tortie cat who arrived last October, along with a number of other cats, after her owner had passed away. She was blind in one eye (and I'm not sure how well she saw with the other eye), had ongoing digestive issues (which they later thought was probably irritable bowel disease) and was very timid. The shelter gave her medication and special diet, and, though she was very shy, she got much care and attention from staff and volunteers.
Soon after she arrived at the shelter, a couple of the volunteers and I gave her and a few of her housemates a bath. This felt to me like the beginning of a real bond with her, as we washed and gently dried her.
I worked with her consistently, using the quietest of quiet energy, offering her both TTouch and Reiki, and little by little she grew to trust me and to recognize and respond to my touch. Sometimes she would initially start to run away, probably as her vision was not good, but once she felt my hands she would settle right down, literally settle herself in my hands. I felt her absorb and settle into Reiki with me, and then I would do gentle TTouches on her, and she would rub her face against my hand. She was so sweet and because of her coloration and petiteness, to me she looked like an adorable little bear. For a time she rallied, her coat becoming more smooth, and she gained some weight and would sometimes even get playful.

I found that the zigzag TTouch was especially comfortable for her, she would start rubbing against my hand and against her cage as I did this. She also found TTouches and strokes with the jelly scrubber to be soothing. And she grew to recognize the Reiki energy right away, and would settle right into it. I felt such a strong bond with this gentle little creature.

Then, they put her together in a cage with another kitty from her original household, Camilla (pictured below). These two grew closer the longer they were together. Camilla is also a petite little cat but of a quite different personality -- very outgoing and always ready to sit on someone's lap. I am quite bonded with her as well. Camilla was in tough condition when she arrived at the shelter but seems to be doing great now.



As Animal's health began to decline in the past weeks, Camilla showed Animal such kindness. When I opened their cage to offer Reiki to Animal, instead of Camilla wanting to sit on my lap at the same time (which was actually ok, I had one hand on her and one on Animal, sending Reiki to both), she cuddled in right next to Animal as I did the Reiki treatment. Camilla would snuggle up to Animal more and more as time passed. It felt like she knew exactly what was going on, and wanted to offer her comfort.
So when I went to the shelter last Thursday, I knew I could not be there on Friday and also knew it was quite possible that both Animal and Adele could be euthanized soon. So I said goodbye to both of them.

The goodbye with Animal was so sweet. She settled in to receive Reiki from me with my hands just a little off her. She had gotten increasingly frail, so it was more comfortable for her to receive the energy in a bit less intense way.

Camilla nestled in my arms and right next to Animal, like all three of us were part of the light and energy. I kept telling Animal it was ok to let go, that she was going to be with the angels, that she would be reunited with her owner, that she would be free. I told her she was very loved and she was very safe. I told would miss her so much, but that she could contact me any time (from the spirit world).

I felt some of her energy starting to go out and up, as though she was already beginning to transition. I felt very sad to be saying goodbye to her, but knew that it was the kindest thing for her to be let go.
Thank you Animal, for teaching me so much with your gentle, sweet spirit. and thank you to all the BARC staff, volunteers and veterinary folks for all your care for her and the rest of the animals at BARC.

Reiki with Jinx, August 16, Gentle Connection

Today I went again to work with my friend Jordyn Thiessen's (http://dancingminddesign.com/) cat. He has been losing mobility in his hind legs, and the vet thinks it is either a disk problem or a tumor. I have been doing Reiki treatments with him, which he has been very receptive to. I have showed Jordyn how to do some TTouches, and she is also doing some Reiki with him. She is also giving him a homeopathic remedy from the vet.


When I saw Jinx today, he came out into the hall when I first arrived, which is something he loves to do, so that is a good sign. It is not easy for him to get around but he is a trooper. It was good to see him engaged enough to want to try to move around as best he can. After a bit, he settled on the bed and I was sitting very near him.

I started out doing Reiki with him from a short distance away, so as not to overwhelm him by doing hands-on right away. He had just had his homeopathic remedy, which helps him to be very relaxed. Initially he was facing me. I had my left hand near the front of his body on the right side and the right hand was a few inches from his body, maybe 2/3 of the way down near the sp chakra but off to the side. I saw him start to stretch out, and he draped his paw over my wrist. I think every time I've been there, he has wanted to make a connection using his paw. Later in the session he actually stretched his front leg and paw out, so that his whole front leg and part of his body were draped over my arm, his head very close to mine. This was so sweet, I could really feel him relax into it. We remained in this position for quite a long time, with much of his body draped over my arm.


When he had enough of receiving Reiki from this position, he got up, turned his body completely around and stretched out again, so that my hands were close to his back legs, hips and lower back. It felt clear that he wanted me to send the energy to that area. This was interesting, as sometimes it is too intense for the animal to receive directly in the area which is an issue.

So I did continue sending him Reiki from that position, so it was directed at the legs, lower back and hips, but I kept my hands a few inches away, so the energy would not be too overwhelming. I tried at a couple of points to see if hands-on would be comfortable for him, but it was clear that he was more comfortable with the gentler feel of my hands being further away.


As we continued, I told him he was very loved and very safe, several times, and I saw him really let go as he heard these words.


After quite a while, he adjusted himself til he was in another position, this time sort of sideways to me. It felt like we were reaching the end of the session, so I did did a little more energy work in this position, and then finished up the session. It was such a pleasure to see him so relaxed and peaceful. Thanks so much Jinx, look forward to seeing you soon, xoxo