Join The Animal Reiki Source Yahoo Group

Created with the intention to support, connect and network the Animal Reiki community around the world.

Invitation from Kathleen Prasad:

When I began this work almost ten years ago, there were very few people focusing on Reiki for animals, and no "Animal Reiki groups" at all! I remember feeling very alone in my mission and wishing I could find like-minded people to support my work and the animals I discovered in my journey. It is amazing how much Reiki for animals has spread around the globe since then! I am proud to be able to offer this yahoo group as a way for you to create support networks and Animal Reiki friendships across the miles. Together we can accomplish so much for the animals! Click here to visit the group's home page and to join.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/animalreikisource/

I am pleased to introduce you to this group's moderator, John, and to
share a little bit about the wonderful Reiki work he is doing for shelter animals at Animals in Distress in Pennsylvania.

Group Moderator: John Sawyer, Reiki Master
website: www.critterreiki.com
blog: http://ClosingYourGap.com

John is a regular volunteer at Animals in Distress. He gives weekly
updates on his Reiki work with the animals there via the yahoo group.
If working with Reiki and shelter animals is an interest of yours, you will love his posts we would love you to lend your Reiki support to his work!

Animals In Distress is located in Coopersburg, PA, just south of Allentown. Founded in 1977, this past year they celebrated their 30th year of providing care and hope for lost and abandoned animals. From a few kennels in a ramshackle building near the Lehigh Valley International Airport, they have grown into a beautiful facility into which they moved in November of 2002. In 1977, the concept of a no-kill shelter was not only novel, but sneered at as impractical.

The directors of AID have maintained that vision throughout their 30 years and AID is now one of several no-kill shelters in the Lehigh Valley area.

Featured Case Study of Reiki Shelter Dog, Amigo

Amigo's residence at AID for most of his 13 years is testament to their commitment to the animals they take in. Very simply, any animal that comes to AID has a home for life if for whatever reason they cannot be adopted into a forever home. This philosophy has earned AID the support and respect of the community.

AID is a non-profit sanctuary that depends totally on donations and
fundraising. Support the animals of AID Now!
Click here to visit their website: http://www.animalsindistress-pa.org

Mi Amigo
By John Sawyer

Reiki student Lori with Amigo

I met Amigo in March, 2006 at Animals In Distress in Coopersburg, PA. He was about 11 years old at the time, a beautiful palamino-colored Chow-Husky mix. He had recently been diagnosed with lymphosarcoma and had begun a chemotherapy regimen. Amigo had lived at AID most of his life. As a young dog, he had gained a reputation as aggressive and a biter as a result of a couple of incidents with the staff. He was considered a special case and only the most experienced staff were allowed to handle him. When I met him I got no hint of aggressiveness and never did throughout our nearly two-year relationship. He had long since ceased to be aggressive, but his reputation stuck with him and rendered him unadoptable. During my time with him, I re-introduced him to several of the shelter volunteers who had been afraid of him until they realized how laid-back he actually was.

In the beginning, he loved his Reiki sessions, but he was quite clear
when he'd had enough. Our sessions would last anywhere from 10-20
minutes each week. By the summer, the vets declared that he was in
remission from his cancer. Needless to say, this was wonderful news
for me and the shelter staff who loved him dearly. We continued our
Reiki sessions almost every week and Amigo and I got to be quite good buddies.

In October, Amigo suffered bloat with torsion and had to be rushed to
the vet for surgery to save his life. He came through the surgery and
I went to see him at the vet clinic instead of our usual session at
AID. His belly had been shaved and he had an angry red line of
sutures up the middle of his belly which made it very uncomfortable
for him to lay down. A week later, I saw him back at AID and we
continued our weekly sessions. His belly fur never did grow back, but
he didn't seem to mind.

We continued our sessions as usual through 2007 until in late summer Amigo was attacked by another dog in an outside walking area outside the kennels. A volunteer made a mistake and let both dogs out at the same time despite the first dog being known to be dog-aggressive. In his younger days, no doubt Amigo would have given as good as he got, but the frightened volunteer fell down and Amigo adopted a passive stance with her between the two dogs. I'm convinced he was protecting her by taking the brunt of the attack and not fighting back with her vulnerable in the middle. Amigo was bitten on his left rear leg and one ear before the volunteer was able to get the aggressive dog back inside. I got a call from another volunteer about the incident and went in on the weekend to see him. He was a mess, but perked up some after his Reiki session. Within a couple of weeks he was back to normal.

By the fall of 2007, it became apparent that Amigo was more interested in the treats I brought every week than Reiki. I had the feeling he was beginning the process of shutting down to make his transition back to Source energy. After several more weeks, he developed an inflammation of the forward-most nipple on his left side. The vets removed it and he wore a T-shirt for quite a while because he wouldn't leave the wound alone. He still wasn't all that interested in Reiki, but he seemed to enjoy our sessions anyway.

A few weeks before Thanksgiving, we got the news that Amigo's cancer had returned. The vets gave him a couple of months. I saw him twice after that. During the second session I had an intuitive impression that Amigo had seen how his previous incidents had shaken up the staff closest to him. He felt that he needed to prepare everyone for his transition as he was ready and wanted it to be as comfortable as possible for those whom he loved and who loved him. I said as much to Temple, the kennel manager.

Lori, one of the senior kennel staff, dearly loved Amigo and I saw her
the next Saturday. Temple had shared with her what I'd said and she
said she was glad to know that. I told her I thought it was time to
tell Amigo that it was okay for him to go and she agreed.

I was unable to get to AID the next week because of an ice storm. The following Monday I got a call from Temple telling me that Amigo had collapsed the previous Friday and when he showed no improvement by Saturday was taken to the vet and sent home. He had adequately prepared everyone and it was time. Reiki and his love for his friends helped to make his transition as painless as possible for all concerned.

About the Author:
John Sawyer was attuned to Reiki Level 1 in 1994 and experimented with applying the Reiki techniques to caring for his dogs, eventually taking Level 2 before becoming a Master in 2004. He is currently building his animal Reiki practice and offering Reiki training to local shelters and other animal workers in the Lehigh Valley area of Eastern PA.

Please visit his website at www.critterreiki.com or you can contact him at john@critterreiki.com. You can also visit his blog at www.ClosingYourGap.com.

One of John's Level 1 Classes at AID