Reiki and My Dog

Saturday, April 11th, 2009

Indiana is my steadfast companion. Not quite 5 years old, Indy is an excellent representative of the boxer breed. He’s beautiful fawn color, with a black ‘mask’. Big black eyes that are amazingly expressive. Sometimes I forget that Indy doesn’t actually talk to me. You see he always has something to say. He grunts, groans, snorts, whines and generally makes his feelings clear on just about any subject. Always up for a good wrestling game or long walk, Indy is just as happy to follow me from room to room and simply lay on the floor close to whatever I am doing. He’s loving, gentle, playful, sassy, chatty, obedient and smart and just a swell guy to have as my buddy.

Here’s the thing. I think there is something seriously wrong with my friend. A week ago I noticed him stumbling now and then coming down the stairs or even walking through the hallway. Now this is not completely unusual for a young boxer. They get excited or their attention wanders and sometimes it’s as though their feet almost get tangled. This is not what was happening. The next day I realized that his head was tilted, just as he does when I’m talking to him and he’s paying serious attention. Except now it’s that way all the time. With his lip drooping on one side the drooling is now constant; it was definitely time for a visit to the vet.

Our vet is amazing. Indy loves to go to the office and has to be reminded all of the time about his manners when he’s there. Everyone there gets lots of sloppy boxer kisses and hugs, in turn they seem to have an endless supply of doggy treats and always time for a good ear scratch. Dr. Stefanie was not able to diagnose what was going on with my buddy except for a mild case of doggy acne, easily treated with an antibiotic. She asked what his behavior was like and was very interested when I told her that Indy had been asking for more Reiki the last day or two. Dr. Stefanie had never heard of Reiki and was very curious. She was fascinated by the fact that Indy lets me now when he wants to receive it as well as when he is done. She also found it very curious that since this ailment had started just a few days prior, Indy has been asking for more Reiki and accepting for a longer period of time. While she didn’t totally understand it, she encouraged the continued practice.

Since then, Indy has also been to a vet internist and again no official diagnosis although again the veterinarian took the time to patiently and kindly remind me that boxers are very prone to cancer. The good news is that we don’t know that’s what is progressing.

As of today, only a short week after all of this has begun, I really don’t know what to expect. Indy is still asking for Reiki frequently, accepting it for longer periods of time than he had in the past. I hope that the energy is helping to heal whatever is afflicting him, it’s my belief that it is helping. He’s still ’tilted’ and continues to be show weakness on the right side, but he’s started to play again. I really missed that in the past week. We’re all up at the lake and yesterday Shadow, the neighbor dog came over. They started playing and running up and down the yard. Each went to the lake for a drink of water and when Indy shook his head he actually tipped right over into the muck, making him a candidate for a full bath before 10am. It was very funny! But the good news is that he got up and continued playing.

As a holistic life coach, one of the things I talk to my clients about all of the time is the fact that every aspect of our lives affects all others. This week has been a very real reminder of that for me. Not knowing what is happening with Indy has affected every person in my family, including my grown sons who no longer live with us. In many ways, Indy is continuing to teach me and to remind me of lessons already learned.

I will continue to offer Reiki to Indiana, he enjoys it and I believe it is helping him to heal on whatever level he is meant to be healed. It also offers me peace as I know that Reiki works on all levels, mind, body and spirit. Indy deserves all of that and more.

This has been a great reminder to me, to offer Reiki to all of those I care about, friends and family, two legged or four. I will also be making it clear to coaching and Reiki clients that there are very real benefits to our animal companions when they receive Reiki. And why not? They deserve the best we can offer them; they already offer us all of their love and devotion.

Wishing you a fabulous week, filled with love gratitude and a deep appreciation for the animals in our lives.

Warmly,
Sandy

Thanks Indy!

Saturday, January 17th, 2009

Indy in deep thought.

If you’ve ever read my blog before, or taken a walk through my website, you probably know quite a bit about me. You know that I live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, beautiful but brrrrrrrr cold today. You know that I’m a holistic life coach, that I believe it’s impossible to compartmentalize our lives all that much. And you probably know that I live with a dog. Not just a dog, but a DOG. Indiana, who was named for the movie character Indiana Jones, is a very good representative of the boxer breed. He’s a very pretty boy, with a wonderful smooshy face that actually smiles when he’s happy. Energetic, friendly, playful and loving, he’s also lazy, sweet, cuddly and communicates his happiness or disappointment very clearly. It turns out that Indy also teaches me, on an almost daily basis.

Recently a friend of mine visited. Along with her came her wonderful vizslas. Her boy is named Tugger and her sweet little girl is Max. Now Tugger and Max had never been to my home before, so while they were enthusiastic to go somewhere new they were also a bit shy about meeting a new friend in a new home. Indy was just beside himself. He’s usually very exuberant about meeting new dogs and while generally polite, has been known to offer a few boxer punches to get the play going. Apparently this time, Indy was able to understand the caution of his guests. What followed was very interesting and once again reminded me of some very clear lessons.

All of the dogs went into the back yard. Max and Tugger began exploring, but ignoring Indy. Meanwhile Indy went into serious play mode. In the doggy world it’s polite to ask another dog to play and then to wait for a response. This is what an exuberant Indiana did. He ran all around Tugger and Max, he offered play bows and then waited at a polite distance for a response. Indy tossed his toys their way and did everything he could to entice a game of chase or wrestling. Meanwhile Max and Tugger became more comfortable with the yard and house. They got closer to Indy but didn’t engage in play. Eventually all three dogs came into the house and settled into naps in the same room.

Why did I tell you all of this? Besides telling you that I’m very pleased about my Indiana showing good doggy manners, I also think that the dogs were demonstrating very clear lessons. Indy was offering friendship and playtime, he even offered his toys. Max and Tugger were a bit shy but still friendly and very polite. They did not snarl or growl, they simply told Indy that they weren’t quite ready for that kind of closeness. None of them took it personally! For me that was the lesson. It sounds simple enough, but it can be quite hard to learn and even harder to actually practice.

Here we go, life coach lesson time. Don’t take anything personally. When Indy made the offer to play it was not accepted by Max or Tugger. That didn’t have anything to do with Indiana personally; it had to do with their not being familiar with the house, yard or Indy. Indy didn’t take it as a personal rebuff; he simply understood that they had their own stuff to work through. Wow! It sounds simple enough, but it’s really huge. Did you ever say hello to someone who didn’t respond? Or who didn’t respond in a friendly manner? It’s tough sometimes to remember that we have no idea what’s going on in that person’s life at the moment. Maybe they have a problem that they can’t shake, maybe they simply didn’t hear. We don’t know. At the same time if we take it personally, we make have our feelings hurt and we could become angry or sad. Why? It had nothing to do with us personally. When we are able to realize that what others say and do has nothing to do with us, that it really is all about them, going through day to day interactions becomes much easier.

So, next time you are in the grocery store and someone is rude or unfriendly, try not to take it personally or to respond in kind. Keep in mind that that person may have something heavy on their mind and let it go. You’ll feel better and you will not have done anything to make the other person’s day worse, you may well have helped them to feel slightly better by your neutral or kind manner.

That’s it. Once again Indy and his new pals reminded me of a very simple yet very powerful lesson. Don’t take anything personally. Thanks Indy, Tugger and Max, I really appreciate it.

Wishing you a fabulous day filled with simple, sweet reminders of this lesson.

With warmth,
Sandy