I have been practicing Animal Reiki for over 10 years and although I am certified in other holistic modalities for pets, I must admit that Reiki is my favourite therapy to use with dogs for many reasons.
Reiki is an ideal holistic therapy for dogs
- Reiki is very easy to learn and to practice.
- It is gentle, noninvasive and stress-free
- Reiki can be used in pretty much any situation, with any animal. Even the most scared, aggressive or abused dog can be receptive to the gentle yet powerful approach of Reiki.
- There is no need to know what the issue is with an animal to initiate the healing process
- It can be given hands-on or from a distance: Dogs can choose to receive Reiki in the ways most comfortable for them.
Before I expand on the many benefits of Reiki, let me explain what Reiki is.
What is Reiki?
Reiki comes from the Japanese words Rei, meaning spirit and Ki, meaning energy. Reiki is often translated as Universal Life Force Energy. It is a spiritual practice created by Mikao Usui in the early 20th century in Japan. Nowadays there are many different styles of Reiki but the one I’ve been trained in and that I now teach is traditional Japanese Reiki, which is meditation based. The system of Reiki utilises practices such as breathing techniques, hands-on or remote healing sessions, symbols, mantras and initiations.
How can Reiki help your dog?
There’s a growing number of hospitals everywhere in the world offering Reiki as part of patient services. It has been proven that Reiki sessions:
- Make patients more calm and cooperative
- Relieve acute and chronic pain
- Decrease the need for pain medication
- Improve sleep and appetite
- Reduce patients’ time in the hospital
- Accelerate the healing process
- And much more
So why not use Reiki for our beloved furry friends as well?
Animals are very sensitive to the Reiki energy (more so than people) and usually quickly open up to treatment. Reiki is complementary to veterinary care, works safely with other alternative therapies and can:
- Speed up the recovery process after a surgery
- Support the dying process
- Induce deep relaxation and stress-relief
- Help reduce behaviour problems such as anxiety and aggression
- Help abused animals heal from past mental/physical trauma
- Lessen the side effects of other medical treatments
Over the years, I’ve used Reiki to help dogs transition in peace, get some relief from arthritis, heal quickly after surgery, improve their anxiety, accept a new puppy or cat in the family, etc. Each treatment is unique and each dog’s healing process is different: sometimes there’s an immediate improvement while in other instances it takes time. It is important to remember that healing does not mean curing and that the outcome of a treatment may not necessarily be the one we expect. Each dog is responsible for their own healing process and ultimately, they are the ones deciding HOW they want to heal.
Although Reiki sessions promote healing and stress reduction, I recommend Reiki as a prophylactic therapy. Regular sessions with healthy dogs help maintain health and well-being on the physical, mental and emotional levels, making your dog less prone to develop imbalances at those levels.
About the author: Sonia Bellon is an Animal Reiki Master Teacher, Animal Acupressure practitioner and Animal Communicator. She is also an expert in raw nutrition.
Anahata Healing Circle (www.AnahataHealingCircle.com) was born out of her passion to promote pets’ optimum health through a holistic, non-invasive approach, complementary to veterinary care. Although originally she intended to work solely with animals, her practice has slowly shifted towards helping people as well on their healing journey.