Animals know their bodies

One of the most important things I have learned in my work with animals is that they have a far greater understanding of what's going on with their bodies than most people give them credit for and if we're willing to listen, we have a better chance of helping them.  When I work on an animal, they will always show me what is bothering them the most - first.  Only after we have addressed that issue, will they show me what else is bothering them.  When I touch an animal, I physically feel the sensations they are experiencing in their body and I trust that what I feel first is always what is bothering them the most.  For that reason, I often refrain from asking their guardian too many questions about what is going on with them, because I know the animal will show me what is most important to them. 

With one recent experience I had, a new client told me her horse was dealing with lameness issues when she made the appointment.  She asked me if I wanted to know more and I suggested we wait and see what her horse showed me.  When I first went into the stall to begin giving her horse Reiki, my right hip started to ache.  I focused on that area first and within a few minutes, I began to get a sense of some of the emotions that were stuck in that part of his body.  I spoke to his guardian about what I was picking up (the horse had concerns that he wasn't able to perform his "job" at the ranch and feared he wouldn't be able to remain there if he wasn't "earning his keep" so to speak.  This is a horse that does therapy with children who have disabilities).  With his guardians help, we were able to reassure him that he wasn't going to have to leave the ranch and that our only concern was helping him feel better.  As his guardian spoke to him about her plan to help him get healthy so he could begin working with the children again, I could feel the tension easing in my right hip.  When the pain had ceased and I could feel the energy moving easily in that area again, I asked him what else he would like to show me.

I circled his body, slowly, as I continued to touch him.  Within a minute or two, I felt a lot of pain in my left arm.   As I began working there, more of his feelings started to come up and I shared what I was getting with is guardian.  He expressed concern about her and that fact that she hadn't been very happy lately.  He worried that she was unhappy with him.  Once again, with his guardians help, we talked with him about what was going on with her, reassuring him that her unhappiness had nothing to do with him, that it stemmed from trouble she was having in a relationship.  I suggested to her that she explain to him what was going on if she was having a bad day, so that he would better understand what was going on with her and not feel responsible for how she was feeling.  Eventually, the tension in my arm started to ease, although I sensed it may take a little time for his arm to heal.  It felt like muscle strain and I told her I thought he needed to take it easy for the next week or so.  

I suggested that she let him make the choice about how much exercise he would get and how strenuous the exercise should be.  As an example, she was worried that having him walk down a steep slope would be too much for him, so I suggested she give him the choice when they got to the top of the hill, telling him that if he was up for it, he should proceed and if not, he should stop and/or turn the other way.  I trusted that he would be able to tell her what his body would be able to handle from day to day.  

A week later, she called to give me an update.  She had been letting him decide what he was up for exercise wise and she said that for quite a few days, he made the choice to avoid the steep hill and that he let her know by stopping when they got to the top of it.  Eventually, he wanted to go down one of the less steep hills on the ranch and when he did so, he didn't limp at all.  The next day though, he stopped when they got to the top of the hill, so she listened to him and understood that he didn't want to push it that day.  

She was enjoying this new level of communication they were having and trusted that it was safe to listen to him.  She told me that she was also talking to him more about what was going on with her and she sensed he was happier and more at ease.  She admitted to me that the reason she asked me to come up to see him was because she was worried about his front left leg.  She also said she was glad she hadn't told me that, because she didn't know he was feeling pain in his right hip and might not have known that if we hadn't let the horse 'show me' what was bothering him.  

Animals really do know what's going on in their bodies.  They aren't dumb, in fact, in many ways, I believe they are even wiser than the smartest of us two-legged folks.  The key is learning to listen to what they are showing us.