Volunteering
My Animal Reiki Story - from RSPCA volunteer to Accredited Professional
2020 was a memorable year, to say the least!
For me, it was the year that I started to volunteer with the RSPCA, and that was definitely life-changing in its own right!
I am passionate about animal welfare (and a big softie), and so I decided to foster a cat in need of a safe, loving home! Shortly after Tiggs (pictured with me on the right) came home with me, I started to notice a remarkable change in his behaviour when I gave him Reiki! He would become physically relaxed lie down and get a very blissed out look - there would also be purring and some kitten-like rolling around on the floor!
Not only that, but Tiggs' overall emotional state and wellbeing levels started to change too. He went from being a highly stressed, hyper-vigilant boy (who would jump at the slightest noise, and cower if he accidentally knocked something over or caught me with a claw in play) to a chilled-out elegant lounge-lizard, stretching out on his favourite radiator or window-sill! Don't get me wrong - Tiggs still gets stressed at times, but his general demeanour and emotional resilience have improved so much - he's like a different boy!
So of course I offered the RSPCA my services as a volunteer, to come in and give Reiki to some more of the RSPCA's residents! It had helped my Tiggs so much, and I wanted to help as many animals in need as I possibly could.
Fast forward to today: I'm now a qualified Animal Reiki therapist, accredited by the UK Reiki Federation. My time working with the animals at the RSPCA has taught me so much, and introduced me to connecting with, empowering and healing beautiful, gentle souls who were carrying the scars of trauma, abuse and physical issues. It was heart-breaking at times, but the animals' amazing resilience and desire to trust again is so strong - they're my heroes! I love them all, and they inspire me to do my best to promote Animal Reiki, and teach animal Reiki to more people.
(In case anyone was wondering, Tiggs is a foster fail! )
Ema has been volunteering with her services for the RSPCA Warrington, Halton & St Helens branch for a while now and the change's she has made are remarkable! Ema is always so calm, understanding and patient with the animals. She is always asking about different ways each animal prefers to receive Reiki and is extremely adaptable to suit each animal's needs. Most of the animals which come into our care have suffered abuse or neglect which Ema show's true compassion towards. Ema's knowledge and skill set is such a fantastic asset to have at our branch. We are all immensely grateful for the time and commitment Ema give's and would 100% recommend her service to anyone and any animal which needs additional help/support.
Alana Bibby
Animal Welfare Team Leader
I was also fortunate enough to participate in some research into the behavioural effects of Animal Reiki on dogs at the Warrington Halton & St Helens RSPCA shelter, last year.
You can see D (above) enjoying the side-effects of the Reiki in the room, during one of my distance Reiki sessions to his kennel-mates, during a data collection day in July 2021. I should mention that when I first met him, D was an incredibly skittish, fearful boy who shied away from my hands and kept trying to hide behind me. From one extreme to the other! Don't you just love that moment of "must.....keep....eyes..... zzzzzz".
If you have any questions about Animal Reiki, you can drop me a message below - and if you want to hear more about my work with animals, you'll be the first to hear, if you subscribe to my newsletter, and follow me on Social Media!