Oliver is age eleven and entire. He lives with his person, Caroline. I had not met him before our sessions together. He has never had any form of healing bodywork before.

His personality, in general, is very chilled, although he can be territorial at home and barks a lot when he hears the front door. He gets lots of walks in the New Forest and likes people and people watching. He is intelligent and sensitive.

There are two issues that Caroline hopes could improve for Oliver from our sessions together.

The first is that he can be anxious when out for walks and is very happy to stay on the lead. This is due to having been attacked on three previous occasions. He was bitten on two of these, one of which was very deep and caused an infection, which required surgery.

The second issue is that Oliver has osteoarthritis in both his front paws and his right elbow, which he doesn’t like having touched, along with his rear end. Caroline would like for him to suffer with less pain if at all possible.

Oliver can also get fungal infections in his feet in the autumn from the forest. This is treated with an anti-fungal cream so having his front paws less uncomfortable would be useful.

At the age of eighteen months, Oliver had a lump removed from his right lower ribs. Five years ago, he had to have his jaw operated on after biting on a stone, as it had become fractured. More recently, he has had four teeth removed.

Session 1

I arrived for the first session, and interestingly, Oliver did not bark at all, even though I rang the bell and knocked as well (his hearing is fine), and as I mentioned before, he and I had not previously met.

Oliver greeted me politely and sat close up against the side of my leg whilst I took down details from Caroline and completed my intake form. He was very happy to be stroked and talked to.

As I began to work with Oliver, he moved himself onto his bed, a couple of feet away, and stayed there for the duration of the session.

As always when I work, I asked Oliver for permission to connect with him. This came immediately and was very much from the heart. I gently explained that I may be able to help him with any areas of discomfort he might have.

Initially, Oliver took my attention to the 3rd toe of his front right paw. The specificity of his request took me by surprise, but I quickly became aware of energy beginning to soften and move, releasing from not only the toe and paw but also his whole lower leg. Oliver then moved my attention upwards to his right elbow, from where I could again sense energy shifting.

The session slowly continued in the same vein and our next port of call was the 2nd toe of the left front paw, again very specific, followed by the brachial plexus area in Oliver’s right armpit and then his left hip joint. There were significant energetic shifts from all these areas, each followed by a quiet period of integration before my senses were shifted to the next area of the body that Oliver deemed required my attention.

During the pauses between his requests, I was able to sense out into the wider field and noticed shifts and changes happening in Oliver’s endocrine system. The adrenals, part of this system, play a significant part where shock and pain are concerned by excreting cortisol and adrenalin and can upset the balance of the nervous system if they remain out of sync with the body. There was a strong sense of rebalancing here.

As I sensed that the session was coming to a close, there was a beautiful calm energy around Oliver. I checked there was nothing else he would like from me before thanking him and disconnecting. He had stayed on his bed for the duration, just a couple of feet away from me.

Session 2

Caroline was not able to report any significant change in Oliver’s movement since our first session. Having said that, he was pleased to see me and wagged his tail madly whilst bringing me his favourite toy. Again, there was no barking as I arrived, and Oliver settled on his bed again as I sat close to him.

After asking permission to work with him today, as I began, Oliver chose to rest both his jaw and sacrum on my hands. I was shown a sense of lengthening through the whole of his body and an energetic release. Oliver looked up at me as this was happening, and I was aware that I was being told that the energy was from a while ago, not recently. He put his head back down and went back to sleep.

Knowing his issues when out walking, I thought this might be an opportune moment to ask Oliver if I could be of any help to him in this matter. I sensed anxiety and asked where in his body he would like help in relation to this. He showed me his heart and adrenals so I held the intention of supporting these two areas. When I mentioned meeting friendly dogs on his walks, Oliver showed me excitement and expansion. With the mention of unfamiliar
dogs, there was a sense of contraction.

We noted that he was always with people who made him feel brave, strong and safe when out walking. Oliver showed me that he could feel brave and strong in his chest and safe in his heart. At this point, there was a considerable release of energy from around the heart centre.

I asked Oliver if there were any other emotions or anything else he would like to release, and he showed me his heart again. He had been missing Carolin,e who had been away for the past week and had only returned yesterday. This time, I could sense that the energy Oliver was releasing from his heart was from the present moment.

Then, towards the end of the session, when holding the intention for balance throughout his nervous system, Oliver showed me lengthening throughout the whole of his body. As we drew to an end, he was on his feet, wagging and wiggly with his toy in his mouth, whereas during the time we worked together, when not sleeping, he was always staring straight at me.

Caroline reported that she had found my presence and energy to be very calming during the session. She had been able to focus deeply on her work, as well as on Oliver, and had been very aware of the energy shifts. At one point, she had had a sense of Oliver levitating.

She also noted that Oliver is very respectful towards me and sits quietly by my side, whereas he usually jumps up at people.

Session 3

Oliver was very pleased to see me and wanted to show off his new haircut. Initially, he sat right in front of me, staring up, and when I made a fuss of him, he began to ‘purr’!

After the usual permissions had been obtained, I allowed Oliver to show me where he would like my awareness to go. He took my attention along the whole length of his body, all the way from his right sacroiliac area diagonally across to the left side of his jaw. At this point, as I held both places and intention for balance, he moved to sit on my foot. I noticed some significant energy shifts and a sense of relief from Oliver.

Next, Oliver took my attention to his groin area, particularly his right side, where I experienced a sense of opening and release. At this point, he got off my foot and began to move about.

As we continued towards the end of the session, I was very aware of a sense of letting go and reorganisation throughout Oliver’s thoracic area. I was yawning. Oliver was moving about, and there was a further sense of opening and release.

By the time we finish, Oliver is asleep on his bed.

To conclude, Oliver has been amazing to work with. He showed me that he is very aware of how his emotions can become trapped in the tissue of his body and how much he appreciated the opportunity to rebalance himself.

This case history provides an example of my healing work with pets and animals.

The Ytene Healing® approach offers Somatic Experiencing®, Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy, Osteodouce, Reiki and Animal Reiki to both human and animal clients, either in combination or independently. All the therapies offered are gentle due to their nature but can elicit profound healing.

Animal Healing sessions are intended to complement, not replace, the relationship you have with your veterinary practitioner. If you suspect your animal has a health problem, please see your Vet.

Contact me to book an appointment or find out more about the therapies I offer.

The post Case History: Oliver – Springer Spaniel appeared first on Ytene Healing.

Henry is a lovely old gentleman who lives with Claire in Berkshire. He is a purebred New Forest Pony, 14hh and 27 years old. He has been living with Claire since the age of seven and has helped her own children learn to ride.

To Claire’s knowledge, Henry has never had any healing bodywork before.

He has never had any particularly stressful events in his life and has a good temperament. There is arthritis in both of Henry’s hocks, and he has Cushing’s disease, for which he takes some medication. He is stabled at night and is fed loads of hay and Happy Hoof.

Session 1

We walked down to the field to find Henry, who came straight over to see us. After some strokes and treats, I asked him if it was ok for us to connect. Henry was very enthusiastic and immediately offered me a very strong heart connection.

He showed me both of his hocks in turn. Henry’s left hock felt much more stuck than the right, and he was able to shift and release a constant stream of blocked energy from here as I worked with him. I experienced a full body twitch whilst this was happening and Henry was constantly licking and chewing.

With his permission, I was able to connect with the whole length of each leg, but it was the hocks that showed the biggest energetic shift. During the session, both of us gave big sighs and Henry also passed significant amounts of wind along with more licking and chewing.

The session soon came to a close. It was a cold and windy day, and Henry appeared very pleased with how it had gone. Claire was thrilled with his response to my work with him.

Session 2

Today was much warmer, and we found Henry in the field enjoying a nap in the sunshine.

Claire had mentioned that she had seen no noticeable change in Henry’s gait over the past week but she was very encouraged by his response to the session. Given his age, our aim was to ensure that he was as comfortable as he could be.

Henry came over to the fence again and immediately connected with me, heart-to-heart.

Today, he showed me his right hock first. As I sensed into the joint, I experienced a huge twitch through the whole of my body as the energy shifted. Henry had a good shake and then began to lick and chew.

The next place he showed me was his right fetlock. Henry again had a really good shake as we both sensed the stuck energy releasing from the joint. Still with the right leg, Henry took me further down to the bulbs and coronet band, then back up again to the fetlock. He exhibited more licking and chewing as I tuned into all three areas, sensing them softening and easing as we continued the session.

When I asked Henry where he would like my attention next, he took me down to his left pastern and bulbs for more licking and chewing. We moved up a little to the left fetlock, and at this point, Henry had a good blow, followed by licking and chewing and passing considerable amounts of wind.

Following Henry’s lead, I was drawn to his pelvic area, specifically the joint at the base of his sacrum with his first tailbone (S3/CD1). There was a sense of a shear pattern as if his tail had slid slightly across to the left. As the energy in the area was released, I was able to get a sense of the disc shifting and the joint rebalancing.

Checking in with Henry, I saw that he was standing with a very droopy bottom lip. He immediately followed this up with licking and chewing and more wind releasing, all with his head nearly on the ground. I found myself continuously yawning, and Henry had a few minutes of blowing as the session drew to a close.

It ended fairly bluntly as Henry became distracted by the horse in the adjacent field, who was having a run-around.

Again, Claire was extremely pleased with the outcome of the session, although she is realistic about how much difference can be made with a pony of Henry’s age.

This case history provides an example of my healing work with pets and animals.

The Ytene Healing® approach offers Somatic Experiencing®, Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy, Osteodouce, Reiki and Animal Reiki to both human and animal clients, either in combination or independently. All the therapies offered are gentle due to their nature but can elicit profound healing.

Animal Healing sessions are intended to complement, not replace, the relationship you have with your veterinary practitioner. If you suspect your animal has a health problem, please see your Vet.

Contact me to book an appointment or find out more about the therapies I offer.

The post Case History: Henry – Horse appeared first on Ytene Healing.

The answer to the first part, how I work with animals, is quite fluid. I have no set way of working with any particular animal at any one time. In a quiet, safe and logistically accessible environment, I sometimes visit animals at their home, where I may or may not physically touch them while working. Although not at all essential, I do enjoy meeting my animal clients in person if the opportunity arises.

It could be that I work with the animal on a Zoom call with their human. This works well for dogs and cats who can stay in the comfort of their own home. They can feel safe in familiar surroundings. Often, an animal will get up and move or have a drink during a session, usually after a significant shift. This allows their nervous systems to integrate any release and rebalance.

Many of my dog and cat clients are also the companions of my human clients.

As a result, they are well used to my energetic presence. They will often be in the same room while their human has an online session with me and join in with them, helping themselves to whatever they need at that moment. This has occasionally led to some amusing occurrences.

One memorable incident was a cat on the bed while her human was resting during a session. I was very close to finishing when I realised that there was a shift in energy; the cat had hijacked the session. Unbeknown to me, her human had had her hand resting on the cat. Suddenly, she jumped and screamed. This was the exact moment I had felt the cat’s shoulders release. A huge twitch had gone through the cat’s body and caught her human by surprise!

I have worked with horses in-person, online and also remotely from photographs.

Again, if I am able, it is good to meet horses in person. This is mainly due to my being a great animal lover. My daughter and I had horse and pony companions for twenty years. I jump at the opportunity to connect with their incredible energy whenever possible.

While connecting with each pet or companion, very basic animal communication skills allow me to go a little way towards helping understand any issues from the perspective of the animal itself.

These insights can often point us in the right direction to help the animal feel understood, appreciated and more comfortable.

There was an occasion when I was asked to work online with a dog in the North of England. The aim was to help facilitate some relief from the discomfort he was suffering with his left elbow whilst awaiting cruciate ligament surgery. Interestingly, he continuously showed me his right hip. Although, at the time, I was unable to feel any dysfunction in and around that joint.

After his surgery, I was asked to work with him again. The elbow joint had healed well, and he had been signed off by his veterinary surgeon. Unfortunately, he was still displaying some lameness. I connected again and was once more shown directly to his right hip.

This time, I was able to sense that there had been a previous impact. I mentioned this to his owner. She remembered that as a small puppy, he had wriggled and fallen to the ground whilst being held. He had landed on his right side. But as he had appeared to be fine, nothing had been thought of it.

As I was told the story, I fell his right hip joint and surrounding soft tissue releasing shock and returning to a more balanced state. At this point, I was able to watch him on screen as he stood up and moved around the room. No longer lame.

What I learned from this is that the dog had no concern for his left elbow because he knew that it was being taken care of.

What he really wanted was acknowledgement for the previous injury to his right hip, which had gone unnoticed for such a long period of time. This is why it is so important for us to listen to our animals and understand their priorities, along with taking advice from professionals.

To date, I have worked with 12 different types of species.

I have been privileged to work with dogs, cats, horses, donkeys, goats, a sheep, tortoise, budgie, rabbit, alpaca, chicken and a hive of bees. I am always happy to work with something different!

Connecting online or remotely allows me to work with animals in many different countries. For example, I was contacted to work with a dog brother and sister in New Hampshire and two goats in South Carolina, United States. The hive of bees was in Northern Italy.

I think that probably the most entertaining of all these different species to work with was the tortoise. He had been attacked by a dog and was brought to visit me at home as he lived close by. We would place him down on the floor, allowing him to walk as he wished around my workspace, which has underfloor heating. He would eventually find a space where he felt comfortable and would park himself with his head in a corner on the warm floor. I was then able to connect and work with him while he slept.

I am currently fortunate to be able to visit The Berkshire Animal Connection Centre charity in Swallowfield.

This new and unique venture offers benefits to both animals and humans. It provides a permanent place to live for otherwise unwanted, abused and abandoned animals. There, I have the opportunity to connect with the animals. I work with any of them that require or ask for attention. Utilising my rudimentary communication skills and offering a combination of therapies, including Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy, Osteodouce and Animal Reiki, the animals are able to show me what they need at the time. Depending upon the circumstances, I will either work with them in situ or from a photograph when I return home.

For more information on the Berkshire Animal Connection Centre, visit their website www.animalconnectioncentre.org

Both Somatic Experiencing® and Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy are, by definition, trauma-attuned modalities. Used together, either online or in-person, they can facilitate resolution of embodied trauma in a very profound but gentle way, honouring the unique wishes and needs of each client.

If you think your pets or animals could benefit from working with me, please get in touch to book a free chat. Email sarah@ytenehealing.co.uk or call me on 07747 111040.

Please remember to contact your veterinary practitioner in the first instance if you have any concerns regarding the health or your pet or animal.

The post Working with animals: healing different species in-person and online appeared first on Ytene Healing.