Welcome to Animal Posse, the podcast dedicated to the people and rescues making a difference in the lives of animals. Today's show is gonna be a little bit different. In addition to being an animal rescuer, I am also into energy healing or reiki. I use it to comfort all of my rescues. When I worked in an adoption center, I would go in and I would also comfort the animals that seemed a little bit more stressed at the adoption center. So today I decided to invite my Reiki instructor, Tianne Lastra on to discuss Reiki and how it can be used to help pets. How are you today, Tianne?

I'm doing well. I'm very happy, excited and grateful for the invitation.

Great. I'm excited to talk about it 'cause I love reiki. Before we start, tell us a little bit about yourself. What is your background and do you have a fondness for animals?

Look, fondness is a word so close to my heart because I'm actually an animal lover. Since a very early age I was thinking yesterday, how when I was four and five years old, I had my own little emergency kit and I used to go out of the house and if I would see an animal in front of the house, I would bring him in, give him a bath. Cure him if he had something that I felt me curing. So it was something that I grew up with. So, I feel that animals are so genuine in everything that they do, and I really appreciate that. Besides the fact that I feel that we all should be responsible and do the best we can to give them the life that they need and they deserve.

I couldn't agree more. And do you do any kind of things like TNR to help with the population of cats?

I did a lot of TNR, especially after Katrina. I was so fortunate to be able to get the assistance from a group, and I remember we did 80 cats immediately after Katrina because everybody had left the city and left their animals behind, and everything was very chaotic after Katrina. So the animals kept reproducing and I felt that no one was really doing anything about it. So I contacted this group and they were so absolutely wonderful. Within a fairly short period of time, we were able to control the cat population and everything. Since we did that went back to normal. The neighbors were happy and the cats were well taken care of and placed in good homes, so it really worked out for the best. At present. I try to support different organizations. I'm not no longer doing TNR. But I do a lot of animal rescue and I have been able to place not only cats but dogs as well. So I'm always on the lookout for anybody or anything that needs help, and I try to be there. It's my way of giving back because I've been blessed with wonderful pets.

We'll move on to what Reiki is. Let's start a little bit with the basics. You are a reiki master. If you can explain just a little bit about what that is, and then for anybody who doesn't know what Reiki is, if you can explain that in simple terms as well.

Of course. My training started in 2006. And came as a result of my husband's, diagnosis. So at that point we started looking for alternatives to just traditional medicine. And we studied a number of different modalities. We actually traveled for almost eight years. Learning different types of healing modalities, like, crystal work, energy work reiki many of the things, meditation, chronic healing. We were always looking for something that could support the path that he was going in. And then we came across Reiki and we started being trained. So, I've been a licensed teacher for the ICRT for about 14 years. In December I decided, to semi-retire, but I'm still, fairly active. I work in the hospital doing, reiki for cancer patients and also giving meditation classes. But for some reason I have been called lately to pay attention, to the situation of animals that may need some support. And I'm glad that you called me to discuss this thing because it's something that I think is very important. So, going on to the topic of what Reiki is by definition we can say that Reiki is a system. For stress reduction and for relaxation. It was developed in Japan by a man by the name of Usui, and that happened around 1922 and it came through Hawaii into the United States through a lady by the name of Akata. And although she started teaching in 1976, which we, you will agree, that is fairly recent it, it's been practiced and it has spread all over the world. So every country has practitioners. Different types of schools. So it has become, quite important. And one of the important things that happened is that the medical profession is looking into reiki as a way of also benefiting patients. So reiki has been used in different hospitals and different, organizations that, that treat the patients. And the reason primarily for that is that it produces a level of relaxation that allows the patient to get better. The belief is that your body has a capability of. Helping itself and for you to obtain a high level of relaxation, it actually allows your body to do just that. So science is recognizing that. So it's been offered in many healing facilities. Now, in regards to the word reiki, which by the way in Japan is called leiki. So if you ever go to Japan and you wanna receive reiki, you need to ask for leiki. It means the word reiki is composed of two, two words. The first one is re, which means universal or spiritually guided energy, or a higher knowledge or consciousness. And the second syllable is key, which is the same as Chi Asana. Simply said is that life sustaining energy that we all have. That animals have, that plants have, so every living organism has it. So, that in a nutshell is a little bit of an explanation on reiki. The only thing I wanted to also add that in order for you to practice reiki, you need to be taught. The first two levels are taught. The first level is a two day program. The second level is a three day program, and at that time you can also start practicing reiki and treating people and animals and plants. And nature in general. And now important points to have is number one, that you need to be taught by a master teacher. The second important part is that you do not become a healer. What you become is a conduit of this energy that you connect with. Number three, that this is in no way substitute for medical or veterinary care. So it is cataloged as a complimentary therapy. And the most important one to some people is that Reiki is not a religion or is associated with any type of religious practice. It is a spiritual practice because we believe that we connect with a higher source. And then we use that energy and we are able to transfer it to the person or the animal or the thing that needs it.

I would like to address the way that I came to discover Reiki and sought you out as a teacher. Because it was kind of a coincidental, funny thing. Many years ago I saw a class that another rescue was offering and it was an introduction to energy healing for animals. There was a reiki instructor there, so I attended that class. And I immediately connected with it. I thought it was very interesting and I wanted to learn more. I was talking to my friend about it, and she's in rescue, and I was like, I really wanna go do this, but I don't know. Where to look for a Reiki instructor locally. And she was like, oh, I know one. She goes she helps us out with with the cat sometimes. So that's how I actually came to find you

well, I'm glad you did.

It's just funny 'cause it's just like a coincidence, that you were into doing the cat rescue and the TNR and everything just fell into place.

For a long time I was actually the only teacher in the area. And people were wanting to learn and I wanted people to learn how to do it because I thought it would be so beneficial at all levels for people, for patients, for animals, for families, because there's immense benefits to using this energy. It helps you with pain management. It helps you with your sleep. It helps your body relax. It puts you in a clearer frame of mind. So, it's just, excellent, no matter which way you look at it. And the good thing is that once you learn how to do it, not only can you treat other things, but you can also treat yourself. Which is an advantage, especially if you have a presentation, if you're excited, if you are a little bit sad. If you're having pain, if you are needing some type of support, you can support yourself with this energy, so you can self-treat. So I think that's really important. Another important thing is when you wanna treat, for example, the animals, which is the focus of our conversation you really don't need any equipment. Your equipment is in your hands and in your heart. So I usually carry my purse, a small speaker, and I have my Reiki music in my phone. So, when the opportunity comes. I just turn on my little relaxing music and I start doing my session. And so it's very easy to do. It is a very soothing, very relaxing and everybody really appreciates it because it gives you that feeling of comfort and that feeling of peace. That is what we wanna bring into into our animal population.

Let's talk about how you actually perform Reiki on an animal and do, is it a hands-on thing? Do you touch 'em or do you not have to touch 'em?

Well, there's three basic ways, and the same thing applies to people whenever you wanna do a reiki session. The first way of doing it is with the laying of the hands. You put your hands on your subject. And when you get trained to do Ray, you learn particular hand positions that if you complete all of those hand positions, then you have treated, the full body so you can do hands on. If for some reason the person is not receptive to touch or the animal is not receptive to touch, you can do it hands off. And when you do that, we use the word beaming in which we beam the energy to the person or to the subject. And one thing that a lot of people don't know is that we can actually do reiki long distance energy travels where we, wherever it's directed to. So you don't need to be present to receive the benefit of of the session. So, those are the three basic ways and for animals you can do it the three different ways. You can do it if the animal is receptive. If it's an animal that's has been within a family, you can do it. Putting your hands on the animal if the animal is is wild. Or if the animal is stressed, you can go ahead and do it hands off, just beaming the energy. Or if the animal is located in a different place, you can do the distance healing, or you can send the energy remotely. Energy will travel as you directed. So, you can send it wherever this person or this animal is located and they actually feel the energy when you're doing that, and you yourself are feeling the energy as well because you're energetically connected. So it's a very interesting process and it's very amazing the way that it happens. It's really interesting when you send a long distance reiki to a person, and after the session, I always call and check in with my client. They can describe pretty much what I was doing. Oh, did you put your hand, you had your hands in my chest, didn't you? Oh, you put, then you move your hands to my head. So. It's so interesting to know that actually happens and that the other person is just aware of what you are doing as you yourself are.

When you're doing Reiki on an animal, how do you know that the animal is accepting it?

Okay. The first way. Is observation. So there are people, and I have taken several classes on animal communication to where you actually communicate with the animal at a at a different level. Somehow, you can convey your emotions to the animal, and the animal can convey those emotions for you. And that's a very interesting field that I urge people who deal with animals to explore. The issue of animal communication. There's a lot of books that can be that can be read, but there's a lot of of people that are teaching. The way to communicate with animals, even online. But going back to the question you observe the animal, a person can tell you what they're feeling, what they're experiencing. An animal cannot. So, you can speak to a person, but the animal doesn't have that ability. So, observing an animal and paying attention to the movements can provide you a lot of information. You look at the little face of the animal and you can see in the eyes. If they're stressed, if they're moving from side to side. In dogs, you see a lot of, the tail going in between the legs, so observation can tell you a lot of what that animal is experiencing. You can also know if an animal is stressed or if it's aggressive by the way it looks. And looking at the body, you can see the tension. Some animal shakes, some animals, are are in the corner. And so you first, you have to make an effort to let the animal know that you're there, not as a threat. But that support. So you wanna you wanna try to make him feel, relaxed and that he's not in danger so that they can be receptive to the session. When you start working with an animal, usually after a few minutes, you can see the animal starting, to relax. It's very typical that an animal that is accepting, of the session starts getting quiet. Then it starts laying down and before it just like it happens to people, they may even fall asleep. So, sometimes, when you are communicating with an animal and giving them Rey they can come to you and try to touch your hands because they can feel the energy. They don't know exactly what it is, but they know they feel safe. They know they like it. They know they're not threatened by it. So, that's an excellent way in which you can start, to to communicate, with the animal and know if they're accepting. So observation is the key point. And then of course, respecting, boundaries. If you feel that the animal is not receptive, then you need to give them time, to cool down or just, try later or on a different day. So animals just like people, they can feel a sense the energy and most of them welcome it because it feels good, it feels soothing, it's calming and that is very welcome, especially when you're in a shelter situation or in a stressful situation where he has been rehomed or he has been foster or is in shelter. Going to the vet's office is usually very stressful, especially for cats and also when they're sick. And all of these are situations in which they certainly can benefit from receiving, reiki.

What are some of the most significant benefits that you've observed for shelter animals? specifically?

Well, when you think about going to the shelter, you go to the shelter for many reasons, and the majority of people go there because they're looking for a pet. So when you go to the shelter, you're looking for the most bubbly, the happiest, the friendliest kitten or dog that there is, but there's a little dog. In the corner shaking, looking down, and he's like that because he is terrified of the situation, because he's missing his family because he's not feeling well. So when we go there and we work with those cases, we give those animals a chance to relax. Show themselves like they really are. When they do that, what we discover is our wonderful little animals, to be adopted. But sometimes because they're in that mode of being stressed or afraid they miss that chance of showing themselves like they are. I remember several years ago I was looking in Facebook and they had this picture of this little dog that they were going to euthanize on the following day because he had been in the shelter and nobody. Was interested in him. So I got up early and I went to the shelter that morning and I told the girl in the front I would like to adopt that little dog that you put on Facebook that is going to be euthanized tomorrow. And her response shocked me and she said, you want him? And I said, yeah, I want him. So when we went to where he was. He was shaking in the corner looking against the back part of the kennel. And she she took him out and she said, are you sure? And I said, I'm positive. The moment I took him out of the front door, he was a different dog. He was walking, he was jumping,. Turned out to be the nicest little dog. He was just intimidated by the environment. I remember another time that I went, I look in the cage and there was this beautiful little black cat. So I start talking to him because I had gone there to see if I could find a lost cat. And there he was. His name was Joey. And, I went and I looked at him and I wasn't ready to take in another animal, so I went every day to the shelter. So two days after I go and I asked the attendant, I said. Where's the little black cat that was here? And he says, oh, we just moved him somewhere else. And I said, can I go can I go see him? And when I went into the cage, he was so defeated. He was laying on the floor and he was just looking at me, and he was so depressed, he was so intimidated by the environment. So I told him, I promise you, this afternoon I'm coming for you. So I went and I started, giving him reiki when I got him. I found a home for him. He is the most amazing little cat. So these environments affect their behavior and sometimes their behavior causes them not to be good candidates for adoption. So reiki comes in to relieve them of that stress. And put them in a position to where they're more adoptable. And that's that's something that we want every animal to find a home and every home to find their animal. So, this is really important in Louisiana. I don't know that there's an active group of people going to the shelters, and it's something that I have felt that it has been very necessary.

Maybe we have to think about putting together something like that then.

Absolutely. Absolutely.

Because It seems like reiki and animals do go hand in hand because you do see that. Oh, absolutely. Most of your Reiki practitioners are big time animal lovers.

Absolutely. Absolutely. When you go to treat an animal, so you'll know we need to honor what they want. And again, you do that by observing their body movements or behavior. But usually an animal determines how long they want their treatment to be. So usually you start, treating the animal and then when they consider that they're done, they'll just get up and then just literally, walk away. And that's okay because we need to honor. Their wishes in that way. If they don't want the treatment, they just don't want it. I used to treat a cat, her name was Sabrina, and when she was a baby, apparently somebody pulled her tail to. They damaged all the nerves that went, to her elimination, system. So she needed to go to the vet every day to have her bladder expressed. So they brought her to me. I worked with her and she actually got better. So after the third treatment I went, they, she was brought and I tried working with her. She was just not gonna have it. She just wouldn't do it. So I guess she felt that she didn't need it anymore. So they have very clear indication as to what they want and how long they want it for. So we need to honor and respect that as well. Important thing to know that before you begin to treat an animal, send love to that animal. And if you are afraid of that animal, then may not be the right moment. Because remember I said that animal are very good sensors of the energy of people. So what you do is you send love, you set up your intention, not what you want, but for that animal to receive whatever it is that they need. And then you stand or sit in front of your subject and you close your eyes, take a couple of deep breaths and set up your intention, and then you start putting your hands on the animal if you can, or just beaming the energy to the animal. And when he's ready and he's done you will know. Now, we don't wanna create an expectation that. This is what I want to come out of this situation. What you wanna do is to desire whatever is the best outcome for your animal, which is the same thing as you do for people. If you don't love animals or your, threatened by animals and all of that, this may not be what you need to be doing. However, reiki is excellent for treating people, animals, plants, and treating ourselves. So very important to know that this is available for everyone and everyone can learn how to do it. They just need to be trained.

For the skeptics in our audience, how do you explain the mechanism? Is it the energy itself or is it the focus, quiet, compassionate presence that makes the difference?

I think it's a combination of both, because once you connect to that energy, the energy is flowing through you and you at the same time. Passing on that energy to the person, to the thing, to the plant or to the animal. So. Being in a, an environment that is conducive to quiet and peaceful. Just like when you do meditation is usually the best scenario for this to have. You can do reiki in the middle of of a concert if you feel that you want to, however, the best way of experiencing the Reiki energies by creating an environment that's conducive. To relaxation and puts you as well as your client in a form of meditation. So, to answer your question, I think it's a combination of both. It's a combination of both because, that way you can maximize the effects. Having soft music, playing your hands tend to get warm and sometimes vibrate, and that is always very welcomed by your client, especially, by the animals. Yesterday I was giving reiki to one of my cats. Her name is Katrina. And she let me do it for a bit of time. And then, she had enough. So this morning I was sitting on a chair and I see her around me, and then I look at her, I said, oh, I know what you want. And I just grabbed her, put her in my lap and it's just like, okay, I am ready. So, it's that combination of feeling nurtured and taken care of and accepted. That really makes it just so wonderful.

I understand you follow SARA or the Shelter Animal Reiki Association. Do they have specific methods that they recommend when you go into a shelter?

They do. They sure do. And I came across this organization many years ago and this is a an organization that was founded by a lady by the name of Kathleen Prasad. And it was created around 2004. So, she created this method in which she focused animals, that are in shelters because she recognized the same things. I mentioned before that an animal that's in a shelter is an animal that is stressed normally. An animal that needs, support an animal that needs attention, that wants to be loved and accepted. So she make it, she made it her goal to address, those healing methods to these animals that were in the shelters. So she she created this organization, shelter Animal Reiki association. And the abbreviation is Sara, SARA. She has methods that she teaches specifically people to go into the shelters and offer reiki to the animals that are there, if you go on their website and you can Google shelter. Animal Reiki association.org. You find a lot of information how her instruction is based on how to target and how to reach these animals that are in that situation. And she calls, and I really like this title. She lets her classes, be called let animals lead. So to me, that tells me that you are attentive, what the, not only what the animal needs, but what the animal wants. So, what it does according, to her information. They have the stress that they experience in this condition. A lot of these animals that go into the shelter, they have been abused or mistreated. So you need to rebuild that trust to humans. Animals get depressed because they have been separated from their environments. They perhaps have been sick or they have been abused, so, they pretty much have given up. So all of this helps them to open up again and during their stay or even in the time of their passing, Reiki can create a very peaceful space for them. And the beauty of this is not only you're helping the animal, you're helping yourself because as you transfer the energy is going through you. So you're also receiving the benefits of what you are giving to to the other person or to your animals. Now we know that shelters are noisy. That shelters are stressful. There's a lot of chaos it seems, with the animals barking and people coming in and people coming out and everybody's dealing with some sort of stress issue that if you would wanna go into that, one of the things that you can do is just. Cover the face of the kennel. So you minimize distractions and that way you can. Make your little subject a little bit more quiet and a little bit more receptive to what you're doing. And like I said, I always carry my little speaker in my purse and you can actually, start playing a little bit of music. If you go on this website, she has a video on how she does it in the shelters that I really liked. So you may want to explore that as well and watch how she's doing. It's really simple. You don't need to carry anything. You just connect to this beautiful energy and you start just, sharing this energy to whoever it is that you wanna share it with. And everybody's relaxed. Everybody's connected. Everybody does so much better when they are receiving and after a session of reiki.

I know you touched on this a little bit too, that anybody can learn reiki, so even your average pet owner, foster parent, anybody in rescue to learn reiki, you would just need basically like reiki level one,

yes, you can. You can learn. Anybody can learn it. What they need to have is first a desire to learn it. Then find a reputable teacher. That is gonna be teaching you the basics in a, in the proper way and giving you accurate information. So I would suggest taking levels one and two that you can do, over one weekend and that makes you ready to start de treating people, treating animals. Plants. The uses are just incredible. There are so many things that Reiki can apply can apply to. And the good thing is that reiki is so simple and it's a viable source for anybody that wants to impact the life of somebody else or of an animal by bringing, calmness into their lives by helping them get away from fears, overcoming fears and trauma. And it's so easy to do. Like I said before, you don't need any special equipment. You just use your hands and all that energy of love that comes from from your heart, that's really all you need. That good intention to be of service to somebody else or to someone else, or to an animal, or to whoever needs you to be. And like I said before, it's safe. We remember that reiki is a complimentary therapy and it's no substitute for veterinary care or for doctor's care. We go in and we hold the. Caregiver's hand and we held them. Support them, through their journey of healing. And we know that when your body is managing stress, that your body can actually take care of many things. We know our bodies can take care of of many things. And the same thing happens with animal, but animals. But removing those layers of stress is really the best benefit. That we can do. And when you have a calm body, your body again, can help itself in many ways. Another important thing is that there are no licensing requirements in the state of Louisiana. There are licensing requirements to practice in Mississippi, Florida, and many other states. But here in Louisiana there are no licensing requirements. So you can practice without having to apply for a license.

What is one thing you want animal rescuers and shelter staff to know about Reiki?

Well, first of all, I think that every person that's a rescuer, especially a rehabber, that they deal with these animals, in, a long-term way that this is something that should be in their toolbox. And we call reiki tools, and it's things that we can use to in order to practice in a better way and to deliver better benefit. So I think every rescuer, every rehabber should have this in their toolbox because again, it requires no special equipment so they can treat an injured animal. Right there and then until you bring them, to the vet or wherever the animal needs to go. So it gives you, possibilities of not only. Treating the patient in the physical way by supporting, and relaxing them until, other means are used, but also helps the animals calm down so that they can make that transition into getting better to where they reach a point where they can be released. Or animals that have a strong sense of aggression, we can help, bring their aggression down so that they become more manageable. And we know that true rehabbers, the purpose is to release animals on the wild so they don't. They don't encourage, socializing, but sometimes these animals need medical care and it's a lot easier to provide, medical care when the animal is less stressed and more accepting of what you're trying to do. So, very easy, no necessary equipment. There's zero cost to it once you have completed your training. So. You take it with you wherever you go. So it's a win-win situation. And again, the most important thing is not only you're helping your subject, you're helping yourself. And the more you do it, the more you grow, the more your understanding becomes. And your communication skills with the animal also develop. So yes, that, that should be part of everybody that deals with animals.

And one other thing that I'd like to mention too is since you did mention the rehabbers and the aggressive dogs, and you did say this before, you do not need to do that hands on. So you could either stand close by and send it to them, or you could even do the distance, like you said.

Absolutely. You never wanna put your yourself at risk. And you really don't wanna create a situation where that animal is also, a victim of its own impulse. So we wanna be very discreet and very cautious on to how to approve an animal, especially an animal that we're not familiar with. And this one of the beauties of reiki, that you can treat that animal. Remotely, even if there's an animal that would be in Baton Rouge, for example, that had just went through surgery and is having a difficult recovery. From Metairie, I can send the energy to Baton Rouge and treat that animal remotely. And I know this is hard for people to understand until you have experienced it, and I'm sure you have experienced, that connection. Long, long distance. So you can do it that way too, but face to face with an animal that may be aggressive, you wanna say, okay, I'm here to do reiki. I'm gonna call this lion. I'm gonna go open the gate that I'm going in. You know that, that makes no sense. You're showing total lack of common sense. So what you do is you stand at a decent distance, from the cage, and you start beaming the reiki energy. And the first thing you know, you may see that they're pacing and then somehow they get the idea, well, what is this? I like it. And then they start relaxing and then you complete your session, but we always wanna do it in their terms. We need to accept that they have a right to determine what they want, to accept and what they're comfortable with. So it's really interesting process, but you never wanna put yourself in danger. Assuming that you can overcome any type of of problems, that this animal may be dealing with, and maybe it's pain, maybe this animal is in pain and that's why he's acting that way. But the thing is common sense cautious and never assume. That you know everything that's happening in this animal's life and emotions and feelings.

For our listeners that are inspired by this conversation, do you have any resources where they can learn more?

If they're geared towards working with animals, I would ask them to go into the Shelter. Animal Reiki Association. They offer classes and classes online. If you're interested in reiki in general, that you can use some people as well as you can use on animals. There's multiple Reiki schools. I was affiliated with International Center for Reiki training. There are many schools that you can seek training from, and so, so, you would need, depending on your location, you can just go Google, reiki classes in. Whichever city or whichever state you're in, and you can go ahead and find, who's available and what's available. A lot of classes are being held online. So that open teaching for a lot of the teachers. So there is a number of places that they can go to secure Reiki training. And I encourage you that you do, especially, with the animals, because I really would like to see a group form here in Louisiana, maybe under the guidance of Sarah. That we can start, visiting shelters and trying to put a little grain of salt to make this little guy's life a little bit better. And we always need to remember that the calming effect that we can bring into the shelters using Regi. Can make the animals more adoptable. They would open doors for them to be adopted if they can put their guard down and let people see them how they really are.

Yeah, absolutely. I totally agree with that. Well, thank you so much, Tianne. I really appreciated you coming on and talking all about this, so hopefully somebody can learn something from it.

We are here to help. This is something that is beautiful, that's important, that is necessary. So, whatever I can do to support you or anybody else, that may be interested. I'm more than happy to do it.

Thank you.

Well, thank you for the invitation and I hope everybody has a wonderful day, evening and life is beautiful. We just need to learn how to live it.

That's all the time that we have for today's episode. Thank you for listening. If you are enjoying our show, please consider leaving us a donation. A hundred percent goes to our animals.