I have been out of blog touch for awhile and have so MANY things to share. Since I’ve last posted, I’ve attended an acupressure class for companion animals, taken a Journey Intensive weekend workshop and organized and assisted at a Tellington TTouch training in NJ. I promise to tell you more about those interesting events in future posts.
For this
one, I want to share with you what an amazing and gratifying weekend I had
volunteering my time and expertise at the June 12th and 13th Super Pet Adoption Event
in Livingston, NJ, which was billed as the largest pet adoption event in the history
of the tri-state area.
Kudos and great praise go to Best Friends Animal
Society, the host of the event, and the 45 or so regional shelter and rescue
organizations that attended. Many of the rescue people drove long distances and
worked exhausting hours to try to find forever homes for their animals. There
were estimated to be over 700 animals at the event.
Cats had their own area under one big tent and dogs were spread out over several larger tents. The organizers had good-sized kennels with enough space for the dogs to move around comfortably. The respective adoptive groups each had a table around the circumference of the area where the kennels were situated. I saw my local township’s shelter group, Second Chance for Animals (SCFA), from the Franklin Township Animal Shelter, represented under the cat tent.
My friend Thorne Delaney, a Northern NJ Tellington TTouch® practitioner who is involved in rescue work, invited me to attend the event and volunteer my Tellington TTouch® services to help animals feel less stressed in the hubbub of a strange and new environment. I had never participated in this kind of event and didn’t know quite what to expect.
It was almost like a kind of carnival atmosphere, with a center ring where an announcer was featuring a series of dogs to adopt, explaining their backgrounds and parading them onstage for the public to view and assess.
When I first got there, I felt a little lost myself with so much going on, loud noises of PA systems blaring, in the heat of the afternoon with so many volunteers and people rushing around. After hooking up with Thorne, I realized that I was to become a roving volunteer and seek out where I might best do some good. I just had to be in the moment and stay flexible.
Thorne Delaney does some TTouch® work with two dogs at the event. Photo by Donna Poler
Angel Dog Rescue from
Georgia – What a Heavenly Team!
Thorne
first introduced me to a group of dogs from the Angel Dog Rescue Group in
Four extraordinary women, Susan Hayley, the Director, and her three co-workers, Karyl Wiegand, Carolyn and Edna, drove many long hours up from Georgia with their pack of hopeful dogs. Thorne and I asked what dogs might need some calming Tellington TTouch® body work. Susan pointed to a cage with a small beautiful black dog and a larger handsome and athletic brown dog with some adorable freckles on its muzzle. Thorne opted for the black dog and I took Duke, the brown dog.
Angel Dog Rescue Director Susan Hayley with an affectionate dog on the left and Missy on the right, who attended the Super Adoption Event.
Karyl Wiegand of Angel Dog Rescue,
Inc. Photo by Donna Poler
After Susan
took the VERY strong Duke for a brief walk to work off some of his energy, a
short while later, under the shade of the Angel Dog Rescue tent, I began to do
some TTouch® work on Duke who had a sweet and lovely disposition.
A young
dog, he very easily let me do a number of relaxing touches all over his body,
including some mouth work that has a particularly positive effect on behavior
and emotion. Touch-by-touch, the tension started to leave his body, his
breathing got easier and he was gently panting as I worked to further calm and relax
him. Susan came back to find a much calmer dog.
Bridget and Oreo - A Fabulous Match
I walked
around and met so many wonderful people and volunteers, all with such big
hearts. I met a couple who brought their gorgeous Golden Retriever to the
event. Together the family was helping their daughter Bridget pick out her very
own dog.
She selected
a dog named Baldo, who has since been appropriately re-named Oreo. He was a dog
who was found roaming the streets of
Bridget and Oreo - Perfect Together Photo by Donna Poler
When I
walked back to the Angel Dog Rescue area, I was in time to see a mother and son,
probably in his early teens, interested in adopting my boy Duke (I felt as though he
was my boy for that afternoon). The mother was a little concerned about how
Duke would react with a cat. No problem. Susan called over a dog trainer who
took the trio to an area where Duke could be tested to see how he would react
to a cat.
They returned shortly after to fill out adoption papers. I was so happy for Duke and for his new family to get such a sweet honey of a dog. And the handsome black dog that Thorne worked on – he was adopted too!
The professionalism of the event was so admirable. The event organizers not only had plenty of volunteers and dog trainers to answer questions, but they also had a veterinarian on hand as well. She was called over when a couple with a young baby was interested in adopting another one of the Angel Dog rescue dogs, a handsome Pointer named Baxter, who had a slight limp. She assessed Baxter as having some arthritis in his elbow. The husband seemed to really like Baxter, but I don’t think that connection ultimately worked out.
I also got to work on a lovely hound mix named Tina from the Purrs N Pups Animal Rescue Team, Inc., who loved TTouch® and calmed down considerably shortly after I began working with her. I was also able to teach one of the volunteers from the organization some calming touches. Here is the link for this rescue group: http://www.purrsnpups.org/.
Isn't
Tina, who is with Purrs N Pups Animal Rescue Group, adorable?
When I arrived on Sunday afternoon, I did some TTouch® work on a beautiful puppy named Antoinette who had just arrived a few hours earlier from the South. She was also part of the Purrs N Pups Animal Rescue Team. A beautiful black and white Pit Bull mix, she was awaiting the arrival of her new family. Her brother is also up for adoption for anyone who might be interested. She was very sweet and enjoyed the TTouch® work.
Back at the Angel Dog Rescue Group table, I saw Thorne doing some writing. When I asked what she was doing, she casually said, “Filling out some adoption papers.” I asked who she was adopting and learned that Thorne, with her very big heart, was adopting one of the two blind dogs who were part of the Angel Dog Rescue group.
A beautiful boy, his name is Mikey. She brought tears to my eyes at the generosity of her spirit. She has two special needs dogs and recently lost one of her dogs, her beloved Frankie. Having already been guardian to a blind dog in the past, Thorne is the perfect guardian for Mikey. I’m sure he will be offering as much love right back to Thorne and her family of dogs and cats (and a horse too!). What a beautiful blessing for them all.
Mikey has a new loving home with
Thorne and her family of dogs.
TTouch® to the Rescue on a Stormy Day
The
overcast sky kept the area cooler for part of the day. But eventually the rains
did come and Sunday turned into a very wet and stormy day. Thorne and I found
ourselves in several kennel cages, helping to calm some dogs who were very fearful
of thunder and probably sensitive to barometric pressure shifts. Luckily I
brought a TTouch® wrap to help dogs who are stressed feel much calmer.
The TTouch® wrap, which consists of ordinary non-adhesive ace bandages that you can buy at your local pharmacy, works wonders on calming the nervous system. It brings awareness to the body and the sensation of the wrap on the body, almost like getting a gentle hug, helps both animals and people calm down and feel better. (If you want to learn more about the very positive effects that TTouch® wraps have on animals, please feel free to e-mail me at Donna@DonnaPoler.com and I'll send you some information on it.)
I use a TTouch® wrap on my dog Socrates almost every day. The wrap always calms him. A few years ago, he was even lying comfortably on my bathroom floor in his wrap, sleeping peacefully, while we were waiting out a tornado watch.
Socrates
models his TTouch® wrap. Photo by Donna Poler
I started
working with Missy (http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/11619913), an adorable eight-year-old Terrier mix, who was very nervous. The wrap
and my TTouch® work really helped to calm her.
Missy, a Terrier mix, stays close by
me, Anna and Patch during the storm. I had to leave her kennel to work with
Anna who was even more frightened. Photo by Donna Poler
While
working on her, I noticed
an emotional meltdown happening in the next kennel, as Anna (http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/13671975),
a
beautiful and very scared Pointer mix, was in fear mode and shaking
throughout
her body. She was in a cage with the very handsome Patch (http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/13673028),
who
seemed to be handling the storm a lot better than Anna.
I went from Missy’s kennel to Anna and Patch’s adjoining kennel. I put a wrap on Anna and she went into the safety of her crate that her very caring rescue person, Karyl, had brought over for her. So Anna, Patch and I were all huddled together at the back corner of the kennel as I did some TTouch® body work on both of them. Missy also joined us, putting her back right up to fence (see picture above), just inches away from us. I offered her some reassurance through the kennel fence too.
Patch curled up in a beautiful relaxed ball of fur. Anna became more relaxed with the wrap and the TTouch® and Reiki work, but was still very tense about the storm. And the rain poured down harder, making an even more intense noise on the roof of the tent. Thorne was working to help calm some other dogs.
Anna and Patch Calm Down
Somewhere
during the course of events, Anna came out of her crate and Patch managed to
climb in. Karyl told me that Patch is also fearful and that the two of them
often huddle and cuddle together in the Vari-kennel crate.
It actually
was a good thing that Anna came out because then I was able to work on her
whole body. When I tried to call her to come closer to me, and clapped my hands
very gently, I saw that she flinched. It seemed likely that human hands in her past
had served to hurt her rather than help her. I was very careful not to alarm
her in any way after that by any sudden movements with my hands.
After a time, Anna really began to calm down. And what I began to see as she slowly transformed was a dog who at first was too scared to face whatever was happening (the storm, thunder and general commotion of events) to a dog who was standing in balance on all fours taking in the scene of what was going on around her. It was very gratifying.
Anna feels much better after some
TTouches and after wearing her TTouch® wrap. Photo by Donna Poler
I was humbled by the extraordinary efforts of all involved, including Tammy Habeer who organized all the volunteers, and all the dedicated rescue workers taking such awesome care of their animals, being so devoted to their well being and to finding the right homes for them.
Carolyn and Freckles, an English Setter Mix, of the Angel Dog Rescue Group. Photo by Donna Poler
Luke, of the Angel Dog Rescue Group, chills out at the event. Photo by Donna Poler
I spoke to Melissa
Tiska of ARF, Animal Rescue Fund of the
Gratitude
For me, the
event evoked so much gratitude. I was so grateful to meet so many wonderful
people and dogs; grateful to Thorne for inviting me and for her special adoption;
grateful for the wonderful women of the Angel Dog Rescue group and their
amazing hearts; grateful for the beauty and courage of all the animals waiting
for their forever homes; grateful to all the wonderful people and families,
many who traveled great distances to seek out their next best friends.
I was also grateful
to Best Friends for putting together such a wonderful event and for all the groups,
shelters and organizations who participated. I was grateful to the many
volunteers who worked so hard to make it a memorable and successful event.
And I was
grateful that I could be a part of it and bring the beauty and gentle kindness
of TTouch® and Reiki work to the event. And I was so grateful to have worked
with such wonderful animals who were so gracious and accepting of my help and the affection and help of so many others. For more information on the benefits of Tellington TTouch®, go to http://www.ttouch.com and to learn more about the benefits of Reiki, go to http://www.reiki.org.
You can go
to the Best Friends event page to see the list of shelters and rescue groups
who participated (http://www.bestfriends.org/events/nysuper_adopt.htm).
I would also encourage everyone to check out the Angel Dog Rescue Group’s
website (http://www.angeldogrescue.com)
and their listing on PetFinder to see if any of their dogs look like they
might be your next best friends (http://www.angeldogrescue.com/available-pets).
With love and light and prayers for adoptions for all the animals who attended the event and all those in shelters everywhere waiting for their forever homes,
Donna
Donna Poler, M.A.
Alternative Health Consultant for People and their Pets
Certified Tellington TTouch® Practitioner
Certified Reiki Master
Animal Communicator
Angel Energy Lightworker
Intuitive Oracle Card Reader
Writer and Author of forthcoming E-book, “100 Plus Tips for Maintaining a Happy and Healthy Dog”
E-mail - Donna@DonnaPoler.com
Website - http://www.DonnaPoler.com
Blog - http://www.donnapoler.typepad.com
To arrange a Tellington TTouch® or animal communication session for your pet, a
Reiki session for either you or your pet, a health consult for your pet, or an
angel, crystal or animal oracle card reading for you, please contact me at Donna@DonnaPoler.com.
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