Massage is not, nor is it meant to be, a substitute for veterinary care.

A primary and important function of animal massage is the physical assessment of your animal. My hands are trained to feel for anything unusual with an animal’s coat, skin, subcutaneous tissues (i.e. lumps and bumps), muscles, temperature discrepancies, etc. Keeping a current account of your dog or cat’s physical body and any changes to it helps you know if anything arises that needs the attention of your veterinarian.

Canine and feline massage is similar to that for humans except there is no deep work (and the client often stands throughout and sometimes drools, passes gas, burps, and licks my face). Muscle palpation and manipulation of trigger points is done gently without going deeply into the muscle in any way that could possibly cause discomfort or pain to the animal. I use gentle positional release to coax tension from the animal’s tissues and gentle strokes, scratching, skin rolling, tapotment (percussion strokes), and more to increase and maintain flexibility of joints and stimulate cardiovascular, neurological, and lymphatic circulation.

Throughout the massage I often send energy healing to the dog and cat. I use a combination of Reiki and Divine Coding. Both forms of energy work are guided by a high-vibrational universal energy, and are safe, noninvasive, pure forms of healing. Both are performed with hands gently on the body or off the body (helpful for animals or people who do not tolerate touch, such as a very skittish animal).

Everything in the world is made up of energy: source energy that was at one time pure, loving, happy, boundless energy. But through our daily lives and events and situations – both current and past – our (animals included) personal energies can become unbalanced. It is like turning on a light switch: if the energy is disrupted somewhere between the source and the switch, the energy can sputter, spark, or burn out. The same thing happens with people, animals, places, and situations. Sometimes we shine less brightly than was intended. Energy healing can help bring back our luminosity.

Reiki is an ancient holistic healing system usually referred to as “universal life energy.” Healing, soothing energy flows through the practitioner to the client, accessing body, mind, and spirit to balance the client’s chakras and energies. As a certified Reiki 2 provider, I use Reiki symbols to intensify the healing effect.

Another energy modality I am trained in is Divine Coding. Similar to Reiki, Divine Coding taps into Angelic energy to, often quickly, affect positive change. It also incorporates different symbols than Reiki. Divine Coding is very effective at clearing stumbling blocks in our current lives that were put in place by past traumas (big and small, real or imagined). Animals deal with and process past events and emotions the same as humans do, and sometimes need some help to move forward.

Animals are naturally very in tune to the subtle flow of energy around us and most animals take very readily to receiving Reiki. Energy work can be extremely relaxing and animals and people may get drowsy or even fall asleep. A session could consist entirely of energy work if it is preferred to massage by the animal.

I also offer Reiki and Divine Coding sessions for humans at $60 per hour.