Possibly the last blog post of 2014

This is the 3^rd time in almost as many months that I’ve been sitting here in the Koru Lounge at Auckland International writing my blog :)

So, what’s been happening over the last 11 days???

Well I’ve now finished my formal case study sessions with Benny and Dukey.  Benny chilled right out in his last session and was less distracted than he was in the previous 2 so that was rewarding, and Dukey has come on in leaps and bounds!  Following his first session when he was very unsure about it, I used a Kong filled with cheese slices for the following 2 sessions to keep his mind off me, but in his final session I didn't have to use anything at all – what a total star!!  It just goes to show how important trust building and patience are, and going at the right pace for the dog.  Hopefully that’s not the last I see of either of them ;)  I had 3^rd sessions with Dotty and Stan so more on them and Tusk in the new year.

I’ve spent another 2 mornings observing behaviour at D’for Dog.  I went on an awesome dog walk with 6 dogs in Whitford Forest – perfect for observing their behaviours.  One took on the role of Fun Police, barking at them when they started to go a bit nuts, and one took on the role of setting the others off…very amusing.

I read a brilliant article by Suzanne Clothier titled “He just wants to say Hi!”…an absolute MUST for anyone with a dog.  I was also introduced to the work of Sue Sternberg, and her YouTube clips of behaviour at Dog Parks makes for fascinating viewing.

What else have I been up to….well I've had 2 sessions now with Mako and will be seeing him again in the new year; I've started with a new client Aggie and her Pet Parent, Rhona which is great experience as Aggie has recently been diagnosed with arthritis in her hips; I did my normal volunteering at the SPCA which I've missed for a couple of months..[see pic below for the less glamorous job of scrubbing the pens (actually…pretty sure there isn’t a glamorous side!!)]; I met another new client yesterday – Kingston, who is a 5yr old Great Dane.. what an absolute beauty he is; I've looked at the possibility of renting a room from a Human Physio in Ponsonby; And I attended the Project Jonah committee meeting…crikey, it’s all go!

And what has made me smile sitting here (apart from the glass of Champers)….an email I just received from my accountant saying that my company “Auckland Canine Massage” is now incorporated woohoo!!!!  Logo, website and Facebook page coming soon in 2015!

                                                                                                                                         

That’s all for now…off to board a flight for Perth..Happy Christmas everyone :)

 Gorgeous new client Kingston:

Fun in the sun

What a fab few days!

I met a gorgeous German Shepherd called Mako on Monday night who was referred to me as a case study by my vet – thanks Jody Burchall :).  He’s in great shape but has got some hip issues so the goal from massage is to continue to make him as comfortable as possible.  It took him a few minutes to get into it but he relaxed nicely and I managed a really good amount of time working on him. 

He has such beautiful manners, chattering away to me as only a GSD can!   

We've got another session on Thursday so that’s something I’ll be looking forward to.

Then today I got my first real experience of dog walking.  

D’for Dog were kind enough to host me again for some of my observation time so helped out on a walk with 3 terriers.  Brilliant.   It was a beautiful day, not too hot and they were all delighted to be out running around.  Plenty of sniffs…and when the rookie dog walker dropped a few treats by accident they thought it was Christmas - had to move swiftly to get them before they did.  I also got the opportunity to observe 3 other dogs at the centre with their individual play styles ;)

Tomorrow I’m off to help dog walk again, this time with 6 dogs…should have some fun photo’s tomorrow!

Feel like I'm hitting my stride

It's hard to believe I've been back less than 3 weeks yet I've already completed second sessions with the majority of my case studies.

In the last few weeks I've also had a variety of responses to my new career. Some examples: "you do what????"; "did you say dogs?"; openly guffawing in my face; and my own personal favorite...someone looking interested, asking questions then in the end saying "oh you're serious...I thought you were joking with me"!!

I had the gorgeous Dukey again this week.  We made definite progress from last time and he was much more comfortable which was hugely encouraging.

I also had sessions with Benny, Stanley and Tusk.  Benny was a bit more distracted this week than last time; Stanley was similar to before; and Tusk I managed to give a pretty good Sports massage to whilst she was preoccupied with a cheese slice filled Kong!
I have never used a Kong so much...they're great for keeping busy minds occupied and Asha loves it when I stuff it with cream cheese and freeze it :)

Yesterday I managed to miss the rain when I visited the dog park to practice some more observation.  I felt a bit mean as I didn't take Asha when all her friends were there...I made it up to her with an extra long massage this afternoon.  

I also got to practice my low stress handling techniques on a visit to the Vet with Asha.  It's not as easy as the books make out...whilst she doesn't mind going to the vet, in fact she's quite happy with the whole experience and happily takes treats, it's when we need her to hold still that she gets concerned.  In the new year I'm going to take her into the Vet on random occasions so she can get used to it a bit more.

So to top off my week I went to Water Woofs for an hour with a friend to watch her pooch on the underwater treadmill - great way to finish the week!

Having fun with Case Studies and Observation

So I have now had initial sessions with case studies 4 & 5.

On Sunday I went to visit Tusk who is a 9 year old Dalmatian.  Tusk is fabulous and we know her from weekend walks along Point Chev beach.  She is very active - mind and body, so I figured I would have a bit of a challenge calming her enough to have a massage.  I was pleasantly surprised how easily she came into my space at the start and laid down...she got easily distracted though ;)  A few treats help re-engage her so we had a pretty successful session.  Hopefully next week's session will be even better :)

Benny the Beagle is case study number 5.  Benny is 3 we think, and has been with his current home only a matter of a few months.  Whilst having a reputation as a bit of an escape artist, the Benny I met was a total chill out merchant.  He flopped down for me, and I probably spent a good 35 - 40 minutes working on him.  He let me do some PROM, skin rolling, ischemic holding etc.  He is in an awesome home now but he's probably still learning the ropes so hopefully his ability to switch off and relax like he did with me will settle him in that little bit quicker an easier.  Next session with Benny is on Friday so watch this space for more updates on him!

And Today......I spent the morning at D'for Dog Training where I was learning to hone my observation skills.  
Observing canine body language is a huge part of my work - I need to be able to notice physical cues and nuances that when considered in context indicate signs of stress, fear, aggression, playfulness, and relaxation.  I was able to watch a couple of puppies interacting and training which was wonderful...and I even managed to give one of them a massage at the end of his school session...he was so relaxed he fell sound asleep :)
D'for Dog have a fantastic indoor venue and a really positive approach to training and behaviour - thank you for letting me hang out with you!

Learning a valuable lesson

It's Saturday morning and I am writing this on a total high!!

I've just completed 2 more case studies and they have given me a real buzz... I LOVE this work :) 

First let me tell you about Case Study number 2.....
On Wednesday I had my first session with Duke.  Dukey is a gorgeous 10 year old male Lab who is also an ex-guide dog.  I have met him before so I went into the session with a preconceived view of how he would respond based on my previous encounter.  Being very honest, that was my mistake. 
Don't get me wrong, we didn't have a bad session at all - a lot of trust building and a small amount of palpation and passive touch - but in hindsight I think I moved a bit fast for him. I've been pondering on it and had a skype call with my Dallas colleague (thanks so much Scott!) and it goes back to the type of touch we are using.  When performing a massage, we are touching with intent and many dogs are not used to this.  They love being petted etc but massage is different to that.  Dukey was fabulous, and he told me that he wasn't comfortable with certain things and I respect that.  
That's the point of the case studies right, for me to learn and hone my skills.  My approach in the next session will be quite different so we'll see how that goes, but thank you Dukey for teaching me this valuable lesson.

So when I went to my session earlier today, my approach needed to be different.  Stanley is a 10 year old male English Bull Terrier and I know Stan...he is Asha's boyfriend so I really didn't want to make the same mistake I made with Dukey and assume anything.
And OMG did I reap the rewards :) :) :)
He willingly came into my space, and wandered off when he needed a break which was fab...and in the end he even lay down on his side..unprompted by me.  Awesome!

Lesson: Each dog, like the individual, is different.  My job as a canine massage therapist is to read each dog and their signals, and then adapt to them.

Couple of photos - of Stan and of Asha. 
Case study number 4 tomorrow and 5 on Monday...

Case study #1

I can't believe it - I've already started my case studies....

Yesterday I had the immense pleasure of meeting Dotty who is an 11 year old Miniature Schnauzer.  Dotty lost her right hindlimb last year and has come to terms incredibly well with getting along on 3 legs.

We started some trust building with a few yummy treats but pretty soon phased those out and Dotty relaxed into it and allowed me to give her a good 35 - 40 minute massage.  I mainly focused on relaxation techniques for her, with some light compression on particularly tight muscles.  We had plenty of yawning and a couple of dog farts (which is a good thing!!!). I have high hopes for my next session - assuming I didn't put her off :)

I'm seeing her again in just over a week so I'll get some photos in that session.

Case Study #2 is tomorrow so watch this space....

On a separate note, Asha had a play date yesterday morning ;).  Her best friend Stanley came over for an hour and they ran amok through the house.  I just love watching the two of them play, they are delightful.  Having learnt so much more about canine behaviour while I was in Chicago I could see that it's all very friendly, and I now notice when one of them tells the other one they've had enough, or get a bit hyper over something!!

Home sweet home

Following a fun (if somewhat cold) few days in Chicago with Debs, I'm now thawing out back home. Sigh.

Asha has received 2 massages so far.  The first one I gave her went really well, she totally chilled out, but the second one she decided to mess about, rolling over onto her back and being generally silly....I laughed a lot but still managed to give her a relatively decent massage.  It's so good to finally be able to get my hands on her!!

Rob even managed to get a 10 minute shoulder massage, I was trying to find trigger points...there were many.

So now I am trying to set up my case studies, can't wait to start putting my learning into practice.

Oh yes, and my canine skeleton arrived yesterday so I can now start labeling muscles etc and testing myself....

One journey finishes but another one begins....

Did you know that classical piano can relax dogs? I found that out the other day – now it makes sense why they had some playing at the Animal Care League.

Even in the last 2.5 days we have seen more dogs than you can shake a stick at!  

The gorgeous Fifty came in again – I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…he is fabulous :)

We’ve carried on learning, learning about pathology, and about massage for “special populations” such as palliative care, puppies, geriatric dogs and those differently-abled.  We had to work on our “elevator speeches” and role played them out….hilarious!  We’ve heard from previous graduates of the school about their experiences on starting this work and we’ve talked and discussed business practices.

We also had a hands-on test yesterday to make sure we understood all the massage techniques and could apply them appropriately.

I have had an incredible experience here at the Chicago School of Canine Massage.  I cannot recommend it highly enough.  Thanks to Denise, Erin, Kim, Pam, Deb, Jaclyn and Melissa– you’re awesome!!  And of course my classmates – you fellas rock ;)

My next challenge is to complete 20 hours of observation and 20 hours of case studies.  Each case study needs to have 4 sessions of an hour each so I need 5 dogs to work on.  Once I’ve done all that then I will get my certificate to show that I am a Certified Canine Massage Therapist :) There’s also an international exam that I want to sit –hopefully sometime in March.

I will keep my blog up to date with my ongoing experiences…all your comments and page views have been enormously encouraging. 

For the next few days Debs and I are going to explore Chicago and then I’ll be back in the land of the long white cloud next Tuesday. (You want to hope there’s no wi-fi at our Airbnb place so I don’t post after a few Vodka’s!!)

IPC, CACC & essential oils!

We have only 3 more days of the course left – I seriously cannot believe how fast it has gone.

In the last few days I have made my own essential oil; learnt about the lymphatic system (especially important to know where the major nodes are); cross fibre friction (great for the paws and forearms – human as well as canine); learnt much more about complementary modalities including reiki, acupressure and essential oils;  visited Integrative Pet Care (truly awesome facility); learnt how to write up SOAP notes; worked on the wonderful Fifty; observed gait on various dogs; learnt more about delivering a Pet Parent class; visited Chicago Animal Care and Control; worked on lots more dogs; oh yes, and played Trivial Pursuit – the canine massage version.

The afternoon visit to Integrative Pet Care was great.  They had arranged a full schedule for us so we watched various treatments in 30 min segments.  We started by observing one dog receiving laser treatment for her arthritic elbow while another was receiving shock wave therapy on a suspected torn ligament.  Our good friend Fifty then came in for a massage so watched a qualified canine massage therapist do that; then watched Eos the cat receiving laser on her back legs.  Fifty then got laser therapy which nearly sent him and us to sleep.  One of the Vets demonstrated acupuncture on her dog – he didn’t seem to mind one bit despite having about 10 needles in him.  We also observed a number of dogs getting hydrotherapy on the underwater treadmill….works wonders with some peanut butter smeared on the far end as motivation ;) 

It really is a great place, has a big gym room with lots of equipment and is very calm and inviting.  The dogs seemed to be loving it.

The visit to CACC on Saturday afternoon was full on!  They can take up to 400 dogs at any one time.  We saw a tiny number of them, I think 7 in all.  We were basically doing trust building, observing their gait and wherever possible providing some massage relief from their tight ischemic muscles.  They were all gorgeous dogs, sad stories have brought them there but they’ll soon find their forever homes.  Again, it made me think how stressful it must be for dogs to find themselves in a shelter, and the positive experience and relief they get from seeing us and getting some hands on treatment.

On Saturday morning we also worked on a 12 year old 3 legged Chihuahua, an 8 year old Rottie mix with a mean looking underbite ;), and a 10 month old Weimaraner with spinal dysraphism who finally calmed down enough for us to provide some good massage.

Phew – watch this space to see what the final few days have in store!

Debs arrives Tuesday night and I am good and ready to  p a r t a y  in Chicago on Wed night…….:)

Dogs, dogs and more dogs!!

Can’t believe 2 days have passed since I last made a post.  I worked out I’ve been “hands on” with about 10 dogs in that time!

We’ve learnt about Trigger Point Therapy and experimented with the correct level of pressure using our play-doh before we were unleashed to try on each other.  Lots of oooh’s and aaah’s around the classroom as people hit those points!  Unfortunately dogs won’t be as accommodating so it’s crucial to go in gently and not overwork the area so they end up sore.  The benefit of massage is to loosen up the tissues so the trigger points can release and improve the movement and health of the joints.  All I need to do is think about the chronic headaches I can get when I’ve got tight shoulders, but dogs don’t stop or take headache pills like we do…they keep going!  We need to be able to deactivate these points without it threatening the dog.

We had the enormous pleasure of working on Fifty again and must have spent a good 45 mins on him, in particular to try and find his trigger points to release.  Bless him, he was so patient with us…as were Bo, Maverick and B when we worked on them in class.

We also watched Denise and Sue work on a 4 year old Spaniel who has had all his “signals” conditioned out of him so the only way he knows to tell you he doesn’t like something is by very minimal body signals so it’s really important to be able to read them.

Dr Sara Bennett gave us a talk in the evening who is a Veterinary Behaviourist.  Really interesting!  She has a practise that provides a holistic service for animals and works a lot on fearful animals and systematic desensitisation.

Yesterday we did some more trigger point work and also learnt about Myofascial release.  Again we practised on each other before we were let loose on any dogs.  3 miniature schnauzers came in for us which was a treat.

Then we went back to the Animal Care League; a couple of the dogs we had worked on last week had been adopted, yay!  Plenty more to work on though.  I fell for Mustafa, a large mastiff mix by the looks of things, he was gorgeous…good job I’m not on a boat back otherwise I may well have some companions!  Nearly got pee’d on by one of them…occupational hazard.

Following that we went back to the Chicago Canine Massage office and met Dexter and Barron to work on trust building.

Home by about 8pm…an early one :)

Past the mid way mark

An amazing end to week 2!

I can’t believe we’re past the half way mark.  I’m looking forward to getting back home and starting my new venture….but at the same time I don’t want the course to end (I def chose the right one - totally the Wharton / Harvard or Oxford / Cambridge of the Canine Massage world as far as I’m concerned!).

On Friday we learnt about the joints in the dog’s body and then in the afternoon we had a fantastic presentation by Dr Megan Ridley who is a Vet, and Medical Director of Integrative Pet Care in Chicago.  IPC is an animal rehabilitation facility and it looks amazing!  As far as I know we don’t have anything like it in Auckland…but we should.  They have Vet’s, Massage Therapists, Physiotherapists and Animal Rehab Therapists at the facility and some of the case studies she talked to us about were really inspiring.  What’s great aswell is that as a Vet she understands the power of massage and the important role it plays in rehabilitation.  We’re going to have a tour around IPC sometime next week so I’ll write more then.

Saturday was packed too.  We did some gait observation first – it’s amazing what you can see when you're actually looking.

Then we had the pleasure of Fifty, the 2 legged Pitbull.  He was F A N tastic!  He’s now 9 years old and he lost his front and back right limbs when he was 2 (he was shot).  He is very skilled at getting around, he’s spent quite a lot of time over the years at IPC, and has regular massages.  As you can imagine, having to balance on just 2 limbs puts them under a huge amount of pressure so the muscles are pretty tight.  See pics below for his massage session with us :).  It turns out that Fifty is a bit of a superstar with over 250k likes on his facebook page….I didn’t realise I was going to be in the company of a celeb!! ;)  If I could have taken him home myself I would have.

On Saturday afternoon we all became PetTech CPR and FirstAid certified.  Am hoping I never need to use those skills but they’re v useful to have.

Finally, today I took myself back into downtown Chicago. It was a stunning day and I relaxed from the week by engaging in some retail therapy!  Sadly on my way back to the hotel some guy asked me if I was from Australia…I mean..really??

Muscle building with clay

We’ve been making muscles out of clay over the last couple of days.  On Wednesday we all hit the wall at about 4.30….building muscles of the neck & skull just took it out of us; despite the yogurt coated pretzels and the orange creme almonds we could take no more! (check out the pics below for proof)  Was very funny that we all felt the same at the same time.  Yesterday we worked on building the glutes, quads and hamstrings – our focus was a bit better :)

We also had a talk on reading a dog’s body language. It’s so interesting when you start to really watch how they behave.  For us, we need to attend to the sensory details and get away from the verbal language.   Important point to note – stillness is not good…if that happens, hands off immediately!  

You’ll know where to find me when I get back to Auckland – at the nearest dog park honing my gait & behaviour observation skills.

Erin kindly let us observe her Pet Parent class on Wed evening.  She had 2 clients who had come in on their way back to Alaska from a fly-ball tournament.  Great to watch, definitely something I’d like to be able to replicate.  Erin cooked us all supper, a delicious Indian meal…my 1^st home cooked meal in nearly 2 weeks….fabulous.

Thursday we learnt about Passive Range of Motion (PROM) and practised on the ever tolerant B and Emmy-Lou.  “Movement is the key of Life”, Denise Theobald 2014 ;)

Finally we observed and assessed a 4 month old Lab puppy who is in training as a service dog.  We’re seeing her again next week.

In my spare time yesterday I was watching Rob do the Coast Classic race (go Spearhead!!) and Asha with her buddies at K9 Heaven – The Country Club for Dogs….she clearly loves it there! Oh the joys of Facebook.

First shelter experience

Yesterday was all about trust building with dogs at the Animal Care League in Chicago.

I was pretty excited to be visiting the shelter as working in this field is something I’m very interested in.

Before I left NZ I googled the Animal Care League and was looking forward to working with a pit bull (it looked they had a few there!!).  We started with a tiny little white fluffball, just getting her to trust us enough to handle her a bit.  A beautiful, fluffy Chow mix followed.  He was an absolute sweetheart, and again all we were trying to do was some trust building and low stress handling.  Angus the pittie was next – amazing!  He was such a softie.  Loved playing tug and had such a soft and gentle mouth when he took treats.  He had beautifully defined muscles so we could also put some of our recent learnings to good use by pointing out the major muscle groups.  Our final dog was an 8 year old Rottweiler.  We’d been told he didn’t like his paws being touched so our goal was to try and get him a bit more comfortable with that.  We also discovered he had super tight muscles so was pretty uncomfortable, and that he needed some dental work so that could well have been making him a bit crochety too.  We all know how it feels when you’ve got really really tight muscles, it hurts right – well it’s the same for dogs.  Hopefully we’ll be able to do a bit more work on him next week.

On Monday night we watched a horrendous dvd which was a wonderful example of how NOT to handle dogs and how not to massage them.

We were also able to work on a 15 year old dog on Monday who happened to be passing our classroom on the way to the swimming pool.  We gave her a massage once she’d been for her swim and we’ll be seeing her again next week :)

Today we’re building muscled out of clay…muscle anatomy makes my brain hurt!!!!

Some random pic's from the last few days

First week over already!

A week ago I was sitting in this same place, panicking mildly about my first day….what a difference a week makes.

On Friday we practised compression using play-doh (I’d been wondering what the little beaker of doh on the desk was for) which really sent home the method we need to apply to release tight muscles.

We continued learning the various massage techniques with the emphasis on sports massage.  Had to practise on each other again which was pretty funny.  We also learnt the directional terms for describing the anatomy.

It’s interesting sports massage.  When we first started talking about pre and post event massage I assumed it would only apply to those canine athletes competing in things like agility or fly-ball.  It doesn’t. We learnt that an “event” could be a 13 year old dog taking his normal walk around the block; or a 5 year old pooch playing frizbee etc etc.  Basically the event is the exercise and the impact it has on the muscles, regardless of the type of exercise.  The massage stimulates the circulation bringing in a fresh and abundant supply of blood; transports toxins; promotes overall muscle balance thereby enabling the soft tissue to better handle the “event”, to recover, and reduce muscle soreness.  A lot of what we did on Saturday during the actual massage was talk to the Pet Parent about what they could do themselves at home.

At one time on Friday I think Emmy-Lou had 3 people practising compression on her at the same time…such a gorgeous and tolerant dog!  We also did some more observation of Happy (the 8 week old we saw earlier in the week) to see how he was developing.

I admit to being pretty nervous on Saturday when I woke up.  ForYourK9 hosted the Windy City Agility club and we were there to provide pre and post event massage.  We started taking “clients” at 1pm and finished at about 5pm.  We had an instructor in the room with us, together with the Pet Parent.

My first real client (ie not one of the class pooches) was Quinn who was a 4 year old Border Collie.  It took a good few minutes for him to accept my touch – I’m discovering the art of patience (Rob can you believe that?????) – but then he was fab.  He was a bit shy and had never had a massage before…let’s hope my inexperienced technique didn’t put him off ;) By the end of my time with him he was sitting on my lap while I released some tension in his quads!

Others included a 7 month old miniature schnauzer; a highly excited Rat Terrier; a Cocker Spaniel with hip dysplasia; a Bassett Hound; a Belgian Malinois; a Siberian Husky and a beautiful Mutt :)

When I got home last night I sank a glass of Red in about 5 minutes!  Exhausting but oh so satisfying.

Spent today at the Laundromat and supermarket getting ready for the week.  Next week I think we’ve got more anatomy work and with a bit of luck a visit / work at the local shelter…

Day 4: Brain Ache

Still absolutely loving it but wow am I exhausted by the end of the day!

Spent more time yesterday observing behaviours.  I didn't realise that by 8 weeks old you can tell the future personality of a dog...which is what we were observing yesterday with Sandwich and Happy.

Also spent some time learning the anatomy of the skeleton.  I never was much good at that kind of thing and dragging my memory back to GSCE Biology hasn't been very helpful.  I was trying to draw the skeleton when I got home and went to bed counting vertebrae rather than sheep!

Today one of the other students asked me if everything was going ok in my hotel, whether I had enough groceries, and if I needed any wine she'd happily get me some.  How absolutely gorgeous :)

Today the class was all about some basic massage techniques.  We practised on each other first which was hilarious, and then we were let lose on some real live dogs!!!

We saw Leo who is a 4 and a half year old Sheltie.  Leo is used to massage because he is an agility dog so often has pre and post event massage, but he also had massage to help him recover from a nasty dog bite and related surgery.  He also has an extra lumbar vertebrae so can get quite stiff in his hind quarters and he also had a thyroid problem.  Poor pup.  He was an absolute star though with all of us poking and prodding him and conducting our very basic assessment technique.

My "client" this afternoon was Odie, a 6 year old Basset Lab mix who was amazing!  He happily let me identify his bony landmarks and let me practise my basic massage.

2 of the class dogs today showed their own personalities….whilst shut away in the massage room for 45 mins while we worked on Leo, between the 2 of them they chewed up the carpet, destroyed some boxes and one of them curled one down in the corner of the room.  Reckon they were showing their displeasure at being shut away!!!!

More hands on practise tomorrow ready for the agility trials on Saturday when we’ll be performing pre and post event massage for real!!!!

Ps – if anyone is having problems posting comments on here, please persevere…..

Today's "clients"!!

8 week old puppys Sandwich and Happy..

Awesome!

First 2 days have definitely not disappointed!

The attendees: 5 humans in total; 2 from Chicago, 1 from Dallas (he assured us he isn't contagious!), 1 from Canada and me!  Plus, Baloo (the 12 year old Border Collie Golden Retirever mix who is deaf), Broonzy (4 year old Wheaten Terrier), Maverick & Bo (Shelties), Emmy-Lou (GSD AmStaff X) and Lucy (Lab mix!) so it's fair to say we're a mixed bunch :)

I can't believe that we got "hands on" with the dogs on Day 1.  It was Awesome.  
We've spent a lot of time over the last 2 days talking about the principles of massage ie feeling with fingers rather than brains which is lot harder than you think 'cause your brain automatically tries to analyse and name what it is you are feeling; and most importantly about understanding the dogs. That's hard.  But you have to have respect and empathy when you are working with dogs and to do that you need to be able to understand them.  There's a lady called Suzanne Clothier who sounds amazing, you-tube her if you get a chance.
We did some energy work yesterday which ordinarily I would have laughed at but I could actually feel the energy from the dog - a difference between hot and cold in certain placed - which was again..awesome. [Note to self to find another descriptor ;)]

Apparently on Saturday we will be doing 1:1 sports massages on some agility dogs...Holy S*&t!!!!!

Am now sipping some Pinot Noir in my hotel room and reflecting on Day 2 where it was more hands on work, learning about the nervous and integumentary systems, low stress handling and behaviour observation.
Seriously, have you ever seen a mini poodle and a pit bull trained so that the poodle jumps on the back of the pit bull!!! I saw that!  
Low stress handling is huge.  Not only for dogs that have an injury but for shelter dogs, those who are touch resistant for whatever reason, and also those that are highly excitable.  It's vitally important to gain their trust before any kind of hands on happens.  One thing is to imagine how you feel when you're in a totally new place and don't know anyone (this hit home for me especially after my turbulent weekend!), and then try and imagine how a dog feels when it's in a shelter or is being re-homed.  

The facility where we are training is fab.  They have a large sports area (witnessed a nose work class yesterday and agility class today), an aquatic centre (pool!), daycare and obviously our little bit.  The also run a school for behaviour work.  

I could go on and on and on...and I will because there's another 3 weeks to go:)  Apparently later this week we'll be working on a  2 legged pitbull...I cannot imagine that.

My accent is a constant source of amusement :)

Enough for now...more tomorrow hopefully and I'll also load some photos.....

T minus 20

This time tomorrow I will be engrossed in day 1 of my intensive Canine Massage course. It's hard to believe that I only discovered it's existence by accident a few months ago...and now I'm pursuing it as my new career. Nuts!
There are 5 other people I think on this course...wonder what they're like and whether they are from Chicago...will find out soon enough.

The flight to LA was good (well it was Air NZ after all!) but from there it was pretty tedious. Longs delays in LA followed by delays on arrival at O'Hare but I made it :)
Spent yesterday having some retail therapy...full on assault on Top Shop, H&M and J Crew followed by lunch at the Ralph Lauren bar & grill (Lucinda Mitchell that one is for you ;))!!! I sat outside which started well but ended up being freezing; the inside was full of preppy men and old ladies with face lifts and stiff grey hairdo's.  It's also a bit of a mammoth task to get from where I'm staying in the burbs to downtown, took about an hour I reckon but worth it.
Today is another gorgeous blue sky day so have scoped out my walk to "school" for the morning (about 15 mins) and have done my weekly shop. That's a bit of a challenge when the only means of cooking is a microwave but I'll just channel my student days...don't think I ever cooked anything then other than jacket potato and beans.

Despite the fact I've only been gone a couple of days I've felt pretty homesick but that's probably just because it's all so new and unknown. Hopefully from tomorrow everything will fall into place, I think I'm going to be too busy to dwell anyway! Managed 3 skype calls back home which helps :)

Am going to spend the rest of today reading up on stuff for tomorrow, catching up on sleep and a couple more skype calls home.

Will update as soon as I can with info on course attendees etc...

Up up and away

Sitting in the Koru lounge of Auckland International sipping some bubbles.  

It's been a funny kind of day...not least because I misread my flight time and was ready for an 11.55am departure as opposed to a 7.40PM one.  Because of that I was uncharacteristically organised and all packed by yesterday evening which on a positive note meant I could drink more red wine last night without worrying about getting on a long haul flight with a stinking hangover...but on a less positive note I've been kicking my heels today with nothing much to do apart from get nervous.  I managed some sofa time with the ginger stick monster but then just really wanted to be gone. Had a drink with Rob in departures and now here I am.  

It's a long way to Chicago; about 12 hours to LA followed by a couple of hours in transit, then 4 hours to Chicago.  Plenty of time to catch up on movies and the book I just bought...and if I need it I've also packed "Canine Massage" in my hand luggage :)

Next post will be from the windy city itself.....exciting!!!!!!

The wondrous world of dog shows

Today I experienced my very first dog show.  It was quite something :)  

I mingled with Borzoi's, Ibizan's, German Shepherds, Afghan's and my personal favourites the Irish Wolfhound and the Ridgeback. At one point I turned around to see about 15 Ridgebacks behind me waiting for their turn in the ring, it was fabulous!  I met some lovely people...especially one lady who was also really receptive to the idea of massage, in fact she does it already on her own dog.  
The stands and stalls were a bit disappointing and I'm not quite sure what I did to deserve a 10 minute demo from a vacuum cleaner salesman!!
There was no-one there providing pre or post event massage (which is good for me) and when I got chatting to the Secretary of the NZ Kennel Club their monthly publication sounded like it could be a useful forum for advertising.

All in all a very worthwhile and enjoyable few hours spent doing market research.

Heading to Fiji for a little light relief before the really hard work starts

Off to Fiji in the morning for a few days - can't wait to feel warm again, even if it will be a short stay.
I think my travelling companion (not my husband!!) might be a bit of a challenge....

18 sleeps to go...

It's not long now...I've set up my blog :) but I've got a mountain of other things to do...not least to finish reading the 350 page manual on Canine Massage!!  Can't wait to get to Chicago though and get into it properly.
First post completed - check.