Happy New Year!

 

I would like to take this opportunity to give a word of gratitude to all who join me in caring for our pets.  For the last 2 1/2 years that Carol's Pet Cafe has been offering the Raw Diet for pets, I have seen some continual growth.  This tells me that we humans love our pets enough to give them the very best so that they have the healthiest possible experience on this earth.  In turn, we get to love and enjoy them longer.

 

This newsletter is going to stray from my normal type of topic.  I hope you will enjoy the offering.

 

I have been honored to have pets in my life.  They teach me lessons about myself every day.  Lessons of life that I would otherwise not be made aware of in my journey. 

 

While noticing 2 of my dogs not paying attention, not walking nicely on a leash, not listening when I tell them to stop barking I had to ask myself, " Carol, what the heck is going on that is causing this behavior?  I am feeding them the best food in the world what else can I do?"  Unfortunately, food does not always help with behavior troubles. The first thing on my list of things to do was contact Diane at Dogtrain to set up some time with her. My message was, "Diane, I am helpless without your guidance.  Please call me back." 

 

Diane is a very even-tempered lady.  Her energy is honest, truthful, calm-assertive.  I immediately calmed down when I brought my 2 dogs in to see her, and interestingly they also calmed.  After some well prepared information and tools coated with a lot of her experience, I left there with a little more confidence than when I came in.  I was determined to make these suggestions work, however I realized I needed to go a little deeper to discover the root cause of this behavior.

 

The guidance Diane provided calmed ME down.  This in turn calmed my dogs down.  Energetically I realized I was anxious.  This anxiety is a result of my daily stressors that don't ever seem to end plus a "bad habit" of allowing outside "stuff" influence my behavior.  My dogs feeling this energy  started yelling at me in their own way, " Carol(mama), I need guidance, I need calm-assertiveness, I need structure, I need consistency, and so on."  Once I started paying attention to me and my need to be calmer, I actually felt my anxiety start to slowly diminish.  I am a work in progress.

 

I began to become more aware of my internal energy and how it was being mirrored in my dog's behavior and in some instances, the human interactions of my life.  My dogs are my most valuable teachers because they are so forgiving of my faults. 

 

Since this bit of enlightenment, I have been noticing that when chaos breaks out, it is usually because I have chaos inside.  I take a moment ( sometimes two), and calm myself down.  The chaos in most cases starts to fade.  Because I have unconsciously been living in this anxious state of existence for so long, it is a challenge.  However, my daily quest for peace is the number 1 priorty on my list. 

 

I would like to invite you to test this information for yourself.  If your dog or cat is anxious, fearful, overweight, insecure, angry, sad, frustrated, ill, passive, aggressive, etc. Take a look inside of you and see what is happening in your life at that moment that matches these mirrored behaviors.   Do you need to make some changes in your lifestyle, do you need more exercise, do you need tools to help rid you of negative energy accumulated during the day, are you sad or angry about a circumstance in your life?  Do you feel hopeless and helpless?  Are you already happy, calm and peaceful(hurray)  Your pet is begging you to be their guide in this life; and your own true guide. 

 

Lead a life that fulfills their needs and your own.  Once you become aware of some of these feelings, pressures, and needs inside of you, it will be 1 step closer to a peaceful life with your pet.  If you have some confidential challenges you are having with your pet that you would like to share, please feel free to email me.

 

The beginning of this piece of my journey began with a desire to find peace and structure with my dogs.  The reality is a necessary desire to find peace and structure within me.   The tools that Dogtrain provided gave me some insight on what I needed to balance my dogs and myself.  Thank you Shamus, Lilly, Bozworth and Chicona for your unending guidance through my life and for reflecting to me areas that need my awareness.

 

BARF = Biologically Appropriate Raw Food 
Veterinarian Approved