I was supposed to adopt my brother Jeff’s English Cocker as soon as the two arrived from France. I knew there had been problems, which is why Bodhi had been forced to leave the Paris apartment my brother and sister-in-law share. But having housed Bodhi for a summer several years prior and subsequently successfully rehabbed a dog with a biting history, I wasn’t too concerned.
Still, I wanted to be prepared. So I checked in with my vet. I spoke with two dog trainers. I even talked to the head of English Cocker Rescue to make sure I had a backup should things not work out.
I just didn’t realize how emotionally fragile Bodhi had become. Of course, the long flight which included a transfer in Los Angeles didn’t help. The stress revealed itself almost immediately. This cuter-than-cute, loving dog who was thrilled to see me turned on Hoover three times, catching me in the middle of the toothy action twice. It didn’t matter that he was clearly sorry. He simply wasn’t ready to deal with four dogs who routinely pile on each other and me, or a blind pup who’s not able to react to his body language or respect his boundaries.
My brother and I called in the vet. We called in a trainer. When neither of those seemed to make a difference, we called in an alternative vet who uses Essential Oils to help dogs (and their owners) change their behavior by healing their emotional wounds.
“You know that you’ve officially come over to the woo-woo side,” my energy-healer friend Gay Baker told me.
The pronouncement may have been premature, but it was prescient. Witnessing the changes not only in Bodhi, but in all my dogs and even in myself, has made me a believer.
So how does this relate to writing? We all need help, especially when it comes to writing. Sometimes the best help forces us out of our comfort zone and even challenges our preconceptions. Be open to the possibilities and you’ll expand the possibilities.
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