Animal Hospice as a Journey: Reiki as part of the Interdisciplinary Team

By the Animal Hospice Group Team

Life is a journey of many parts – birth, infancy, childhood, those turbulent adolescent years, adulthood, middle age, and senior years. Our journeys begin and end in similar ways, with intense periods of caregiving, connection, and, if we’re fortunate, supportive community. The beginning of life and end of life have much in common, with births often having a birth plan and a team that involves family, a medical team, and sometimes, a doula, a nonmedical support person. When that baby is born, they require intense caregiving. “It takes a village” isn’t just a popular phrase; given the intensity of the caregiving that’s required, having a supportive community “village” is a necessary reality when raising happy, healthy humans.

Throughout this baby’s lifetime, they will have other milestones in their personal journey, many of them planned, and with supportive team members. But what happens when they reach their senior years? How do they plan for end of life? If they’re fortunate, they will have a team that looks much like the one that they had at birth: one comprised of family, medical professionals, and nonmedical support, as well, including a hospice team.

For the first and last chapters of our journeys, teamwork is essential. Interdisciplinary teams are at the heart of hospice care – ensuring comfort, choices, compassion, and dignity during this last step. Hospice, whether human hospice or animal hospice, recognizes life as a journey, and end of life as a time that can be filled with love and joy. We most need that caregiving, connection, and supportive community when we are very young and very old, or when we become terminally ill. The same things that kept us happy when we were babies – having options, having our needs recognized and responded to, keeping us comfortable, feeling safe and supported, and having a “village” team to provide that support, are the same things that we will need as we approach end of life.

Pet Senior Care and Pet Hospice Care

The same is true for our beloved animals. They, like us, are on a life journey, and will require more support at the beginning and end of these journeys. And many animal caregivers find that during the end-of-life part of their pet’s journey, they feel that they are most connected with their animals. That in giving them hospice care, using multiple modalities, offering options, and working with an interdisciplinary team, they are giving their animals the best end of life possible.

What does this last stage in the life journey look like?

If you are using the hospice model of care, it involves an interdisciplinary team, which can include many team members, including a veterinarian, a doula, and a skilled Reiki practitioner. Reiki can help you better connect with your animal, especially during the tender time of end-of-life. At Animal Hospice Group, we embrace the philosophy of communication-connection-collaboration, which is why we are delighted to be participating in the Shelter Animal Reiki Association (SARA) conference, where we will be presenting and learning from leaders in the world of animal advocacy.

2023 SARA Conference - Let Animals Lead Us to a Better Future To learn more about the Shelter Animal Reiki Association conference, and how you can be a part of it, please click here. The Shelter Animal Reiki Association, or SARA, is a global non-profit that is renowned for its work in bringing peace and stress relief to shelter and sanctuary animals. At the Shelter Animal Reiki Association event, you can connect with fellow animal advocates and healers from around the world. Animal Hospice Group Event Please join us and stop by our virtual Exhibitor Booth at the 3 day SARA Conference from February 2-4, 2023. To learn more and register for the FREE conference, please click here.

Please show us all that you like this article by sharing, commenting, and/or giving this a "LIKE" on Facebook. Photo in post (header): Reiki given at Sam's memorial (courtesy of BrightHaven).