Sometimes the heart sings and the spirit just soars! That is how I felt at the free TTouch
workshop for some volunteers from El
Campito. El Campito Refugio is the
largest and best known animal rescue centre in the greater Buenos Aires area
and homes about 2,000 dogs per year. They operate a no kill policy but aim to
rehabilitate the dogs that come to them as best they can.
Last year I had offered to give a short
introduction to TTouch, and this year, through the good offices of a friend who
runs the prison therapy dog project and is a supporter of the centre, the offer
took shape and fourteen volunteer workers came along after work to spend an
evening exploring TTouch. They brought 6
dogs with them. The workshop lasted for 3 hours which provided the opportunity
to embrace, however, briefly, the three main practical pillars of TTouch work.
Zorrito is blind and has two herniated discs. From the lumbar area his body twisted to the
left and his hind legs were very wide apart forming almost an A shape. He
accepted bodywork from his carer, but the major change came when wraps were
tried out. The volunteers learned how to
apply a simple half wrap. I always warn people attending workshops not to
expect miracle results and that TTouch work requires patience and perseverance.
In Zorrito's case, however, this was not so. As soon as the half wrap was put
on, his back aligned and his hind legs drew together so that they were coming
straight out of the hip sockets.
Then came the psychological pay-off. Due to his blindness and possibly also due to
his physical condition, before the wrap was put on Zorrito was not inclined to
stray from between his carer's legs, but with the wrap on he began to explore
the room and later was able to negotiate the labyrinth and surfaces in a
relaxed way.
When Blin Blin arrived he attracted everyone's
attention because he was trembling from head to tail. His repertoire of calming signals was large
and he displayed a great many of them. Because the participants felt so sorry
for him, several wanted to practise their newly learned bodywork on him, but
this was overwhelming for the dog so I asked them to work with Samson and
Isaura who were much more relaxed and
leave Blin Blin with his carer. Left to themselves in a corner, Blin Blin
allowed Alejandra to do some gentle circular touches all over his body.
Putting on the half wrap might have proved to be difficult, but
Blin Blin's anxiety and nervousness provided the perfect opportunity to teach
just how important it is to go at the dog's pace, and we took the wrap process
step by step, just as though we were working with a cat, giving the dog time
and space to process what we were doing. After about 20 minutes the wrap was
securely on and then we had the joy of seeing Blin Blin's body language gradually
change: he stopped trembling, his tail came out from between his legs, he
stopped lifting his front paw and his gaze was less anxious. We withdrew our attention from him, and once
he felt ready Blin Blin began to explore the room beyond the corner where he
had stayed up till that time.
Albert is paralysed in the hindquarters. In his former existence before being
surrendered to the shelter he was the "site dog" at a factory or
building site. When he was involved in
an accident, the workers did the best they could to tend his wounds, but to do
so they had to pin him down at the shoulders.
This has left him highly sensitive in that area, but working with
awareness his carer was able to do gentle body work over the shoulders and
python lifts on his front legs to try and alleviate the tension which must
accumulate there due to his paralysed hind legs. The volunteers also
experimented with different wrap configurations to try and give some relief to
his neck and shoulders.
Albert normally uses wheels to get around, but
he is ready to go and full of life.The interesting experience with him was that
he was able to stand and take weight on his hind legs when taken over certain
textured surfaces, notably the artificial grass.
Another interesting case was Balti, a little pekinese who had also suffered
paralysis in the hindquarters after an accident. He is now able to walk again,
but from time to time his back legs collapse and he has to be helped to get
back up again. Once again the wrap was key, but Balti showed just what a difference
small adjustments can make. When the
simple half wrap was put on he was unwilling to walk, and when he did start to
walk he soon sat right back down again. Then the back section of the wrap was
moved further towards the tail and immediately he stood up and walked forward
as it seems that the touch of the wrap drew his attention to that area of his
body.
One of Balti's carers was able to vouch for
just how uncomfortable it is to have to wear a collar around one's neck, so she
had no difficulty accepting the notion that some other configuration would be a
much better option!
The brief groundwork session provided the
opportunity to demonstrate and practise the balance leash technique. With 750 dogs currently in the shelter and a
limited budget, it is most unlikely that El Campito will be able to buy
harnesses and leads so the balance leash is a viable alternative. Despite the briefness of the session, all the
volunteers were able to appreciate that this is a valuable tool which they can
use because with a fairly large volunteer base they do manage to take the more
able dogs out for walks and excursions. It should also help them encourage dogs
achieve better physical balance which will have a positive influence on their emotional wellbeing.
If there is one thing that makes teaching this
work worthwhile, it is seeing individual
animals benefit directly or indirectly from the techniques that people learn.
In this case the changes were so evident that the volunteers left on a real
high, determined to learn more on my next visit to Buenos Aires.
© Mary J. Rodriguez 2013
