Equine Reiki Case Study 2: Chalgaro. Supporting an Injured Horse
Chalgaro was in a lot of pain and discomfort and was receiving the best medical care from our local vets. His guardian contacted me via a recommendation from the owner of the horse sanctuary where I volunteer my reiki services - she wanted to offer her boy all the support possible. Due to his injury being so severe, he was not able to walk, which in turn was causing further issues. He was not able to lie down and although he was eating a small amount, he was not drinking at all. He was very listless and dehydrated.
Session 1:
After meeting Chalgaro and being brought up to speed about what had happened and what the concerns were, I settled down with Chal to offer him Reiki. I prepared the reiki space and began the practice. I sat in Chal's stable with him a distance away as he was struggling to balance. What I noticed was that the reiki energy was extremely soft and Chal himself was extremely quiet. During the reiki, I had a strong sense that Chal's companion - Bagder (aka Champ) was asking for reiki. He had come to hang his head over the stable partition. So I opened up and welcomed him into the practice. Badger asked for hand's on. He asked for my hands to go on his third eye chakra, crown chakra and throat chakra. As I held my hand over his throat chakra he lowered his head and we stayed there for a while. What happened next was so beautiful, that it sent a wave of gratitude through me - Badger had been carrying a lot of what was going on with Chal's injury and had in fact been very involved in holding the space with Chal's guardian and he had been keeping a very close eye over his dear friend. As I share reiki with Badger, I noticed an immediate change in Chalgaro. He went from very soft and very quiet to suddenly "waking up". And then he did something: He looked at Badger, then he looked at me - very directly - and then he looked over at his blue water bucket, which had been filled with water from his trough. He was ready to drink! I immediately went over to his water bucket and brought it over to him. He took a nice big sip of water. That was the first time he had drunk since the accident. Chal's guardian had always kept water close to him and within in his reach at all times. She had offered him water many times, and was soaking his food.
Session 2:
Chalgaro had been up and down since our first session, the injury site was improving well, the swelling was moving down and he continued to eat, although still in small amounts. But Chal's guardian was still very concerned over the fact that he didn't want to drink. I came back up the stables, chatted to his guardian and began to settle in to offer Chal reiki. The vets were coming that day to scan him. He was also suffering from lower grade colic. Chal was still struggling to balance. The session was not too long and he asked for a very small amount of hands on.
Photograph: Chalgaro with Gill, the owner of Tom Ro Haven for Equines and Children, who re-homed Chalgaro to his current guardian. Part of Gill's adoption agreement is to remain very involved in the care and well-bing of horses that have come to her haven. Tally, Chal's groom, assisted throughout Chal's care making sure that he had all his needs met in terms of fresh available water, food, medication administering and that his stable was clean at all times.
The following day I received a video of Chal taking a huge drink of water! Everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief! He was also able to move around far more! Moving and drinking we knew were going to help him to continue healing.
Session 3:
Thing were still up and down for Chalgaro and although he continued to eat small amounts, he just was not drinking enough to keep himself hydrated and to keep his system moving efficiently. I took another drive out to where he lives, which is is one of the most beautiful and mostly untouched part of Cape Town. A very windy mountain road gets you there, and as I turned off the coastal road and headed up towards the mountain pass I started to get a very strong sense that this horse was going to be ok. As I turned the first bend of the mountain pass, a taxi (a South African mini bus) came flying down the hill at breakneck speed. I felt a wave of nausea hit me, I couldn't believe the speed this guy was driving at and heading straight towards me! (He was on his side of the road, but it is a narrow mountain pass!!). He hit a bump on the road and I saw all four of his tyres lift up into the air and land again just as he passed me and continued to zoom off down the pass. I started to shake and considered pulling over to compose myself, but I thought it wouldn't be a good idea given the nature of the road and so I continued on. A few moments later I saw a shadow of a bird on the road in front of me. I looked up and it was a big beautiful black and white crow. That crow flew with me all the way up to the turnoff to the stables. Some may believe that the crow is a bad omen, a sign of darkness and death. But I felt very strongly that this beautiful bird was safely escorting me to where I needed to be, to do what I needed to do.
This time as I prepared the reiki space and settled down to share with Chal, I felt an extremely strong energy being drawn in by him. Extremely strong! It was as if the dim draw of our first session had been replaced by a different and almost determined energy - one of great inner strength and wisdom waking up and getting stronger and stronger. The session was the shortest of all the sessions we had, but it was by far the most powerful.
I had brought along some essential oils - lavender and a digestive blend which we applied to Chal after the session.
I left the session feeling really good - revitalised even! The energy of the stables had taken on a certain calmness and ease. All the carers were comfortable in their routines of making sure that Chal had everything he needed and that Badger was getting extra special care too, as an important member of Chal's care team. There was a lot of stillness and peace around. The ground seemed to feel even softer under foot and as I looked up beyond the horses I noticed that the rocky hills seemed to be offering us their protection and strength too. The dogs were quiet and the people were tired. But there was an easiness and okayness in the air.
I left for home feeling as so grateful to be welcomed into the care team and to be part of his healing journey.
A few weeks later and Chal is doing very well! Out in the fynbos with his friend, Badger.
Visit our Facebook page for videos of Chalgaro's recovery!
