For this #ThrowbackThursday I am celebrating Great Dane Meerkat and young cat Shaman!

I adopted Meerkat as a puppy from a backyard breeder. I had always wanted a Great Dane, and when I saw the pups advertised I decided to check them out. I was not as knowledgeable about the pet industry then as I am now. Today I would go to a shelter to adopt.

There were a number of puppies, but the one that was friendliest to me happened to be the smallest of the litter—she was half the size of her brothers and sisters. Meerkat was never destined to grow to the size of a standard Great Dane. As an adult, she weighed in at 76 lbs. She looked like the ballerina of Great Danes (-:

When I decided that she was the one, I put the smallest chain collar I owned on her, and it looked ridiculous—the end of the chain was dragging on the ground! But that did not faze Meerkat, she picked the end up in her mouth so that she did not trip, and strutted around to show off her new jewelry (-;

As she grew up, Meerkat remained wonderfully gentle in playing with my cats and the many kittens I seemed to keep bringing home. I guess you could say she was raised by cats!

I acquired kitten Shaman on a trip to the local pet food store in Worcester, MA. They had an area where folks could drop their kittens off for adoption (at that time there was only the overwhelmed city pound which was even less of a good option). To my eyes, it looked like there were about 25+ kittens, and I wanted to play with them all! I thought, “What could be the harm in picking them up one by one and saying hello?”

This approach worked well until I reached kitten #20 (guesstimate). When I picked up the little black and white tuxedo furball in my hands he turned onto his back and looked directly into my eyes. I literally felt a “click” as though we were two puzzle pieces that had been fitted together, and realized I had just met someone very important. At the time I had no idea what a special teacher Shaman would turn out to be. I owe the foundation of my energy healing practice for animals and people to him (see Shaman: Feline Healer and Teacher).

Blessed to have known them both!

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A WILD WAY TO HEAL
Rose De Dan, Wild Reiki and Shamanic Healing LLC, is an animal communicator, Reiki Master Teacher, shamanic energy healer, and author. Her classes, sessions and ceremonial work are inspired by wild and domestic animals who have issued a call to action for personal and global healing.