“Stories from a holistic vet” is the blog of Dr. Laurel Davis, a holistic vet and “animal interpreter” with a clinic in Asheville, NC and also offering intuitive animal health and lifestyle advice for animal companions and their human friends across the USA.
Have a question for Dr. Laurel? Send it in.
Want comprehensive or detailed dog or cat advice? Schedule an Ask Dr. Laurel™ phone or Skype consultation.
My partner slips out of bed to start the preparation of his favorite breakfast: eggs (over easy, thank you),…
…grits (always organic…GMO free!), toast ( it’ll have to be gluten-free for me) and coffee (mine’ll be green tea). Mmmmmmmmmm…even though I’m not a coffee drinker, I adore the smell of freshly brewing coffee.
It’s my “morning off” from Sunvet, my holistic vet practice. Of course, I still have at least ten items on my to-do list. I am lying under the covers, listening to cooking sounds, my daughter’s beeping alarm clock (which has been chirping for 20 minutes – oi!), when two little brown eyes peep over the edge of the bed. Grace (aka Amazing Grace, Grace Almighty, or simply G), our scruffy Lhasa Apso, is checking out the mattress top for a non-pillow, non-cat landing spot.
She knows that if she can corner me on the bed, we will have an uninterrupted snuggle, massage and shared-secrets girl time. If she catches me before my feet touch the floor and my mind starts its well-intentioned chatter, I will be totally hers.
As I snuggle with Grace, I recall a story from a check-in with a patient two months ago.
“I want Sheila to spend 15 minutes a day with just me,” Gordon, a swarthy, very solid Rottweiller states during our check-in session. His contention was that his human Sheila didn’t stop in the flurry of her day long enough to have a heart-to-heart with him. The truth is that studies have shown that when dogs are in physical contact with their owners, their brains release the ‘pleasure chemical’ dopamine in exactly the same way our brains do when we feel happy and relaxed. It’s a win-win situation!
Bottom line: This Valentine’s Day, remember to be head over heels in puppy love!
The to-do list can wait, the to-do list will always be there. When your Gordon or Grace nudges your arm as you are reading your emails, watching TV or just plain ‘getting stuff done,’ take a deep breath, get out of your auto-pilot mode and choose to spend some time in relationship with your canine Love Muffin. Both of you will experience the joy!
Shine on,
Dr. Laurel
Dr. Laurel Davis is a holistic vet offering phone and Skype consultations for animal lovers everywhere.
Call 828-254-2221 or order an Ask Dr. Laurel™ phone or Skype session or bring your dog or cat to her downtown Asheville, NC clinic.
Read more patient stories.
Get to know Dr. Laurel by reading her blog.
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