I read a great blog from a fellow reiki practitioner who is on the E. Coast. She posted a informative article from Live Science.  Often times Candy and I talk about the economy, how it has affected us and our lives. The upcoming election, the price of groceries, gas skyrocketing, mortgages, 401Ks etc.  How does one keep in balance? It definitely is a challenge  these days.  One of Candy’s Boxers Ry (Ry’s Story ) had gotten a tumor, we believe to this day Ry took it away from Gordon. Gordon had one as well that was removed. But Ry wasn’t so lucky.  We as pet owners need to keep our stress in check to make sure our pets aren’t affected too! I know sometimes Lucy tells me, mommy you need to work harder at keeping the family in harmony. I have heard her say that to me more than once, and what a reminder to do reiki on myself! Whatever we all need to do to keep oneself in balance, let’s do it for our furbabies!

Here’s part of the article-Animals Stressed Out, too .By Clara Moskowitz, LiveScience Staff Writer

When humans get stressed, often their pets take on that stress, too.

“Dogs and cats are very good at picking up stress in people, as are birds,” said James Morrisey, a veterinarian at the College of Veterinary Medicine of Cornell University in New York. “I’ve worked with a parrot who lived with a woman who had a seizure disorder, and the parrot could tell when she was about to have a seizure and warn her.”

In addition to carrying the burdens of people, animals — especially wild creatures — have plenty of their own to stress about. Animals will even seek out “comfort food” when they’re all wigged out. And stress in animals, as with humans, can be a good or a bad thing.

“In general, the more intelligent an animal is, the more psychological stress it can undergo,” Morrisey said. “The less you’re thinking about things, the less psychological stress you can potentially be under.”