Toni is excellent to work with, friendly, approachable and fun

Hi Toni,
I just wanted to say a really big thank you for the workshop yesterday, it was fantastic, really nice and relaxed and I feel like I learned so much.

Hi Toni,

I just wanted to give you some feedback on how we have got on.

I attended your workshop in Ufton Nervet a few weeks ago with my terrier, Anil, and have been wrapping him every night since and doing some of the TTouches every other night or so.

Last night Anil had his first full on fireworks experience and I was gob smacked by his response (or complete lack of it). No quaking in his boots, no hiding in corners, no trembling. This was both inside the house and out; when I was there and when I wasn't. It was as though nothing was happening at all - he carried on grooming himself, lying around snoozing, just totally relaxed with the loudest fireworks going off all around the neighbourhood. I'm quite looking forward to tonight when all the big local displays are on.

Thanks for a great day and so far some great results.

Hi Toni

Firstly just to say that I thoroughly enjoyed the workshop at Greyfriars yesterday!

Secondly, I just had to share a proud moment with you about Branston.

Today we have been participating in APDT assessments and I was previously deliberating whether it may be too stressful for him with a room full of strange dogs and people (you saw how he was yesterday). However, I gave him a little session of ttouches this morning and another before we left, plus put his wrap on.

When we arrived he was anxious so I took him off for a run on the grass behind the hall (still wrapped) and when we went in took the wrap off and continued with ttouches until the class started. OH MY GOD, there was Branston lying in a perfect down, just looking at me!! Not bothered!!!

During the class he was superbly behaved and totally focused on me. Brilliant responses and even let someone else use him for demonstrations!! A few little ttouches as we went along - perfect - best dog there. No spinning, no mouthing, no pawing, no pacing. I love it!

Hi Toni,
I don't know if you will remember me. I did a 2 day ttouch workshop in Reading at the beginning of April with you. I had my long haired minature dashchund, Heidi with me.
I have done ear touches with her a lot since I saw you, mainly because she seems to really enjoy them. I just wanted to let you know about the change I have seen in her. We are currently having a huge thunderstorm which has prompted me to email you. Normally she would be hiding underneath a chair or the sofa during a storm, shaking. The most I would ever expect from her would be to accept the noise and be able to cope with it carrying on as normal, which she does with fireworks, after a lot of work.
I have a completely different dog, I can't believe it. She is actually sitting on the windowsill watching the storm! I put the radio on and closed the curtains in one room for her and she has gone into another room to look out of the window. If it was a small change I could maybe have put it down to something else but I think it must be the ttouch.
She will also now happily let me groom her now which she really doesn't like. She used to tolerate it but as soon as I stopped for a second she would dissapear under the sofa and refused food. Now she will stay with me when I have finished grooming waiting for her biscuit, and will let me continue if I need to.
Thank you very much. We really enjoyed the workshop and it has made a difference to both me and Heidi. I'm sure we will be seeing you again soon,

A dog with 3 legs

Dear Toni,
I just wanted to thank you for a very inspiring two days. I was absolutely whacked when I got home last night, but it was well worth it.

Benbo had been out with Tony and had been running madly, so he was quite stiff last night and this morning and I have been doing some ttouches on him. At the moment he loves the abalone touch, especially where he is stiff over his haunches. He has also let me do some mouth work with no fuss. He's not so keen on his tail being touched, but I will work gently on that as you suggested, dipping in and out and alternating with work he likes.

I really think I now have the beginnings of some skills which will be valuable for Benbo, especially as he gets older.
Thank you again and you may well see me and Benbo at another workshop next year.

Hi Toni

Just thought I’d drop you a quick couple of lines to thank you for an excellent weekend workshop.
The way in which you delivered the course was very easy to digest for which you must be commended.
The reactions from Jake over the last few days have been great. Not only has his light chasing reduced but the amount of contact he now wants is increasing. He seems to feel part of the family unit a lot more.
The course for me has finally given me a direction through the smoke to the path I know I need to follow. It felt very natural to be able to use my hands in the way that Tellington Touch works and it has given me an answer to a lot of the day to day situations I’ve experienced with animals for the last couple of years.

Dear Toni,

I wanted to get in touch to say how much I enjoyed the TTouch taster workshop at the weekend. Although there was quite a bit to take in, I felt like I learnt so much in one day, and I came away from it inspired and excited. Tilly definitely enjoyed herself (once she relaxed!) and slept like a log for the rest of the evening. My boyfriend and entire family were then treated to a lecture for a good part of the evening, and by the end of it were all practising doing the touches on each other!

On the Sunday evening, my mum called me to say that a fireworks display had started and immediately Tilly started to shake and hid under the table. My mum put the body wrap on and did some ear and mouth work like I’d shown her, and after about 10 minutes Tilly was relaxed and was happily lying on her lap. My parents were thrilled and are determined to continue the work until eventually Tilly doesn't bat an eye lid to loud noises.

Hi Toni
Just thought I'd let you know how Kody was getting on.
I was very impressed when I brought her to you with how quickly she settled and let you touch he, it was quite unbelievable I have never known her that relaxed with anyone outside of the family. I had to bring her into the college the other day and I left her in the grooming room in a crate. My friend went in there to teach and said that Kody pushed herself up the side of the crate actively seeking out a student to touch her which was great.

I have also been doing some of the TTouch on my old Labrador who is very scared of fireworks and he seems to calm down quicker now. Normally if he hears one bang he will be shaking for the rest of the evening but this seems to have improved.
Thank you for your help with Kody hopefully things will continue to improve with her behaviour.

Dear Toni

Thought you would be pleased to hear that when I went training in December the trainer said that Rosie worked better than he had ever seen her work before!!
She was incredibly calm and "tuned in". I'd done some work with her before we went and did some touches whilst we were in the hall.
We've had quite a bit of lead walking over Christmas and she's definitely improved. Yesterday she met a Dalmatian that's attacked her in the past, both were off lead and Rosie stood completely still without making any noise. Unfortunately the Dalmatian tried to bite her bottom so Rosie ran off with the Dalmatian following. I called and Rosie came back to me. That's the first time she's ever stopped when she's panicked and come back. Her recovery was much quicker as well.
Thank you

Hi Toni,

I just wanted to say how what you taught on the workshop has really worked so well with Zorro. He’s always carried himself with his tail tucked in quite tight and he always wags pretty much his entire lower half. His lower back, haunches and tail are very tight and he has big hotspots on both sides of his ribs and the top of his head and is frequently overheated. He gives so many calming signals it’s untrue, forever needs attention and sits there nose-licking all the time or rolling into submission. He’s never had any big traumas in his life and is a very healthy boy but he’s always been very anxious of new situations and very wary of new people giving him direct eye contact

Anyway I did my first T Touch session on him on Monday and he was very unsure, he kept very deliberately sitting so he was facing me and if I touched anywhere other than his chest or shoulders he gave calming signals, so I took it very slowly. I tried a light touch on his head and he rolled over onto his back and kept licking my hand, so I slow blinked at him and turned my back and ignored him. After about 15 seconds he started thumping his tail on the carpet, so I turned around slowly and he rolled onto his side a little bit and let me try a few touches there. He couldn’t take many and rolled onto his back again, so I stopped and turned away from him, and he then thumped his tail again and invited me back, so I repeated this a few times and he then sat up again. I didn’t do much more on him, probably only about 5mins in all and then put a bodywrap on him which he was fine with.

Later that day I was trying to stop him chasing one of our cats and I’d blocked him and asked him to sit. Now normally he will never experiment with any other moves. I’ve never known him ever try anything other than what you’ve asked him to do, even with a clicker, but that day he sat there looking at me, and there was no treat, so he literally hurled himself into a down in exactly the enthusiastic way that Bella does. A tiny thing really but a big step for him and a coincidence that it happened the same day he’d had his first TTouch session.

Last night I did another session on him and the difference was amazing, he came across as though he felt much more in control, so he started by sitting facing me but this time no calming signals at all, and was letting me touch his head, ears, face, shoulders and chest. He then really deliberately stood up, turned around, sat with his back to me and then looked back with a "come on then!" look on his face. He let me do very light clouded and lying leopard all over his back and sides, right down to the base of his tail and was sitting there shutting his eyes and dropping his head. We went through a series of him giving me his back and then his front and he was very deliberate about it all and didn’t do any of the calming signals he’d done in the first session. A couple of times he even stood up (which he never does willingly as he’s an arch lounger) and let me do a tiny bit on his tail. He wagged his tail when the bodywrap came out and went to sleep in it not long afterwards.

I’m just amazed at the difference between the first and the second sessions and I think if I’d not come to the workshop I’d not have realised quite how much difference really listening to them can make, so I just wanted to thank you!

Hi Toni, …… Just wanted to say "thank you" so much for the workshop on Saturday. Johanna and I really enjoyed the day. It was fascinating and so thought provoking. It has made me look at every aspect of life with my dogs and their well being. It must have tired both my dogs out because they had a little play before I fed them, then they both settled down and went soundly to sleep. Shadow even took himself off to bed upstairs, I had the devils own job to wake him to get him outside for his last wee for the night, he went straight back to bed and was snoring the second his head settled on his bed.

I am determined to use the Ttouch way with my dogs, and to learn more about it. I have realised that the way I interact with my dogs has change over the years, I think as my life has become more demanding, I have become more demanding of them, maybe trying to be more controlling, and much to rigid. So I need to get back to being relaxed with them. I really want to bond with Shadow the way I have my other dogs, but all I seem to have done since getting him is battle with him to get him to not pulling or to calm down or comply with other things that he maybe just doesn't understand as yet, trying to get in first and prove that I am the pack leader. I had started to think that I had made a mistake in getting him, that he wasn't the right dog for me. I have wasted precious time being agitated and battling with him, instead of building our bond, so I have started again with a clean slate, and hopefully Shadow will do the same for me.

So …… as I said,…. thank you so much for the day, for showing us new things and reminding me of ways that I had forgotten.

The Challenge of doing TTouch to a Tortoise

By Toni Shelbourne

For anyone who has had a tortoise in their lives you will know what engaging and charming creatures they are. JT came to us many years ago as a stray that was found wondering up the track to my uncle’s farm in the middle of no where. He lived with my grandmother until she pasted away and now resides with my parents. The British weather swinging from warm to cold in the spring poses challenges for tortoises. Due to this JT often raises later in the morning and if it’s too cold to go outside he will wonder through to the lounge and bask in front of the gas fire. It was on one of these days an unfortunate accident happened, JT came in one door, my father came in the other and with both being a bit dopy they meet in the middle with JT’s foot under my dad’s. So how do you perform first aid on an animal that can retreat in to a shell? The answer; start any where you can.

Initial after the trauma we had to assess his injury and perform basic fist aid. It appeared at first that he was stuck inside his shell with a claw trapping him from coming out again. After some swift action from my father the leg was released and the injury could be assessed. It appeared that one of his claws had been ripped off and the claw bed was bleeding, we couldn’t tell if his foot was damaged. I immediately took him between my hands and started doing abalone’s and turtle ttouches to help calm him down as he was emitting distress calls, these seemed to sooth him and we were able to place JT in a warm bath to wash the blood off and clean the area. I continued to do ttouches on his shell even in the bath and saw him moving his injured leg although you could tell it was painful by the way the leg was flinching. I was able to do raccoon touches all over this head and down on to the unaffected foreleg. Once he was out and dry we place him in front of the fire to keep him warm in case he was in shock and I continued to work on his shell, head and eventually the injured leg. I used a really light pressure all over him and switched between comforting, warming ttouches to ones which would help with pain relief and the reduction of swelling and bruising. He improved rapidly and again demonstrated he could move this leg and toes so we were confident this leg was not broken. I continued to do short sessions throughout the day and although still a little sore and upset he was calm by the time he went back to bed that evening.

The next day the wound appeared to be healing well and although he was still a little unsettled he ate and had his normal bath. He was still wary and would only come out of his shell for me, choosing to retreat if anyone else approached him. He had more ttouch on the leg and foot and it appeared to be less painful.

Over the next couple of days he continued to improve, there was never any infection in the claw bed even though we didn’t apply any antibiotics products to it and his confident grew again. This was helped greatly I think by his constant companions in front of the fire namely my cats. Bracken is a Tortoiseshell and he particularly took a shine to her.

Spot’s spinal injury happened in November 2006 and for the first 10 weeks he had been cared for at his local veterinary practice and then Medivet Veterinary Hospital. He suffered an intervertebral disc rupture between C4 and C5 but he had a previous injury around L1 in November 2005. In January 2007 he was transferred to Greyfriars Rehabilitation Referral Centre near Guildford where he was receiving 24 hour specialist care. The prognosis was poor but the expert staff at Greyfrairs were determined to pull him through. The agreement was that Spot would stay for an initial two weeks to see if they could show enough improvement to make it fair to continue with Spot’s treatment – the alternative was euthanasia.
This case study only looks at the Tellington TTouch, one aspect of his recovery. As well as TTouch Spot received acupuncture, physiotherapy, laser therapy, hydrotherapy and conventional drug therapy for inflammation and pain relief. The holistic recovery programme was very much a team effort with each modality playing its part. Attitude towards Spot also played a very important role with all of us being very upbeat and when safe to, really encouraging him to do as much as possible for himself. This case study looks at Spot’s progress with the TTouch over 19 sessions covering 5 months. Sessions were either once or twice a week and lasted for 1 hour per session.
I was first asked to see Spot in January 2007 by Greyfriars’ owner Angela Griffiths. Spot’s prognosis was very cautious and the team were seeing little improvement in him. He had no movement in his legs and could only lift his head up for short periods of time before it flopped back down. His right hind leg and left shoulder were locked and had no movement, all feet were ice cold, in fact he had socks on to help keep him warm, the left hand side of his body was tight and he also had tension in his back, being guarded around the lumbar region. Spot’s right hand side was better than the left but still tight and he was extremely guarded in his head and muzzle area. This was possibly due to sores inside his mouth were he had bitten the inside of his cheeks at the vets. Spot got extremely distressed if left and would bark constantly. The inside of his mouth was infected, which he was on treatment for. Due to this need for physical contact (you had to be physically touching him or else he became distressed) 24 hour care and supervision was given. He also had a healing pressure sore on his right hand shoulder.

In the first session I started off working very lightly with feathers, paint brushes and a sheepskin mitten. I went on to use abalone all along his back to start gently releasing the tension in his whole body. Other ttouches used were harp seal, snails tail, turtle, python lifts, zig zag and ear work. Spot was suffering from a sense of disconnection so to help with this I used an ace bandage to wrap down all his legs and connected them down his back for a whole body connection. Throughout the session it was obvious that Spot was happier to be worked on his right hand side and (also spending some time in the change over from one side to another) on his back with his legs up in the air. By the end of the hour long session he was much more relaxed and only had a few areas were he was still guarded. The team at Greyfrairs know some of the TTouch work through staff training session with me so I was able to leave instruction for them to work on him between sessions.

Three days later when I saw Spot again he was already much improved, wanting to sit up in a slouched sphinx position which he could do with support, he was more alert and had started to reach out with his neck for titbits when offered. There had also been small but significant movements in his front paws which had not been seen before. In fact they had stopped swimming him due to getting no movement in any of his limbs in the pool. Although Spot was still guarded around the ears, head and face I was able to work much more down his legs. I started the session using different materials on him again, like the sheepskin and a jelly scrubber but I could quickly progress on to TTouches with my hands and concentrated on connected ttouches down his legs and lifts to help start opening up the shoulder, creating space between his fore legs. Gentle lifts with an ace bandage were very useful for this.

By 31st January Spot certainly had more zest for life and much improvement was being seen. It was starting to be obvious that on the evening or day after a TTouch session Spot was making significant progress. The 72 hour rule of latent learning for the nervous system is so important, not only for seeing changes in behaviour, but also for spinal and other injuries. Spot now had normal movement in his neck, his ears were warm and the whole head area was less reactive to touch. The only area now cold and reactive was his paws. He would often become very vocal when I worked in these areas so I had to find a way of doing that with out over stressing him. In the rest of his body I was starting to be much more up beat, not having to work so cautiously. Instead I was aiming for waking the nervous system up with energising ttouches like flick of the bears paw and doing faster circles. I continued to wrap Spot in as many different ways as I could, sometimes in a version of a half wrap to encourage space between his forelegs and other versions to give him a full body connection.

By the fourth session Spot had flicking movements in his hind legs and could push against you with his fore feet. Some of the ttouches used in this session included tarantula, pulling the plough, inch worm, rain drops around his head as well as lots of different connected circles and lifts all over his body and especially down his legs. I also discovered that if I put leg wraps on him, not only was he happier about me handling his feet but by the end of a session they would be warmer.

It is very important that, when medically appropriate an animal is helped to stand up for short periods on a regular basis. It is also important to increase an animal’s confidence in their movements and to challenge their range of movement. Greyfriars use theraballs tucked under the abdomen/thorax to help with assisted standing. When I arrived to see spot for the 5th session at the end of February he was up in a sitting position, although aided so he didn’t fall, and reaching forward and creeping in to a down position for cheese. In this session he was happier to have his feet touched and I got some flicking of the fore feet and lifting of the left fore leg.

All dogs going through spinal recovery rehab have a bleep at some point and in early March Spot had a bout of diarrhoea. This can sometimes be due to prescribed medication or because of a weakened immune system. He was very down when I saw him, shaking and uncomfortable. Although the diarrhoea was now under control, he had not defecated for three days and the team was anxious for him to do so. Due to his condition I concentrated on calming, warming, comforting ttouches and especially worked his belly and hind quarters. By the end of the session he had brightened up and looked like he might defecate soon. When I left him he was calm and quiet and I’d had a nice push through from his hind legs while I was working. Later that day he defecated and recovered quickly after that. To the teams surprise Spot was back to the same point within a week.

Throughout March we had very promising movements in all limbs and by the end of March we had movement in all four legs in the pool and he was being fitted for a doggie wheel cart. He was also being encouraged to walk a few steps with support. He was trying to move himself and if something really interested him he’d even crawl. In fact you had to watch him as he’d try to take off when he saw his favourite people Angela or Kirsty - one of them always stayed with him overnight. Of course with more exercise the body becomes tired and a little tight but we could support this through the TTouch work as well as stimulating his body to the next stage of recovery.

After an Easter break at home with his family, Spot returned a little unsettled and sore but he was still making great progress. He felt better throughout his body and had more range of movement. For the first time when I flipped him from one side to the other he did most of the movement for himself. At the end of the session he got up and tried to crawl to Angela so we walked him out side. He walked using all 4 legs with us reminding him which ones to use and supporting him. He even stood unaided except with us touching him lightly to help keep his balance and for confidence.

When I turned up for his 13th session he was up and walking with the team, in fact they were having trouble keeping him settled he was so active, wanting to be outside, starting to play and be cheeky. He was crossing his forelegs over in front of him a lot so we wrapped him at the shoulder and put leg wraps on to bring awareness to this. At the end of the session he got up and made his way over to Angela again.

By the end of April he was doing really well in his wheels, going home regularly at the weekends and only had a couple of weeks before he would be discharged. With lots of intensive work on and around his chest and shoulders I was starting to see more movement and space between the forelegs. In preparation for him going home it was time to teach his people how to do the ttouches so they could carry the work on once he was home.

The last month at Greyfriars Spot went through days where he was sore due to working so hard and days of great progress. The decision to discharge was based on Spot progressing to the point where one person could take him out for toileting fairly easily. Once home, Spot returned regularly for hydrotherapy. TTouch sessions continued until his people were comfortable with the work. At home he was now walking up and down a specially constructed ramp and moving more confidently and trying out new movements every day.

With spinal injuries, if there is a possibility that an animal can heal, the best course of action is to be very proactive. It is no good trying just one modality at a time, if they work well together then try as much as possible. It could possibly take months to recover but for some animals recovery is possible even though they may be left with some form of disability. What you aim to achieve is a good quality of life and to give the animal the choice whether to recover or not. Vets may be negative about prospects but the best piece of advice I can give you through my experiences with spinal injured animals is to ask the animal if they still want to be here, they will always give you an honest answer.

Toni Shelbourne

NB: Greyfriars owner, Angela Griffiths has no doubt of the value of TTouch. 'Doberman, Spot, was an inpatient at Greyfriars for five months after he lost the use of his legs due to spinal disc problems. Looking after Spot was both physically and mentally exhausting because of his distress and noise levels if left, even for a few minutes. Spot overreacted to any stress or stimulus and his muscle tone would stiffen. Ttouch was vital to reverse these effects and we all looked forward to a more relaxed Spot following sessions with Toni Shelbourne – both he and the team benefited. TTouch was used on Spot regularly with dramatic results – after each session his ability to move improved and this convinced me of the benefits. He is now home with his family who have been taught the TTouch techniques to help his continuing rehabilitation'.