Our trainer recommended we contact Carol Lizotte, owner of Green Gems Herbals, to get some floral essences for Odie to try help with his anxieties, unpredictability with other dogs and sheer moments of energetic insanity, which included plowing directly into me. (Censored!)
I'd used essences before with previous dogs, in conjunction with behavior modification programs, but had to buy them individually after figuring out which ones might be useful. Got rather expensive and lots of head scratching. We had also used essences for our last Rottie, Argo, when he was going through cancer treatment. They were mixed by a friend, who is not available right now to help us.
I emailed Carol and got some recommendations. First being a custom combo of some different blends she already had available, plus a bottle of her training formula that helps "interspecies communication". Both Odie and I take that before we do some work, even if it's just a walk. It does manage to keep me calmer when he's pushing all my buttons. LOL and when I'm calmer, he responds better. The combo formula is having a positive effect, more so after Carol bumped up the dose recently. She felt that would be better, than actually tweaking the essences in the blend. We are about to start our second bottle.
We've started using her Flea/Tick/Mosquito spray too. I've tried other herbal insect deterrents before with no benefit. But Carol's mix is effective.
Carol offers a full array of herbal, aromatherapy and floral essence combinations for both dogs and cats to help with a plethora of behavioral and physical problems. They are available to purchase online, by phone or e-mail, or at a few retail shops listed on her website. In addition, she offers wellness consults, educational workshops, is a Reiki practitioner (for emotional healing, stress, etc), and uses crystals/gem stones as an additional form of energy healing. Calling all Dowsers. ;) She uses them to imbue energy into the essences she mixes. Odie was lucky enough to get a little bit of Reiki from Carol when we went to pick up our first order (remember, she works out of her home, so it's by appointment only). A friend in Scotland has been sending him Reiki, which has done wonders for his crate issues. Yes, it works remotely, as well as hands on.
I'm sure many are shaking their heads that this is voodoo, hocus pocus and a big ol' crock of stinky stuff. Being an empiricist myself, I had to put my skepticism on a shelf when I started using essences years ago and just kept an open mind. I haven't been looking for, or expecting, good results, but with the training and this positive energy support, Odie has come a very long way. So if that counts for anything with anyone who may have tried all traditional options with their pet, perhaps give non-traditional modalities a try. :) read more