I am excited to share this story about tapping on a wolf - Don’t worry, it's a pet wolf dog! Previously, I have used tapping with my own dog Lucy (physically tapping on her), and she responds really well and indeed loves tapping. My other dog doesn’t like it, so I have to use Surrogate Tapping with her.
While I have an animal energy healers practitioner certificate, I hadn’t felt the confidence to try it with other animals until I met a beautiful wolf pet named Shawnee. Her unusual name is derived from the Shoshone tribe in America.
Shawnee
It all started when I was invited around to some new neighbors who had moved in next to us with their dog and cats. It was a lovely afternoon, and we were sitting having cocktails when I saw this most beautiful creature in the doorway - Shawnee, their pet wolf. The owner told me she was very ill and didn’t think she was long for this world. She had a terrible limp and could hardly walk. Indeed, she was trailing her back leg. Two of her feline companions had recently passed away, and she was missing them dreadfully. She had laid down, head in paws and looked very sorry for herself.
I couldn’t stop looking at this beautiful animal. The owner was very interested in EFT and had never heard of it before. She asked if I would try some on Shawnee. I advised that not all dogs liked tapping physically and we may have to use Surrogate, but the owner insisted she would be OK to try out physical tapping. I must admit to some degree of trepidation when I laid flat on the floor beside her. The absolute sheer size of her was daunting - yet she had the most beautiful eyes.
"Talk As"
I asked Shawnee if she minded if I tapped on her. I told her I was sorry she felt so ill, but that tapping might just help her. I felt it was OK and the owner said it was OK to go ahead. I then proceeded to tap on the points, around the eyes, chest and under arm, similar to ourselves with the following phrases as if I was Shawnee:
I am so low
I feel pretty bad
I can’t walk properly
But I’m a good dog & my owners love me
I wish I could walk properly
Or just a bit better
I keep trailing my back leg & hobbling along
I keep limping
But I’m a good girl, such a good girl
I miss my friends so much (the two cats)
Now they have gone forever and I won’t see them again
I’m a good girl
I want to get better
At this stage, I stopped tapping as I thought she may have had enough because she was very weak. The owner walked me round their garden, looking at the plants and chatting. I have to be honest I was still drawn to Shawnee and noticed that she had staggered up from the ground and started following us around. I thought her walking looked a lot better, but I didn’t comment.
Then the owner’s husband commented about Shawnee’s walking looking much better. She was definitely improved but not knowing her, I didn’t know what her normal day was like. I was then invited to sit with the owner in her courtyard area, and Shawnee came to sit near us and laid down. I asked the owner if she wanted to try some more tapping (Surrogate Tapping this time), and she was very keen as she wanted Shawnee to get better.
"Talk About"
I tried Gwyneth Moss’ protocol and talked about the animal. I asked the owner if she would follow me tapping as she had no idea what to do. She didn’t know the points or protocol or about Surrogate Tapping. (Find this article by searching this site for author Gwyneth Moss or the title "Thoughts on Surrogate Tapping.")
I tapped on myself and used similar phrases as before, such as:
Shawnee is a good girl
She’s missing her life long friends Mau & Miss Piggy
They both died after moving here and she misses them dreadfully
This is when her leg problem started
She’s so ill and may not have long for this world
Something came up here, but I didn’t vocalise it to the owner just yet, about being very worried about her owner. I didn’t want to freak this lady out! Also I work very intuitively, and it felt like the right thing at this stage. All the time the owner was tapping with me. I asked her if she wanted to try, and I would lead her with the tapping, so we then used "talk to" the animal:
Shawnee, even though you are so ill and missing your friend, you are a good girl and I love you very much...
The owner repeated and then came up with her own words,
I love you Shawnee and I don’t want you to go, but it may be your time?
We continued around this theme and as the owner started to become more confident with the whole idea, she started talking to Shawnee herself. We stopped for a while and the owner thought it was really interesting. I asked if we could do a role play between us. I was Shawnee and the owner was herself:
Me as Shawnee: I am ill, so ill, I cant walk well although it was a little better maybe just now...
Owner: I am sorry you are so ill Shawnee, I love you and want you to get better.
Me: I really miss my friends so much, Mau followed me all over (again something came up from Shawnee)
I suggested very gently that the owner might ask if it was Shawnee’s time to pass. Only if she wanted to?
The owner said, "Shawnee is it your time to pass?"
There was a very long pause. I didn’t say anything, and the owner was visibly shaken.
Still quiet, I waited. The owner eventually said, "No I don’t want to die yet."
Me, as Shawnee, repeating the phrases: "I want all the time and help I can get, I don’t want to die, it’s not my time yet, it’s not my time, I want every bit of help from anyone"
Sharing an Intuitive Feeling
The "something" came up which I had to think about but just said it in this role play format as it seemed the right moment, "There is something wrong with your mum, what is wrong? I am really worried about you. There is something seriously wrong isn’t there? I need all the time in the world but for some reason you can’t give it to me. You are worried, what is wrong?"
Again the owner looked visibly shocked and quiet and, in fact, couldn’t speak. I waited, and said we didn’t have to go any further if she didn’t want to. She was actually quite annoyed in a defensive way at first saying that she did everything for Shawnee, she was top of her list even though she recently had lost her father. We chatted a little and then it became clear why she had reacted in this way. She became upset, but said she would be OK in a couple of minutes.
She then explained that no one knew, not her best friends and only her husband, that she had to go for a scan for cancer and was very worried. She couldn’t believe how I knew..I said I didn't know, it was Shawnee’s worry, and I also had a sense from Shawnee that she would lose her human mum as well as her friends she had recently lost.
"I Tapped Mentally For Her"
We finished tapping around this worry. I had to leave and travel to southern Spain the next day, so I haven’t seen Shawnee physically since. Interestingly, for three consecutive nights I was woken up early morning with Shawnee’s beautiful face seeking healing which I tapped mentally for her. I couldn’t get her out of my mind, so sent her Surrogate Tapping whenever I thought of her. I rang a couple of weeks later and whilst Shawnee wasn’t in the best of health, her walking had improved dramatically.
The tapping with Shawnee really has left an impression on me, I was shocked to the core at how quickly and simply "things" came up. The whole process was only about 10 minutes.
Since then, whilst she has improved, I learned recently she had 18 epileptic fits in two days. I wanted to continue tapping surrogately, so I pulled up her photo on the computer and tapped on her points on the screen. I wanted to do role play, but was on my own. A light bulb moment: Actually no I wasn’t on my own, Lucy my own dog of 9 years was with me. Why not surrogate tap with her?!
I took the lap top over with the photo of Shawnee, to where Lucy was sat & asked if she would be willing to help tap & role play as Shawnee.
I asked questions of Lucy as Shawnee for about 15 minutes and also tapped on Lucy and on myself and on Shawnee’s photo. We tapped similarly around her health and other issues and some interesting points came up:
I asked ‘how can we help you Shawnee?’
Lucy as Shawnee ‘ Water ‘
Me ‘ do you need water, do you want to swim ?’
Lucy as Shawnee ‘ Water ‘
Me ‘ I am not sure how to help with the water Shawnee but I will talk to your owners , is there anything else ?’
Lucy ‘ Yes, when I was 3 months old I was traumatized’
Me ‘ 3 months old..the trauma’
We had to stop as Lucy started barking at something outside. I followed up with an email to the owners a couple of days later & asked if Shawnee liked swimming. The owners said not really but she loved sitting in water & two days ago sat in the newly filled swimming pool. Something she loved to do. There is some follow up work to do and the owner said she didn’t dare to think that Shawnee seemed to be improving.
I want to encourage anyone to try Gwyneth’s protocol as it has encouraged me, more and more, to work with animals. My sessions were very impromptu and not necessarily in an order, I went with the flow.
On reflection, one thing I love is the way I believe we are all so connected and that if we can also use animals to surrogately tap for another animal!
Marie Holliday is an EFT International Accredited Certified Master Trainer of Trainers and Advanced Practitioner living in Spain. She offers her trainings, mentoring, and EFT sessions in both Spanish & English. She works on the EFT International Training Committee and is proud to be an official Representative of EFT International in Spain. Visit her website at www.eftspaintraining.com.
From the EFTfree Archives, which are now a part of EFT International .
Originally published on January 21, 2012.
Marie Holliday says
I am still using tapping to this date and now for many years with wildlife also. Animals are so simple to work with. Often results can happen really speedily. I have shown volunteers in animal associations here in Spain how to use it for rescue animals and they have also benefitted from EFT. I love this element of tapping that animals are helping people learn EFT!
Denise Ullmann says
Ola, sou veterinaria holistica aqui no Brasil e pratico o EFT, e justamente estava procurando estas informações para aplicar nods meus pacientes de 4 e duas patas.
Muito agrdecida
[Hello, I am a holistic veterinarian here in Brasil and EFT practitioner, I was just looking for this information to apply with my two legged and four legged patients. Thanks very much.]
Masha Bennett says
What a wonderful animal tapping story 🙂
I used to be very sceptical about surrogate EFT but was convinced after we tapped with a friend and colleague Deanne (a very respectable clinical psychologist and eating disorders expert) for her cat Max, who a couple of years previously had literally lost his purr! Numerous visits to the vets, changes in diet, supplements, attempts to reduce his stress levels, more play and more cuddles – all failed to break Max’s prolonged period of silence. But, following a few minutes of surrogate tapping, he started to purr again, and when I meet him once or twice a year he greets me with a very distinct and loud purr 🙂
Would very much recommend Gwyneth’s surrogate tapping procedure – if anyone is going to the EFT Gathering in York next weekend, you have a chance to attend her joint workshop with Heather Smiles just on this topic – inspirational, educational and fun!