Systems are fluid in nature. What has that got to do with cats, you ask?
A system is a group of related things or beings that co-exist and interact together. Any system – whether it be an ecosystem, a family system, or your laptop computer – is in a constant state of change. When we work with animals, we work with the whole family system by default. The animal impacts or affects the rest of the family, and vice versa. This happens not only at the physical level, but also at the emotional and energetic levels. For example, if a cat suddenly begins not using the litter box, the physical impact is pretty obvious – smelly carpets or floors that need to be cleaned. The emotional impact is usually pretty clear too – frustration on the part of the humans, anxiety or anger on the part of the cat who is acting out. There is also an energetic impact – the cat may draw it’s energy in and hide, the human having to clean up the mess or pay for new carpet may expand their energy system out farther than they usually do because they feel angry or frustrated. The delicate balance of individual energies in the family becomes disrupted, and so the overall energetic balance of the family system is upset. Energetic imbalance can create dis-ease if not corrected. Dis-ease can take the form of inappropriate behavior, as well as actual physical illness.
What happens when we disrupt the energetic balance of a family system by introducing new animal or humans into it? You’ve got it – we create an imbalance in the energetic balance of the system. The challenge is to bring the family system back into balance physically, emotionally, and energetically so that the new member is integrated more easily into the system. The same thing applies when a family member leaves – a child goes to college, a pet passes away. This too creates imbalance in the family system.
Our family system has had both loss and additions in the last six months. We have lost both our Basset Hounds, and we have gained 3 cats. All of this was totally unplanned. As those of you with cats know well, integrating cats into a family that has cats who have been in residence for a long period of time is not an easy thing to do. When the kittens came, we communicated to all the cats the difference between HOUSE CAT and BARN CAT. The kittens take care of the barn and the horses, and the house cats take care of us and the house. This seemed to minimize issues between the 2 groups, and diffused energetic conflicts.
Then, one cold morning a few weeks ago, I hear a meow coming from the back porch. A paw poked through the dog door. There on the porch was a cat that looked a lot like Ben, but who wasn’t Ben. I shooed it off the porch, hoping that it would go back home. When I went into the barn, it came in and began to eat the kitten’s food. Obviously the cat was very hungry and cold, and had no collar. We could not afford another cat, we did not want to try to integrate another cat into a house with 2 older male cats. You know, of course, that that is exactly what we ended up doing. It has been a learning experience for all. Diana (the new cat) has slowly allowed her energy to expand as she has begun to explore the house. Of course Nate expanded HIS energy to let her know it was HIS HOUSE. Ben is very ill right now, so his energy is very small. What we did that seemed to really help is to work with our family’s energetic system using an HTA® technique called Etheric Heartbeat to integrate Diana’s energy into the family’s energy system. This technique was originally created to work with an individual animal’s energetic system, but is easily adapted to work with any energetic system.
We also, of course, did some practical things that we recommend to our clients in these situations. First, always isolate a stray from the other animals until it has been seen and tested by a vet. Secondly, when attempting to integrate cats into a household, create a separate safe space for the new cat, including a separate litter box, food and water. As the new cat becomes more comfortable and starts exploring, be sure to show her/him where the other litter boxes, water, and food are located. You may have to keep the extra litter box around for awhile. Be sure to spend more time than usual with existing cats, and reassure them of their importance in the family. Finally, give things TIME – cats are very slow to adapt to change. Be patient. Give us a call if problems persist, and we’ll work with your family system using communication and energy work.
