Our Students Learn PetMassage_™ to Change Careers

The most exciting people in the world are drawn to our workshops and home-study courses. We attract only those who are inclined to share our philosophies of touch, connection, service, and commitment. Our approach is holistic and spiritual. We are not entrenched in the physical therapy - medical massage mind-set. We see our practice as supporting the work of veterinarians and other animal health and wellness colleagues. Our training is for people who would like to work either in veterinary offices as therapists and/or create productive, loving and prosperous businesses helping animals and their guardians. We do not attract everyone. Those who would not feel comfortable with our course content find their ways to other schools.

PetMassage_™ teaches students to support the self-revelatory, self healing, intuitive abilities of animals through the use of knowledgeable, compassionate touch, fascia releases, understanding and using open body-language communication. We encourage whoever can, to attend a workshop; the best instruction for this hands-on skill is one-to-one with an instructor. We begin with basic anatomy and applied physiology to offer an understanding of body systems from a Western medical model. We include concepts and practices of Swedish massage and Traditional Chinese Medicine in the theory and practice of our foundation massage. Body and energy mechanics are emphasized to make sure that each massage session is safe, effective and responsible. Students then learn specific PetMassage_™ theory and techniques with several in-classroom sessions with live dogs under direct guidance of an instructor and with more at-risk animals at our local humane society. We conclude with lively discussions about ethics, marketing, legal issues and scopes of practice.

We are proud of the quality of educational experience that we offer. We are also pleased that the course content that we offer is unique among schools teaching animal massage. To date, we have been privileged to give over one hundred 5-day workshops at the PetMassage_™ Headquarters in Toledo, Ohio while our home-study courses have attracted more than a thousand students.

We applaud the students who attend our workshops. You are the dreamers and the risk takers. You see the demand. You see the opportunity. You see the need to help animals and their owners. You see the awesome potential of PetMassage_™. You understand that you will be creating a business as you learn. There are no models to follow. Whatever you create will be your creation. It will be the results of your experiences, intuitive development, your charisma, your drive and persistence; your personal journey. It will be totally and exclusively a reflection of you and your dream.

You have enough faith in yourself and your vision to be willing to risk your precious time, money, energy and reputation with those limited visioned people around you who cannot understand your passion or your willingness to attempt to help the inhabitants of the animal world in ways that have never been done before.

Those who have taken our workshops and home-study courses are all people in transition. They are consciously reevaluating, reforming their lives. They are discharging old patterns and learning new ones, moving from their old tried, true and tiresome way of living to an exciting and sometimes frightening future.

Over 90 percent of our students are women. They range in age from their 20's to their 80's. Many are fresh out of school, many are retired. Many boomers now recognize that they have choices about what they can do for a living and are choosing to live healthier, more active lifestyles, follow their bliss, honor their spiritual paths, and work with animals. Many already have experience with animal care and many don't. Everyone shares the goals to expand their skills and relationships with animals and to create new, rewarding careers in this new field. Our students come from a vast panoply of occupations that include practically every vocation imaginable. This list is not in any particular order. They have been teachers, professors, nurses, and doctors, massage, respiratory and physical therapists, social workers, NASA scientists, dot-com-ers, corporate managers, lawyers, business owners, financial analysts, CPA's, hair and nail stylists, animal rescue workers, groomers, trainers, veterinarians and vet techs and assistants, dog walkers, house sitters, secretaries, real-estate agents, travel agents, bus drivers, day care workers, artists, musicians, actors, mathematicians, statisticians, bankers, morticians, pharmacists, service dog trainers, animal foster parents, jockeys, horse trainers, factory and dock workers, truck drivers, machinists, millwrights, athletic coaches, professional athletes, chefs, spa managers, housekeepers, nannies, empty nesters, twixers and students.

They all have a few important things in common. All have excelled in what they had previously tried. All had either retired, felt the impact of impersonal corporate downsizing or brushed up against glass ceilings. Everybody has done their homework, researching the little that's been written on the subject of animal massage and business creation in this unique field. And each has decided to flaunt the conservative rut-based way of living and thinking and jumped with both feet and eyes wide open to learn and do and teach PetMassage_™ .

These excerpts from massage trade magazines articles discuss animal massage as a career. "Animal massage has been a longstanding tradition among horse owners and is increasingly common on the dog-show circuit." "A Google search for 'pet massage' yields 650,000 entries, including mobile services, hotels catering to the lucrative pet-owner market and training programs." "Pet massage appeals to a wide range of people. Natural candidates are those who already work with animals, including veterinarians, veterinary technicians, groomers, dog walkers and pet sitters. But there is a substantial interest among lay people who just love animals and see pet massage as a growing field." --Massage Magazine, January, 2005, Massage's furry future ,

The growth in interest is astounding. In 1998 an internet search only found around 20 entries!

"From hoofs to paws to claws, the animal -massage field is one to pay attention to whether you're a massage therapist interested in expanding your practice to include a different kind of client, or a per owner wanting to provide your horse, dog or cat with extra care and attention." --Massage Magazine, May, 2003 "Is Animal Massage Your Career Path?

"Animal therapists are a passionate group, and passion is what it takes in this blossoming profession. Much of the challenge of starting an animal massage practice will depend on the regulations of the state in which you practice." "Animal massage is on the cusp of becoming mainstream. The success of each case brings visibility and validation to the practice, and with each new well-trained, dedicated and passionate massage therapist entering the field, there is movement forward."- Massage and Bodywork, April/May 2002, Shirley Vanderbilt, Animal Massage.

How can you know if this is your path?

Several years ago I had the opportunity to witness a channeling session by Dr. Barbara Brennan, the author of the classic, comprehensive, and essential manual for energy workers, "Hands of Light." This is her response to this question, "Recall a time in your childhood when you were blissfully happy. Notice what you were doing. This is the key to knowing your path. What made you happy then, are the things that you are naturally good at. Create a job," she concluded "of the skills that make you happy."

These are our natural aptitudes. For all of our students and me, the memories that immediately surface are of loving, helping and nurturing our dogs, cats, horses, bunnies, ferrets, gerbils, mice, birds, reptiles, fish et al! We connected with them on levels that were not possible with people. These critters taught us how to live and love.

With the help of our pets, we all, to a person, were tutored about the virtues of trust, respect, faithfulness, love, and non-judgmental acceptance. We learned about intuition and honor, personal space and intimacy. We learned about fragility and pain, death and grieving. We learned that we could move on to love another pet - knowing we do not have to duplicate the same relationship. We learned to allow ourselves, through accepting and cultivating new and different love dynamics from other pets, to again experience joy, hurt, and wistful vulnerability.

Our students have put in their time and learned their life lessons. I would like to think of them as emotionally and socially, evolved. They have developed the people skills to help pet owners to create better relationships with their pets. Their presence enhances everyone's quality of life. They are ready to give back to animals some of the joy and love they've received. This testimonial arrived after this student completed her first workshop with us: "I wanted to thank you all for inspiring me to do what I feel I was put here on Earth to do! My life is now clear and I am focused on a goal I know in my heart I will achieve. Thank you for helping me find myself! You've truly touched my life!" --Heather H. of Madison, WI

They are the dreamers who know that they can make a difference. Through massage and touch, one dog, one cat, one pet owner at a time they can change the world.

Students, we thank you for sharing your dreams with us. Allow us to share ours with you. We appreciate your enthusiastic support and trust in our school. We welcome the opportunity to teach you our gentle PetMassage_™ approach. These are the skills you will need to propel you forward into your dynamic future.

Jonathan Rudinger 3/16/05