Rebecca Westwood studied English at university, but started a whole new chapter in her life when she followed her dream of becoming an RVN.
Here, she explains how working abroad made her the person she is today, why she forged her own business, and why holistic therapy can complement veterinary medicine and benefit all parties.
Why did you want to become a vet nurse?
When I left school, I went to university and gained an English degree; however, when I started to think about careers, I kept coming back to my childhood passion for being around animals.
Money didn’t really factor into my thoughts when I thought about what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I decided the bad wages wouldn’t matter when I would be getting job satisfaction every day, so I enrolled on a day release NVQ course at college and found a training practice – that was 17 years ago. Being around animals every day was all I wanted to do.
You have volunteered with charities in Barbados, Grenada and the Cook Islands – why did you want to volunteer abroad and what activities were you doing?
In Barbados, I was mostly in sole charge of a homing charity. Daily tasks included general husbandry, training, dog handling and finding animals suitable homes.
I worked with the government to show it how to handle strays and understand basic behaviour. It was very rewarding, but also very sad as I saw many cruelty cases. I was reminded every day of the compassionate nature of dogs that had been beaten, mistreated and malnourished, and, yet, I was amazed to see that, despite this, they were always happy to see me, even though other humans had badly neglected them.
I also helped vets to neuter dogs, nursed basic wounds and helped treat those affected by injury or disease.
I went to volunteer in the Cook Islands, but ended up running its only vet clinic. This saw me managing not only the practice, but also the volunteers, operations and medicines.
It was an invaluable lesson in my career; I met many vets from all around the world with different ways of doing things. At times, we were faced with a lack of medicines, anaesthetic or expertise for the cases we were presented with – and sometimes we had nothing at all.
Dogs roam free on the island, so we saw a lot of road traffic accident casualties. I learned how to treat their injuries with the resources we had; on occasion, how and when to cut corners.
I also visited Grenada for a three-week volunteer placement doing the same as you do in a UK day-to-day practice, just with extra heat, owners with no money and limited resources. All in all these experiences made me the RVN and person I am, and I would urge everybody to do a charity stint.
You locumed in between your trips abroad – what happened next?
Being a locum gave me the opportunity to work part time, travel to differently practices and see how people did things different in each one. I think I’ve seen most things now.
When I started a family, I left practice and focused on my babies, and the home vet visit business my husband and I started. This meant we could focus on child care and not miss out on the children growing up.
Tell us about your business, Peace. Heal. Love
I trained in reiki, and was initially only treating friends and family, but it gained momentum and I started using it on inpatients when the vets were scratching their heads about cases, and it really helped. I then trained in the bowen technique to help my husband with a back condition. I started treating more clients and it seemed like a natural step for me to learn how to help dogs, so I trained in the canine bowen technique (CBT), too.
I decided to call my business Peace. Heal. Love when a friend asked me what it offered and what my unique selling point would be. My reply was the session would enable people time out of their hectic lives to get some peace in a safe space full of love, with time to heal. I launched the business in May 2017 and I absolutely love going to work every day.
What does the business offer?
I offer CBT to help all kinds of conditions, such as arthritis, lameness, skin allergies, anxieties – the list is endless. CBT is a soft tissue remedial therapy involving “light-touch” moves of fingers or thumbs over muscle, ligament, tendon, and/or fascia at specific points of the dog’s body. The work is very subtle and involves no hard or prolonged pressure. It offers dogs a gentle, non-invasive and effective hands-on technique that aims to promote healing, pain relief, and body/energy rebalancing.
My absolute favourite thing to do is sit with an animal and just be; holding a space for them to feel safe, relax and heal. Animal reiki is a meditation space where we invite the animals in to, rather than forcing hands on treatment. CBT is also dog-led and I find by giving these animals a choice whether they receive the “treatment” or not has powerful effects for their healing.
Reiki can be given at any time in any situation. I have often gone to sit in a busy hospital ward, and the barking and noises from the inpatients has ceased. It is amazing.
Any examples/case studies of the bowen technique helping your patients?
It can help physically. I see a lot of arthritic geriatric dogs, and the bowen technique can improve their posture and gait, and reduce inflammation and pain. But it also has an effect on them emotionally; it relaxes them.
I am working with a terrier that suffers with anxieties. She used to shake and vocalise a lot, but she relaxed during our session, and has stopped vocalising and shaking – not just during our sessions, but within her everyday life, too. Her gait has improved and she has started running again. I was asked to work with her because of her anxieties, and her posture and energy levels have improved as a “side effect”.
I have also treated a dog called Bella (pictured left) whose owner wanted help with her limping and arthritis. Since working with me, she has more energy, has had her medication reduced and has not needed to have any extra medication added to help her stiffness.
As a CBT practitioner, I always advise owners to discuss medications and treatment regimes with their vet, because I am only offering a complementary service. Because CBT and reiki is holistic, it works on physical, emotional and even spiritual levels when it comes to a dog’s well-being.
What is reiki and how can it help?
Reiki is a Japanese system and is predominantly energy work. I came across it when I was undergoing treatment for cancer. It really helped me out mentally and emotionally. When I recovered, my reiki practitioner said I should train in the technique.
My initial thought was “I couldn’t possibly do that, I’m not a healer”. But I soon realised everybody is made of energy, and, therefore, anybody can hold the space for another person to aid their healing.
I’ve seen reiki benefit stress and anxiety, and pain and inflammation. I describe it to clients and students like this: everybody has an inner light; the Buddhists call it an inner diamond, or a true self. But life adds layers to this bright light, such as fear, worry, stress, work, jobs, roles we have in life and so on, and reiki peels some of these layers so the light can shine more brightly.
People can, therefore, have big emotional reactions to a session, but reiki can do no harm because, ultimately, the person receiving it is “in control”, so if they are not ready to face a situation or feeling then they will not release the corresponding emotions.
Views on the use of holistic techniques in the veterinary profession can be quite divisive – what do you say to people who do not think it is a beneficial branch of therapy?
I completely understand people not believing in reiki as a treatment, but I have grown up in a scientific environment.
I think in this day and age, more people are aware of the issues and impact of stress, and the benefits mindfulness, self care, and sharing feelings and concerns, can bring.
I have offered reiki to many vets and nurses in practice, and in my treatment room, and everybody feels sensations they cannot explain – but really it doesn’t need explaining, it is a space to relax, unwind, and find some peace, healing and love.
Animal reiki blows my mind everyday. Animals are sentient, emotional beings and welcome the reiki space. I teach and practise animal reiki as a meditative system and it is only hands on when the animal chooses it. With this in mind, reiki can be offered at any time, during veterinary treatment, in an emergency, or quietly in a field, stable or kennel.
I would urge anybody to just try it before they offer judgement; even the most cynical vets and nurses have changed their minds after experiencing the benefits of reiki and CBT. CBT is more “accepted” because it has roots in science, much like physiotherapy and cranialsacral therapy.
How does running your own business compare to working in practice?
I love working for myself. I set my hours around my other commitments. Watching the animals under my care benefit from reiki and CBT is the best feeling.
I loved working in practice and nursing sick animals to health again, but now I get to see animals in their homes, relaxing and feeling better. It also improves owner-pet relationships, and it touches my heart every single time I put on my Peace. Heal. Love tunic.
Is there such a thing as a working day? Tell us about it.
Everyday is different, depending on whether I have nurse clinics with my vet business or child care, but I can see between two and five clients a day.
Each home visit lasts an hour and I have to add on travelling time. I am always in different places, which I love. I enjoy the variety my diary offers and that I get to spend quality time with my children when I am not working.
What advice would you give someone wanting to run their own business?
It is great being self employed, but it is also hard work – there’s a lot of admin and accountancy to do, as well as answering emails and telephone calls. But for me, the positives far outweigh the negatives.
I would advise anyone wanting to set up their own business to network and advertise. Word of mouth is great, but you need some mouths to start the talking to start the ball rolling. If you are prepared to put the hard work in, running your own business is a fantastic way of life.
Any other key messages?
CBT is offered to dogs only with vet compliance. Owners can request it, but I need to know if the vet is treating any conditions, and, if so, with what. This is so I have a complete understanding of the dog holistically. I never diagnose, treat conditions, prescribe or alter medications, nor do I force CBT on a dog. I have to work to a strict code of conduct, have liability insurance and do CPD.
Animal reiki is a meditative practice and, therefore, the vet doesn’t need to sign anything, but I always advise owners to let their vet know we are working together. I am always happy to discuss reiki or CBT with vets and really believe in the benefits of using these complementary techniques alongside veterinary medicine.
For more information, visit www.peaceheallove.com
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