A few days ago, I had to attend to some paperwork at the police station. It was pouring with rain and the roads were flooded. As we drove gently through a flooded area Salma got up from her usual travelling place for the first time since she has been with us and came to lie between the two front seats. I realised that the trigger for this was the loud “whoosh” sound that the tyres made going through water. Then as we came out of the tunnels the sound of the rain battering on the roof of the vehicle was very loud and this also caused her to be concerned.

I knew that she was quite sound sensitive but this new development was quite unexpected. A few days later we took her out in the camper van again and although the rain was much less she had clearly been sensitised by the drive in the deluge.  What to do?

  • First of all, I put on a half wrap as soon as she came out of the car and she calmed quickly.
  • Then in the afternoon we spent some time just sitting in the stationary car. During that time she lay down in her usual place.
  • Today we went out again. Although it was not raining on the outward journey, she still came to lie closer to us but she was quite calm. On the return journey it started to rain again, but she remained calm.
  • At home after grooming her I did a short zoopharma session.

 

Date Substance Response Notes
06/12/2021 Linden Blossom Sniffs, tail wags, nose twitches, close sniff, head turned away and back, close sniffs, blinks, nose twitches, smacks, lip licks, close sniff, Head away and back. Sound sensitivity
  Violet leaf Very close sniff, lip licks, smacks, swallow, focus on bottle, blinks, stillness, smacks Dealing with change
  Vanilla At first no response. Then nose twitches, blinks, huffs. Comforting
  Ylang Ylang Tail wags, smacks, head down Self-confidence
  Violet leaf Nose twitches, focus, head turned away  
  Rose Otto Nose twitches Trauma release
  SJW Licked quite a bit from my fingers I could not measure the amount because I had no plate. Maybe 2ml.

Her response to Linden Blossom, a major oil for sound sensitivity, was strong, as was her response to violet leaf for dealing with change. Finally, I offered her some St. John’s Wort which she licked eagerly from my fingers. As this was something of an afterthought, I did not have a dish to hand so was unable to measure the amount ingested. It was quite small, but clearly this is a macerated oil which I must offer again.