Paw-Ful Mind

Break up a busy day with a calming guided meditation designed to be completed with a family pet. For times when you’re feeling overwhelmed or stressed, cuddling a pet helps to reduce your stress hormones and help you release feel good chemicals known as oxytocin. Settle down somewhere peaceful and quiet with your pet, or perhaps move to where they are sleeping.This mini-meditation can help you to stay plugged into the moment, to savour spending time with this faithful member of your family.

Transcript

Here is a short meditation on your senses that you can do with your dog or cat.

Is your dog or cat sleeping at the moment?

And do you have five minutes?

Great.

Let's get started.

Find yourself a comfortable position nestled alongside your cat or dog.

Don't be careful.

Don't wake them up.

Take a moment to close your eyes and relax your body,

Using your breath to soften your body,

Inhaling and exhaling,

Inhaling and exhaling.

On each exhale,

Soften the body even further,

Dropping your shoulders,

Relaxing your face or anything else that you can do to promote relaxation in your body,

Inhaling,

Exhaling.

As you exhale,

Softening your body.

Now gently open your eyes,

Looking at your dog or cat.

Are they still sleeping?

Great.

Let's continue.

As you engage in the sense of sight,

Notice the shape of its body.

Is it curled up,

Lying flat on its tummy?

Or is it on its back?

What about its fur?

Is it long or short?

What else can you notice about it?

What color is it?

Is there a consistent color or many colors throughout the fur?

Does it gradually transition to another color?

Or are there spots on its body?

Now gently close your eyes and notice what you can remember.

The shape of its body,

Fur,

Colors.

What else did you notice?

Next,

Take a moment to listen to the sounds that your dog or cat is making.

Is it purring,

Snoring?

What else can you hear?

Are the sounds loud or soft?

Do they stop and start?

Or does it have a pattern?

Also,

Take your time to notice the silence between the sounds.

Listening.

Next,

Bring your focus to your own body and breath.

Does it feel different to when we first started this meditation?

Taking a few deeper breaths in and then bringing this meditation to a close.

Inhaling,

Exhaling,

And one more.

Opening your eyes and bringing the meditation to a close.

Hope you enjoyed that short meditation with your dog or cat and a moment for yourself.