Study of the Effects of TTouch^® for Reduction of Stress
Bitsa Olympic Center, Moscow, Russia

In a TTEAM and TTouch^® 13 day training, 8 Veterinarians, along with riders and trainers participated in a study to measure levels of stress hormones and benefits of TTEAM for sport horses. Twenty horses were included in the study. All of them were worked daily in dressage or jumping training and all 20 had daily blood samples drawn to check the level of stress hormones. Ten horses were TTouched and TTEAMed daily by the course participants, and the other ten were not. The results showed significantly lower levels of stress hormones in the TTEAMed horses.

The following letter is a translation from the Director of the Moscow Soviet Professional Unions Horse-Sport Complex and head veterinarian, Dr. Nina Khanzhina, regarding the study. Conducted over a period of 14 days.

L. Tellington-Jones

Esalen Institute

Soviet-American Exchange

From March 28 to April 10, 1985, the veterinarians of the Moscow Horse Center at Bitsa and the sportsmen and trainers of various clubs and representative teams of the USSR, took a practical study course in the teaching of TTEAM method under the direction of L. Tellington-Jones and the method teachers of D. Thompson and L. Will.

At the same time, the Department of Standard Physiology of the K.I. Skryabin Moscow Veterinarian Academy conducted scientific research on the influence of these methods on the presence of stress hormones (adrenaline and nor-adrenaline). In the experimental group of horses, on which the TTEAM method was applied, an improvement was recorded in the stress hormones.

Furthermore, the horses improved in their outward appearance, and their ability to work increased. The veterinarians noticed that the horses became more calm in behavior, that their capability to give medical aid had increased, and that constraint in movement, caused by injuries, trauma, arthritis, etc. had disappeared. It is possible, in applying the TTEAM method, to eliminate unhealthy conditions in the muscular system and contracted tendons. It is also possible to teach the horse to break bad habits and to improve its capacity to work in sport activities. We express our gratitude to the Esalen Institute for the afforded opportunity to conduct practical courses in the TTEAM method. We hope that this collaboration will continue.

V. Akivis, Director KSK

N. Khanzhina, DVM

First Published in the 1985 TTEAM News International Pp. 14-15

The following is a translation of a 1985 letter from Dr. Nina Khanzhina, Head Veterinarian of the Bitsa Sports Complex:

Dear L. Tellington-Jones,

I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to work with you and to study the TTEAM method. Your method for me is absolutely new and very interesting. To apply the TTEAM method to work with horses opens a vast array of possibilities for veterinarians, sportsmen and trainers. After the horse is in a state of relaxation, it is very easy and simple for a veterinarian to apply medical aid. And this same method is healing for many conditions of horses: colic, myosis, etc.

The experimental group of horses, which we used to conduct the exercises according to your method, have had an improvement in general condition and in jumping technique, as well as a disappearance of constraint and unrhythmical movement. I would like to continue working with you and improve my knowledge, as well as to help horses and people find a common language.

N. Khanzhina, DVM
Head Veterinarian
Bitsa Sports Complex

Back Issue of TTEAM News International 1985 Pp. 14-15

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch^® Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, the brand name for all the facets of the TTouch^® organization is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

Tellington TTouch^® as a Complement in the Rehabilitation of Horses with EPM and Neurological Deficits

The manual has been given to several veterinarians for the use of their clients and has been found very effective. Additional study and documentation required.

A study of the rehabilitation of horses with neurological deficits, using TTEAM, started through the efforts of Dr. Mark Meddleton and his wife, Becky. Becky's horse, Jewel, was severely affected by Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) and Dr. Mark was trying all the forms of experimental medication. During the times that the medication seemed to be working, Becky decided to try TTEAM to rehabilitate Jewel. Becky applied her basic knowledge of TTEAM and was impressed by what she was observing with Jewel.

Becky and Mark came to a TTEAM workshop at Galisteo Creek Farms in April, 1999 to learn more and to talk with Linda to see if TTEAM would cooperate in a study of rehabilitating horses with EPM. Becky explained to the group that initially she had thought that only the ground exercises would help, but after talking with TTEAM Instructor Carol A. Lang, she tried the TTouch and realized it too was a key element.

To initiate the study, Linda and Carol met with Dr. Mark and Becky at a client's farm. A neurological exam was performed by Dr. Mark on three horses. TTEAM techniques were shown the horse's owner and Dr. Mark set up a basic schedule of rehabilitation with instructions the owner was to follow. In a few weeks, Carol met with Dr. Mark and Becky at this client's farm. Dr. Mark reexamined the horses and both he and the owner agreed that improvement had been made. Carol taught the owner more TTEAM techniques and Dr. Mark scheduled another evaluation of the horses.

In June of 1999, Dr. Mark, Becky and Carol worked with Jewel and Mark's horse, Dugan, who also had been diagnosed with EPM. Dr. Mark did a neurological exam of each horse. Then, as they did TTEAM and TTouch^® with both horses, Dr. Mark, Becky and Carol discussed which techniques were working, the timing of the sessions, the sequence of TTouch^® and the work in the TTEAM Confidence Course. They also made a first draft of a checklist for the owners to keep track of their horses rehabilitation program.

Carol accompanied Dr. Mark and Becky on visits to at least three clients who had horses with neurological difficulties. Each owner was shown TTEAM techniques and Becky recommended the rehabilitative process. Dr. Mark's scheduled follow-up neurological checks in order to track progress. Becky reported that the percentage of improvement of the trial horses was very high and that the owners were very satisfied with the results.

To continue the development of a protocol that Dr. Mark planned to present to the AVMA, Carol met with Dr. Mark and Becky and TTEAM Practitioner, Kirsten Henry several times over the next year. They filmed a video demonstrating how to do TTEAM techniques specifically for rehabilitation of horses with neurological deficits and developed a modified Confidence Course.

They did many trials with TTEAM techniques, in particular the use of wand and lead, the TTEAM body wrap and TTouches.

Carol prepared a booklet of TTEAM techniques to be distributed to participants of the study. Dr. Meddleton reviewed this booklet and made suggestions from his perspective as a veterinarian.

Hoping to receive a grant, Dr. Mark presented this protocol to a veterinary conference in the fall of 2000. The evaluation and advice offered about their study gave Dr. Mark and Becky new insights and direction. However, Dr. Mark's veterinarian practice was expanding so much that their time for continuing this study was curtailed.

In March, 2002 Dr. Mark reported to Carol that he could not proceed with the study of a protocol for EPM/neurologically impaired horses. He offered to share his and Becky's work with any veterinarian that Linda might find who would be interested in continuing.

We know that TTEAM has been very effective in helping horses rehabilitate from neurological deficits. We offer this booklet as a guide to TTEAM Practitioners and others who will use TTEAM and TTouch to facilitate their horses' rehabilitation.

Carol A, Lang, TTouch Instructor
Santa Fe, New Mexico

Purchase the Booklet in our Shop.

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch^® Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, the brand name for all the facets of the TTouch^® organization is Tellington TTouch®.

Therapy for Emotionally and Behaviorally Disabled Youth: MN LYNC (Minnesota Linking Youth, Nature and Critters) integrating TTEAM^® and TTouch^® for Youth At Risk

MN LYNC (Minnesota Linking Youth, Nature and Critters) is a therapeutic, non-profit organization that uses the restorative and healing power of animals to help troubled individuals. MN LYNC provides individual, group and family Animal-Assisted Therapy. We specialize in working with youth and adults who have emotional and behavioral difficulties as well as individuals with histories of trauma or who are facing overwhelming life challenges.

Staff members Molly DePrekeL, MA, LP, Clinical Director and Tanya Welsch, MSW, Program Director are participating in the certification program for TTouch^® Practitioners for companion animals and MN LYNC Executive Director, Maureen Fredrickson, MSW has been a TTouch^® Practitioner for several years. TTouch^® is incorporated into the work at MN LYNC. For more information, contact mnlinc.org.

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch^® Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, the brand name for all the facets of the TTouch^® organization is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

TTEAM News International May, 1985 Vol 5 No 2 Pp. 13-14

It's only been nine months since I conceived the idea of Animal Ambassadors International^® sitting in the restaurant of the Intourist Hotel in Moscow. The idea has been received with delight and wonder in Europe and North America. Delight that the importance of our animal friends be acknowledged in their role of bridging communication and under standing with the people of the Soviet Union, and wonder that this communication is even possible.

I had dinner with Alexander and Nana Zguridy in Moscow. We had met on the last trip and had exchanged Christmas cards and postcards. They are film producers of major motion pictures with animals and could be called the "Disneys of the Soviet Union." We watched the San Diego Zoo video of me working on Louis, the two month old orangutan, and they read the Animal Ambassador proposal in the February newsletter. We were all so excited about the catalytic affect of our meeting and our common vision of the importance of animals in our lives that we didn't want to part at midnight and could hardly sleep. The next day Alexander called me to say that we must meet again to discuss the idea further and so that I view one of his films. The next afternoon I saw the film at the Soviet Film Makers' Union. It was a lovely film based on a true story of a famous trotting horse. The horses spoke to each other when there were no humans around.

Alexander is 82 years old and highly respected. He and Nana work together on the films, both sharing equal title credits on film titles. They are a wonderful team. Alexander said that he would like to present the idea of Animal Ambassadors International® in a speech to UNICEF which he is delivering in July in Italy. They are both excited about making Animal Ambassadors International official in the Soviet Union and having the concept supported by some of their leading poets and others who realized the importance of animals in our lives as well as interested in the connections for peace.

So many other exciting things happened on my 18 days in Moscow, and my perceptions continue to change and expand. I worked two times at the old Moscow Circus with the veterinarian who participated in the TTEAM training each day. The two articles which Andre Orlov wrote about my work for Moscow newspapers, Izvestia and Moscow News, are posted on the bulletin board at the entrance to the National Horse Museum – a nice connection to my grandfather's horse work in Moscow from 1902-1905. I met with a film maker who has dedicated his life to recording the sacred ceremonies of the native peoples of the northern USSR and was fascinated by how some of the stories about their communication with animals corresponded with my "messages" which I receive from the various kingdoms.

It has only been one year this month since I had the vision of taking the TTEAM work to the Soviet Union to share. The bridging which has occurred has opened doors to many new perceptions on both ends of the bridge. I have now been officially invited by the director of the Bitsa Olympic Horse Union Complex to continue teaching TTEAM work in programs planned for the next year. It gives me an indescribable feeling of appreciation and joy to see the vision expand and unfold; and a great appreciation for all of the TTEAM members for support of the vision and for spreading the understanding between humans and our animal friends.

TTEAM work is now being used in 14 countries. Between the TTEAM work and Animal Ambassadors International, I feel that TTEAM members spreading the work are indeed taking the word to the four corners of the world. And I feel a great appreciation and feeling of Oneness with you all.

Linda

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, Linda decided to use a brand name for all the facets of the TTouch organization. Currently, that is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

Further Thoughts and Observations about the Opportunities that TTEAM Offers to School Children

TTEAM News International April, 1988 Vol 8 No 2 Pp. 1-6

When I began offering Animal Ambassadors International^® educational programs in the schools, I had no idea what to expect. I knew that TTEAM was great for animals. Robyn's files burst with case histories of horses and other animals from all over the world that have been helped through TTEAM & TTouch. I also knew that many of these case histories had been submitted by people who had relatively little experience with TTEAM before they were called upon to use their skills on behalf of some animal in trouble. But these people were mature adults; often they were professionals in some field involving animals. The subtleties of TTEAM would not escape them.

It was different with children. I was confident that hands-on experience with live animals would provide motivation and self-esteem, and I hoped it would be a bridge to right-brain learning. But I was totally unprepared for what was to happen.

"Andy would carry the cat around upside down by the tail. I didn't like it, but I didn't know what to do about it. Then this week I noticed a big change in his attitude. He's more considerate. I'm very pleased."

This comment from Andy's father at an elementary school "Parents Night," after I had been doing a TTEAM-Animal Ambassadors International® educational program that had already run four days of a week-long unit, was one of the first hints I had that TTEAM for children is a two-way street. The benefits flow both ways. The feeling for animals that can come with actually doing the TTouch on a live animal opens up doors for some children. They begin to think in a new way that is more responsive and more caring. Many children have this natural ability within themselves, and it is wonderful to see it awakened in a child.

The key is that it happens without fuss, without preaching. The child just has a new awareness, an added element that changes the way in which he perceives the world. In some children, that is going to make a difference, as it did for Andy.

The first educational programs that I was invited to do were with children in Special Educations. As I understand it, these are children who are considered educable, but they do not learn up to their potential. Emotional and/or physical problems may be holding them back. They may be hyperactive and disruptive. Some are gifted, artistic and imaginative, but unresponsive to the left-brain learning approach favored in most schools. Some Special Ed children score high in I.Q. tests and some don't; but they are all lumped together bottom percentile and an enormous amount of effort is expended in trying to solve their problems.

If I'd had a choice, I probably would have chosen to work with mainstream classrooms or children in the Gifted and Talented programs in preference to Special Ed. However, as it turned out, that probably would have been a mistake. Each child in Special Ed is there because he or she has some kind of a problem - a problem that is considered solvable or the child wouldn't be there. So, working with 40 kids, you are going to have at least 40 problems to deal with, each one different. What an incredible laboratory for TTEAM.

Following are some examples. They are not pretentious enough to be called "Case histories" because teachers do not readily disclose a child's background unless something happens, and then they tell you as little as possible, i.e.. "He's hyperactive. He probably didn't get his pill today." The names have been changed in these examples, and anything else that might identify a particular child, as in Andy's case above. But everything else is real.

I would like to begin with an experiment in poetry writing that we did in one class. This came the day after we did an Introduction to TTEAM (with stuffed toy animals) and an imaginative journey throughout animal habitats looking for a special animal that each child could choose to befriend and protect.

Animals are now used as part of the treatment protocol in a growing number of programs, according to Carolyn Reuben, health editor of the "L.A. Weekly." She cites animals as therapy for abused children, delinquents, women in prison and the elderly. For example, animals helped abused children to relax and talk about their fears.

The last thing we were thinking about in our poetry writing class was therapy. I had read a program Mann Lowenfels does to teach creativity to gifted children and thought it would adapt well to our animal program. Simplified from Lowenfels' program, its objective was to enhance creative writing skills by giving children a simple. formula to produce a poem.

We began this lesson by asking the children if any of them had tried the TTEAM circles they had learned yesterday on their pets at home. Most of them had, and a lively discussion ensued as the children reported different reactions of their pets to the circles. The teacher then used this springboard to introduce the concept of "Feelings". She wrote several different feelings on the chalkboard: happiness, sadness, etc. Then we thought of colors, places and actions that were happy, sad, etc. You put them all together with your chosen animal and you had a poem.

And what poems did we get -- from these children who don't usually give?

Afraid is
an orange cat
In a pumpkin patch
Alone.

This is from a child who was, right then, the subject of a bitter custody fight "with many tears." Within a couple days her mother, with whom the child wanted to be, would lose the battle.

Another child from a troubled home wrote:

Mad is
a brown gorilla
Who is furious
On a volcano top.

A third child who was feared in his neighborhood because he carried a tremendous chip on his shoulder. Yet this child comes from a wonderfully supportive family. He wrote:

Happiness is
A gray wolf
In a den
With her puppies.

I think it might have been an eye-opener to some of the teachers that this child could write such a "peaceful" poem. He was showing a new side of his character, but he as also telling that his home life is okay.

Obviously the kids were projecting their own feelings into the animals that they wrote about. It was a safe way to tell us something about themselves. That may be very important for this group.

I believe now that a TTEAM & TTouch lesson, followed by a lesson in creative writing, may help children express themselves. If something is bothering them. They may choose to express their loneliness or rage in a poem. Children who bristle at the idea of writing a poem are sometimes more willing to do so if the poem is on behalf of their chosen animal. Of course, they can also write stories for their animal, as they do after Alexandra Kurland's presentations. It is possible that the animals, imagery and art all tap the right-brain mode, making for a learning approach that can release stress as well as enhance creativity.

"Animals can be some of our best teachers," Alexandra Kurland tells her audience of school children. "Every time I do a live-animal program, I find a new reason to agree with the truth of this statement. The Tellington TTouch circles that the children do open the door."

For example, a horse must be a huge animal from the point of view of a child who may never have touched a horse before. My mare, Starlite, is actually on the small side, less than 15 hands. She is 26 years old, which means that she does not move around very much. She is very pretty, with dark glowing eyes set wide apart, and a white snip and star on her kindly face. Furthermore, she just loves having TTEAM done on her. At home she has been known to "wait in line" for her turn while I'm working on another horse.

When I take her to a school, I load a portable corral on one side of my stock trailer. Starlite goes into the other aide and Lad, a dog rides in the back of the pickup. The corral is to keep the children out rather than the horse in. Some children are fearless and eager to make contact with the horse. The corral helps teachers keep them in line by setting a boundary. It also frees Starlite's head while I am working.

The children enter the corral one at a time to work on the horse. I demonstrate a particular touch, such as Raccoon circles on the ears, first getting the horse to lower her head. Then a child is invited to come into the corral and do the same thing. Most of the children love it. Their eyes are shining and they try so hard to do the TTouch exactly right. I am usually at Starlite's neck, with my arm under her neck, and I can feel her response to the children's TTouch. It is fascinating, because she seems to feel some children's hands much more than others. She will lower her head into my arm in utmost bliss. None of the children has ever frightened her or made her unhappy. It is just that some seem to reach her more.

I think a horse is the most wonderful animal teacher. Maybe it's the size that commands respect. Perhaps it in because TTEAM was originally developed for horses. The good thing is that even if a child is a little bit afraid, using the TTEAM & TTouch the child has something definite to do rather than just pet the horse and thereby, a different type of learning situation is set up. Usually the fear soon vanishes and the child is elated, with a real sense of accomplishment. Starlite feels that she knows she has given the child that good feeling. Merely petting the horse would not get the same results.

Of course, I give the bolder children a little more challenging circles than I do the shy ones. And herein lies a tale.

Bobbie was good looking, disruptive and proud. He began my day making obscene circles on his stuffed toy animal; his next move was to beat on the kids next to him. He flatly refused to do anything I asked of him and spent his time trying to make the other kids laugh -- at my expense if he could. I felt that this was not hatred but a challenge. There is a difference. I learned that Bobbie was usually taught one-on-one (that is, by himself with no other children present) and that it was only on the occasion of my visit that it was thought he might join the others. I wanted to say, "thanks a lot."

Usually with a week-long program I try to bring the horse on the first or second day. But a snowstorm delayed the live animal presentation until Thursday. By Wednesday, Bobbie was intolerable. I went to bed that night having visions of him jumping on Starlite's back, hurtling the corral and riding off into the sunset.

Actually, the next day he was pretty good. He hung on the corral with the other kids (they were allowed to stand on the first rail), raising his hand and shouting "Me" whenever someone was chosen to enter the corral. I had not worked the inside of a horse's mouth in demonstrations before, partly because Starlite doesn't like it that much, but today I did. I played the piano on her tongue. I could bear the deafening silence behind me, no "Me! Me! Me!" for this one. I did hear Bobbie say, "I'm not gonna do that!" I drew the suspense out as long as I dared and then called, "Bobbie!"

To his credit, he walked into the corral without a word. I let him suffer a moment longer and then asked him if he would like to do "Tarantula Pulling A Plow" on Starlite's back. He never said a word, and I have never seen a more focused kid. And boy, did that tarantula pull that plow! Starlite's neck sank happily into the crook of my arm.

The next day the teacher's aide who had been working with Bobbie popped out of the room, eyes wide. "He sat still for an hour! He even did his work!

Of course this was just one day in the life of this child. And we don't know quite why he was affected in this way. For some thing permanent to happen, a much more imaginative, ongoing program would have to be tried. Actually, Marie Luise van der Sode has done a six-month residential program in Europe at a Youth Farm for troubled teenage girls. She reported that some of the girls who were unpopular on account of being aggressive became easier to get along with (and more popular) after learning TTEAM. The work with the animals had taught them an alternative way of being.

Very few children have been too frightened to touch the horse and the dog. Of more than 200 children, I think only four or perhaps five hung back. One boy, Cody (the only boy who showed apprehension), conquered his fear and did very nice circles on both Starlite and Lad.

At the end of the week, the children spoke of their chosen animals in front of their classmates and other classes, and were awarded with Animal Ambassador certificates. Cody decided he couldn't do this. Cody was part of a group of mixed Special Ed and Gifted-and-Talented. The purpose of putting these two groups together was to raise the prestige and self-esteem of the slower group, to make it easier for them to leave their classrooms each day for Special Ed. Another purpose was to teach the advanced kids to share and care.

Cody agreed to let one of the advanced children read his speech for him while he stood next to the other child, holding a picture of his animal. So the advanced child practiced two speeches. Just as everyone got up to leave the room, Cody said, "I think I can do my own."

The teacher asked, "What do the rest of you kids think? Do you think Cody can do it?"

One of the advanced children started a cheer, and every child in the room took it up: "Go, Cody, Go!

Cody did give his speech, and he didn't do it too badly. As we left the other classroom, I told him, "You were brave."

He grinned one of those tooth-gaped eight-year-old grins. "Yeah, but I liked it a whole lot better being brave with the horse."

These speeches that the kids gave when they received their AAI Certificates were an exciting part of the program. One parent made the trip down to the school twice for her son's five-minute program. It was great that she was a devoted mother to do that for her son, and it also gives an indication of how much this program meant to the children. Non-readers started asking for more animal books to read. One gifted boy elected to memorize his speech, when he could have read it. Then others wanted to memorize. Another child (in Special Ed) elected to redo her project the week after I left. So there were just lots of indications that we were motivating these children.

I've found that dogs have different reasons to teach than horses. For example, Lad, Starlite's ambassador, treats each child as an individual. He'll offer a paw to one, try to lick another's face (just one lick per child), touch another's hand with his nose (one touch). Eddie, a smart, aggressive boy, was determined to make Lad shake hands with him. Before I could stop him he reached out and pumped Lad's paw. Immediately the magic left. Lad didn't exactly turn into a pumpkin, but he lost confidence for a little bit. It was a wonderful opportunity to learn myself and to explain to the children that one big part of communicating with animals is to watch and listen for the signals they give you. Of course this can be a step toward learning how to communicate more sensitively with people.

Incidentally, when I began these programs, I felt that learning care and consideration for animals could be a step toward learning care and consideration for other people. A psychologist pointed out that such was not always the case. Some people who relate well to animals do not always relate well to human beings. The animal in this type of situation are a social crutch.

Frank was a child like that. He had a brilliant mind, four pets at home, and he knew more about some kinds of wild animals than I did. He did a super job with the horse. He was wonderful with Lad. But his teacher said that be was verbally abusive to other children, with sexual connotations.

We tried to provide Frank with an alternative way of being by encouraging him to share his tremendous fund of knowledge of animals in the classroom. Understandably, the other children weren't really crazy about Frank, but by the end of the week he was providing other children with information about the animals they had chosen, and starting some interesting discussions. So in this way the animals he loves could be a bridge rather than a crutch.

When you do TTEAM it is like dropping a pebble in a pond. There is a saying that the ripples will eventually be felt on the farthest star. Lad was a dog I borrowed from a mountain man who was not known for his kindness to dogs. Since I have been using Lad for TTEAM work this man's natural kindness has surfaced. He just had never seen dogs as feeling, hurting beings before. They were curs to be yelled at and cowed into submissive obedience. Now he talks to them.

TTEAM is fascinating because you don't know what the results will be or how far they will carry. Its therapeutic value would be somewhat different that the proven stress-reduction that comes from petting an animal. My personal feeling is that TTEAM provides an ideal whole-brain learning situation. You have much more active, focused communication than when patting an animal because you are asking a great deal more of the animal. The animal is more focused because it doesn't know exactly what will come next. Some horses in particular become quite fascinated. They are so involved and politely interested in what you are doing sometimes it is almost comical.

But while you and the animal are focused, you are also very much aware of your surroundings. You have to be aware when working with a horse. An element of personal safety in involved and a sense of where you are in space is a necessity. Thoughts and movements become more precise and clear with experience.

Experiments have suggested that babies learn beat when they are relaxed, happy and alert. I see no reason to believe that animals don't learn the same way, and human beings of whatever age. TTEAM helps to promote this state where learning can happen.

New Program

This spring I am offering a follow-up program directed toward the intentional aspect of Animal Ambassadors International®. This program takes 1-2 hours. Children are introduced to the culture of a foreign country. They write letters about themselves and their pets, or stories about a favorite any species, to be shared with children in the other country.

Regards, Ann Finley

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, Linda decided to use a brand name for all the facets of the TTouch organization. Currently, that is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

TTEAM News International October, 1989 Vol 9 No 3 Pp. 21-23

Bonnie Lieuwen of College Station, Texas attended a workshop with TTEAM Instructor, Copper Love who encouraged her to write about how she had been using TTEAM in her special education classroom.

FOCUS: As a special education teacher I am most concerned with my students increasing their focusing skills. As we all know, if a person can focus & concentrate their focusing skills then they can expand academically, emotionally, socially, and physically. Sort of like a snowball effect, expanding in their skills, independence, and self-esteem. In my thirteen years of experience, this was the first year that I taught at the elementary age level (ages six - ten). Due to the students' handicaps, young ages, and extreme amount of energy, focusing was not one of their strong qualities. I tried many different techniques to increase their focusing skills with very little growth for the effort that was expended. It was not until I began using some TTEAM techniques that I started to see notable growth.

Other areas that I saw results from using TTEAM with the students were: body-awareness/use/carriage, relaxation, and decrease in hyperactive behavior. Increase in socialization, increase in behavioral self-control, increased awareness of self, others, and the environment, increase of following directions skills, decrease in aggressive behaviors, increase of willingness and enjoyment of being touched and touching others, the skill of waiting, increased feelings of acceptance, increased feelings of bonding and trust between student and teacher, and more I'm sure.

In special education there are so many variables and different specialists that work with these children (speech, adaptive p.e., physical/occupational therapists, counselors) and everyone has good input into the growth of these children. It is always difficult to pinpoint the most effective techniques and many times it is a combinations of everyone's input. But I do know that when I began using TTEAM, I began seeing exciting changes and other people (plus parents) were reporting these changes too. I will not be working with these students next year so I will have no idea of the lasting effects in their growth. Please remember these are only my observations and feelings. It is my gut feeling that TTEAM had a crucial positive effect on these children.

In the following paragraphs I will briefly tell you about the TTEAM activities and adaptations I used and the five students that received the most TTEAM energy. The time span was about two months, but not on a daily basis. In fact I found myself becoming very frustrated that I did not have the time I wanted to spend doing TTEAM. I saw the benefits and ached with the thought "if I only had more time to spend individually with each student."

In a school setting I thought it might look odd to use my horse wand so I substituted the wand with a drum major's baton. I found it worked well because it has the two white rubber ends and I could remind the kids to look (focus) at the white tips (we called then marshmallows). There are many stick things that would work well (is conductor baton, a painted stick, etc.) I just happened to have the baton.

With the baton we did:

• open the gate
• walk, turns, backward walk, run
• wave to stop
• dagger; this was especially for "J" who I will tell you about later.

Obstacles: I used sticks that were about 6 ft. by 1 inch (they were light weight and easy to arrange).

• Labyrinth (varying the pattern)
• cavaletti (arranged at different heights/distances)
• star
• the "pick up sticks arrangement

Other obstacles:

• a tic-tac-toe design. I would use the baton to point to a square for the student to step into, this one worked very well for teaching them to focus on where the baton point, for increasing the awareness of space and feet placement, and for waiting in one place.
• Box Lids. (I'm sure you have seen when stores cut in half, all the way around, a case of canned soda and each box part is about 2 inches high, well that is what I used). I would arrange the boxes on the floor in varying patterns and again I used the wand to point to the box I wanted the student to step into.

The boxes and tic-tac-toe were terrific for a group because I could direct one student and while the one student learned to wait in one space I could direct another, and so on. This really helped my students that were very compulsive in their movements, They had to think in order to control their bodies. It was a great exercise!

Other things:
Labyrinth - when the students became skilled in these (in the beginning they would plow right through the sticks, absolutely no awareness of the sticks or that they were plowing through) I made the addition of two labyrinth patterns. We used chairs with wheels and without. It was really neat to see the students expand from plowing through, to thinking their own bodies through, to having enough control to push a chair through the pattern.

Flashlight - After they had learned to focus on the baton I would sometimes use a flashlight beam instead of a baton. I would turn down the lights and shine the flashlight to direct them in the obstacle patterns. This is interesting: I had used a flashlight all year hoping to increase their focusing skills, but it was not until they had learned to focus on the baton that they finally were able to truly focus on the flashlight beam.

I did not get a chance to use the following ideas but I thought they might be good.

• Rope: Take a long rope or several ropes to make varying obstacle designs.
• Tires: Substitute the large tires (used with the horses) with bicycle tires or tubes, hoola -hoops, or some other light weight circular shapes.
• Rag squares pattern.
• Pulling a wagon
• Varying the body movements through the labyrinth: while crawling, hopping and running.

And of course I used the wonderful "CIRCLES"!

Students: J., N. , K. , M. , C.

J. (10 yrs, he has a mental retardation handicap, very hyperactive) - when J. came to
my class in late October he walked with his shoulders hunched over, head down towards the ground, and his hands hold in a wrapped position on top of his head. His body language told that he was hiding within a shell. He did not talk, he only made a very occasional vocal sound (but he had Used words occasionally throughout his life). He was shy and withdrawn socially, would not focus on anything or anyone. He would not follow directions and when he was corrected on behavior he would fall to the floor with tantruming, crying and screaming. He frequently hit peers or tried to play too aggressively. He would often, just out of the blue, take off running away from staff. He was very hyperactive and easily over excitable.

I tried many techniques to improve his posture, nothing had much effect. In the month of February I tried doing circles on his shoulders, neck, and back. These areas were extremely tight, by my feel and by his own reaction. It was interesting that while doing the circles he would lower his arms but they would return minutes after I stopped doing the circles. Daily I did circles on his shoulders, back, and neck and daily the length increased that he would leave his arms down. At the end of March, after I had attended a TTEAM clinic, I began increasing circle time/ body areas and incorporating TTEAM activities. With the increase of TTEAM I began to do, J. really improved in all areas. His major growths were truly observable by the end of May. He walked upright, hands down with only an occasional verbal reminder, he learned to walk and stop which greatly helped staff because it decreased the number of times they would have to run after him. He made great leaps in his ability to focus and attend to tasks, and he began using words to state his needs i.e. water, bathroom, ball, play, others' names, bus, etc. Socially he became more aware of those around him and he was interacting non-aggressively. At lunch time all my students had a regular education student for a lunch buddy. Each of my students would sit with their lunch buddy at the lunch buddy's class table. Daily I watched J's interactions with the lunch class/ buddy become more calm and appropriate. He became more calm/relaxed and he definitely increased his ability to follow directions and to accept correction calmly. I feel sure the TTEAM obstacle activities had a great effect on his self-control, focusing, increased awareness of' his environment, and the decrease in his compulsiveness. J. loved the circles so much that he would take my hand and show me where he wanted circles, he also would try to do circles on others. It was a total joy to watch the growth he was making.

N. (6 yrs. mental handicap, slight degree of' cerebral palsy). M. had extreme baby behaviors: he refused to follow directions by excessive tantruming, hitting, spitting, crying, and throwing himself on the floor. He was extremely dependent on others to do things for him. Very low focusing abilities and very short attention span. When N. first came to my class in October I thought if this child learns to remain in his seat for five minutes it will be a miracle. Well N. passed that goal up by far. He made wonderful progress with a lot of physical guidance and verbal direction. He had already come a long way when I began doing TTEAM with him in the end of March. And once again I don't think it was coincidence that this student began to make progress more rapidly when I began the TTEAM. N. resisted the circles at first so I had to stick to the 'flick of the bear's paw" for the first week. After that he was very receptive to the circles and by the end of May he would ask for circles. I feel that N. made a lot of emotional progress in body awareness and use. It's as if he had discovered his body and its movements. N. also grew in independence and in following directions. I could see him improve and feel good about the TTEAM obstacles and learning these simple task directions seemed to carry over into following directions in other areas.

K. (7 years. Learning Handicap, hyperactive). K. was my speed student. He sped through everything just to get it done. His focusing ability was very poor. K. was in my room only in the morning so the only TTEAM I did with him was the Circles and the baton, open gate, walk, stop. I feel this greatly improved his ability to slow down and to focus. I would also let K. run in a circle around me plus focus on the baton and verbal directions. This seemed to be effective in releasing his excess energy, increasing his focusing, and increasing his following direction skills. K. seemed to react to the circles very emotionally. Some days he was very resistive to the touch. He was a child that did not feel comfortable with touch. Several times after I began circles on him he would have crying episodes (not within the circle session, but at later times). I took the circles very slowly with K. in case they were causing the crying. In time he became more receptive to the circles and the crying episodes ceased.

M. (10 yrs., Mental retardation handicap, very cerebral palsy, Used a walker to walk). M. came to my class the last month of school so he did not participate in a lot of' TTEAM. I observed some progress that I feel was a result of TTEAM. M. was not happy in our class when he first came. He had recently moved from another town where he was very happy in his class. I feel the circles helped him feel more trusting and bonded in our class at a more rapid speed than he would have without the circles.

C.* (9 yrs., regular education. student that was placed in my classroom due to severe emotional and aggressive outbursts within his regular classroom. C. is very intelligent, creative, and sensitive.) A teacher's aide worked with him in a partitioned off area of my classroom. I worked with him for 30 minutes a day. We worked on social/personal skills, breathing, guided imagery, and of course CIRCLES! C. loved the circles, especially on his face. He told me the circles made him feel relaxed and peaceful. We used the circles many times when he was feeling upset. Every time he would feel better and refrain from inappropriate or aggressive behavior.

I hope that I have at least been able to cover the highlights of what I feel TTEAM did for my students. I'm not sure who benefited the most from TTEAM - my students or me. I do know that now I have seen the benefits with my horses, with my students, with myself and I thank you for sharing TTEAM with the earth.

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, Linda decided to use a brand name for all the facets of the TTouch organization. Currently, that is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

In October, 2004 I joined Practitioner Jaynellen Kovacevich and her Oakland Zoo "Goat Rangers" for a presentation to the youth and their parents. Jaynellen's program won the Oakland Zoo "Volunteer of the Year" award for 2003.

Jaynellen arranged this presentation and potluck lunch with me as a reward for the Goat Rangers.

Their parents were invited to spend the day at the zoo with their rangers, the youngest volunteers at the zoo, to learn more about the program and the benefits of TTouch. This was also an opportunity for the parents to hear about the special contribution the Goat Rangers have made to the zoo and to show pride in them for their accomplishments.

It was especially wonderful to have this chance to honor the work of Jaynellen. She is both a Companion Animal and a TTEAM Practitioner in addition to being a special education teacher. Jaynellen has been teaching TTouch in her school classes for almost 20 years, since the beginning of the Animal Ambassador program.

I talked about the history of Animal Ambassadors International^® and how I was inspired with the idea of Animal Ambassadors International from my work in Russia with children and animals beginning in 1985. That was the year that I organized a telephone exchange between a school in Moscow and a school in Utah. In both schools the kids could hear each other (through the interpreters) over loudspeakers that could be heard ri all the classrooms. How rewarding it is to see this concept of animals being our ambassadors for promoting understanding between people and animals these 19 years later.

I presented the Goat Rangers with Animal Ambassador certificates that state, "I hereby vow to use my hands, my heart and my voice to speak for and protect all . . . . . (This space is then filled in with the name of the animal or animals the recipient chose. Many of the youth wrote in "all animals.”)

After lunch we spent an hour with the goats and sheep in the petting zoo, where the rangers introduced me to their favorites, including Pygmy goats, an Alpine, a Nubian, a La Mancha goat and a flock of Barbados sheep. It was exciting and impressive to watch the Goat Rangers as they TTouched several of the senior goats who are being treated by the zoo veterinary staff and zookeepers for arthritis. Educational staff members and keepers have noted that the Goat Ranger program and TTouch have been beneficial to these older goats as well as the other goats and sheep.

Jaynellen has been teaching this class twice a month for almost four years at the Oakland Zoo and has shared the benefits of TTouch with many educational staff members, zookeepers and docents. When she began the program, many of the sheep and goats shied away from being touched. They were used to the public feeding them, but often they were approached by young children pulling on their horns, face or legs. In return, the goats often tried to escape by butting the children. Sometimes parents pushed or hit the goats and sheep to keep them away when they were aggressive about getting food. Not exactly ideal for a petting zoo.

Jaynellen taught her Rangers how to teach visiting children to quietly and respectfully groom the goats and sheep with a soft brush and to do some TTouches on them. Every two weeks for the past four years the Goat Rangers have been handling the goats and sheep in this way.

I just could not get over how gentle and relaxed the animals are. Normally one has to be careful around goats with horns because they can make abrupt moves with their heads and hurt you unintentionally. These goats are so quiet and careful with their heads and will lie still for ages to be groomed gently and TTouched. This gives visiting children and their parents a new way to be around animals with gentleness and respect.

Jaynellen and Avril Keimey, one of the first Goat Rangers, commented that the behavior of the goats and sheep changed dramatically with the use of TTouch and brushing. Avril had this to say about the program: "I used to go to the Zoo when I was younger, and I was one of those kids who was afraid to go into the petting zoo because there were goats jumping on people. About four years ago, I became a Goat Ranger, and started doing TTouch on the goats and sheep, and showing little kids how to pet them nicely. In the time I've been a Goat Ranger, I have seen a huge improvement in the animals' behavior. They approach people instead of running away. I now see very few kids who are afraid to go up to the goats."

Later in the day, Roland and I were shown video footage of the Goat Rangers teaching visiting kids of all ages, including parents, how to gently brush and TTouch the goats and sheep. It is fascinating and inspiring to watch kids enter the area with rambunctious behavior, and within five minutes be relating quietly to the animals. It's totally intriguing to listen to these young Goat Rangers demonstrate and explain exactly how to gently brush the goats. On the video you see goats lying perfectly still, often with eyes half closed, or sometimes lying flat on their sides, enjoying every minute of the interaction. These Rangers are awesome Animal Ambassadors and articulate, patient teachers.

Gail Ellis, School Programs Manager, The Oakland Zoo, said: "There has been an obvious and dramatic change in the behavior and temperament of both the animals and the youth involved. It has been amazing to see."

The "Goat Rangers" are volunteer kids between the ages of 12 to 17. The youth have to commit to six months of volunteer work to be accepted in the program and Jaynellen puts them through a rigorous interviewing process before they are accepted.

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, Linda decided to use a brand name for all the facets of the TTouch organization. Currently, that is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

TTEAM News International December, 1987 Vol 7 No 5 P. 6.

The following article appeared in Bear Tracks - The Journal of the Good Bears of the World. The article is charmingly written and presents a side of Animal Ambassadors International^® which recognized animals as our friends and teachers. However the reporter failed to state why the children brought their stuffed animals to class to learn the TTouch on them. Including stuffed animals as a part of teaching the TTouch in the schools recognizes the importance of stuffed-animal-friends for children who don't have animals at home. Just because stuffed animals don't need to be fed doesn't mean they don't have individual personalities.

The idea of having a stuffed animal to demonstrate the TTouch came to me several years ago in Los Angeles when I was asked, at a social gathering, how the TTouch worked. There was no cat or dog in residence, but a lovely soft stuffed polar bear was lying on the couch. I demonstrated a few minutes of circles on him and someone said delightedly, and maybe kiddingly, "look his eyes are softening." Since that day we have had many stuffed animal volunteers. How many of you have teddies and other stuffed animals in your house?

ANIMAL AMBASSADORS
by John Watson

In our last edition, Teddies to the Rescue by Alexandra Kurland was reviewed in the "Bears and Books" section. While it's a charming and beautiful book in and of itself, there is much more than meets the eye here! Author Alexandra Kurland has been using this book, along with her real life teddy Kenyon Bear, in a wonderful program that encourages understanding between people and animals around the world, the Animal Ambassadors International® Program.

Teddies to the Rescue tells the story of Kenyon Bear and his bear friends who live at the Shuttle Hill Herb Shop, (Alexandra notes that the bears and the herb shop are indeed, quite real.) The book, beautifully illustrated by Mark Kenyon, finds the teddies rescuing a fellow bear from a home where he is unloved. During the rescue mission real animals assist the bears in their efforts and friendships are formed.

We all know the importance of animals in our lives. Many of us find friends and teachers in our pets. From our childhood pets, we learn love, loyalty and responsibility. The Animal Ambassadors International Program is an international cultural exchange organization whose primary goal is to celebrate the importance of animals in our lives while encouraging intercultural understanding.

Here's how it works: school children bring their own stuffed toys to meet Kenyon Bear when he and Alexandra Kurland visit classrooms. Alexandra uses the book and the bears to guide the children through the story telling process. Kenyon takes the children to many lands where different animals are met through the children's own imaginations. The children ask each animal if they have any stories, words or songs for them. By the end of the session each child has his/her own special animal friend.

"I end by telling them that their animals would always be with them to tell them stories," says Alexandra. "All they had to do was listen." She adds that there is something the children can then do for their animal friends. "Many of the animals who come to us need our protection. They're having a tough time surviving, and one way we can help them is by learning more about them." She then asks each child to read a book about the animal who came to them.

Kenyon Bear acts as a story collector for the Animal Ambassadors International Program. There are story collectors in other parts of the world. The all collect animal stories. So, Alexandra asks the children to send in the stories that their animal friends have shared with them to Kenyon at the herb shop. Kenyon then sends each child an Animal Ambassadors International® Certificate.

The stories are then sent on to Animal Ambassadors International® headquarters in San Francisco where they are compiled into newsletter form and sent to children participating in similar programs as far away as Australia and the Soviet Union! Stories from the children overseas are sent back to San Francisco to be shared with the American students. Thus, not only are stories and information exchanged, but an international goodwill link is made between children of many countries.

Alexandra adds that the program is not limited to school groups. "Anyone who loves animals can join in the sharing," she says. In fact, wouldn't our own Good Bear Dens be just the perfect type of folks to join in? "Bear Dens could spend a wonderful evening telling animal stories which could then be compiled and sent on the Animal Ambassadors International®," says Alexandra. We couldn't agree more, Alexandra and we'd love to hear from any of our dens or bears-at-large who decide to participate. We would love to have our Good Bear Dens associated with such a worthwhile project.

Reprinted with permission.

 

TTEAM News International August, 1988 Vol 8 No 3 Pp. 1-2

An Animal Ambassador^® connection made the front page news in Meridian, Idaho. In the last newsletter I reported that I had sent 30 letters from the school children to whom Ann Finley had taught an Animal Ambassador week-long program. The letters went to Moscow with Nancy Grahame, Assistant Director of the Institute for Soviet/American Relations, to be given to three different groups with whom I have worked in Moscow.

The problem was, however, that no answers to the letters could be sent back to the US before the end of the school year the last week of May. The Idaho children were excited about a connection with the Russians but many of them thought it improbable that they would hear anything back. Whoever would think it possible to have a Russian connection with a small town in Idaho? Ann felt it was important that we got some acknowledgment for the kids before they finished the school year. She was attending the advanced training program in Oregon with us and there were only four days left before the kids finished school for the summer.

I put on my thinking cap and called Andre Orlov in Moscow. Andre is the Russian free-lance journalist who has spent many hours showing me around Moscow and has assisted me so many times by translating for my TTEAM clinics that he often receives calls for help with horse problems when I'm not there although he has no other connection with horses. He is responsible for introducing me to the Club Healthy Family back in 1985 and interpreted for me the first time I conducted an Animal Ambassador program in Gorky Park. Andre also created the TTEAM logo - the flying horse with a hand for a wing.

Well, I called Andre and asked him if he could meet with the Club Healthy Family, or one of his other school clubs, in time to give them the letters from the Idaho school children and have them draft a telex to the American kids assuring them that their letters and drawings had been received and that replies would be waiting for them in September when they returned to school.

Andre said he would go one better. That he would meet with a group of children - tell them about the Animal Ambassador program and give them the letters and then telephone the Idaho class the day before school ended. We only had to set up an agreed upon time for them to receive his phone call. Ann called the Idaho school and we agreed upon 10:30 A.M., which was 8:30 P.M. in Moscow. The Idaho teachers were warned that it could take some time to get through by telephone, particularly since it was the week before the Soviet/American summit meeting with Reagan and Gorbechav in Moscow.

Ann and I were waiting on pins and needles on Thursday morning. Sure enough the call came through, and everyone in the whole school heard a 30 minute conversation with a Russian talking to several of the teachers and kids. The local phone company had wired all the classrooms so the kids could hear the conversation over loudspeakers. The local TV station televised the kids waiting excitedly for 45 minutes since the phone lines between the US and the USSR were so blocked with summit business.

The call was a great success and was reported on the front page of the local paper next to the summit news. It was great for me too, because when Ann started teaching the program in Idaho she felt great about the results of teaching the kids the TTEAM work but couldn't see how the Soviet/American exchange could ever work. It was too much of a dream. I had no idea when this phase would materialize but I just kept trusting that when the time was right it would. The following is a letter which Nancy Grahame brought back with her and translated for us.

To Adam Nimmo 1327 W. Carlton Meridian, Id. 83642

My dear friend Adam,

My came is Anya. I live in Moscow. I was very happy when I received your letter. I don't know English yet, so my papa translated your letter for me. I am very interested to find out about your life. I think that it will be interesting for you to learn about me. I am eight years old. I study in school. I finished second grade and can now read and write, and I am going into the third grade. What grade are you in? Like you, I also love animals very much. We don't have any pets at home yet, but mama and papa promised to buy me a kitten or a puppy. But I would also like to have a parrot. I love to draw, and in the fall will start attending art school. We are part of the "Healthy Family" club. In the winter we swim in an ice hole in the river, but in the summer just in the river. We go to the public steam baths and to the swimming pool.

Write me about yourself. I'll be waiting for your letter.

All the best! Anya

This letter is for me another step in the realization of the Animal Ambassador vision to connect children, and adults, from various countries for a better understanding between us, with the animals as a focal point.

I've had many school teachers, and TTEAM people, wanting to know bow they can teach the Animal Ambassador program in their schools. We're working on a brochure and I intend to eventually make a video. Patience, patience! The Animal Ambassador vision has been unfolding for years and has had its own rhythm since I got the first piece of the puzzle in 1969. It's fascinating to see how the parts manifest.

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, Linda decided to use a brand name for all the facets of the TTouch organization. Currently, that is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

TTEAM News International December, 1986 Vol 6 No 5 Pp. 3-5

One of the highlights of my October trip to Moscow was awarding the first Animal Ambassadors certificates. In Moscow a translation to Russian had been prepared so I took 100 blank certificates to have them printed in Russian, but the Club Healthy Family thought it would be nicer to receive them in English. Many of the same children who participated in the very first meeting for Animal Ambassadors International® attended the gathering. I had thought I would give certificates to all the children who had chosen their animals to protect, but the club adults felt they should have to earn them and are making a proposal for me to consider on my next trip.

We did agree, however, that two of the children there had earned them and the first certificate was given to the 10 year old boy who had chosen a type of tiny snail to protect. His sister received the second certificate, and interestingly enough had chosen horses as her animal.

I was so pleased to show the certificates to our American Ambassadors in Moscow, Arthur and Donne Hartman, who have followed the unfolding of the concept since the beginning. Ambassador Hartman was very pleased with the name Animal Ambassadors. He chose the fox as his animal (one of my totems, as those of you who have seen my fox ring know) and Donna Hartman chose the bear.

At the meeting I had with the Club Healthy Family one of the adults, who is a teacher, asked some important philosophical questions about animals. "What should a child do if they find a stray or injured animal on the street?" I was reluctant to give an answer without more thought so I answered that it was a question which needed consideration. On Friday afternoon I taped an answer to be translated for their club.

I find it always best for me to answer from a personal base of experience instead of from the theoretical. I often see stray animals on the streets and have no opportunity to take them with me. To turn away and ignore them would be a way of protecting my feelings of helplessness or sorrow, but I do not think that is a good idea. That kind of reaction tends to harden our hearts. I like to take some minutes of my time and sit and visit with them. It may mean momentary pain, but then that is a part of the path to appreciation of joy.

I have been greatly influenced by the philosophy of The Little Prince who advises that it is much better to have a friend and leave him than to never have experienced that connection. Khahil Gibran's chapter on Sorrow and Joy has influenced the past 25 years of my Life. As I remember it, "The self-same well from which your sorrow flows, will also flow your joy." When I read these words during a very challenging time in my life I was exhilarated. "Come on tears," thought I. "The more sorrow I experience, the deeper this well will some day be filled with joy."

I have not been disappointed. Realizing that an experience that may hold sadness can also nurture appreciation of Joy is a gift worth receiving.

The image of a small dog on a cold night in Tblisi, Georgia in the southern part of the USSR, often finds its way into my mind. I saw her huddled up on a piece of newspaper late one night as I was returning by foot to my hotel. I squatted an the deserted, windy street and visited for a long while, gently working on her ears, talking to her and doing the TTouch over her whole body to strengthen our connection and companionship. I wrestled with the possibility of taking her with me somehow, considered the difficulties of getting her veterinary papers through friends in Moscow and realized it was impossible for me to keep her since I am on the road constantly. I mentally flipped through the names of friends who might be willing to adopt a Russian animal ambassador.

The difficulties finally became too obvious and I resigned myself to simply enjoying our camaraderie. I think of her frequently and send her my love through thought-form. I can be as strong a connection as a physical touch, with practice.

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, Linda decided to use a brand name for all the facets of the TTouch organization. Currently, that is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

In July, 1984 Linda Tellington-Jones was inspired to visit the Soviet Union to see if she could make connections directly with Soviet citizens by sharing the Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method. When doors began opening through the horse and zoo connections, Linda realized the unique value of the animals as connectors. The Animal Ambassadors International^® project was conceived as a result of this bridging.

In the TTEAM^® Newsletter she suggested to TTEAM club members who were interested in world peace that they write letters. These would be taken to horse people in Moscow. The letters should include a photo of a favorite "animal ambassador." In North America and Europe the idea was greeted with enthusiasm and, wonder of wonders, it was actually possible to make contact with Soviet citizens and that the connections came because of the animal kingdom.

In subsequent trips to Moscow the contacts expanded and strengthened. Linda demonstrated the work to several hundred riders at the Hippodrome in December of 1984. She also taught eight Soviet veterinarians became members of the TTEAM club and use TTEAM & TTouch^® in their practices. In April, 1985 two American TTEAM teachers accompanied her to Moscow and assisted teaching veterinarians and the Soviet Olympic jumping TTEAM. Linda was invited by the director of the Moscow Bitsa Olympic Sports Complex to teach courses in July and December of 1985, and April of 1986.

Not only horses have been successful as animal ambassadors. In Moscow's Gorky Park on Sunday April 14, 150 children and adults joined Animal Ambassadors International® after Linda spoke of her work with zoo animals and cats and dogs. Freelance journalist Andre Orlov had organized the meeting in March when he spoke to the Gorky Park Family Club about the animal ambassadors concept. He related the American Indian custom of choosing an animal totem as a personal protector, and suggested that humans now needed to protect the animals. Humans then become ambassadors for the animal kingdom.

Part of Linda's presentation was a "dolphin breathing" session. With eyes closed, each person listened to Linda and envisioned which animal would be theirs to protect. The group then shared their experiences. One six-year old asked if Linda thought a snail was important enough and if so, how could he do the TTouch^® on it. Linda answered: "Small beings are as important as the large ones. You can TTouch^® these snails with your mind." Through this mutual sharing Animal Ambassadors International® took on new form, as these 150 people of all ages joined the hundreds in other parts of the world who share this growing concept.

In April, Alexander and Nana Zguridy, the "Disneys among film producers of the Soviet Union," became inspired by the Animal Ambassador concept and proposed that it be officially recognized in the USSR. Alexander planned to present the idea in his UNICEF speech in Italy in July of 1985.

The TTEAM work has been internationally recognized for many years. LTJ has a TTEAM center in Canada and in Europe. There have been several television documentaries of the work. The TTEAM newsletter is printed in three languages and is mailed to 12 countries.

Linda's vision of the work with animals has inspired TTEAM Practitioners who are also school teacher to adapt the Animal Ambassador for school children. The Animal Ambassador concept has a very solid start.

The next step of LTJ's vision was to teach the TTouch for humans in the USSR. She did the TTouch with various humans in Moscow, both in the diplomatic corps and private Soviet citizens with untreatable illnesses. Her intention was to make the work available as a means for self-help, and possibly as a part of massage training.

Linda considers the bridging work with the Soviet Union to be a most important achievement. Being a "citizen and animal ambassador" and bringing new connections between peoples is a contribution to planetary peace. Recognizing the role and importance of the animal kingdom is also essential to our survival on the planet.

This is a telescopic view of the vision for TTEAM and Animal Ambassadors International^®. There are ongoing projects which have been evolving over the past years and now are in a stage of blossoming. This work brings people together with a new way of understanding and relating to the animal kingdom.

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, Linda decided to use a brand name for all the facets of our organization. Currently, that is Tellington TTouch^® Training.

I've just been through a remarkable experience. It actually began last fall, when I did a pilot program introducing Animal Ambassadors International^® and TTEAM to elementary school children in my home state of Idaho. The TTEAM portion of the program was exciting and well received. We could see a wonderful thing happening: children becoming more responsive, more caring. We did not so much teach the children as awaken something they already had within themselves, something that can be very beautiful in a child. I say "we" because it was the animals who were the teachers. The TTouch was the connection that made it possible, but I was as surprised as anyone at some of the "lessons" the animals taught us.

We also demonstrated how an Animal Ambassadors International unit can be used to teach natural history and science. Each child chose an animal to befriend, protect, and learn more about. Many of the children also wrote a poem on behalf of their animal.

The content was rich, the program was successful and yet something was missing: the cross-cultural element Animal Ambassadors International began as an international celebration of the importance or animals in our lives. Linda Tellington-Jones invited American children to send pictures of their pet to her to take to Russia. Many children responded. The pictures were displayed in Gorky Park and the Russians were deeply touched by this expression of friendship.

I tried to introduce an international awareness into my school program, but it just didn't have the energy of the other elements of the program. In trying to analyze it and discover what was blocking the flow I realized pretty quickly that it was myself. I could not project interest in what I knew so little about. I could not make it real for them.

Fortunately a chance came to remedy the situation a little bit. On January 5, Linda organized an Animal Ambassador day for 15 Russian children who made a whirlwind tour of the US with Youth Ambassadors. Out of this experience grew the past two days and some exciting suggestions from teachers that I can hardly wait to pass on. But first let me describe what we did and what happened.

Most of the children had had at least a brief introduction to TTEAM last fall. A few had earned Animal Ambassadors International certificates. So it was a heartwarming reception I got from these children when I returned. The age range was 7 through 13, with most being 8 or 9. They were quite a bit younger than the Youth Ambassadors. But I was to find out they still responded to the Youth Ambassadors as one child to another.

I began by telling them about the Russian Youth Ambassadors in San Francisco. I told them everyday things, for example some of the comments the Russians had made about our food in the Youth Ambassador newspaper, "The Bridge." We looked at a globe to see what an immense country Russia is, and I talked about how the Soviet Union is actually many countries in one. We traced on the globe to find a Russian city exactly opposite us, only to find a city with a name we couldn't pronounce. After a few minutes' discussion I put on a record of Russian music -- explaining"balalaika" as best I could -- and then I taught the kids the dance the Russians had done the night of the concert at the Dakin home in San Francisco.

Fun? The teachers couldn't stand it. Soon teachers and aides -- everybody -- was whirling around. Nobody wanted to stop. The kids could do the difficult steps so easily it was amazing. We all had a grand time. This happened in class after class. In one class it was super because after we stopped the dancing one child said, "I wish we could write to some Russians." What a lead-in. We left the Russian musician and they wrote their letters.

The next day was thrilling because the kids had been doing some thinking on their own. They wanted to know about the Russian alphabet, why we spell their country U.S.S.R. and they write it C.C.C.P. One boy wanted to write his letter not about animals at all but about stopping nuclear warfare. I told him to give it a try if he wished, but he decided on his own that maybe his first letter should be about animals because he really had a super animal story to tell. Last fall he had adopted wolves as his totem animal and this winter he had had a chance to help a wolf. He would save nuclear disarmament for another letter.

It's important to remember that some of these letters are from kids who have never written a letter before. Many of these kids are what they used to call "under-achievers." They don't try. Well, today they tried. They tried so hard. I think they did a beautiful job. I hope it comes across how genuine and honest these letters are. The kids were not being creative, they were just being. They put their hearts into these letters and they did it in their own way, trying to be neat and readable, trying to spell the words correctly to make it easier for the Russian child who would read it. I'm not sure the Russians will understand what kind of dog a "cocker spaniel" is, but otherwise...

I wish I could put into words how important I feel this program is. These kids are not the privileged, some come to school in rags. They may never have another chance to make this connection. Yet in 10 years most of them will be voters. Will they still care about wolves and nuclear disarmament, and will they still be capable of signing "Your best friend" in a letter to an unknown Russian?

NOTE: TTEAM is an acronym of "Tellington TTouch Equine Awareness Method." Since this article was written, Linda decided to use a brand name for all the facets of the TTouch organization. Currently, that is Tellington TTouch^® Training.