Why Continued Behavior Reinforcement
By Audio Recording Is So Important
Following below is a thank you message Carole
received recently. It illustrates how important recording your therapy
session can be, especially when dealing with rescued and feral cats. Carole
doesn't require recording, but this message explains its long term usefulness
in difficult cases.
Until several years ago, Carole recorded the
therapy session on a cassette tape and left the recording with the client.
Unfortunately, cassette player/recorders have practically disappeared from
most homes. They have been replaced by a variety of more complex audio and
video recording systems and media.
Being a "techno-serf" at heart, and unable to
deal with the assortment of technical equipment and media, Carole now
recommends that clients record the session according to their personal
system preferences.
~ The Webmaster
Subject: Overdue Thank You
Username: Helen Pantuso
Date: 14 Apr 2006
Time: 12:19:44
Comments:
Back in the late '80's I lived on the upper East
Side, and had a problem with my shelter rescue cat, Cassilda. She was
urinating everywhere BUT the litter box, and had started to defecate on the
bed. I had plastic covering most of the floor, and the bed, just to keep the
apartment tolerable! I was desperate, and after the vet confirmed there was
nothing physically wrong with Silly, I found you in the phone book (thanks
to your column in Cat Fancy). You can to do a house call.
I have to admit, I thought you were a bit nuts,
and was incredibly skeptical that the tape we made of our session would have
ANY effect. But like I said, I was desperate and willing to try anything.
I started to play her tape for her every day, and
after a few days noticed that she had begun listening intently, and would
relax & often lay down near the stereo. So I got a 120 minute tape and
duplicated the entire tape on both sides, and got a small tape player that
had the auto-reverse feature (so it would play both sides without me having
to be there to turn the tape over).
Within a month she had totally stopped all
elimination problems, and I was able to get rid of all the plastic. I would
continue to play her tape if I was going to be out late, or away for a few
days. When I moved to another apartment a few blocks away I played the tape
for her constantly, to help her settle in. She never had a single "accident"
at the new place.
Then a couple of years after that I got married
and moved into a big house in the suburbs. Again, we played that tape for
her constantly, and my husband would play it for her if I had to be away
from home on business. She settled into the house with no problems.
At the age of 15 1/2 her kidney problems got
worse, and I had to give her subcutaneous fluids every other day. I'd play
the tape while I was doing it, to help keep her calm. After a year she
needed the fluids daily, and while she really did NOT like the process, I
believe her tape kept her from getting too stressed out. That made it
possible to give her the fluids that literally kept her alive.
At 17 she had a stroke and went blind, and her
kidneys started shutting down. The vet told us that it was time to let her
go - she'd lived for 9 years with kidney problems, far beyond what he
expected. That was 1999, and I still grieve for her.
Since then I've adopted 3 other shelter kitties,
1 of whom died of lung cancer. I haven't had any behavioral problems with
any of them. But I kept Silly's tape, partially as a reminder that there are
forces I may not understand, but that I cannot doubt. I firmly believe that
your intervention contributed enormously to a happy, secure 8 years for my
baby!!!
I've actually told people about you, including a
writer for Slate magazine on line who had a problem kitty. I just discovered
your website thanks to the article in the on line version of today's NY
Daily News (I live in AZ now), so I wanted to write you and give you a
waaaay overdue thanks!
Back to Consults
Back to
Testimonials
|
