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Music to Soothe the Savage Beast
by Susan Raimond
Published in The Harp Therapy Journal Vol. 2, No.4, p.1, 4-5 (Winter 1997-1998)
More than two years have passed since the conception of Pet Pause. What began as a constructive search for a way to use my harp music resulted in a full-blown adventure.
I had searched and prayed for specific answers to the questions of how, when and where to use my harp music. Three albums were already completed, but after initial purchases by family and friends, marketing
was an uphill battle.
In the wee hours of one January morning, I was given the answer. Abruptly awakened, I saw in front of me the name of a business, its logo and purpose - music to soothe the savage beast. By 6 a.m.,
I was beginning to test this theory. Using my solo album, Wait for the Sunset, I developed a tape, Pet Pause, to demonstrate that harp music could calm pets.
The first stop was Wash-N-Wagon - a mobile groomer with three vans and a daily average of 24 animal contacts. During each contact, for three weeks (figuring that would be an adequate test module), I played
the tape. The results? The animals were easier to handle, and the groomers said they were more relaxed. That was an encouraging beginning.
The second stop along the road of research was Parkway Pet Center, in the local mall. The owner, Susan Pilner, gave me permission to ply my harp and document the results. I played on two separate weekends,
witnessing the same reaction each time - the animals would settle down and go to sleep. I decided to call the media to see if there was interest in filming the animals' reaction. There was interest, so a time and date were set to film the Pet Pause response.
On the day of filming, I arrived an hour early to set up, tune my harp and calm my frayed nerves. The film crew also arrived early. The station sent Larry Himmel (well-known to local television audiences for his "wise guy," caustic attitude) to do the interview. He came early with a purpose different than mine - to frenzy the animals.
The scene was confusing and noisy. Dogs barked, cats meowed, bunnies thumped, birds screeched and rodents ran in their cages - it was a zoo of activity. In the midst of this melee, Larry said, "Okay, do your thing." So I did.
I began playing the harp and, as always, within a few minutes the noise level lowered a bit. A short time later, without exception, all the animals were asleep. Dogs, cats, and rabbits all snuggled down for a nap, while the birds went to roost, and the fish rested at the bottom of their tanks. Even the store personnel were subdued, and it was all on tape. Larry was amazed. In fact, it made such a big impression that he not only aired the segment for television, but he also continued to talk about it on his radio show for weeks.
Pet Pause has had a great response from veterinary clinics and animal hospitals. I placed my tapes at three facilities: the Pine Valley Veterinary Clinic, Rancho San Diego Animal Hospital and the Kensington Animal Hospital. All three were willing to play the harp tape, but skeptical that the music would work.
The results? Dr. Brar of the Pine Valley Veterinary Clinic, who used the tapes for post operative recovery, found the animals would sleep as long as the tapes played. Overall recovery time, he noted, was shorter with use of the tapes. The other two clinics played the tapes in their lobby are while pets and their owners were waiting. Both acknowledged a calmer environment. The pets and owners were visibly less stressed, and the animals were easier to handle in the examination rooms.
Southern California Dog Magazine agreed to try Pet Pause before featuring it in the magazine as a "just released" product. The publisher, Susan Scalau, and the editor, Vicky Samson, both used the tape.
Vicky played a tape after experiencing a very stressful day, both professionally and personally. She told me she was at "her wits end" when she put the tap on. Sitting down with her dog, she noticed, after a few minutes, that her breathing slowed, she felt relaxed, and the dog had gone to sleep.
As a note of interest, Vicky has since used the tape as a study aid with college classes and finds her recall of subject matter is more accurate when she plays the tape while studying. Similarly, Susan found that the use of the tape diffused stressful and anxious feelings that often overwhelm her as a publisher of a magazine.
Is there more? Yes.
Sherry McLain put a Pet Pause tape on for her overly active kitten. Within minutes the kitten was asleep, cuddled up against the tape player.
In two instances, there were startling visitors from nature. I was playing my harp in a nearby park when a wild parrot flew in and landed on the knee of a listener. It remained perched there until I finished
playing, some ten minutes later. Another time a deer appeared at the bedroom window, peering in while I played. After I finished, the deer walked away.
I have heard from many folks that they play the harp at night to fall asleep or to help their children get to sleep. Some say they can't play the tape while driving because they become too sleepy. My favorite report is from a former student who says she can't play the tape while driving on the freeway because she repeatedly finds herself driving at 30 m.p.h.
The harp has been used as an instrument of healing for thousands of years, but for me, the adventure of Pet Pause has just begun. Is it fact or fiction? Holistic or hype? Miracle or myth? You decide.
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SUSAN RAIMOND
Author, Lecturer, and Harpist
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