Jackson Galaxy's Spirit Essences.... opinions and experiences?

mrskm

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Hi Everyone,

I'd like to hear about people's experiences with Jackson Galaxy's Spirit Essences. My cat was already declawed when I adopted him. His previous owners who surrendered him to the shelter had it done (I know this is a "hot topic," but I'm not looking to discuss declawing here. For those who are looking for more information on declawing, The Paw Project is an excellent resource. The documentary is on Netflix [or at least it was at one point, I haven't checked recently]. Jackson Galaxy also has a pretty good video discussing this on his YouTube channel).

I'm trying everything I can to help him be as comfortable as possible (ex: joint supplements, some heated beds, steps, carpeted scratching posts), but it just hurts my heart to see how he walks, and how he avoids jumping. I've seen Jackson Galaxy talk about his Spirit Essences on his show and YouTube channel. I see that he has a Declaw Remedy, that supposedly "'rebuilds' energetic balance in the paws." There weren't any reviews on this specific product on the product website. I've seen mixed reviews about the Spirit Essences in general.

Honestly, I'm really skeptical. I'll probably end up buying it anyway because to me it's worth the risk of losing ~$25 to find out if it does help him. Before I do, I thought I'd check to see if anyone here has tried this, or any of the Spirit Essences for that matter, and wanted to share their thoughts on their experience. 

If anyone has any other suggestions to help him, I'm open to those too. He has already been examined by the vet to check for anything that can be revised via surgery, like regrowth and such. Thanks in advance.
 

maggiemay

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I haven't used the Paw product, but I have used three of the Spirit Essences, for emotional issues - an adult tortie who hated the new kitten.  I didn't find them to be effective at all, but these essences work on some pets and not on others, I imagine.  I much prefer Rescue Remedy for calming pets and have found it to work very well on all of my animals.  

I don't know how recent the declaw surgery was, so I don't know if you would want to try Slippery Elm Paste, but that's a thought, as well:

Externally, a soothing paste of Slippery Elm powder (mix the powder with a little cold water) can be used as a poultice for hot spots, insect burns, rashes, scratches, ulcerated areas, or other shallow wounds. Native Americans used Slippery Elm bark to stop bleeding. It forms a natural “bandage” that can be left in place for several hours, if you can convince your cat or dog to leave it alone! Moisten with water to remove it.

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.  You are obviously a wonderful pet parent and I know it is hurting you to see him avoiding jumping, etc.  That breaks my heart, too!  All the best to both of you.
 

stephanietx

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I haven't used the paw product either, but I have used Peacemaker and Safe Spaces for Cats. They work well for my kitties, but I don't use them all the time. 
 

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According to their website - Quote:

Ingredients


Each bottle of Spirit Essences is comprised of two types of ingredients: physical and energetic. The physical ingredients are: spring water and alcohol, used as a preservative. The energetic ingredients are: Reiki energy and a variety of flower, animal and gem essences. Please note: No actual plant, animal or gem matter is used in our formulas, only the energetic blueprint.Our formulas are non-toxic and safe.
So, basically, it's a bottle of water and alcohol. They recommend letting it stay open for a while for some of the alcohol to evaporate. I'm not sure which I like less, letting cats ingest alcohol or just water with no preservatives that could end up getting contaminated over time.

If you believe in "energetic blueprints" and are willing to pay more than $20 for a small bottle of water and some alcohol, you could give it a try, I guess. In some cases, the cat's condition will improve, especially if you do as Jackson Galaxy recommends and incorporate health or behavioral modification techniques as may be necessary. Otherwise, some things just get sorted on their own and having an owner who feels this is going to happen can sometimes help too. 

Personally, I wouldn't give my cat even a small dose of alcohol. Obviously these are very small quantities as I'm not aware of any reports of cats actually showing immediate harm following use of these products. Still, who knows what long-term use could do?
 

artiemom

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 I tried them when I adopted Artie. It was about 4 years ago. He was a very skittish, jumpy cat who freaked at any noises. I live in an apartment building so the noises, above and below me, were making him jump and get scared. He ran from all visitors, and noises; even people walking down the corridor. When I dropped something, or made a sudden movement,  he took off like a banshee, to hide under my bed. 

I even contacted them to find out which ones would be appropriate for him.

Artie did not drink water, so I rubbed some in my hand and rubbed it on him. He did not care for that. 

Yes, you do have to open the bottle to let the alcohol escape before using. I was kind of skeptical of that. I think they put the alcohol in it to be some kind of preservative. 

I used it for a month. I did not see any results so that I could recommend it to others. 

I also tried Feliway and Rescue Remedy. 

I felt the Feliway and RR helped more than JG stuff. With RR, there is not alcohol that you have to be concerned with.

I also put a few drops of RR in his food.

I do not know if it was the RR and Feliway or time which helped calm Artie down a bit. 

I still use the Feliway when I know he is going through a skittish period, or there is construction going on in the building, or outside. I use the Feliway spray in his carrier before he goes to the Vet. I still feel it helps him.

I think it kind of depends on the cat, and what you feel is getting better results.

I still have the 2nd bottle of RR in the house, just in case. I ordered it on Amazon at first, then found it at Whole Foods. I ordered the Feliway from Amazon~~ a lot cheaper..

Good luck with this poor baby...(Hugs)
 
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mrskm

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I haven't used the Paw product, but I have used three of the Spirit Essences, for emotional issues - an adult tortie who hated the new kitten.  I didn't find them to be effective at all, but these essences work on some pets and not on others, I imagine.  I much prefer Rescue Remedy for calming pets and have found it to work very well on all of my animals.  

I don't know how recent the declaw surgery was, so I don't know if you would want to try Slippery Elm Paste, but that's a thought, as well:

Externally, a soothing paste of Slippery Elm powder (mix the powder with a little cold water) can be used as a poultice for hot spots, insect burns, rashes, scratches, ulcerated areas, or other shallow wounds. Native Americans used Slippery Elm bark to stop bleeding. It forms a natural “bandage” that can be left in place for several hours, if you can convince your cat or dog to leave it alone! Moisten with water to remove it.

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.  You are obviously a wonderful pet parent and I know it is hurting you to see him avoiding jumping, etc.  That breaks my heart, too!  All the best to both of you.
I don't know when they did it. His paws were "healed" (as much as they can be after amputating all of the most distal joints off his front paws 
) when I got him from the shelter and the vet said it was probably done "years ago" at his first exam, and I've now had him for about 3 years. Thank you so much for the slippery elm bark suggestion though, and your kind response.
 
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mrskm

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According to their website - Quote:

Ingredients


Each bottle of Spirit Essences is comprised of two types of ingredients: physical and energetic. The physical ingredients are: spring water and alcohol, used as a preservative. The energetic ingredients are: Reiki energy and a variety of flower, animal and gem essences. Please note: No actual plant, animal or gem matter is used in our formulas, only the energetic blueprint.Our formulas are non-toxic and safe.
So, basically, it's a bottle of water and alcohol. They recommend letting it stay open for a while for some of the alcohol to evaporate. I'm not sure which I like less, letting cats ingest alcohol or just water with no preservatives that could end up getting contaminated over time.

If you believe in "energetic blueprints" and are willing to pay more than $20 for a small bottle of water and some alcohol, you could give it a try, I guess. In some cases, the cat's condition will improve, especially if you do as Jackson Galaxy recommends and incorporate health or behavioral modification techniques as may be necessary. Otherwise, some things just get sorted on their own and having an owner who feels this is going to happen can sometimes help too. 

Personally, I wouldn't give my cat even a small dose of alcohol. Obviously these are very small quantities as I'm not aware of any reports of cats actually showing immediate harm following use of these products. Still, who knows what long-term use could do?
Right, that's why I said I'm very skeptical. Just looking for people's experiences with using it is all.

Personally, I don't see a problem with the alcohol being used as a preservative. As you said, it's a tiny amount, and even if someone were to give them the whole bottle to ingest, which of course no one would do, I don't think it would be an issue. 
 
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mrskm

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 I tried them when I adopted Artie. It was about 4 years ago. He was a very skittish, jumpy cat who freaked at any noises. I live in an apartment building so the noises, above and below me, were making him jump and get scared. He ran from all visitors, and noises; even people walking down the corridor. When I dropped something, or made a sudden movement,  he took off like a banshee, to hide under my bed. 

I even contacted them to find out which ones would be appropriate for him.

Artie did not drink water, so I rubbed some in my hand and rubbed it on him. He did not care for that. 

Yes, you do have to open the bottle to let the alcohol escape before using. I was kind of skeptical of that. I think they put the alcohol in it to be some kind of preservative. 

I used it for a month. I did not see any results so that I could recommend it to others. 

I also tried Feliway and Rescue Remedy. 

I felt the Feliway and RR helped more than JG stuff. With RR, there is not alcohol that you have to be concerned with.

I also put a few drops of RR in his food.

I do not know if it was the RR and Feliway or time which helped calm Artie down a bit. 

I still use the Feliway when I know he is going through a skittish period, or there is construction going on in the building, or outside. I use the Feliway spray in his carrier before he goes to the Vet. I still feel it helps him.

I think it kind of depends on the cat, and what you feel is getting better results.

I still have the 2nd bottle of RR in the house, just in case. I ordered it on Amazon at first, then found it at Whole Foods. I ordered the Feliway from Amazon~~ a lot cheaper..

Good luck with this poor baby...(Hugs)
Thank you for sharing your experience! I'm so glad Artie found such a great home with you, and you were able to find things that made him feel more comfortable. I have another cat that is a former feral, and Feliway worked so well for her! I used the plug-ins for the first 2-3 months after she moved in with us, and I still use the spray for traveling to vet visits. And I'm glad you found it on Amazon, as it is the cheapest place I have been able to find also. 
 
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mrskm

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I haven't used the paw product either, but I have used Peacemaker and Safe Spaces for Cats. They work well for my kitties, but I don't use them all the time. 
Thanks so much for sharing your experience!
 

maggiemay

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There are two other things I've used for stress that work well.  One is a prescription food that my cat won't touch, but for cats who like it, the reviews are phenomenal.  It's Hills Urinary Tract c/d Stress formula and comes in wet and dry foods.  Cats who were under enormous stress, even those without urinary tract issues, have been greatly helped by this.  Lots of reviews for this stress formula food online.  The second is a product by Nutri-Vet called Pet Ease.  It's a gel you put on the top of the paw and they lick it off.  Most of the Nutri-Vet paw gels underwent new formulations in 2011 and I stopped using them.  The new formulations contain sodium benzoate, which can be toxic to cats even in trace amounts. I can't imagine why a reputable company like Nutri-Vet uses that ingredient, but they are supposedly reformulating yet again due to customer complaints and hopefully without the sodium benzoate in any of their paw gels.  You might want to check with the Nutri-Vet website, perhaps contact customer service, to find out if and when Pet Ease will be reformulated.  It was a lifesaver for many stressed kitties.  Worth a mention.  That poor baby, declawing is so brutal.  Keeping you both in my prayers.
 

sarahsvatiblue

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I bought the ultimate peacekeeper kit a year or so ago.  It had no effect on my cats.  After that I tried the Feliway plug in and it made a small difference for awhile.    What actually made the most difference for my five cats was changing the brand of litter that they use and adding extra food and water bowls around the house.  Don't waste your money.   :)
 

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imo, it's a scam. charging those prices for a bottle of water is crazy!
 

maggiemay

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I've definitely had homeopathic meds work on me, and I've had great results with Bach's Rescue Remedy Pet used on my animals.  But the Spirit Essences really did nothing for Maggie.  Rescue Remedy did work on her, but neither one made her more accepting of the kitten I was trying to introduce to her.  She was a dilute tortie, and had plenty of tortitude, maybe that's why it didn't work, not sure.  I do think Spirit Essences are overpriced.  I get Rescue Remedy Pet at Swanson Vitamins online for about $12.
 
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