Kathleen Prasad
Animal Reiki Teacher
Founder and Director, Animal Reiki Source
President, Shelter Animal Reiki Association

Kathleen Prasad has been a life-long animal lover and an educator for over fifteen years. After receiving her BA in History from U.C. Berkeley in 1991 and her California Teaching Credential from Sacramento State University in 1993, Kathleen went on to teach History, Social Studies, English, and Drama in the San Francisco public schools for nine years. In the course of these years, she designed curriculum and community projects for her students in animal kindness, encouraging volunteer work in animal shelters. In 1998 she learned Reiki and began regularly volunteering Reiki with local shelter animals.

Inspired by her volunteer experiences, Kathleen decided to dedicate her teaching career to Animal Reiki full-time in 2002. Since then, she has co-authored the books The Animal Reiki Handbook and Animal Reiki: Using Energy to Heal the Animals in Your Life and written many educational articles on animals and Reiki for holistic publications around the world. Her work has been featured in The Journal of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, Animal Fair, The Whole Dog Journal, Dog Fancy, Animal Wellness Magazine, Equine Wellness Magazine and Natural Horse Talk Magazine. She has been featured on several radio shows as well as her local news.

At Animal Reiki Source, Kathleen combines her experience in working with Reiki and animals with her expertise as a teacher to provide students with a one-of-a-kind educational experience. She has taught Reiki to the staff of organizations such as The East Bay SPCA, The Humane Society of Silicon Valley, BrightHaven Healing Arts Center for Animals, Guide Dogs for the Blind, and The Elephant Sanctuary. Her students come from all walks of life and from all over the world. Recently, Kathleen was invited to teach a seminar on Animal Reiki at the 33rd Annual Conference of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association in October of 2008.

In 2007, Kathleen authored the first code of ethics for the profession, The Animal Reiki Practitioner Code of Ethics, which has been published in professional Reiki publications and adopted by practitioners around the world. In addition to offering a worldwide practitioner directory on her website, she self-publishes an informational e-newsletter on Reiki and animals. Her second book, which she both edited and contributed to, Tails from the Source: The Animal Reiki Source Newsletter Collection, Volume I, was published in March 2008. Her 4th book Animal Reiki Tails Volume 2 was just released in January 2010.

In May 2008, Kathleen co-founded a not-for-profit 501(c)3 corporation, The Shelter Animal Reiki Association (SARA). SARA aims to boost adoption rates in shelters nationwide by reducing stress and supporting healing in homeless animals. The mission will be achieved via a standardized rollout of animal Reiki programs in shelters worldwide and the creation of an unprecedented global information resource for practitioners and facilities that assist animals in need.

Kathleen enjoys life in beautiful Marin County with her husband, daughter, and two horses.