Customer Reviews

The Walrus on My Table: Touching True Stories of Animal Healing

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Anthony Guglielmo is a licensed masseur - licensed to practice massage therapy on humans, at first. Then a human client asked him to see her troubled horse who had been abused by a previous owner. This lead him to "equine massage certification school" and towards this absolutely fascinating collection of tales about his "non-human" clients, which have included a walrus, a penguin, a beluga whale, dolphins, a ferret, a shark, as well as dogs, cats and bunnies. Animal massage has actually been practiced in some forms for thousands of years - we know horse trainers have used touch/rub downs since the horse was domesticated. More and more, the power of touch is being recognized as a way to calm, heal and ease pain as well as express love and communicate amongst species. Pet lovers know this well. Driven by his desire to help a crippled dolphin, Mr. Guglielmo learns anatomical knowledge as diverse as that between a shark and horse and shares it with the reader. Photos document some of the amazing stories. My heart was well and truly warmed and I learned new things that I will always remember. I hope these stories end once and for all end any debate about whether animals have feelings and whether whether they can communicate them. What a great gift for an animal/pet lover! Keep swimming with the dolphins, Mr. Guglielmo!

I checked this book out of the library several years ago and could not put it down. I felt drawn to these animals as much as he was. I am a licensed massage therapist, but want to work more with animals. They have so much to give and teach us. I highly recommend this book.

I am a fan of action novels, so when my wife handed me a copy of "The Walrus on My Table" I was unsure whether to read the book or not. After a couple of days I took the plunge. I'm sure glad I did. Cari Lynn's narrative of Anthony Guglielmo's endeavor into animal massage is a pleasureful and enjoyable read. The juxtaposition of human versus animal massage together with not all together well known tidbits about walruses, whales, horses, penguins, dolphins, and sharks was interesting and informative. Cari Lynn's writing style well paced and intelligent. This collection of stories invoked thoughts into the magic of a good massage and made me wishing for a good one.

My wife is a CMT and works with animals in her spare time. When I learned of this book, I had to buy it for her. She couldn't put it down!

If you think changing a baby's diapers is bad, or emptying bedpans, reading A Walrus On My Table, about Anthony Guglielmo will convince you that there are jobs that smell worse!

Anthony, a massage therapist, never intended to have clients orther than humans. However his entire career took on an added dimension when a client of his persistently begged him to massage her nervous horse.

Never rushing in to anything new, he took a crash course in working with horses. Word got around and soon he was asked to massage many different wild animals, as well as domestic animals.

Cari Lynn, the author, writes with a style that puts you in the picture as an observer with all your senses working overtime. Some odors were so pungently irritating, such as that of the ferret and the penguins, Anthony almost couldn't breathe. However, his love for creatures in pain enabled him to pursue trying to help them. He never believed that massage should cause pain, only relaxation.

Even his wife forgave him when he came home reeking, and often went with him as he attended his clients.

You'll laugh and cry as you read, as well as applaud his dedication to try to heal both humans and animals.

Anthony Gugliemo is the "Dr Doolittle" of the twenty-second century!

I had initially purchased the book because Anthony was going to be my new massage therapist. However, I've always loved animals, adopting dogs from local rescue organizations ; cats always coming to me to be petted, even snakes like me! So, I purchased the book, and on my first visit to Anthony I asked him to sign it. After I got home, I read it from cover to cover in one day, I JUST could not put it down. Animals have that sixth sense regarding humans who are guardian angels. I am sure that Mambo, Rudy (the penguin), Champ, Talon(the dolphin), and all other animals that he has touched (not just their bodies but their souls) will always remember Anthony.

For full information about the book, please click on the details section on the title.

P.S. Anthony is a WONDERFUL human massage therapist too!!)

Emotional, funny, sad, goofy, touching... You can experience any emotion while reading this book - one chapter you'll laugh, the next you'll cry. A fantastic "light" read for animal lovers!

This is a really good read. The stories are interesting and well told, of a pioneer in alternative medicine for animals! I'm from a traditionalist medical background, so am a skeptic; but his techniques and results are quite believable and worth revisiting, even if I don't follow his rationale at all times. I was a little puzzled by the book's abrupt ending, as though some pages got lost on the way to the printer's. But it's a very good book, one I'll recommend.