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Katie K9 Appearances:

March 22, 2020: Click here to listen (Interview starting 10:42, client testimonial at 20:10)

June 16, 2019 (starts at 13:40)
Oct. 8, 2018
Feb. 5, 2017

Sept 15, 2013 – 3-hour guest special
November 18, 2012

HEALERS Podcast

July 31, 2017 Interview with Bonnie Illies

Elizabeth Dehn (Bets) publishes a Beauty Bets website to share product reviews and trusted beauty advice with discerning readers everywhere. She also hosts a HEALERS podcast as part of her commitment to help others achieve self-love and acceptance. In this episode, she talks to animal intuitive and energy healer Bonnie Illies.

Go to the HEALERS Podcast page

Zeta Global Radio

Sept 12, 2015 - Bonnie comes on at about 17 minutes

Read "Diving Calling" from I Love Cats magazine

If you had told Bonnie Illies five years ago that she would be making a living one day as an intuitive animal healer, she never would have believed it. I would have thought, ‘How kooky is this person?’ she laughs.

In fact, Bonnie had spent a good deal of her adult life working in corporate America at a job that fulfilled her financial needs but left her emotionally unsatisfied. Her soul searching led to an interest in alternative healing practices. I started reading books on Chinese medicine, which advocates a much more holistic and intuitive approach to treating health problem, Bonnie said.

She also took a class in Qi Gong (an ancient Eastern practice based in energy healing) and attended courses in Healing Touch at a local college. In the meantime, she cleaned houses to pay the bills. Her new line of work and her growing interest in holistic healing came together serendipitously when her housecleaning clients started confiding in her about problems with their pets.

Her journey as an intuitive healer began when one client’s young dog developed behavioral issues. When Bonnie’s friends learned of this incident, they were immediately curious and asked her to take a look at their pets.

Word of Bonnie’s healing began to spread throughout her friends, then among friends of friends, and it wasn’t long before she found herself fielding calls from strangers eager to enlist her services. Although she loved working with animals and felt encouraged by her successes, it wasn’t until she had performed roughly 30 energy healings that she realized she had finally discovered her true passion.

Soon Bonnie was able to give up her housecleaning job to concentrate full time on establishing her intuitive healing practice, aided by word of mouth from clients and friends. She even began receiving referrals from two Minneapolis veterinarians who were impressed with the work she had done on their own pets.

Within months, she found her practice expanding so rapidly that she was unable to visit everyone who sought her out for treatments. To remedy this situation, she began practicing long distance or remote healings which involve the same type of treatment:

The energy work that I do has roots in faith and prayer, when you pray for someone, it’s not necessary to be physically present with them. In the same sense, remote healings work just as well whether the animal is next door or in another state, she says.

This new method of healing enabled Bonnie to work with clientele that were too far way to visit in person. This was a definite plus for Ruth Hein of Anchorage, Alaska, who sought Bonnie’s help for her cat Mystic.

Soon after my husband and I adopted Mystic from the shelter, we noticed that he had a problem with excessive grooming, so much so that he had developed a bald patch on his back where he was pulling out all the hair. He had also stopped using the litter box. Concerned, Ruth took Mystic to the veterinarian to seek treatment for his hair pulling. Mystic was given anti-histamine shots and a topical treatment to soothe his skin, but nothing seemed to help. Then after a scary week of having him on a low-dose tranquilizer and watching him become completely inactive, she decided to try a new approach.

Even with hearing all her success stories, I thought it sounded silly, especially since Bonnie is in Minnesota and I live in Alaska-3,000 miles way! Figuring that at least this new form of treatment wouldn’t hurt Mystic, Ruth decided to give it a try.

Bonnie discovered that Mystic’s hair pulling stemmed from a problem with his kidney and liver, exacerbated by a urinary blockage he had suffered during his stay at the shelter. She performed a remote healing on Mystic, concentrating on his liver and kidneys. Over the next few days, Ruth says Mystic’s hair pulling subsided, and he began using his litter box regularly.

She had Bonnie perform a second healing, after which Mystic stopped pulling his hair out altogether.

Bonnie is really great, Ruth says now. She’s been very helpful with general tips, such as diet and proper nutrition for Mystic. I’m glad I decided to give her a try.

Laurie Tyner of St. Louis Park, MN had all but given up hope by the time she contacted Bonnie for help for her Siamese mix, Kleopatra.

I had taken Kleo to the veterinarian for a teeth cleaning, and the sedative shot that they gave her ended up making her sick. She stopped eating and drinking and became so listless that she only left her bed to use the litter box.

Laurie took Kleo back to the veterinarian to give her fluids and an appetite stimulate. After spending over $500 in traditional veterinary care on Kleopatra and seeing little improvement, Laurie grabbed Bonnie’s business card at her local pt food store. I was in tears by the time I called her. Laurie remembers.

Bonnie immediately saw that Kleo’s kidneys were failing. She performed a remote healing on Kleo, and then gave me suggestions about her diet and supplements to give her. She recommended cat grass to help with Kleo’s digestion and told me to make sure she was getting a lot of fluids.

Though Kleo’s health has greatly improved since her first healing, Laurie still consults Bonnie monthly for what she calls kitty tune-ups to check on her progress.

by Andie Ryan

Read "Bonnie Illies: Medical Intuitive" from I Love Cats magazine

Since 1998, Bonnie Illies has been helping animals with physical and emotional concerns. Her clients likened her to the well-known medical intuitive, Carolyn Myss. Others say she is like Dr. Phil because of her straightforward approach to their questions. “I have had the privilege of helping animals obtain healthier and happier lives. This is my work, my passion. And when I say that this is my work, I mean it – this is my full-time vocation. It is not something I do part time or as a sideline business. This is work that I am dedicated to and take seriously.”

She believes animals deserve to be heard and understood. “Animals are often misread or misdiagnosed,” Bonnie says. “It’s painful for me to hear of the many conditions animals are experiencing, not only in regards to their ailment but also the treatment. If these treatments were a necessity or there was no alternative, I could accept it. “But I now know differently – there is an alternative. Since I know there is another way, I do not have the right to be reticent at the expense of animals. They are suffering needlessly. I have seen and heard from hundreds and hundreds of clients how my work has helped their pets. In fact, 99 out of 100 clients have said that their animal friend improved or fully recovered when other treatments were stressful or painful, not effective, or had terrible side effects,” she says.

Bonnie prefers not to be told anything about the case before meeting the cat because she does not want the information to influence her. “I first want to see what the animal shows me before hearing it from the client. I will either see a picture of the problem or will feel it
in my body. And most of the time I do not see what the owner is seeing, which is the symptom. I usually see the root cause of that symptom.”

“For example, I may “see” or sense that something is wrong with the left side of the spine. The client may tell me that I’m wrong, that the problem is the limp coming from his rear left leg. I may “see” a concern with the pancreas and if all the vet tests do not show that,
the client will tell me I’m wrong, yet when they give me the symptoms – issues with stools, vomiting, not eating, and so on, that is all connected with pancreas. Often the problem is just a symptom of something internal,” she says. Bonnie cited three cases:

CASE #1
Kleopatra was diagnosed with kidney disease and constipation. The veterinarian prescribed a drug for the constipation but, several weeks later, Kleopatra had diarrhea and was no longer eating. A drug for the diarrhea and an appetite stimulant were prescribed. At that
point, Kleopatra’s “mom” contacted Bonnie for the first time, because she did not want to keep adding medication. Bonnie recommended she stop all drugs, and put the cat on a specific diet to help with the kidney functions. She did three energy treatments, a
combination of Healing Touch and QiGong.

Prior to the kidney disease, Kleopatra had also been diagnosed with asthma and had been on prednisone for years. The healing treatments Bonnie did also helped Kleopatra recover from that, and she was taken off the prednisone. This occurred in February, 2004 when the cat was 15 years old. Kleopatra recovered and lived until 2008, dying at age 20.

CASE #2
Bonnie was contacted about Bebop, a 15-year-old male cat, who was urinating outside the litter box for several months. The veterinarian’s tests showed no problems, but Bonnie told the owner that there are times when tests don’t reveal an illness. She recommended a
better brand of food and energy healing treatments. After the first treatment, the urinating outside the box had decreased. Bonnie did a second treatment, and improvement continued. “I followed up with Bebop’s owner,” Bonnie said. ‘The response was: ‘He’s fabulous, enjoying himself and no problems with the litter box.'”

Naturally, she is thrilled, but she said that it’s equally as wonderful to see this cat, that has always been anxious, be happier and playful.

She said that even her husband has noticed how much happier and more affectionate Bebop has become.

CASE #3
Bonnie was contacted about Zina who, 18 months ago, was diagnosed with a respiratory infection. Different drugs had been prescribed for her during this time but nothing worked. Other issues were also showing up – dry stools, frothy white vomit, and desire to eat tissues and plastic. Also, Zina had always walked stiffly due to a structural issue. Bonnie recommended all drugs be stopped, to start using proteins that are less mucous producing, and to begin energy healing treatments. After a year and a half of Zina wheezing, the energy treatments cleared her lungs; however, the infection moved to her head.

“It reminded me of a human with a cold that moves,” Bonnie says. “I’m still working with Zina’s congestion and it is looking like healing treatments will not be the full answer for her. But what is healed is her walking. After years of moving stiffly, she is now jumping up on
things and exploring her environment.”

Bonnie has many clients around the world, including TV’s Dancing with the Stars Judge Carrie Ann Inaba, medical doctors, nurses and lawyers. Veterinarians have also hired her for their own animals. Most of her cases are cats and dogs, but she has worked with other species. On-going clients call whenever their animal is sick. A new client usually waits to call until the situation is critical, and often they tell Bonnie that their animal is at death’s door, adding,
“you’re our last resort.” Usually, she is able to help and give the pet added quality of life.
“As an animal healer, I am constantly thinking about animals – the ones in my care and those that are not. Working with a healer may be new to you. People often question the validity of something different, as did some of my clients initially. I understand. These
clients, along with veterinarians and medical doctors I have dealt with can attest that ‘this works’.”

For more information: Call 952-292-7478 or email [email protected]  or check out her website at www.bonnieillies.com.

by Joyce White
Summer 2013 Issue

Conversation with an Animal Expert

Conversation with an Animal Expert: Animal Intuitive and Healer Bonnie Illies
June 2013 Sojos Blog

Bonnie Illies is an animal intuitive and healer who has been in the pet care industry for 15 years. We recently spoke with Bonnie about her practice.

Q: How would you describe the type of work you do?
It’s a little bit like acupuncture without the needles. It’s healing with energy. I look at healing work sort of like putting your battery back in the charger. It’s the best form of healing. You just need to get charged back up.Q: Why do people seek out your services?
Most people don’t call unless they have tried everything else. Their pet is at death’s door and this is a last resort.

Q: Can you describe your process?
I do an initial consultation and if it’s on the phone, I just simply get the name, age and species of the animal. Then I start to get feelings and impressions. I look for the root of a problem, whereas most traditional medical physicians see the symptoms. You have a greater chance to heal instead of just patching up the symptoms.

Q: How does diet fit into your healing practice?
I usually recommend protein, veggies and grains to clean up the diet in alignment with Chinese Medicine principals.

Q: How has the pet care industry changed since you began practicing?
There’s been some sort of attitude switch—there is more openness about what I do but there are always people who do not understand what I do.

Q: What advice would you give an animal owner interested in trying a healing approach like yours?
I would say, make sure you find out the credentials of the professional.

"Intuitive Healing" from Sojourner Farms Newsletter

Intuitive Healing by Kevin Schafer
Published Spring/Summer 2004 – www.sojos.com

I recently had the unique opportunity to visit with animal communicator Bonnie Illies. She specializes in intuitive readings and healings for animals. In the realm of alternative therapies this is truly one of the most interesting approaches to animal wellness that I have come across.

Bonnie is fully aware of the controversies surrounding her chosen profession, and she admits that there are healers that give her profession a bad name. If you are looking for Bonnie to tell you that your animal was King Tut in a past life and that is why your animal keeps pooping in the kitchen, you have found the wrong person to work with. She does not communicate with deceased animals nor does she try to find missing animals. Her area of concentration is in working with behavior and chronic physical conditions.

In talking with her, I found her to be very practical in her approach to the wide range of health issues that she encounters. There may be times when you or your vet know that something is wrong with your animal companion yet not be able to detect what it is or whether it is emotional or physical in nature. This is where Bonnie may be a real asset in helping to improve the condition.

In fact a good deal of Bonnie’s work comes from holistic veterinarian referrals. She has worked with a wide range of health problems such as hepatitis, kidney disease, arthritis, urinary infections, allergies, incontinence, as well as a full range of behavior problems.

I found it very interesting that Bonnie only requests to know the animals name, age, and species. She does not want to know any symptom or diagnosis history. The less history she has the better. Her goal is to get a sense of what the animal is feeling, the less information she has the more clear her perceptions will be regarding the animal. She also prefers to work by telephone only. Bonnie maintains that she wants to get the animals side of the story first. Once she gets a feel for what is happening she can then do the energy work to assist in healing. A typical session is one hour long; it involves a 45-minute session working with the animal and then a 15-minute session with the owner giving an assessment of what she is seeing.

Bonnie stresses the importance of proper natural nutrition as well as appropriate natural therapies the help in the treatment of her clients. She generally begins to see results with her clients after one session and on average it takes three sessions to get long-range results. She stresses that patience is very important in dealing with chronic problems. Rarely are there overnight cures with deep-seeded health issues.

I came away from my talk with Bonnie with a good deal of skepticism removed. She is a straight shooter and is extremely passionate in regards to the wellness of our animal companions. There are no crystal balls or floating tables at her home. She is in fact quite grounded in a very non-traditional career.

Staff Picks -- Favorite Pet Resources

Bonnie Illies works on all kinds of animals that are experiencing health or behavioral issues. Her healing methods focus on the energy flowing throughout an animal’s different organ systems. Illies has remarkable intuition, and her connection to animals is nothing short of amazing.

Women’s Press Magazine
vol 16, no. 25
Feb. 28 – March 13, 2001

Healthy Animals Healthy People

Dr. Christina Chambreau’s Newsletter – The Healthy Animal Update
Published August 2003 – www.christinachambreau.com
by R. Rushenberg & D. Hill

About four years ago our dog, Keta, was very sick–not eating or willing to move. We asked our vet if she knew of anyone who was an animal healer. She gave us the number for Bonnie. While waiting for the results of tests done by our vet, we contacted Bonnie. She does her work over the phone, working with clients all over the world. All she wanted to know from us when the session started was our dog’s name and age. From those two pieces of information, she was able to detect that the liver looked gray, pitted and struggling to function properly. She addressed what was going on emotionally with our animal as well. She also advised us about diet; i.e., which proteins and vegetables would be most compatible for the liver.

We decided to also have her do healings for our dog. After one healing the only noticeable difference was that Keta wagged her tail, which we had not, seen her do for over a week. After the second healing, Keta went for a short walk. In the meantime, our vet called with a diagnosis of hepatitis and a picture that showed the liver just as the Bonnie had described it. The vet explained that we needed to get Keta on a certain drug. We explained that Keta was improving with the healings. The vet called several times, urging us to start the drug therapy. We believed, as Bonnie had explained, that to do the drugs would tax the liver–the very organ we were trying to heal. Doing the healings and then taking drugs that would have to be filtered through the liver could be like three steps forward and six back. When the vet continued to call regarding medication, Bonnie advised we go in for a blood test. The test revealed that the liver was healing. The vet couldn’t believe it saying, “This is unheard of”. Yet the tests proved it as was Keta who was once again eating and gaining more energy.

Other animals we knew of who have had hepatitis all died within a year of being diagnosed and taking medication. Keta continues to thrive four years after working with Bonnie and no drugs. Bonnie also addresses the emotional component to illnesses–often there is an emotional aspect behind an illness. Often it’s an emotional issue that the animal’s caretaker needs to address. Our animals often mirror our emotional baggage. Bonnie helped us see what that was for us, which in turn helped us grow as human beings and helped Keta.

Working with Bonnie saved our Keta!

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