Published by: Ingrid King. Last Updated on: February 6, 2023 by Crystal Uys

no-better-medicine

There’s no secret that cats have healing powers – and so do other animals. It stands to reason that the more animals you’re surrounded with, the stronger this healing power can work, right?

This has certainly been the case for Kelly Meister-Yetter. She spent much of her life in darkness following childhood abuse, and the resulting depression led her to often isolate herself from other humans. Animals turned out to be her salvation: spending time around animals, and helping them, contributed to the healing of old childhood wounds.

In No Better Medicine: How Caring for Critters Helped Heal the Wounds of the Past, Yetter introduces the reader to the animals who shared her life. From cats and dogs to horses, donkeys and ducks, her stories of rescue, companionship, and loss will touch the reader’s heart. From the loss of her soul cat Muffin and the grief that followed (“..that’s the hardest adjustment of all: making your brain understand what your heart doesn’t want to accept,”) to caring for injured ducks, Meister-Yetter turns to critters for solace when life gets too hard.

Interspersed with reflections on her journey through coping with childhood abuse, to eventually meeting her husband and forming a new family that, of course, includes all the critters, the author is candid about her personal struggles as well as her triumphs.  The critters are her true north – something that wasn’t always easy to accept for her new husband. “Slowly but surely, he began to understand that without the critters, I wouldn’t be the person he’d fallen in love with,” writes Meister-Yetter.

Meister’s stories will make you smile, laugh, cry and nod your head in recognition.  By sharing her story of how the critters were an integral part of her own healing journey, Kelly Meiste-Yetter provides hope for others on a similar path. Ultimately, this book is a testament to the healing power of animals.

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