Kathleen Prasad is widely known as a pioneer of Animal Reiki. She began sharing Reiki with animals in 1998, when almost no one was doing it, and through years of work in shelters, sanctuaries and homes she developed the Let Animals Lead® method: a meditative practice of calm, healing presence in which animals are free to choose whether and how they connect.

Kathleen's love of animals began early. Growing up in Napa, California, she spent childhood summers in the Sierra mountains, sitting still on a fallen log until chipmunks, birds and deer felt safe enough to come close. That early lesson became the heart of her life's work: animals come to us when we are still and they feel safe.

A former inner-city teacher in San Francisco, Kathleen first found Reiki as a way through her own lifelong anxiety. When her dog began lying on her feet during her daily self-practice, she realized animals feel and seek out this peaceful energy. She brought it to her local shelter, and her life's work began.

Through Animal Reiki Source, Kathleen has taught thousands of students around the world. She is President and Co-Founder of SARA, author of the Animal Reiki Practitioner Code of Ethics, and has taught at organizations including Best Friends Animal Society and the San Francisco SPCA. She lives in Northern California with her family, her dog Vinny and her horse Kodiak.

Today her work is recognized far beyond the Animal Reiki community. Her Let Animals Lead® training holds dual accreditation from the CPD Standards Office, including Trainer of Excellence status. The Canadian Reiki Association has endorsed it as the gold standard in Animal Reiki education, and Kathleen helped the association create its Animal Reiki designation. With more than 10,000 hours of animal Reiki practice, she has been featured in Psychology Today, the American Kennel Club and PBS's Healing Quest.

Kathleen is also the author of more than a dozen books, including Reiki for Dogs, Everything Animal Reiki and Heart to Heart with Horses, and she hosts the monthly Animal Reiki Talk podcast. At the center of everything she teaches is one simple belief: animals don't need us to fix them. They need a space where they feel safe enough to truly relax, so they can heal themselves.