An equine therapist wrote to me years ago with a very earnest and powerful question. I’ve expanded the answer I wrote to her for this column. I recently listened to a talk you gave and I was very delighted with your message(s). The message I most gratefully got from your talk that I have been wanting to hear from the Animal Communication world is:
"I want everyone to learn how to listen to their own animals.” As a bodywork practitioner, observer, and absolute lover of animals, I have had a resistance to Animal Communication popularity simply because I have so many clients who are paying huge amounts of money for someone to "talk" to their animals when the animal is practically jumping up and down screaming at their person to just notice what they are trying to “say."
I am continually saddened and often just disgusted when clients tell me the little tidbits they learned from their last animal communicator call and yet the obvious right in front of us was never addressed or even came into the conversation. I spend hours a day with my hands, heart and soul deeply embedded into the bodies and spirits of animals and it is impossible not to hear their hearts. I've cried many tears for many animals for what their often well-meaning people just don't or won't look at.
I am curious as to why the burning obvious wouldn't show up in an animal communication consultation? How much of the human client is involved in filtering the information? How can the human not get "called out" in these communication sessions? One example was a lady who called me to work on her horse. She had recently been in touch with a communicator to help "fix" this horse. The advice was to work on specific vertebrae and massage and I was to come 3 times.
When I got there, I was immediately sickened by the obvious abuse that had gone on in this horses' life—it permeated the air. The woman was outwardly very nice but her energy was not good. Whenever she was around, the horse was reactive—breaking ties and running uncontrollably around the arena to get away from her. If she wasn't around, he was a complete gentleman.
The third and final time I was there, she never even appeared and the horse begged me to take him with me. I cried for days and was haunted by this for years. At least I learned that he had been sold soon after. I began to learn over time about the abusive things she does to "fix" horses. How can that not show up in a consultation? How can the information be simply to have someone adjust vertebrae or massage them? You are the first person who I have heard say, "I want the human to begin to listen and understand" in a way that I really felt it and that is what my work is all about—changing the way in which people understand the animals in their lives. Again, thanks so much for that. It helped change my perception of animal communicators.
The Importance of Education Thanks for writing and sharing your experience. Education has always been my number one emphasis with clients and with students who will become animal communicators as the way to increase awareness in their clients. We're here to help people to remember and recover their own ability. Some people don't really want to do that; they invalidate themselves and feel more comfortable relying on other's abilities to communicate with their animal companions. They need to be coaxed to learn and wake up at the right pace for them. I encouraged all clients to get my book, Animal Talk, and begin or continue on their journey of awakening to who animals really are and our true relationship with them.
What else is more worthwhile in this world than remembering who we really are and our connection with all life and fostering communication and understanding? Animals Look for the Good Re your burning question: Animals tend to live in the present and look at what's good around them and in people. Even in the most degraded situations, animals will often not blame or point out humans' failings. Some will, but it is rare. You may have to ask pointed, detailed questions about negative things you may be aware of to get them to zero in on abuse. They'll often just focus on what they like about their lives.
I remember a man who requested a consultation for his cat who admitted during the consultation that he was afraid his cat would mention what he did many years ago that now he is so ashamed of.
He didn’t have to worry. The cat focused on the questions he had about how to best take care of his feline friend now.
What did he admit to doing? He had thrown his cat in the swimming pool! While this sounds cruel, the man realized the craziness of his actions, asked his cat to forgive him, and changed his behavior toward his cat. The cat had long since forgiven him, and now they had a good relationship.
Current Abuse When animals are currently being abused as with your horse client, they may shut down and communicate very little about what is going on around them. Abused humans often do the same thing. Unless an animal communicator is present on the scene, since many consultations are done by phone, s/he may not know these things are even happening in communicating with the animal and human clients. Often what is picked up is just what is focused on by the human client and their questions.
When you appeared in person with the horse and woman, you could see and feel all that was there yourself. Even then, when communicated with, animals may just focus on what will help to alleviate their immediate pain, rather than how to change an abusive situation, which they have become accustomed to as normal. Only after the third visit did this horse open up to you to realize help was possible.
Mirror Awareness Animal and humans often come together in life to help each other evolve on their spiritual journeys. They may match each other in awareness and way of being with the effect of mirroring and teaching each other. Or animals may be in their human’s life to enlighten and lift them up out of their current state of being and have patience with their human’s flaws or lack of awareness.
Animals often have tremendous compassion for people and forgive many things that humans might hold against other people. They are often wise teachers and modelers of how to live life in a loving way.
Humans have it hard as a species in this world. Animals know that and reach out to support people, even when humans do ignorant, cruel things. We can all learn from that.
Humans Need Support A pyramid of species is often depicted with humans at the apex, modeled to indicate human superiority or advanced awareness and brain power. It actually shows how humans are dependent on the support of all other species and forms of life, without which humans could not live or evolve in this world. We need to acknowledge the support, tolerance, and understanding of other species or our lack of connection with the rest of Nature brings severe physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual imbalances.
Love animals, including humans, and have compassion for all beings and their struggles.
Teach humans understanding and how to remember their connection to the rest of life in a compassionate way, and our animal friends and all beings on Earth benefit.
