Tag pet behavior

Three benefits of working with an animal communicator

Nancy Crowe
Are you listening to your animal friend
Are you listening? Working with an animal communicator lets your animal friend know that you are. (Image by Päivi Nietosvaara from Pixabay) 

You want to solve a puzzling behavioral problem with your dog. You want to help your cat through your upcoming move or divorce. You want to know what your horse needs from you as the end of his life approaches. Any of these situations, and countless others, may have you wondering if an animal communicator could help you sort it out.

Maybe you have doubts about animal communication. That’s OK. Maybe you’re not sure where to start — also OK. For now, consider three ways working with an animal communicator could help you and your animal friend find peace of mind.

1. Animals love that you’re listening.

In most if not all of the animal communication sessions I do, the animal appreciates being heard. This is especially true of rescued animals who have had little or no say in what happens to them. If they’ve experienced trauma, the notion that they have a choice about anything (including whether to communicate with me) may be new. Animal communication can therefore open new avenues of trust and partnership.

Working with an animal communicator can also help your animal hear you. Anyone who has ever had a human child, or been one, knows that what you hear from someone besides your primary caregiver sometimes sinks in more readily.

Of course you have been trying to listen to and help your animal. You’re probably doing better than you think. But there are so many of us humans on this planet, and we all have different skills and perspectives. We’ll all do better if we help each other out.

2. You get another set of eyes.

Years ago, I tied myself in knots trying to help my cat Idgie with a variety of health problems and changes. Even though I’d begun studying and working in animal communication myself, I knew I needed another perspective.

So I booked a session with my animal communication teacher, who helped me see aspects of the situation I had not. She also suggested action steps to help both Idgie and myself. That, along with continued veterinary care, helped get us on the right track.

An animal communicator brings a fresh perspective to your situation. Even if I’ve worked with an animal and/or family before, every session brings something new.

An animal communicator can be part of your pet’s team: you, your family, your pet sitter, your vet, your trainer, the folks at the specialty pet food store, the farrier, the groomer, the bodyworker, and more. I’m blessed to know a number of animal professionals in northeast Indiana to whom I can refer clients and ask questions.

3. Your relationships will improve.

Listening opens doors to a closer and happier relationship between you and your animal friend, but the benefit doesn’t stop there.

That’s because whatever you and your animal are facing almost certainly affects others, from your spouse to your horse’s trainer to the neighbor who mentioned your cat crying while you’re at work. As disconnected and polarized as we humans are, we live in a connected universe. Peace of mind in one arena translates to another. Who couldn’t use a little more of that these days?

To learn more about how animal communication and Reiki can help your animal friend — and you — visit me at www.njcrowe.com.

Routines and rituals add spice to life

Nancy Crowe

After being fed at 4 p.m. sharp (or preferably before), Lucy the black tortie settles into a chair to supervise my yoga practice. If I have the nerve to still be sitting in said chair, she sits and looks at me. Time to get moving.

Around 8:30, I can count on our younger cat to pace around pointedly until I follow her to the room where her bowls and litter box are kept. I give her a bedtime snack of three or four kibbles. We say our prayers and goodnight.

Our shepherd mix, whose anxiety casts the world as predictably unpredictable, knows she gets a dental treat at 7 p.m. If it’s not forthcoming by, say, 6:55, she will follow me around, panting, until she gets it.

Most of our animal friends expect certain things to happen at certain times with certain humans — comings, goings, feeding, walks, turnout, rides, bedtime. (Some animals I work with know when it’s time for my Reiki rounds, too!) Departures may be tolerated, but not especially welcomed.

According to this Brain Pickings article, routine contains everyday chaos while ritual imbues the mundane with the magical. With animals, I think those distinctions blur. Rescues in particular find magic in the most basic daily happenings. Over the last 15 months, they’ve dealt with disrupted routines along with us. Perhaps they’ve found magic in helping us develop new ways to contain our chaos.

Variety may be the spice of life, but routines and rituals add different spices — cinnamon, perhaps, or turmeric — to sustain us in an unsteady world. Like a good stretch, or bedtime prayers and purrs, they affirm that God is good and life, even in some small way, still makes sense.

Up against a wall with your animal?

Nancy Crowe
Image by sianbuckler from Pixabay

“I get it. But I don’t like it.”

As an animal communicator, I occasionally hear or sense this from our four-legged and other friends.

Usually it’s because their human has asked me to help them understand an upcoming move, addition to the family, or other change. Or maybe he or she has hired me to help sort out a behavioral issue.

The animal understands the situation. He may understand what the human wants. But you’re not seeing the change you hoped for.

“I get it. But I don’t like it.”

So the animal keeps nipping, scorning the litter box, or refusing to load. The problem continues after the vet visit, the session with me, your efforts to help, or all of the above. What on earth can you do?

First of all, understand that I can make your wishes known to your animal, but there is no guarantee she will comply. Compliance isn’t the point anyway.

So back to the “what can you do” part:

Let it be. You want to do something — anything — to resolve this problem yesterday, but remember you’ve already planted the seeds for something better.

Some situations resolve themselves in ways understood only by the animal. The cat decides the new baby isn’t a hairless monster. The horse loads when another person tries. The dog feels better and eats the special diet more readily.

You may choose to do something else tomorrow. Today, let go and see what happens. The animal will feel the change in your energy.

Give the animal a choice. Offer an additional litter box. Try getting the donkey onto the trailer tomorrow rather than force him today. If your dog doesn’t want to be around your boyfriend, let her stay where she feels safe.

Letting the animal choose boosts her confidence in herself and in you. That can only improve your relationship and the situation.

Savor (and reward) the small victories. The new cat and the current cat come within three feet of each other without hissing. The dog stops barking the first time he’s asked. This is great! Pony up (so to speak) with praise, a treat, or a play session

Ask for more help. Your animal may be telling you she needs (if you’ll pardon a tired old job rejection phrase) to move in a different direction. If you are still struggling, I will do my best to refer you to a trainer, organization, business, veterinarian, another practitioner or communicator, or someone else through trusted sources. Or you can ask a trusted friend for referrals. It does take a village.

Similarly, don’t hesitate to (diplomatically) let your veterinarian know that you need some other ideas. He or she is on your side, and on your animal’s side.

Also remember every state has veterinary schools — Purdue, here in Indiana — whose mission it is to help people help animals.

There are ways to bridge the gap between understanding and integrating. As with us humans, it may take patience, creativity, and additional support.