Animals Speak!

Animals Speak! About Companionship

R-E-S-P-E-C-T, Tell You What It Means To Animals!

Respect: n. 1. To feel or show esteem for, to honor. 2. To show consideration for, avoid violation of; treat with deference.

A man named Joe once called me about his dog Winston who, it turned out, was a highly trained obedience competition dog with whom the man had high hopes of winning in the obedience ring. His problem was that Winston wouldn't work for him. "What," he wanted to know, "was wrong with this dog?" He was trained, after all, he should perform!

Winston was very forthcoming with his answer. "I don't like this guy's attitude," he told me. "He expects me to jump when he says jump and, frankly, I don't see why I should."

Even though we live with animals and hear people talk about their pets as "best friends," or "practically human," we also often get sidetracked by the fact that animals have such different physical shapes from ours. We forget that while there are differences between humans and animals, there really are many more similarities. Animals have feelings, too, and the sooner we can step back and see them as individuals, the better our relationships with them will be.

Lack of respect and consideration was at the root of the problem between Winston and Joe. Winston was a competitive being who wanted to be in a partnership but not exhibited as a puppet. When I told my client this, he immediately changed his approach. He "respected'" an individual with this kind of attitude and, in fact, was really like that himself. As soon as he began treating Winston as an equal in performance situations, Winston responded accordingly. Now they are a winning combination.

Another similar story involves a friend of mine and her Bloodhound. This time the working relationship was a good one, but the dog actually had been responsible for part of the training.

There is an exercise called "attention" where the dog is supposed to follow, with her body position, wherever the person's eyes go. For example, if the handler looks right, the dog moves into position so she can sit and see the eyes. If the person now looks back to the left, the dog moves backwards, always watching the handler's eyes. This particular dog caught on quickly and thought it was a fun game (it's certainly impressive to watch!) One day, during the game, the handler got distracted and looked away. Immediately she was "corrected" by a loud bark as the dog chastised her for breaking training! The handler learned quickly, too, and now she concentrates on the game until it's over! Mutual respect, mutual training.

I am not suggesting that we treat our animal companions as furry children. Instead, consideration for the emotional and intellectual needs of animals as individuals should be our goal. When we approach all animals, wild or domestic, with respect as the cornerstone, we all benefit from the results.

What telepathy is and what it isn't

The dictionary definition of telepathy is the "transfer of pictures, thoughts, and feelings using mental energy". It's that simple . . . energy from the sender is converted sometimes into pictures or sounds or smells or thoughts or emotions in the receiver. The entire range of the senses can be used and the intensity depends on the strengths of both the sender and receiver.

For example, dogs have an extraordinary sense of smell. Most dogs will be able to send incredibly explicit olfactory images. People, as a species, are extremely deficient in this sense, but will have their understanding of smells somewhat enhanced by what is being transferred by the dog. On the other hand, humans as a species are generally good visually. Some people will receive very vivid pictures from other beings. For some they come like snapshots, for others it might actually be like watching TV in your head. There's still a range depending on individual strengths.

It is important to realize that communication through telepathy is only a part of the way animals communicate. Mental communication doesn't replace body language, which is very highly developed in some species.

Vocalizations are an important part of communication as well. A warning bark, a whine, or a yip, all convey different messages as do a meow, yowl, or hiss. The more communication cues available to two individuals, the more complete the communication.

Another common misconception is that through telepathy we can "make" an animal do something. An animal who won't respond to an English word she knows (such as asking a dog to "come" to you) is not necessarily more likely to come just because you are talking in her "native" language.

However, you do make the request that much clearer to the animal when you add the telepathy factor! With understanding might come compliance.

The advantages of being able to have two way conversations with animals are numerous. The reason most of us share our lives with animals is for companionship; telepathic communication enhances companionship with all beings. Being able to pinpoint health concerns is an extremely good reason for learning this skill, as is the ability to resolve behavioral differences of opinion. Telepathy can clarify confusion in training situations, making the learning of "house manners" a breeze and infusing exhilaration into formal or competitive training situations. The area of pre-grief counseling and grief counseling for animals and humans are other times when telepathic communication excels as well. These topics will all be covered in later chapters in detail.

Hazel & Me

One of the things I discovered once I began exploring the world of interspecies telepathic communication was that many animals have a terrific sense of humor. Some animals are total hams; living life with a gleeful bound a smile and a will to make you laugh. Anyone can recognize the fun-loving attitude of these animals, but there are many others with a dry or droll sense of humor, which is not obvious to most people. Take the story of my friend Hazel, a fawn colored Great Dane.

I was driving one of my own dogs, Libby, to the home of her professional handler. She was going off with him on a circuit to Oklahoma in