As an Animal Communicator I’ve been able to transform my relationships with our own dogs.

The boy we have now, Teddy, came to us as a rescue. He had been locked in a garage for a year, neglected to the point where, somewhere along the way, he got pneumonia and it was left untreated for months. So he was very sick when we got him.

The first night we had him home I kept looking at him and I knew I had sat in a room with him before.  I was sure he must be the reincarnation of one of our previous Bernese Mountain Dogs. I had to wait several weeks to get confirmation of what I suspected.

Not only was Teddy unused to any communication with humans but he was very uncommunicative telepathically when I tried to speak with him. Of course, I kept at it, trying to help him to be open to communicating with me once he was recovering from his illness. Apart from the mystery of who he had been previously, I wanted to be able to find out what he needed from us to help him recover.

So who is he really?

When he did decide to respond he confirmed what I thought, that last time he was with us he was called Sunny.  This is Sunny.

As Teddy communicated more he seemed to just say “I don’t know” to almost anything I asked him!!

How do you feel today Teddy? – “I don’t know”

What do you want for dinner? – “I don’t know”

Is your elbow painful? – “I don’t know”

How’s your breathing today? – “I don’t know”

This went on for quite some time!

Although he did start to answer some questions, especially the ones about what he wanted for dinner LOL! It helped him too when we took him to the pet shop and stood in front of the treats and asked him what he wanted. At first he would nudge the ones he wanted, but gradually he would name them and now, when I’m there without him, I can connect and ask him what he wants me to pick up for him.

Teddy has many health issues and he’s still reluctant to talk about them, so I generally body scan him so I can feel what he feels.  This allows an animal to let me feel in my body what they feel in theirs.

One interesting thing started to happen once the communication between us began to flow more. He started lying! For example:

Why did you get angry with that dog at the beach? – “It attacked me” (the dog did NOT attack Teddy)

Did you eat your dinner? – “Yes” (he hadn’t. He had been off his food for a while)

He still does lie but not as often as he did. I’m trying to help him to understand that it’s better for him and for us if he tells the truth. Experience as an animal communicator has helped me to recognise lying, thankfully!

As time has gone on Teddy has begun to be more and more relaxed about communicating, so much so that he is a teacher when I put on my Animal Communication workshop. Teddy is so good at this now that he can answer questions for ten people at a time! If you would like to learn from Teddy click here for information about the workshop.

Our day to day communications are just as natural now for Teddy as they are for me.

He gets to choose what he has for breakfast and dinner. When I need him to do something I let him know and he generally does as I ask without me opening my mouth. He still doesn’t initiate conversations, but that will probably come in time. Well, I say he doesn’t. What he does is stand or lie in front of me and stare at me. When I ask what he wants, then he’ll tell me. He still prefers to use body language to get my attention. Maybe that’s because I’m not paying enough attention until he does, but I suspect it’s because he still doesn’t feel entirely comfortable with talking without being asked.

I asked Teddy to say how he feels about us communicating

Do you realise that not every dog can tell their family what they need or want? – “Yes I do”

Do you like that we can do this? – “It helps”

With what? – “I get what I want”

That’s true. Do you think you might start conversations with me in the future? – “I already do”

I mean by saying something in my head – “I already do”

When you stare at me? – “Yes. That’s saying something isn’t it?”

Teddy reminding me that everything they do is a form of communication

Like every animal I speak with, whether they be horses, birds, reptiles or anybody else, Teddy is teaching me and with this brief exchange reminds me of what I always tell my students. Communication comes in many ways. Words, voices, images, feelings, it can even be just a ‘knowing’. So he is quite right. When he stares at me that is a perfectly valid communication.

Animals are not like us. They don’t feel the need to endlessly chatter and Teddy is no exception. He’s only 3 ½ years old, and I imagine that as he matures he will feel more confident in expressing himself openly. It’s a work in progress, but then isn’t that what all relationships are?