Pets are Talking

Bonus Reading of the Week: Phil and Aroone talk Asses

Aroone

Phil and Elyse

Horse humor is like the humor of 6th grade boys. 

I asked Aroone why he thought Phil was so funny. 

He told me this story. 

One day, Phil saw a lady walk by their field. 

He turned to Aroone and said, "Look at her ass." She was apparently a wee bit plump. 

Aroone said, "What ass? She's doesn't have an ass with her." 

Phil said, "Not her Ass! Her ass. Her butt!" 

This cracked Aroone up. He laughed at this, at the idea that a gluteus maximus could be called an Ass. 

From that point forward, whenever either of them said the word "Ass", the other one would crack up at the inside joke. They could spend a whole afternoon with this. 

When I told their owner, Elyse about this, she said she was now going to spend an additional 20 minutes on the elliptical trainer each morning, to make sure he horses weren't snickering about her. 

Aroone and his nemesis, Tucker

This is Aroone: 

Aroone lives in a pasture in New Jersey, with his friends, Willz and Phil and his nemesis, Tucker. 

Tucker is the pasture nerd. 

I asked Aroone about Tucker, because Aroone has a tendency to lunge out and bite Tucker as he's walking by his stall.  This little exchange cracked me up:

Bridget: You know Tucker?

Aroone: Yes. TUCKER has boundary issues (shows Tucker getting in Aroone’s way, pushing his rump into him) and he SMELLS!

Bridget: So you’re not a fan?

Aroone: No, not a fan of Tucker.

Bridget: Is it okay sharing a field with him?

Aroone: Sometimes it’s okay, but other times he says things that are really stupid.

Bridget: Like what?

Aroone: One time, we saw a tractor, and Willz and I were talking about it, and Tucker said that horses used to do what tractors do. HORSES can’t do what tractors do!

Bridget: I think he meant that horses used to pull the plow.

Aroone: I don’t think that’s what he meant.

Ah, Aroone, you are priceless. 

When I asked Aroone not to bite Tucker, he said "It's my right as a horse!" His mom has taken to calling him a "horse activist". She's going to make him some protest signs. 

I'm talking with Tucker this week. Maybe we can work on those boundary issues.  

What my animal clients see-

This morning, I had a lovely conversation with this fellow, a horse named Willz. 

After I greeted him, he said, "Those are some nice flowers." I have a bouquet of white mock orange on my desk. 

I said, "Thanks! Wait, you can see them?"

He said, "I can see them and smell them!" 

I asked, "Can you see me?"

He said, "Of course."

I said, "What do you I look like to you?"

Willz said, "You are making a funny face!"  Sometimes, when I concentrate, I squish my eyebrows together, and squinch my nose up.

I said "I am, huh?"

Willz said, "You look nice and soft. Do you ride?"

"Yes, I do ride, though I think I'm much bigger than your owner."

"I'd let you ride me," Willz said.

"I'd be honored!" I said. 

"That's why I told you, and that's why I'd let you." Willz said. 

I don't know why, in all my conversations, it never occurred to me to ask my pet clients what they could see. I often ask them how they are feeling, but what they are seeing, it just never occurred to me. It makes sense that they are experiencing our conversations in a multi-sensate way. 

It is a happy discovery! 

Olive joins a herd...

Today, Olive and I went to the pasture to see Ed. Olive has no fear of the horses, and they like her too. They have been Olive's friend since early April. 

The four horses in the field have always been sweet to dogs. They sometimes take Olive's ball away to make sure it's not an apple. Olive wanders amongst them as easy as a 6 hand high  mare.  

Today, there was a new palomino in the pasture (which is about 5 acres wide). She kept herself apart from the rest of the herd. I'm sure Ed chased her for most of the day. 

After a round of apples, I saved a chunk for the palomino. As I approached her, Olive did too. The mare turned on Olive and pinned her ears, snaking her head. Olive started to run away to avoid those hooves. 

Bailey, Ed's good friend, ran up to Olive and stood between her and the mare. Ed flanked her on the other side and Mick stood behind her.  Buddy ran up to the new horse and kicked at her. The palomino turned tail and ran. 

Bailey reached down and sniffed Olive to make sure she was okay. Olive skipped up to me, perfectly fine, not even worried, and certainly not surprised that her friends came to her rescue. Our herd followed us to the gate. 

Olive will not be playing in the pasture until we can be reassured that the palomino is okay with dogs. That mare probably had a really hard day. 

Reading of the Week: Jay

Jay's owner, Emily, wanted to know if Jay was interested in letting her ride him. She's had him since he was a gangly 17-month-old gelding. Now he's 20.



Here's what Emily says about Jay's life with her:

We've competed in Halter,Showmanship, Western Pleasure, Huntseat Pleasure, Team Penning, Barrels, Extreme Equestrian Race and Competitive Trail Riding.He was also the mascot for my high school, my senior year. We have trained for Roping, Reining, Dressage and Hunter Over Fences. We have ridden miles upon miles of trails and parades,pushed cattle and ran on the beach. He has seen numerous boarding stables, boyfriends and lesson students and has been a part of my own boys' childhood.

I recently learned that the average horse goes through 12 owners during their lifetimes. It's such a good feeling to know a horse who found his forever home as a youngster.

I asked Jay what he thought about being ridden again. He said he would love it if Emily saddled up and rode him again. Then he gave me a lecture on the importance of good posture. He said that he hoped that Emily would ride with a straight, but relaxed back. He showed me a picture of her sitting on his back, and him turning his head and looking up at her. He's saying "Are you a bag of groceries? No? Don't sit like one!"

He sounded like a jolly grandpa. When I told Emily about our conversation, she said that he had been a schooling horse for years. She was concerned that maybe he didn't enjoy his job.  

I went back to ask him about being a school horse and whether he likes to teach kids.He said he loves to teach kids to be good riders. It's what he lives for.

Emily said "Jay is the best lesson horse about that kind of stuff because when the kids sit right and ask right-he does what ever he's supposed to!" 

Jay has a home with Emily for the rest of his life, whether folks ride him or no. 

Reading of the Week: Shu-Shu

It's important for you to know that all of us have the ability to talk with animals and hear them. Each and every one of us can do it.

Many of us lost the ability to talk with animals as we grew up. Society doesn't often have a place for intuition. The good news is that it is always there for us to pick up and use.

I recieved an email this week that I thought I'd share with you. It's from Judith, who used to own a horse named Shu-Shu.

Dear Bridget, 

I heard you on KBOO this morning and felt compelled to share an experience I had a few weeks ago.  

In Margrit Coates' book `Horses Talking' I tried an exercise designed to put one in touch with what she calls the Universal Horse.  

But I had difficulty imagining a horse I had never seen before, instead my mare Shu-Shu appeared, the picture of health and grazing in a beautiful golden field.  

Shu was a spirited kind TB/Arab mare I was forced to part with way back in 1986 (due to severe financial difficulties), and the day I watched her being trailered away was the saddest of my life.  I could have visited Shu in her new home, but I couldn't make myself do it.  So all these years I have grieved and felt guilty, never knowing if she was well cared for.  

During the exercise and through a flood of tears, I asked for and received forgiveness from Shu, and afterwards I found the courage to try and find out what indeed had happened to her.  

Amazingly, after all these years, I was able to track down the man who took her that day (someone my vet at the time had recommended), and he told me she had a long happy life on his ranch in Colorado and is buried there next to her best buddy Wylie.  Since then, I sense that Shu's spirit accompanies me on my daily walks and, although I feel strange doing so, I have silent conversation with her.  

What mystifies me lately is that she is often accompanied by a foal who looks just like her.    

- Judith 

Later, Judith wrote to tell me that she remembered that Shu-Shu had a foal when she was younger, before Judith owned her. Perhaps this is the foal that follows her now. 

Also, Shu-Shu got her name because she was so friendly that people were always telling her to "Shoo". I love that. 

Today, I'd like you to recognize that you have this special gift too. It's waiting inside you. If you're not financially able to take my course (next one starts in May), then go to the library and check out Marta Williams' "Learning their Language". Or just sit and be quiet with your animal friend, and wait for their words to come. 

Training Tuesday- Using the right energy to catch your pet

In the book, The River Why, a man hooks a salmon with a 3 lb. test line. This is light enough to break with any resistance. He follows this salmon all night feeling the energy of the salmon through this tenuous filament. The salmon gets used to his presence, so used to it that he can enter the water and pick it up, should he choose. For the man, it is a spiritual experience.

I've had spiritual experiences with my horse, following him around the pasture, looping left and right as he turns and faces, and stops and decides whether I can come closer or whether I'm just fine right there. 

Mostly I can walk up, touch his shoulder, say hello, groom at liberty. This all changes when the farrier comes. Ed likes his farrier. She's kind and gentle and pretty quick. But Ed is not a fan of the pedicure. And thus, our game of catch is far more difficult.

The energy technique that I use to catch Ed is also good for catching any pet who needs grooming or medicine. 

The first thing that's important is this mindset: you have all day. If there is any outside chance that you will give up on catching your pet, you've already lost. A smart pet will wait you out. 

Secondly, Don't over-identify with your pet's potential discomfort. If you think, "Oh my poor baby needs to get a shot today!", your cat will not come out from under the bed. Instead, think, "This is a necessary part of life, and it's going to be okay." (Because it is and it is). 

Third, approach your pet in a way that doesn't signify you're a predator. Pet brains will always pick up on predator behavior. For horses, this means that I can't walk straight up to Ed. Instead, I walk in curves, s-shapes. I walk with gentle determination. 

I feel for Ed's energy. I get him just to the point where he's going to take off, and then I stop and back off. When his energy dies down, I take a step closer, and wait. Slowly, we get to the point where he's comfortable with me touching his shoulder, and neck. Then he's ready to be haltered. 

For cats and dogs, I usually walk into the room that they're in, shut the door and sit down. They approach and as soon as they get close enough, I pick them up. If they're not coming close to me, I settle in a few feet away. 

Again, it's important to keep a gentle and loving, but determined mindset. 

Also, do not hurry. Hurrying creates urgency which creates a sense of panic. Every healthy creature avoids panic. 

I know that as soon as I post this, someone is going to ask, "Hey, how does this work with my dog at the park?" 

Getting your dog to come to you at the park is a combination of last week's Tuesday Training and this one. Your dog has to know to pay attention to you first. Again, if there is any chance in your head that they will get to stay and play, they're staying and playing. :) 

I hope this helps you today! 

When the Honeymoon is Over

 God made animals cute for the same reason he made babies cute. There are times when that cuteness is a saving grace! 

To wit: the dog who recently ate all the payroll checks for her parent's business; the cat that likes to jump on counters, jumping right into a full pan of delicious frosted brownies; the horse who has learned how to untie any knot with her dextrous mouth, and thus, cannot be trusted to be tied anywhere. 

(These are all from pets I've met this week!)

We're attracted to pets for a specific reason. Animals comes into our lives to teach us something that we need to learn about ourselves and the world we live in. We, in turn, are here to enrich their lives. 

This circle of love and learning and enrichment seems possible, even easy when the new pet comes into our lives. They're cute! And they are ours! 

Pets are usually on their best behavior, until they get comfortable. For some, this is about 30 seconds. 

What happens when things start to skew chaotic and your new pet starts doing things that are not, in any sense of the word, appropriate? What do you do? 

Here's what you do. Get a cup of tea. Sit down. Remember back to when you first saw your new friend.

What was it that you saw in this creature that you wanted for yourself? What is it that this pet is here to teach you? 

See your pet as you first saw your pet. Because the pet you see now and the pet you saw then are the same pet. 

Don't assume that your decision was a mistake. A naughty pet is a chance for us to realign our lives. 

I would LOVE to hear about your naughty pet stories, and what you may have leaned from a naughty pet.Please Comment!

Right now, though, I am going to talk with my cat Leo, who has the awful habit of clearing my desk to find a place to sleep (ignoring the perfectly good wicker basket that I've put on my desk for that specific reason). 

Last Night's Teleconference

was a hoot! A hoot! I tells ya. 

Great stories and a great group of people listening in and speaking up. 

We were talking about what our pets know about abundance. How they create and experience it. We got expert advice from 2 horses, 2 cats, a dog and a chicken. 

After I shared my information, I did readings for several cats and dogs. 

If you'd like to see the webinar with audio, click Here.

Bert is back!

For my first teleconference, I thought I'd get some advice from my wise friend, Bert.  Bert passed away over a year ago, but he's been available, at any time, for questions and advice. He is a beautiful horse, an old soul, a good friend. 

If you are a frequent reader of my blog, you may know Bert's story. If you don't know Bert's story- Read this.  If you do know Bert's story, you understand how over the moon I am right now. 

When I tuned into Bert, my mouth started to hurt. It was a pain that I hadn't felt in many years. The pain of teeth coming through gums!

I asked Bert, "Bert, are you back?" 

and he said, "Yes!". 

I peppered him with questions. 

Where are you? You'll know soon enough.

What do you look like? You'll know me when you see me.

Are you black and white? (He told me before that he was going to be black and white and be born in Eastern Oregon).  I'm not telling. You should be better about surprises. You don't need to know everything. 

When can I see you? You'll see me soon. (He laughed at this.) 

On horses, Teeth erupt at 8 days, 8 weeks and 8 months. I love the symmetry of this. I've talked with Bert within the past 8 weeks and he wasn't born then, so I'm pretty sure he's running around somewhere on brand new colt (or filly!) legs.  

If you happen upon a wise little one, let me know. It may be Bert! (And really, I should be better about surprises).