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"There's only one thing we're still dealing with," Remmy's owner mentioned. "He paws terribly when standing in cross-ties." Immediately, I had a vision of Remmy in the barn aisle, held by cross ties – two ropes attached to the walls, clipped to his halter. I responded, "No wonder he's upset when stuck in cross-ties for two hours." At the same time, Remmy's owner added, "I knew he had been left in...

 I was doing something mundane, like the dishes, when I felt a proverbial tap on my left shoulder. With it, a horse I knew, Topaz, came into my mind.  "What about the rib?" he asked me. Topaz and his person had been on the phone with me a week prior. Topaz was worried about going into the wash stall. When I tuned in to him, he told me, "Slippery, slippery!" Due to an old injury, he was concerned a...

The dog wanted to show me his favorite place: I saw a lake, nature, and pine trees. The dog expressed how much he loved the scent of pine needles.  The dog's person was not impressed. He said, "I don't know what the dog was talking about." Next, the man asked me what his dog's favorite spot in the house was. I saw the dog in the bedroom, covered by something that made the space dark and cozy.  May...

Are you breathing with our therapy horses? Breathing? You might think right now. We don't have time for that. The parents will complain if the student is not on horseback within the first five minutes.  I get it.  Twenty-five years ago, I ran a traditional program: We quickly got the rider on the horse to maximize the time on horseback. I changed the program when I realized that horses were often...

It's important to understand that animals, just like humans, may not necessarily like each other. We don't always get along with every person we meet, even if we share the same workplace, school, or family. This is also true for horses, who are often brought together in small spaces without much choice. Each horse has its own history, experiences, and needs that must be met in a domestic setting....

As pet owners, we face various challenges and questions about our furry friends. Some of these questions may include when to take our dogs to the vet for diarrhea, what causes watery poop in horses, and how to deal with the bellies of anxious or sensitive animals. We all have seen the headlines on social media:  :: Diarrhea can be particularly dangerous for puppies, elderly dogs, and immunocomprom...

Do you deeply care about your animal and their well-being? Do you constantly check the weather, scour for life-saving supplements, research the perfect blanket, or only plan vacations when the right house sitter is available? I understand where you're coming from. Been there, done it. However, there is another side to this story. We must accept that we are not always in control of other beings' jo...

How do you facilitate a workplace conflict when the clients are equines? Two herd members, Dutch and Tango, were unhappy about the donkey's presence in their program. They considered him a distraction from their real work. However, Pedro, the donkey, felt he could serve as a greeter, easing people into the program. When I suggested assigning Pedro as a purposeful herd member to greet people and cr...

I wondered why I was so tight. I could feel every muscle in my body pulling in one direction or another. When I walked, my Achilles felt tight; when I sat, my hip flexors felt tight; when I turned my head, my neck felt tight. Was this what it meant to get old? Then I felt Scout's wet nose touching my hand. Scout, our dog, had been lying on the other end of the sofa but had now crept along to engag...

  See the visual I used as the icon for this podcast episode? Take a look at it. You see a woman taking a walk with her animals. While they are all on the same path, seeing the same things, the woman is distracted by her thoughts instead of being in the moment, experiencing nature and the company of the animals. The woman is physically there but not present.  It is an excellent reminder that you m...

My pendulum is an extension of me. It is my direct line to the Universal knowledge available to me. By using my pendulum, I can get quick yes and no answers from an animal.  Do you want a pet sitter? Yes? No? Stay at the kennel? Yes? No?  Are you anxious because of the new puppy? Yes? No? Do you want a flower essence to help your anxiety? Yes? No? See what I mean?  Just for all those reasons it is...

Five days after the dog's passing, we had a phone call. During the call, the dog helped us understand death and dying in new ways. As we talked about The Tibetan Terrier's transition out of his body back to full consciousness, we wondered how much it had mattered to him that his people were present during the transition. I will share his answer from my notes during that call. I wrote it down verba...

I don't know about you, but every time one of my animals has to go to the vet. I want to make sure that the experience is a good one. And so, over the years, I have tried to help my animals by preparing them for vet visits, and as you can imagine, I do it by telling them what's about to come now. A recent story sent to me by one of my clients made me realize it is essential to prepare not just our...

A year ago today, my life changed. It was the morning after Christmas. Cup of coffee in hand, I looked out the window and saw our three horses standing by a big round bale in the field. I exhaled because that is what I do when I see everyone standing and content.  Something seemed weird, though. My light grey mare Shana had one of her hindlegs cocked, meaning she took all the weight off that leg,...

Your animal can help attract the right people to come into your life. Before we headed into the city, I sat down with Maisie, the Frenchie, and said, "OK, we're heading out. Please help us meet the right people for our purpose and mission."  As we headed up the elevator of the apartment building in Tribeca, I noticed a man on my right leaning against the elevator wall. He wore a great leather jack...

As a relationship coach for animals and their people, I am about improving or fine-tuning your relationship with your animal. If you have communication issues, I can help.  If you want to know what your animal thinks, I can help. If your animal is sick, lame, or despondent, I can help determine what is happening and provide a prescription or plan.   Now, the stakes are usually higher when the anim...

There is no need to wait another second to tell you another secret to communicating with animals successfully. Ask for what you need. It is so simple and effective … it airs on ridiculous that we don't use it ALL THE TIME!   Ask for what you need! When you express what you need, the chances of getting what you need increase tremendously. By verbally asking for what you need, you set a clear intent...

Tune in to this episode to see animal manifesters at work. This horse is a master manifester. He shifted the outcome once he knew what he could be destined for. In our phone call, the humans were able to provide him with the big picture and plan of what his life could look like. Animals don't witness themselves; they don't usually see the bird's eye view on their own. But when we explained it, he...

Mares are incredibly smart, loyal, and good for you if you like a partner with ideas and suggestions. I remember someone referring to Shana, saying, "She is too smart for her own good." To which I said, am I smart enough for her? A mare will always want to teach you something. And mares remind us every day how clever, loyal, and strong they are. A great mirror for us to look at. 🙂There is so much...

There is one behavioral pattern, a quirky one, that annoyed me about our dog Scout: staring up at my plate the moment I want to dive into dinner.  Then, the other night, Scout told me why he behaved that way.  You might think it is simply about begging. It isn't. Listen in as Scout helps me get the most out of our relationship and gives you a tip on communicating successfully with your animals.  ...

Teach your puppy what you want. So often, we try to teach our animals what we don't want. Don't jump on the sofa, don't jump up on people, don't surf the counter, don't bark. Don't, don't, don't … Don't is not a word that translates into a picture. All your dog sees is dogs on sofas, dogs counter surfing, and dogs barking.  Instead, acknowledge the things your puppy does right and create a templat...

Author David Brooks, a journalist, talks about how he often leaves a party or some gathering to realize that nobody ever asked him a single question. He estimates that only 30 percent of the people in the world are good question-askers.  Many animals feel that way, too. They want to be asked questions so they can express themselves. Hence my tagline: animals just like us want to be seen and heard....

When horse people talk about being the horse's leader, I joke that a horse lives 22 hours without us, and in the two hours we see the horse, we expect it to hand over the power to us? Distracted pea brains like us? You have seen the visual I use to make the point: a person walking next to animals with a thought bubble above the head, mind full.  For a horse to accept us as a leader like another ho...

Spraying, peeing, pooping out of the box? There is a reason for it. Any unexpected or undesired behavior from your animal is a cry for help. How do you prevent or change litterbox issues?  By having a chat.  I'll chat about it in this episode.  Show notes available here: https://www.mindful-connections.com/post/78-spraying-other-out-of-the-box-issues

Do you know those moments when it feels like life is running you instead of you running your life? When that happens, our animals often step in ... literally ... to help us.   One night, Shana, my mare, took me aside. I was mucking the run-in shed, chop-chop-chop, when Shana stepped between me and the pitchfork. She brought her face close to my chest, lifted her head high, and then moved her head...