Nancy Crowe - All Creatures

I've found this to be true with many rescued horses. A small moment of peace can be a building block to a happier and healthier life.

This is Tuff, a 23-year-old quarter horse I work with regularly in my animal communication and Let Animals Lead® practice. He'd been scratching his itchy hind end against his stall door, popping the door loose at least once.

Please scratch on the post instead, his carers requested. I passed that along and got only a sigh, but for the next month I didn't hear about any more door busting from the humans.

One day I was at the other end of the barn and heard a rattling thunk, thunk, thunk. All I could see was Tuff's door bending into the aisle with each scratch.

I hurried over and asked Tuff to stop. He did, then proceeded to take a very splashy drink of water. (You know you're in the right line of work when getting dribbled on by a large mammal makes you laugh.)

Tuff's itch was treated and a staff member put a butt-high brush in his stall for those inevitable scratching needs. He was reportedly leaving his door alone. Then what did he do the next time I saw him? I'll tell you what I did - I stepped out of the way of the stall door bending into the aisle.

Maybe that was his way of telling me to cut the conversation and get on with the calming meditation. Next time I'll try that. Or I may have to teach Tuff the lyrics to “A Mighty Fortress is my Stall.” Stay tuned.

In my experience, there’s no right or wrong amount of time to wait before adopting again after you’ve lost a beloved animal. The challenge, I’ve found, is to respect yourself and your grief while being willing to be surprised.

Years ago I lost my much-loved Idgie, the sweet diva of a tiger cat who inspired my journey into animal communication and healing. The pain was, in fact, like the proverbial gut punch.

A few weeks afterward, I read about a horrific local animal cruelty case in which fireworks were tied to a kitten's tail. That kitten received treatment, foster care and a loving home, but something opened up within me. I realized how much I wanted to give another kitty a home. And Idgie had trained me so well.

At the city shelter, Kathy and I met several kittens, but none seemed especially interested in us. Maybe now wasn’t the time after all, I thought. Then the volunteer brought out one who was about to go to a satellite adoption center. The four-month-old black tortoiseshell kitten prowled around the adoption counselor's office, trying to figure out where she was and why. Then she came and sniffed both of us, accepting the pets we offered.

When I sensed the kitten was open to it, I picked her up. I commented on the gold streak between her eyes that seemed to stop and resume on top of her head.

"Doesn't it look like God came along with a paintbrush?" the volunteer said.

I held the kitten so that we were eye to eye. She reached out with one tiny black paw and patted my face. We'd been chosen.

Did the joy of welcoming Lucy erase the hurt of losing Idgie? No. Lucy succeeded Idgie, but did not replace her. One being cannot truly replace another, and there's no sidestepping grief if we are to love fully. While I continued to grieve for Idgie, my heart filled with gratitude for the love she had given me. That love enabled me to recognize the connection with Lucy, who needed a home as Idgie had.

A few takeaways, as long as you’ve read this far:

• Pay attention to your intuition. A lightness or sense of joy generally indicates a yes; a heavy, sad sensation a no or a not yet.
• Stay with your grief long enough, however long that is, for your heart to open to a new and unique animal companion.
• Remember the animal chooses, too; pay attention to the way a prospective new companion responds to you and how you feel.

Whenever you and your next animal companion find each other, you are both signing on for a beautiful, painful, and totally worthwhile adventure. You both deserve no less.

I can tell you horses are quick to pick up on tension between the humans in their environment, but this article will tell you (in plain English) about some science involved, too.

How Barn Drama Affects Horses Nobody likes barn drama, not even those who perpetuate it. All the blaming and shaming, pouting and shouting, icy silences, petty jealousies, and criticism couched as “advice.” Everyone picks up on the tension—owners, riders, trainers, veterinarians, farriers, and so on. But we often forget to...

Olive admits talking a good game about never getting treats, but this cat knows she is loved.

As an animal communicator, I sometimes get information about sore hips, tummy discomfort and more.

The animal’s human caretaker often tells me about any health issues going in, and I always want to make sure any potential medical reasons for behavioral changes have been addressed by a vet. Other times the animal himself will tell me, or show me through images or feelings, during a communication session.

The horse pictured, with whom I’d worked for a while, showed me some pain in his hips and along the left side. The next thing I knew he was backing up to the fence and asking me to place both hands on his hips. I did and began a Let Animals Lead® meditation to help him relax. After a while he began licking and chewing, then walked off to rejoin the herd.

I passed all of this along to his person and to the equine bodyworker who also worked regularly with him. After her session with him a day or two later, she sent me a diagram to show how she adjusted a misalignment on the left. The horse knew what he needed from each of us.

The codes of ethics I follow for both animal communication and Let Animals Lead® are clear about not dispensing medical advice or treatment. They’re also clear about showing up and doing what we CAN do.

On the other side of this sign is a bin full of toys. Stevie Wonder was not in the yard when I walked by, but I would happily have chucked a ball (even though I throw like a girl).

I am always touting the benefits of animal enrichment, not to mention community support, with clients. So this made my day. Kudos to Stevie Wonder for getting someone with thumbs to design and execute it!

Got an end in view … or several? The Let Animals Lead® stress relief modality I practice, which works through meditation, is not about “fixing” anything. There’s no stated goal.

Yet often animals will back up to me when their hindquarters are sore. A retired racehorse used to do this regularly (and quite regally). They know what they need. And sometimes, as in the photo, backs are turned. However animals choose to participate works for them, and that can be a game changer.

So even with no end in view, the right ends show up.

Relaxation helps the two-legged and four-legged alike feel and function better. That’s what Reiki, a Japanese stress relief modality, is all about. However, the method I practice, Let Animals Lead®, is different from what you’ll experience in human clinics and hospitals.

The hand positions I learned in my "people" Reiki classes don't apply, and not because of different anatomies. It’s because animals are much more sensitive to physical space and presence. Touch is unnecessary, even invasive, for them. A person can feel energy from the practitioner's hands, but a horse can feel energy from a person standing across a pasture.

When I began studying Reiki years ago, I used the hand positions with my dog Ellie. If she had a hot spot on her foot, I lightly held her foot or placed my hand near it. More often than not, she'd get up and leave. I now understand that was too much for her.

But when I sat quietly and meditated, and ditched any expectation about the "problem" or fixing it, Ellie was more likely to lie down nearby. (She was also more likely to quit licking that hot spot.)

My teacher, Kathleen Prasad, had a similar experience with her dog. That's how she developed the Let Animals Lead® method. The animal is free to get up and move around, fall asleep, or decline to participate. Some do settle near me or nudge my hands ... it's always up to them.

Animals understand energy better than we do. A horse senses the presence of a predator in the distance. A cat curls up next to someone who is sick. The kids' new puppy stays away from Mom because he's the only one in the house who knows how angry she is.

Just don't ask that puppy to stay still for the practitioner. He doesn't have to ... and Mom is welcome to join in.

I’m a stickler about permission, both from the animals I work with and their people.

An animal is free, at any time, to choose not to communicate with me or participate in a Let Animals Lead® meditation session. We can try again another time (sometimes a few minutes is all it takes) or I can issue a refund.

Regardless of who pays, I must have permission of the animal's owner for an animal communication or meditation session. By owner (or guardian) I mean the person who is legally responsible for the animal, whether that is an individual or an organization such as a shelter, rescue or nonprofit.

Having permission from the person who is legally responsible for the animal:

• Keeps everything above board, which naturally brings better outcomes.

• Respects boundaries. Put another way: Say you have a child, or an adult for whom you are legally responsible. Barring an emergency, you would not want someone to arrange a counseling session or alternative treatment for that person without your permission.

• Is in keeping with the codes of ethics I follow for animal communicators and Let Animals Lead® practitioners.

What if there's an animal you want to support with animal communication or Let Animals Lead® and they're not technically yours?

Talk with the animal's person or rescue director and share a link to my website; they are welcome to contact me with questions. You could offer an animal communication session as a gift to support the animal (and them). If the answer is yes, I am honored to help. If the answer is no, that is absolutely fine.

Maintaining trust lets us all speak, and most importantly listen, more freely.