What your Pets Need From You – Their Perspective (Part I of II)

Over the years, doing thousands of animal communication readings, I've made note of some of the more common and frequent requests that dogs, cats, and sometimes horses ask of their humans. I wish to share some of these with you so you can improve the relationship that you have with your animals. This is Part I of their needs.  Stay tuned for next week to see Part II of what they need.  

Quality Time

Many animals request additional quality time with their humans. Often, human’s lives get busy and we get comfortable with the fact that our animals are always going to be there when we get home or when we wake up. But that's not always the case. I think the animals have a sense of the big picture of life and how to live it. A lot of animals become frustrated with their humans because of all the distractions and worry and stress that humans seemed to thrive on.

So, spending quality time with your animals is one thing that they really would like more of. If you've had your animal in your life for a while you probably know their favorite things whether it's snuggling on the couch or taking long walks in nature or playing their favorite game. If you don't know what your animal really gets excited about, spend some time observing them, sitting with them, and reflecting on when you see them at their happiest.  And yes, sometimes food is a love language for animals so maybe make them a special treat to give them on a limited basis but don't overdo it for health reasons.

I hear it over and over that animals want that extra attention. You may have experienced this with your horse, dog, or cat. They walk up to you and give you that side look with a question glance and you just know did they want your hands to get to work to pet them.  Some animals are subtle and others are more obvious with their requests for attention.

Be aware if you don't know if your animal prefers scratches and pets, take the time to reflect and observe them and see how they respond when you do go to scratch them. Physical touch is not the love language of all animals so honor what your own animal desires from you.

Nutrition

Another thing that the animals talk about with me so often are food choices. Many of the animals do have taste buds and taste preferences. You can see this when they devour the food or they reject the food that you're offering them.

A lot of the animals want to eat a variety of things and they want to eat good quality food. Unfortunately, some dogs and cats and horses who have been fed a poor diet that is highly processed, become accustomed to it and addicted to it because of the artificial flavorings that are sprayed on the food. Yes, flavorings are sprayed on the food, just like French fries from fast food restaurants have artificial sprays on them.  If your animal has frequent diarrhea, vomiting, autoimmune issues, or other long-term illnesses, I personally suggest non processed food. Feeding our animals whole foods that are human grade foods is giving them the best possible chance of staying healthy for the long term.

A cat recently told me that they didn't really like the food they were given. They had tried to ask their human for something different to eat but the human didn't understand. This cat licked only the juices from the foods that she was offered and they were not high quality foods. She was diagnosed with a fatal disease . It's a disease that we see more incidences of when animals are fed highly processed foods, unfortunately.

Comfort

Comfort is one of the other things that the animals talk about desiring.  Many animals want to feel physically comfortable in their home but also emotionally comfortable. The animals are sensitive to the energies, the thoughts, and the vibrations that their humans carry around with them. I've had to counsel many dogs and cats who are very frustrated with their humans and their human’s inability to let go of worry and stress. A lot of times the animals and I commiserate about the hamster wheel that we humans tend to find ourselves on. I'm no different it happens with me too. But I do listen to my animals when they remind me, “Linda, you need to play more! Now let's play!”  Because play is stress relieving and play allows us to be more childlike. I'm really grateful that I have my loving animals around me to remind me of these things.

When I talk about the emotional comfort of an animal I'm talking about whether you are so stressed out that they are staying at the opposite end of the room from you and won't approach you. Be aware of your energy and if your animals are avoiding you or if they're becoming physically ill around you, it may be a clear sign that you need to evaluate your stress and worry level and do something about it to relieve it.

Our domestic animals are living in the same environment as we are and a lot of times they pick up on our emotions. If you're feeling anxious about a new job or a new relationship or upcoming travel,  your animals are going to feel that anxiousness from you. So do what you can to avoid them acting out with anxious behaviors.  

If you want to improve the relationship you have with your animals or you're challenged with a health crisis or a behavior issue I would love to help you and your animal with an animal communication reading.