Frequently asked questions about animal communication

How much to tell me

Shoupa

photo by Sue Shipley Meanor

I like to meet your animals knowing as little about them as possible. Just the animal’s name, sex, age, and a photo are all I need to begin the consultation. If you want to tell me a bit about your situation, that is fine, too - I will stop you if you start to tell me too much! After I meet your animal and have gained his trust, you’ll have plenty of opportunity to ask him specific questions and tell me your experience of the relationship.

When not to make an appointment

A general rule of thumb is that if you are feeling eager and curious to understand your animal’s perspective on something, animal communication is the best tool I know of. If, on the other hand, if all you really want me to do is order your animal to stop, or start, doing something (peeing, barking, biting, scratching, bucking, etc.), I should probably refer you to skilled positive-reinforcement animal trainer in your area. In other words, the miraculous behavior changes we so often see after communication sessions come from the animal and the person reaching a deep and mutual understanding on an issue, NOT from the animal acquiescing to the communicator’s telepathic "commands."

Healing sessions

An animal with severe emotional or physical issues may need something deeper than a telepathic “conversation.” For instance, if an abused dog you have freaks out every time someone knocks at the door, and I ask her why, she’ll probably just tell me that she’s terrified. You already know this. Usually I can no more “talk” her out of being terrified than I can reason a claustrophobic person out of her phobia. I can, however, offer her a healing session. This healing work happens at a much deeper level than ordinary animal communication, and can often bring relief and inspire physical or emotional healing where nothing else helps. If you’re not sure which type of session your animal would benefit most from, do ask. See Healing Sessions for more detailed information.

How to send photos / what kind

I like to have a photo of the animal, but they are not essential. Please send only ONE (really), small resolution (less than 200 kb if possible) photo per animal, as I have an old-fashioned, rural dial-up internet connection. Either just the head or whole body is fine... I just like to see their faces! If possible, emailed photos seem to come through best if they are inserted in the body of the email or attached to the email inside a Microsoft Word document (my anitvirus software is very finicky about letting me open other sorts of attachments). Please send photos a few days before the session, since my computer is not in my consultation room, and I need to print them out ahead of time. If possible, I will send an email reply confirming that they’ve come through.

How many animals

Communicating with one animal can often easily fill a whole 50 minute session. But we can work with as many as 5 in one session, if you prefer. It simply depends on the depth of the information you want to receive from each.

Does the animal need to be with you

No. The animals can be anywhere. However, if an animal is under anaesthetic or under a huge amount of stress it may be hard for me to communicate with him. Sometimes it is fun to be with an animal during a session. About 40% of the time clients report that their animal’s behavior changes while I work with them. Some dogs pick up their heads and look around, or run around barking. Cats sometimes will look up, as if puzzled. Horses sometimes will sigh, or lick and chew as they relax. The other 60% of the time, there is no visible change in the animal’s behavior or body language.

Number to call for a session

You call me at the appointed time. Please use my (902) 962-3919 number rather than the (206) 340-4505. If you are in the US and it is expensive or difficult for you to call me (in Nova Scotia), see www.ohello.com for an easy and excellent phone card service - only 3.4 cents per minute. If you are in Canada, see www.ontariophonecards.ca for some excellent phone card options.
If you call and get my voice mail, it means I’m finishing up the previous session. I try VERY hard to finish on time, but rarely I get caught up in a difficult session or our watches are a few minutes different, and calls overlap. If this happens for your session, please just wait a minute or two, and try again. I’ll make sure you get your full 50 minutes. Please see www.timeanddate.com for the correct time and information about time zone differences, etc.

Can the session be recorded

Yes! Just let me know you’d like it recorded when we set up the appointment. I do charge $5 to cover my costs for recording sessions with Audio Acrobat. After the session I will email you a link so you can listen to the session or download it onto your computer.

How long is a session

A standard session lasts 50 minutes. If I’ve worked with your animals before and you only have a quick question or two, we can certainly schedule ½ hour or even 15 minute consults. If you have several animals (especially the initial session when I need to meet them each), we may need a longer time. But if you aren’t sure, scheduling a 50 minute session is typical.

My cancellation policy

If you need to cancel/reschedule your appointment, please call and give me as much notice as possible (I check my phone messages far more frequently than I check email). If you simply forget about our appointment, or choose not to use it, I strongly encourage you to pay me for the hour of my time I could have spent helping someone else with their animal.

Follow up after a session

I do try to follow up a few weeks after an animal communication session to find out what happens "on the ground." Sometimes, however, I get very busy and don’t get my follow-ups for a few months, if at all. If this happens, and you have some news to report, please do drop me a quick email. It is of course thrilling and inspiring to hear of the wonderful changes you see after a session with me... confirmation that my hard work and practice have paid off. But I also want and very much need to hear about the times where my advice DOESN’T work, or the animal changes its behavior for a few months, then reverts back, or doesn’t change at all... these are the situations that push me to learn more, delve deeper, or scratch my head and try something new. So please do let me know how they are doing... even a few years later!! I always love to hear.

Any other questions

If you have a question I have not answered here, please let me know, and I will add it, with the answer, to this list!