How Much Do Animals Know About Us?

I was recently asked if animals know what’s going on with us — like are they privy to what we’re really feeling and experiencing. I was even asked, “Do they see how messed up we are, and do they think we’re clueless?”

To be fair, this questioning was probably inspired by the fact that I often talk about how animals are masters of unconditional love and have real wisdom to share about how to be in balance, be present, and be our best and true selves.

The answer to the first question is yes, they know what’s going on with us because they’re naturally wired to be in tune with the energy around them, especially our energy and anything connected to our energy.

Years ago my boyfriend at the time came to my apartment to have dinner. As soon as he walked in the door, he bent down to pet my cat Willow, but she backed up and didn’t let him touch her. She’d never done that before, so it felt very weird to witness. (This was eight years before I started studying intuitive animal communication.)

Right after dinner, this boyfriend broke up with me out of the blue, no warning signs detected (from me, that is). I was devastated and as soon as he left, I sank onto my bed sobbing. Willow then jumped onto the bed, sat at the foot of it and blinked her eyes at me over and over. It’s a total cat thing to slowly squeeze their eyes at you as a way of sending love, but I’d never seen her do this act in such an amped up way, like a person frantically tapping out an urgent Morse code message. That signal of love was the best thing I could have asked for in that moment. I knew then that Willow had connected somehow to my boyfriend’s intentions, and when it went down, she knew exactly what I needed for comfort.

The day I first met Willow was extraordinary. Having fallen in love with her picture first, I visited her foster home in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, and walked into a living room full of animals. This was the forever home for about eight cats and dogs, and an equal amount were fosters. The crazy thing was that the animals who lived there permanently didn’t give me the time of day, but the fosters were all over me. Willow was the one who gently jumped onto my lap as I sat on the couch. They all knew I was there to adopt. Willow especially knew I was there to adopt her.

When I worked with the horse Mr. Big in a workshop in Costa Rica, I had bouts of extreme back pain that would come and go. One day as I rode him around the arena, he suddenly stopped and refused to move. This happened the exact moment that the pain flared up in my back, but I hadn’t given him any physical cues that anything had changed. He knew instantly and also knew what I needed.

Another time I was visiting my friend Diana and experienced severe pain in my right shoulder. Diana was an amazing healer and massage therapist, and after she worked on my shoulder for a while, we walked into her kitchen. As we stood in the middle of the room, her golden retriever Yogi suddenly jumped up and gingerly tapped my right shoulder with his paw. The behavior was totally out of character for him and surprised us both. But it was clear that he knew my shoulder needed TLC and wanted to give me his own healing touch.

Have you ever thought of someone randomly and then they called or texted you? Have you ever felt undeniably good or bad about someone upon your first meeting, and it turned out to be a valid evaluation once you got to know them? You’re doing exactly what animals do. We all carry an energy signature, and we can all pick up energetic information to some degree.

The difference between people reading energy and animals reading energy is that animals don’t ever question or doubt the information they receive. They instinctively want to help us come back into balance, and most importantly, they don’t judge (so no, they don’t think we’re messed up and clueless!).

That’s why I feel we’re meant to have a deeper relationship with animals than that of owner/pet. We’re meant to communicate intuitively with each other, without thinking or second guessing. We can learn from them how to accept, love, and connect with each other and the world in the coolest way.

The first day of the workshop with Mr. Big, I sat and wondered how I could respect his personal space and show him spontaneous affection at the same time. Like would he be ok with a sudden hug and kiss from me? (We’d just met each other, after all.) As soon as I had that thought, he made a bee-line for me across the arena and planted his mouth on the top of my head and then walked away — a drive-by kiss straight from the horse’s mouth. Yes, they know what’s going on with us, and they have all the answers, too. 💜