Animals as teachers

I am continually in awe of what a positive impact animals can have in our lives.  I have always believed animals come into our lives to help us to learn and grow but each time I witness it, I am no less astounded by it, no less humbled by it.  

In my work with animals and their guardians, I continue to see evidence that our animals know what we need to learn . . . and then give us the opportunities we need to learn that lesson. 

Sometimes that opportunity comes in what appears to be a "behavioral issue" with the animal and this is part of the reason I am so in awe of animals.  They are willing to look like the "bad guy" for a while, for the sole purpose of helping us learn something.  Several of my clients who have a difficult time setting boundaries or standing up for themselves or making themselves a priority have had animals who pushed them and pushed them until they finally learned what they needed to learn . . . that they were important too.  While it may have been difficult while they were going through it, in the end EVERYONE was happier.  The person felt more empowered and was happier, the animals behavior "improved" and the household became harmonious again.  

Sometimes the lesson comes by an animal experiencing medical issues as a way for us to learn what we need to learn.  My own Lucky can be single-handedly (pawedly) credited with everything I learned about holistic medicine, alternative healing methods, the mind/body connection.   She is the reason I am a reiki practitioner and an animal communicator. Unfortunately, I didn't learn all of that because she said "Hey mom, check this out!"  I learned about all of that because I was determined to help her find a way to recover from all the trauma she had experienced as a puppy.  She took on an enormous amount of pain so that I could get on the right path in life.  (For that, I will be forever grateful).  

I have had clients who learned that they were stronger and far more capable of handling difficult things than they ever though because of what they went through with their animals health.  I have had clients who learned to take time out to be still and stop "doing" all the time, when they realized their animals injury wasn't healing because their animal couldn't stay still either.  I had a client whose animal had cancer and she learned everything she could about alternative treatments and several years later, her animal is still thriving . . . and a year ago, when she got her own cancer diagnosis, she wasn't afraid at all because she had already done all the research and knew how she would approach her healing . . . the same way she had approached healing with her cat.   I had another client who didn't believe in herself or have much confidence, and when she adopted an animal that had the same issue, and helped him believe in himself and become self confident, then she could see how she could do the same thing for herself.

Whenever a new client calls me about a problem they are having with their animal, the first thing that comes into my mind is "I wonder what the animal is trying to teach their guardian." They are almost always trying to teach us something.  I think I will always be in awe of animals and the selfless way they set out to help us be better versions of ourselves.  I think it's only fair that we pay as much attention as possible.