Posts Tagged Dogs

Preparing for a Family Move With Our Pets

Are you planning to move to a new home in the next few months? There is so much planning and activity associated with moving homes and sometimes our animals have a hard time with the changes that are taking place. Animal communication can help ease any worry or anxiety that your pet’s may have.

There are many animals who adjust to their new home relatively quickly, and some have a harder time. For every animal who moves with their family, their individual experience is different. If you have a move scheduled, or are thinking about a move in the future, here are some examples to learn from:

  • The best example is to recognize that a move is stressful for our pets. There will be changes and upset routines and stress on our animals. It may be valuable to schedule a few minutes to communicate with your pets as the preparations for the move begins. This certainly doesn’t guarantee that the beloved pet will not have some worry or anxiety during and after the move, but it does help to reassure them that things *will* settle down and that they *are* making the move with the family too!
  • A multi-kitty family moved from one home to a smaller home. One of the felines adjusted easily and quickly and was looking forward to exploring his new surroundings; the other was mad that he had less real estate to patrol and that the access to outside had changed, which resulted in litter box issues. We were able to reassure him that he still had all his outside privileges and that there were still plenty of litter boxes available to choose from, even though they were in a little closer proximity to each other.
  • A dog was very concerned and acting out to get his guardian’s attention. He believed that they had left behind the spirit of his companion who had passed some time ago. We assured him that his companion now has the ability to be with him anywhere and everywhere, including the new home.
  • A cat was working through his grief of leaving his former home and the loss of a human companion at the same time. He was having a difficult time letting go of the former home and therefore was not ready to accept the new home as his. We reassured him that he can retain all the wonderful memories from his previous home and still have room to accumulate memories from his new home too.

Ultimately you know your pets best. If a little anxiety is normal for them then talking with them to help them prepare for the changes as a move takes place may eliminate a difficult move and adjustment period for them and for you!

 

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Understanding Undesirable Behaviors

All of us with animals in our lives occasionally witness behaviors which we hope never to see exhibited again. A deliberate indoor urination accident, digging up the freshly planted flower garden, and cribbing are often a means of acting out from frustration, anger, disappointment, boredom, or are a means of testing just exactly how much is going to be allowed.

When clients call with behavior related questions, I am careful to not jump to conclusions about the root cause of the issue. True, often there is an obvious disconnect between the human and animal in  terms of strong leadership, enough exercise, or good ongoing training and reinforcement. Dogs and horses in particular need consistent training and leadership, but other animals also pick up on leadership qualities in their humans and will generally respond accordingly.

Many behaviors are deeper and may indicate other factors. If you begin to witness changes in your pet that you’ve never seen exhibited before, consider their age. For some aging animals, eyesight, loss of  hearing, and loss of mobility due to arthritis may bring about changes. Stiff joints may reduce their ability to get outside or get into their litter box fast enough to avoid an accident. There may be ways to assist, like moving their favorite bed closer to the dog door or finding a litter box with lower sides for easier access. Skittishness, increased barking or yowling, and fear behaviors may accompany a loss of an animal’s sense of sight, hearing, or smell. The slow onset of senility can bring about these same types of changes in behavior. A gentle understanding and explanation of the changes can be helpful for both animal and humans in the household.

Changes in an animal’s environment can also bring  about short-term or long-term behavioral changes. Loss of a loved one – animal or human – is devastating to our pets and they need time and support to work through their grief. Even short-term loss such as the departure of a teenager to a semester at college is confusing and your pet may mourn that loss of the daily interaction with their friend. You understand your student will return for weekends and holidays, but until a few cycles of departure and return are witnessed by your animals, it may not be clear to them.

Medical issues can cause changes in behaviors, and regular checkups are critical in your health care routine for your beloved companions. Some medical causes of behavioral changes may not be readily obvious and checking in with your pet through an animal communicator may provide answers and symptoms to help health care practitioners provide excellent care.

Daily observation goes a long way in understanding behaviors, but when causes of a shift in behavior is not obvious, check with your animal health practitioner and then determine if additional information from your pet through a professional communicator is appropriate.

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A Few Things About Nutrition…

Questions about food and nutrition come up regularly in my animal communication consultations. Veterinarian Dr. Diana Roberts of Harmony Animal Wellness answered some of the most common questions for a newsletter article in 2009. The information she provided never goes out of date and sometimes it is helpful to have a gentle reminder from time to time!

Q: I feed my dogs primarily dry food because it seems as this will  help with keeping their teeth clean and their gums healthier.

A: It is actually a myth that dry food saves dog’s mouths. Many dogs that eat exclusively dry food have horrific oral disease. Genetics and home care really are the biggest factors involved in how healthy their mouths stay. Some breeds are truly genetically predisposed to fast tartar buildup (greyhounds and daschunds, for example). Brushing the teeth daily helps, but just as humans still need professional cleanings despite at  least 2x daily brushing, so do most pets. There are some products shown to help  reduce plaque buildup – ask your DVM.

Q: I have an elder, and I have recently started buying food with  Glucosamine to help keep his joints healthy as he ages.

A: Foods with glucosamine rarely have enough to be truly useful for the animal, and the foods are not regulated as to quality or quantity of that glucosamine.

Q: I know it is best for my dog if I set specific meal times and  take his/her food up if s/he doesn’t eat it in a certain amount of time. However, I’ve always let my cat graze by leaving her food out and available to her 24/7.

A: Cats are *definitely* not  designed to graze!! They are genetically designed to have periods of fasting between big meals. Grazing allows for constant demands on their insulin production and can predispose them to diabetes as well as obesity. Canned food  in measured meals are ideal for cats. (This topic could be a whole newsletter  itself!)

Q: We are very careful to never give table scraps or “people food” to our dogs. They get only canned and/or dry dog food.

A: Table scraps are generally not  harmful to pets….depending on what’s on your table! If you wouldn’t eat it, don’t ask your pet to do so! Be especially careful with bones and high fat foods; otherwise, the occasional tidbit should be fine if your pet is in good  health and not prone to easy GI upset. Don’t make scraps the bulk of his diet,  just an occasional treat!

Diana Roberts, DVM, graduated from Michigan State’s College of Veterinary Medicine in 1994 and practiced in upstate New York for four years before moving to Colorado. Dr. Roberts enjoys working with small animals and over the years has incorporated acupuncture, herbal and homeopathic remedies, and nutritional guidance into her practice. She opened her own veterinary clinic, Harmony Animal Wellness, in September 2006.

For more information about animal nutrition, talk with your local holistic veterinarian.

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Animal Communication: Jack’s Story

This is the story of Jack, a seven year old Pekingese, who is teaching me to listen carefully to ALL the information as revealed. Jack was very clear in his communications, as you’ll see in the first part of his story, about his immediate medical condition. The second part of his communication was not so clear and took events to unfold before we had a full understanding of Jack’s explanation of his symptoms.

Jack

Jack explained to his human and me where his immediate pain was, and his desire to have this pain relieved immediately so he could eat again. Jack also shared secondary symptoms of a headache, fogginess, and his belief that with medical assistance he would regain 60% health long-term. You will see from the following emails written by his human to friends and family how Jack’s symptoms as described played out:

(August 6, 2011):  OK, you all know the background…Jack wouldn’t eat or drink for over a week. The vets couldn’t find anything wrong—lab results were perfect, teeth looked perfect, they couldn’t get him to whimper no matter where or how hard they poked. On day 6, I called animal communicator Kelly Krueger, who has talked with Jack before.

Kelly talked with Jack and me for about 30 minutes and felt strong pain in the left side of Jack’s face—somewhere between the sinuses and teeth. She asked him specifically about every other part of his body, and this was his only area of specific pain he acknowledged. She reiterated that it was not a tooth itself or the sinus cavity, but somewhere in between, like the root of a tooth.

The vets did not want to knock him out to do a full set of dental x-rays because of his condition, however, I convinced them to do a skull x-ray, which they could perform without anesthesia. They didn’t find anything with the skull x-ray, but they sent it to radiologists. Voila!  The radiologists said, “Mandibular root abscess is likely.” So Jack had exploratory dental surgery. Dr. Ruth called me with this news:


We anesthetized Jack and did a full set of dental x-rays. We found that he did have a very small abscess in his pre-molar and potential abscess in the molar next to it. So we decided to extract both of those teeth. But this is the amazing part. When I got the second tooth out, I realized that it was not complete. There was a tiny part of the root that had broken off, was detached from the rest of the root, and embedded in the bone. I have this tiny bit of bone along with the pieces of the two teeth!

Jack seemed to recover from the dental surgery and was eating well. About a week later, his human emailed:

After Jack’s dental surgery last week we soon realized that that was not the whole problem, as he continued to stumble and fall. And he finally had a big seizure on August 10. After 8 days in Critical Care they got his seizures under control with the right combination of meds. The conclusion is that he has had swelling of the lining of his brain (encephalitis) caused by his immune system which should be manageable with medications. 

Jack shared all the symptoms he was experiencing at the time. Some made sense to us immediately and some of his symptoms became obvious over time. Animals share what they know in that moment, and we humans take that information and work with it the best we can. Jack is slowly getting better, and his human assures him that she will continue to listen to him and his doctors as his journey continues.

Thank you to Jack’s human who co-wrote this article.

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Belief and Trust in Animal Communication

I get it. Animal communication is hard to wrap our brains around. There is no widely known scientific explanation for it. It takes a lot of trust, and an ongoing belief that animal communication works. Belief and trust can be really hard to hold on to when we experience a ”hear one thing, but observe the opposite” phenomenon during an animal communication session.

There are several examples of clients receiving information from their pet that doesn’t directly align with their observations: a very finicky cat asks for a food that seems extremely inconsistent with her previous desires; a dog asks for a new animal companion but all his encounters with dogs on walks or in the park are less than friendly; a fearful animal suddenly requests an activity that has previously been unpleasant.

Happy Family

I had this exact experience recently with my own companion and I found myself needing to practice what I ask my clients to do – trust their pet and believe in their communication. My girl pug dog is not the friendliest when it comes to other dogs entering our home. I observe either pouting and isolation or flat-out aggression, and sometimes she decides to make her point very clear by exhibiting both behaviors.

When I heard her ask over and over again for a new dog companion I had this same “hear one thing, but observe the opposite” phenomenon. It took a lot of belief in the animal communication process and a lot of trust that she was sincerely asking for a companion to share our home.

I agreed to “practice what I preach” and put my trust and belief in animal communication and in my girl-dog’s sincerity when voicing her desires for a new companion. I agreed to turn it over to her, and in less than a week she identified and orchestrated the perfect new dog coming to live with us. And it worked! From the moment the boy Husky arrived, she welcomed him with open paws. Trusting in animal communication  brought us a new animal companion. My girl pug is happy, and she’s been a rock star at welcoming the new guy and sharing her space. I’m so glad I believed!

For more of our story, see the July issue of the Articulate Animals newsletter at http://www.articulateanimals.com./

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Article: Kelly Krueger Provides a Voice for Your Pet’s Needs and Emotions

Mountain Connection Magazine, July 2011 issue

Kelly Krueger Provides a Voice for Your Pet’s Needs and Emotions (click to see full article)

By Sarah Schraad

Are you or your family heading on vacation this summer? And if so, have you told your pets what is in store for them while you are away? Kelly Krueger, owner of Articulate Animals, can help you pass along the message. A professional animal communicator, Krueger says that it is important your pet understands when and why you are going away…and that you’re coming back.

Kelly Krueger, Animal Communicator

“More and more people are utilizing animal communication for a variety of situations like vacation preparation, as well as behavioral problems and health concerns,” says Krueger. “By enlisting an animal communicator, individuals can deepen their relationship and understanding of their pets, as well as obtain information about a particular issue that can then be used to benefit both the family and the animal.”

Born and raised on a Wyoming cattle ranch, animals have always been part of Krueger’s life. Based in Evergreen, she launched Articulate Animals in 2007 and has worked with clients in nearly every US state as well as around the world in places like India, Australia, and Ireland.

While the majority of her consultations are with dogs, cats, and horses, Krueger has also worked with birds, rabbits, iguanas, and more.  She connects telepathically with the animal in an effort to better understand a variety of issues, for example, why the pet behaves a specific way around strangers. In the event of a health concern, Krueger can help identify where an animal’s physical discomfort exists, which can then be shared with the family’s veterinarian. She also helps animals prepare for upcoming household changes such as a new baby, loss of a loved one, or moving to a new home.

“Most pet owners speak with their pets daily, usually to accomplish a specific task or correct a behavior,” Krueger says. “While we know our animals listen to us, it may not be as clear that our animals are also speaking to us with the same purpose and intent. I help individuals better understand what their pets are saying and feeling, because once those details are uncovered, harmony and balance can be restored.”

While there will always be skeptics, Krueger says that once an individual actually experiences the benefits and sees the results – such as a strange behavior that abruptly stops following a consultation – they recognize that animal communication does work and can improve the health and happiness of an animal.

“All of my clients have the same goal in mind, which is to gain a better understanding of their pet’s overall well-being and ensure the animal is content and feels loved. I can think of no better reward than helping my clients achieve a stronger relationship with their animal companion,” she adds.

More information is available on Kelly’s website, www.articulateanimals.com, including first-hand testimonials about her work and information on upcoming classes on animal communication. If you have questions or would like to schedule a consultation, contact Kelly at Kelly@ArticulateAnimals.com or by phone at 303-670-0292.

 

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Assisting our Pets with Disabilities

When our beloved pets are still full of life even in the midst of a diagnosis or physical disablity, there are many resources and alternatives to keep them healthy and active for a while longer. It is amazing to me the resources available for our pets. Diabetes, degenerative myelopathy or similar, and cancer are all scary words to hear and difficult diagnoses to wrap our heads around.

These diagnoses don’t necessarily mean the end is near. Certainly, we don’t want our beloved pets to suffer if we can possibly help it.  In some cases the most loving, compassionate, and selfless act is to let (or assist) our companion pass. In many of these cases, however, there are ways we can help our pets to continue to live happy, fulfilling lives for as long as they wish to remain on earth with us.

Diet and nutritional supplements is a great place to start in supporting our pets living with a medical diagnosis. Talk with your holistic veterinarian about foods and supplements which support, and in some cases, help to counter-act elements of the disease.

I have known animals in my animal communication practice who lived many happy years with diabetes - receiving daily injections to keep their insulin levels in check. I also have several kitty-clients in various stages of renal failure, and they are living active lives with IV fluids administered by their loving humans a few times a week in the privacy of their own home.

Physical therapy, acupuncture therapy, chiropractic treatments, and energy work like Reiki can all help our pets with neuromuscular conditions to remain active on their own, and wheelchairs, slings, or leg braces can be appropriate for those whose spirit for living remains high as their condition progresses.

The resources available nowadays are many, and it is important that we consider all aspects of the diagnosis carefully. It is not a “one size fits all” proposition. The animal’s condition, demeanor, and spirit are paramount in our decision making process. Ask your pet how they are feeling and include them in the treatment strategy. If you and your pet agree that there are more weeks, months, or years of living left, know that there are resources out there that may work for you.
 

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Practice Communicating with Your Animals

I am excited to offer (new for 2011) the “Deepening Connections Practice Series,” a regularly scheduled tele-class for those who would like practice and a little more instruction on communicating with animals.

Join me, Kelly Krueger, for quarterly animal communication practice sessions to deepen your ability to connect directly with your pets. Each 45-minute tele-session will include instruction and tips for successful communications with animals, a brief guided meditation, and two topics to explore with your pets. If the topic of the session does not directly apply to your own animals you may practice with a friend’s or family member’s pet.

Dates and topics for 2011 include:

March 16, 2011 – Tips for communicating with our aging animals, including encouragement and support as their body changes, understanding stiffness and discomfort, and setting the stage for the future when a more detailed discussion about end-of-life topics will be appropriate. Litter box and house training communications will also be included in this practice session. If you have a new animal companion, we will discuss how to set expectations and house rules regarding pet hygiene.

June 8, 2011- Preparing our pets for family vacations and the pet’s care options will be discussed and practiced. We will also consider the addition of a new animal family member - the short-term disruption this may cause your existing pets and how to telepathically welcome your new family member into the fold while establishing house guidelines from the beginning.

September 21, 2011- This practice session will include instruction on working with a variety of pet behaviors. Generic communications will be discussed, and a few specific behavioral issues will be practiced. For those with holiday house guests arriving, we will practice preparing our pets for the holiday, preparing for holiday visitors, and helping our pets understand the short-term changes in household routines.

December 7, 2011 – The final practice session of 2011 will include development of appropriate telepathic communications to encourage healthy social behaviors with other animals as well as humans (playing nice at the dog park, and saying hello to Aunt Jane when she visits, for example). Included in this session and the topic of social behaviors will be social play time. This may include setting appropriate play expectations for your obsessive ball chaser, or a kitty who insists on playtime in middle of the night!

We all can communicate telepathically with animals – it just takes practice!

For more information on the practice tele-series, visit www.articulateanimals.com/blog and view the “classes” tab for “Deepening Connections.”

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