By Cara Gubbins
Have you ever wondered what your dog thinks about you? I love the saying, “I hope to become the person my dog thinks I am.” To me, that sums up how giving and loving dogs are for people.
For more than 15,000 years, dogs have been loyal companions to humans. They were the first animals to be domesticated (from gray wolves), and they are the most popular animal to be kept as pets throughout the world.
In mythical tales around the world, dogs often serve the gods. In Philippine mythology, the god of thunder has a pet dog that is responsible for creating lightning. In Greek, Norse, Persian, and Welsh mythology, dogs guard the place that marks the gateway from the world of the living into either the afterlife or the underworld.
My own love affair with dogs began when I was very young. On my third Christmas, I received a larger-than-life-sized stuffed dog named “Cuddly Dudley.” Golden tan and at least a foot taller than me, Dudley was the love of my young life. When I was old enough to get my own real dog, around age 12, I named my fluffy white female Samoyed puppy “Dudley.” After my parents divorced, Dudley and I used to explore the marshes and saltwater creeks near my mom’s house in Northern California for hours, lost in our own world.
After Dudley left us, I was dogless for more than a decade, until my husband and I got our Australian shepherd Iko within days of buying our first house together 12 years ago. I discovered I could communicate with dogs in 2001 when, on a lark, I intuitively told Iko, “If you go into the house right now, I’ll give you a treat.” To my great surprise, she lifted her head, gave me a puzzled look of “Really? That’s all I have to do?” and got up and walked through her dog door into the house. Of course I followed her and gave her a treat.
Since then I’ve talked to dogs of all different shapes, sizes, and backgrounds, dogs that live alone with their person, dogs that live in families, and dogs that were about to die. Each time I connect intuitively with an animal I sense not just the animal’s message, but I also get to feel a bit of its soul. It is a sacred honor to have that level of trust and intimacy with another creature.
Dogs tell me that they are here to teach and learn about love. This is illustrated by the following conversation I had with a client’s 1-year-old Rhodesian ridgeback in San Diego.
Q: Do you know how much I love you?
A: Yes, of course! We are for each other!
Q: Did you choose me or did we choose each other?
A: You needed me. I’m here to take care of you and be your kid. Otherwise you’d never experience that kind of love and devotion for yourself.
One of the first dogs that I communicated with intuitively was a 15-year-old Australian shepherd that was about to die. Here is part of the conversation that we had:
Q: Are you ready to die?
A: Yes, I’m ready to go. I’ll die in two days, Thursday.
Q: Is there anything you want to say to your person?
A: Thank you for taking care of me. I love you.
Q: Would your spirit be able to visit your person after you die? If so, how would she know it was you?
A: Yes. I’ll nuzzle her left cheek.
A standard poodle named Molly that lives with a family in Los Angeles answered two of her family’s questions like this:
Q: What lessons does your soul have to learn in this lifetime?
A: Learning from the love we share and seeing the rifts between my people, seeing it unfold in front of my eyes and loving everyone through it. I am a source of love, unconditional love that can be given out to you and you can receive it. My love is like a balm for the scraped parts of your soul. I am here to love you all no matter what.
Q: What can your human family learn from you?
A: Love lasts. Love is constant. Love softens the blows and even heals. You can learn to let it go; don’t hang on to the hurts. Remember to play and have fun and be silly. Silly is good. Don’t take yourselves too seriously. Let’s just play together and love together and it will all work out.
Dogs love us through all of our human foibles and dramas. They give and receive love unconditionally and our lives are better for it. Thanks, dogs!
About the author: Cara Gubbins, PhD, began conducting scientific research as a high school student in 1981 and received her doctorate in Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology in 2000. Cara and her research have been featured on CNN, the BBC, the Discovery Channel, and National Geographic specials. She is the author of the award-winning book The Dolphins of Hilton Head: Their Natural History and is the coauthor of Power Stories: Everyday Women Creating Extraordinary Lives. Cara works as a spiritual intuitive in Chico.
Contact: Cara’s upcoming bookDivine Beings: The Spiritual Lives and Lessons of Animals answers the question “Do animals have a soul?” Dozens of animals share their spiritual lessons, which have important messages for humans. This book offers readers a deeper understanding of themselves, their animals, and the spiritual organization of our world. Call Cara for an intuitive reading or energetic healing for you or your animal, in person or by phone, at 530-520-0436. To ask a question for this column, email Cara at Divine.Beings@yahoo.com.