Interpreting the Message – Courtney Moffatt

Knowing How Your Communicator Works

Knowing Only What I Am Being Told

Some communications are crystal clear, while others are more challenging to figure out the message. I can only see what I am being told.

One time, I was trying to locate a missing dog. I asked her to show me where she was. All I saw was woods, but nothing else. I then asked her to show me the route she took to get there - hoping for something recognizable I could tell her owner. That dog then showed me a back road with fields around it. Nothing else. I never did see any good landmark and it was very frustrating!

Communicators Have to be Balanced

If I am having a bad day for any reason, I have learned how to block out any problems and just focus on the communication. If there is something pressing that I need to do, I tried to get it done before it so I can concentrate on what the animals are saying. I have to be in the best state of mind in order to get the clearest connection.

Asking the Right Questions and Digging Deeper

A skill for anyone in the communication business is to get all the information possible. This means asking probing questions and looking at the big picture.

My friend was letting me practice on her dog. All she told me was that her dog was sad and she wanted me to figure out why. I connected with Dixie and asked her why she was sad. I asked all kinds of probing questions. Are you hurt? No. Are you safe? Yes. Did this happen in the house? No. Did it happen outside? Yes. She then showed me the woods. I saw her hunting rabbits. I then asked if the rabbit got away and she said yes, from her it did. I then saw the rabbit being torn to pieces by something else, but I couldn't make out what did it.

I told my information to my friend. The real story was she did take her out hunting and Dixie was on the trail of a rabbit. But then, Dixie ran into a bee's nest and got stung over 20 times. Needless to say, the rabbit got away unharmed, and my friend had to carry Dixie out of the woods and rushed her to the vet. She was in rough shape for a little while, but then came around.

Now, I talked to Dixie 6 days after this happened. (Of course, my friend did not tell me that before I talked to her.) At that point, her bee stings did not hurt anymore and she was feeling much, much better. When I asked her if she was hurt, she answered truthfully and said no. I thought about the rabbit being torn to shreds and my friend laughed and said that's because Dixie WANTS to do that. It made sense. She was sad and a little angry at the time I talked to her because all she could think about was the rabbit getting away. She wasn't even concerned about the bees! It was a good lesson to try to dig a little deeper when finding something out.

Deciphering Messages

When the animal is relaying information to me, I have to interpret it the best I can. The owner plays a big part in this as well, since they know their pet better than me. The problem with interpreting information is each person might have a different view on the matter.
Just like how my friend's dog Dixie portrayed the rabbit to me. (See "Asking the Right Questions and Digging Deeper".) I thought something killed the rabbit. My friend said the rabbit is fine, but her dog WANTED to kill the rabbit. It's a matter of perception. It can be tricky at times.

Have any other questions about how I communicate?

Just ask me!

Ask Courtney!