My Relationship With Animals - From Being Our Companions And Our Teachers, To Being Our Healers

When I was a child, you would often find me walking by around with a pack of dogs trailing me. If any of the neighbours dogs, went missing, they knew to call my mum at home and more times than not, the dog would be there. My mum has told me quite a few stories, about how the dogs in the area would just follow me home. All the while I'd be talking and singing to them.

I was sometimes called on to visit sick dogs, especially if they were distressed, as my presence seemed to calm them. i really believed that I could communicate with animals when I was younger, even today I often have a good sense of what may be wrong with an animal. Most of the time, during those visits the dogs would be okay, but I remember one time, a neighbours dog had been knocked down and they called me, I went straight over, running through the fields to get to him and he passed away not long after I got there. It broke my heart.

I always thought I would become a vet, but soon realized that I would find it really difficult to do any sort of treatments on them and risk them dying. I just couldn't deal with that responsibility. I felt such a huge connection with all the canine friends that entered my life, I still do.

But it goes beyond dogs, I also loved cats and had a very special relationship with some cows. Growing up mostly in the countryside I was surrounded by cattle. I got to know quite a lot of them and they would follow me along the hedge side as I walked on the road. Sometimes calling out to me when they saw me arrive.

There was one herd, that lived in the field behind my home and they would be waiting for me when she came home from school. Standing at the wall of our backyard, some with their heads over the wall. I would drop my bag inside my room and head straight out to see them. Where we would walk around the field, until we reached a suitable spot where I would sit and they would just stand around me as I continued my recount of the days events at school.

Having this relationship with these beautiful beings led to me becoming a vegetarian in my early teens and a vegan later in life. I also got involved in a local charity which was trying to outlaw blood sports in Ireland, something that is beyond cruel.

I have always believed that animals deserve the same level of respect as us humans get, we are animals after all. Recently at my daughter's birthday we played a game of guess the animal, where you act out an animal without making a sound and the others have to guess. I was super happy when one of my daughter's choose to be a human.

I think so many people forget, or like to forget that we are animals. Missing out on the power that we have when we connect to our animal instincts. As a woman, when you are pregnant and going through the birthing experience, it is so important to let go of our rational mind and surrender to our more intuitive (animal) side, which allows us to birth our young.

In society, we are taught about the importance of being civil and conducting ourselves appropriately in public. It is expected of us, but yet if we were to focus on that all the time, we would miss out on the opportunity to connect with our more wild and creative self. The part of ourselves that is more spontaneous and ultimately more fearless so we end up holding ourselves back.

I have a fierce love for all animals and speak with my daughter's about how important it is to protect them. You can really tell the state of the world by the way in which animals are being treated. Which of course is tied in with how our natural environment is treated and ultimately how we treat each other, because after all, we are all connected.

Could you imagine how the world would be, if more people had this mindset, understood how connected we all are.

Animals are amazing and building up relationships with them brings us so much personal awareness and healing. When I done a two month trek in the mountains, a few years ago with my girls and a horse to carry our belongings, the relationship I formed with that amazing creature 'Solas', really helped me to step into my power.

As we walked on narrow paths, I would often have to lead her, if I did feel confident to walk that stretch of the track, she would push past me. Why would she feel comfortable being led by someone who doubted themselves. So I had to really take the steps to step into my power so that I could led her confidently.

Animals are our companions, our teachers and so often our healers and to treat them any differently is a huge disservice to them and to ourselves.