learn animal communication Archives - Understanding Animals

Solstice Spiral ritual

December 26, 2025December 16, 2025 Jacqueline Buckingham

Winter Solstice marks the moment when the sun begins to return, and the days start to lengthen again. In many ways this ‘turning of the sun’ feels like another moment to start the new year. This Solstice Ritual provides an opportunity to consciously step from one twelve month period into the next.

For those in the southern hemisphere, although you are moving from the height of summer towards shortening days, the calendar is still about to click over from one year to the next. As we reach the December Solstice moment, this ritual is relevant no matter which hemisphere we are on.

In fact this ritual can be done at any time – whenever you feel a need to let go. Any time that there are major changes or shifts in your life, you can use this ritual as a way to release the old and set an intention for what’s next. It can feel that you are stepping back into the ‘driving seat’ of your life.

What you need:

A candle, a tea-light (one for each person taking part), a set of angel cards (any set of divination cards will do), a table, greenery to mark out the spiral shape (you could use ribbon or string) and enough space to be able to walk in a spiral making two full circuits.

The set-up:

Place a pillar candle on a low table or on the ground
Lay some greenery around the candle or anything that brings you delight (a scarf or other decoration)
Lay more greenery in a spiral shape, starting at the candle and spiralling out for at least two circuits.
If you are in the northern hemisphere the spiral of greenery should be laid so that it spirals in a clockwise pattern beginning at the candle (fig 1) In the southern hemisphere the spiral should be laid in an anti-clockwise pattern beginning at the candle (fig 2).
If you do not have any greenery, you can use ribbon, string or simply imagine the spiral shape on the ground.
Place another table next to the spot where the spiral ends and lay the divination cards on it, either spread out or in a pile. Place some unlit tea lights here also.

The ritual:

Light the pillar candle in the centre of the spiral
Take an unlit tea light from the card table
Begin to walk in a spiral in towards the centre. (You should be walking into the spiral in an anti-clockwise direction in the northern hemisphere, and clockwise in the southern hemisphere.*)
As you spiral inwards, reflect upon the year (or the event) just passed
Notice any lessons that came from the experience/s
Hold an intention of releasing anything that no longer serves you / lessons you have learned and that don’t need to be repeated
Acknowledge yourself for the things you accomplished during the year (inner strength, letting go, being flexible, etc)
Feel gratitude for the gifts (people, events, yourself) in your life during that time
When you reach the centre, light the tea light from the pillar candle
Now spiral back out, moving in the opposite direction than you came in
As you walk focus on what you would like to invite into your life next
When you have spiralled out and reached the divination cards, place the lit tea light on the table and pause for a moment
Bring your focus to the the next twelve months and invite a quality (card) to support you during this period
Then, when you feel ready, select a card
Take a moment to welcome this card and its gifts into your life

To complete:

You may want to journal or draw about the experience. Some elements to include are: the things you want to release, the lessons you learned, the things you acknowledge yourself for, the new elements you are welcoming into your life now, and the card and what it means for you.

I hope that you enjoy this Winter Solstice Ritual. Please leave your comments below or if you have any questions you can email me via this link.

* If you’re curious about the reasons for these directions – moving in the opposite direction to the sun brings with it the energy of moving inwards, introspection, drawing in. Whereas moving sunwise carries the energy of expansion, growth and manifestation. In the northern hemisphere the sun goes clockwise, and in the southern hemisphere it moves anti-clockwise. So these are the directions that we want to be moving as we are “calling in the new” in order to add extra energy to our wishes.

young woman hugging golden retriever dog in countryside at sundown

Seven Surprising Benefits of Learning Animal Communication

October 27, 2022October 23, 2023 Jacqueline Buckingham

When you learn animal, or interspecies, communication you will discover that, in addition to being able to understand your animals better, there are many other surprising benefits.

As you develop your telepathic and intuitive abilities you will find that these qualities reach out and touch many areas of your life. You may notice yourself becoming more highly attuned to your those around you as well as to your surroundings, your creativity will blossom, your inner child will step forth and your sense of inner peace will expand.

Learning the skills of telepathic communication can be a journey of self-discovery as you unlock hidden or dormant aspects of your self.

Here are a few of the benefits of learning animal communication:

1. Nurture your Inner Child

photo of child holding chick — Photo by Ratthakorn Komol on Pexels.com

Many of us have memories of talking to animals as a child. You might remember chatting with a family pet. Or with animals that you met in the garden or on trips outdoors. It was completely natural! You may have also felt that the animals could understand you. Then something happened. Maybe someone told you it wasn’t real, or they laughed at you, or maybe school learning took over and we just let it go. But bit-by-bit we stopped doing it.

Communicating with animals IS completely natural. It is in our DNA; it is the blueprint of our brains. Our ancestors did it all the time, and many cultures on our planet still do it as part of their every day life.

When you learn telepathic animal communication you will reconnect with that playful, wide-eyed child that saw magic everywhere in the world around it. Give yourself this time to nurture and reconnect with your Inner Child.

2. Peace of mind

man practicing meditation on sports mat — Photo by Mikhail Nilov on Pexels.com

To create an ideal environment for animal communication we need to practice becoming still, quiet and relaxed. You will begin by learning, or remembering, techniques to quieten the mind and soothe the emotions. You will find yourself entering a meditative state – the alpha state – and experience being deeply relaxed as you connect heart-to-heart with animals.

A sense of deep peace and tranquillity arises in these moments. As your heart opens you will find that you slow down, move more consciously, more gently, more gracefully.

As you communicate more and more with the world of nature you may become aware of everything and everyone going about their activities as they always have done. It can reassure us that, on a larger scale, all is right with the world.

3. Expand your Creativity

purple sky — Photo by eberhard grossgasteiger on Pexels.com

Another of the benefits of learning telepathic animal communication is that it uses the intuitive part of our brain. This is situated alongside the area where the imagination or creativity lies. This is one reason that you might sometimes wonder if what you are picking up from an animal is real or imagined. It can feel very much like imagination!

I always encourage participants to just go with that. To enjoy this experience of the imagination being reawakened, and not to resist it or question it. In the beginning your imagination may be getting involved from time to time, but it doesn’t matter.

The most important thing is to play with it, remain open to it and to allow your imagination to flow. This will help your intuitive skills to flow too. Eventually, using techniques and tips that I teach, it will become more and more clear what is imagination and what is coming from the animal. And now your creativity is flowing again too. A win-win!

4. Learn to trust your intuition (and yourself!)

happy black woman petting dog in park — Photo by Samson Katt on Pexels.com

The process of becoming more trusting of your intuition is a practice of building self-belief. Of learning to trust yourself and believe in your own abilities.

As you embark upon this journey you might find that self-doubt keeps popping up. You may wonder if you are capable of learning telepathic communication, or of picking up accurate messages.

As you continue to practise within the safety of a group of kind-hearted animal-lovers, you begin to realise that you are getting the same information that others are getting. It is very affirming and reassuring! Learning animal communication is the perfect practice to help to break through old stuck stories that keep self-doubt in place, and to really learn to trust your intuition… and yourself.

5. Be more in-tune with nature

crop black woman holding dog — Photo by Samson Katt on Pexels.com

On the introductory course, as you continue to practice communicating with animals, you will see the world more and more through their eyes. You discover that there is so much more to learn about the world of animals than maybe you ever realised. How differently animals experience the world than humans do. How confusing they find the human world… and human behaviour!

Our hearts open in compassion for these beautiful beings that have found themselves in a human-centred world, and are struggling to make sense of it. What a gift to finally be able to understand that and to be able to explain things to them so they finally get it! Many of my students report that, even though they have always loved animals, they now see them completely differently!

Also, on my course you will begin communicating with pets and other domesticated animals, and pretty soon you will be communicating with wild animals. On previous courses we have chatted with gorillas, bees, wolves. Each time we do this we gain an even deeper appreciation for their profound wisdom. In the follow-up courses your communication skills will be expanded to include plants, trees, bodies of water and the elements, and eventually to elemental beings and nature spirits.

6. Become a better communicator with everyone

close up shot of a person touching a sunflower — Photo by Alaina Colleen on Pexels.com

In human-to-human communication only 7% of meaning is communicated through the spoken word, the rest is made up of tone of voice, body language, emotions, meaning/intention.

When it comes to animal communication we are using that other 93%. Emotions, thoughts, images, words, feelings – these are all ways that we send information to the animals and receive information back from them.

As you become more and more aware of exactly how much information is being conveyed through thoughts and emotions, we begin to realise that this is true in our human interactions too.

You may find that you experience fewer misunderstandings with other people, as now you can make sure that your emotions align with the words you are saying. Also, you begin to understand other people better as their non-verbal signals become more obvious to you. Sometimes what someone is not saying speaks as loudly as what they are saying. Hey presto! Your human-to-human communication has improved as well!

7. Happier better behaved animal

unrecognizable woman holding paw of dog — Photo by Ivan Babydov on Pexels.com

Number seven in our list of the benefits of learning animal communication is that it has an infinite variety of applications – all of which will help your animal to be happier. The primary desire is to understand the animal better and to identify their needs.

When an animal is repeatedly not heard, they can take to destroying property to get the attention they need. Once you can talk to them you can find out why they are chewing the rug or scratching the sofa, and work with them so they can stop.

When your pet finally has a method other than sickness or misbehaviour to get its message across, your pet is going to change. And you can enjoy having nice things around you again!

Learn animal communication this November at our forthcoming onsite workshop at Clophill in Bedfordshire, or online. Keep up to date with our upcoming workshops through our website page, or by joining our email list.

COMMUNICATE WITH GROUPS OF ANIMALS

August 19, 2022October 23, 2023 Jacqueline Buckingham

Knowing how to communicate with groups of animals, or collectives, is a useful application of animal communication. There may be times when you want to talk to the ants that are invading your kitchen or the wasps that are building a nest in a not-so-convenient place. In this blog I provide the steps to start communicating with groups of animals. I will also share with you the story of how I shared my shed with a very active wasp nest one summer.

How to approach communicating with collectives

When you want to communicate with groups of animals that live in collectives – wasps, bees, ants and so forth – it’s best to communicate with the whole group. They act with a ‘hive mind’ – so communicating with the whole hive is usually the most effective approach.

To do this, simply envisage connecting with the whole hive or nest. Imagine sending the information – using words, feelings, pictures – to the whole group. You might imagine the group of insects in a bubble of energy. Imagine your message being transmitted to that bubble and being received by the whole group.

When we do this, it doesn’t matter if every single member of the group picks up the message. Simply trust enough of them will pick it up that the information will soon be shared among the whole collective.

The story of the wasp nest in the garden shed

A couple of summers ago I went into my shed and could hear that tell-tale ‘chewing’ sound that wasps make when building a nest. I noticed a lot of wasp activity at the far end of the shed and I could see they were building a nest on a shelf at the back of the shed.

Oh dear. I didn’t want to stop them from building their nest, but I also wanted to keep using my shed. What should I do?

Make a deal

To simply ask an animal to stop its natural behaviour can be a fruitless exercise. After all, why would they want to stop doing what comes naturally to them? I tried to imagine myself in the wasps’ situation. Why should they leave a nice warm dry space and abandon all of the work they’ve done so far, simply because I ask them to?

I find that it’s most effective to come up with a solution that meets their needs and yours – and then suggest that to them. By imagining why they are where they are, or why they are doing what they are doing, you can begin to see a way towards a compromise.

In this case I imagined that the the wasps wanted to be dry, warm and undisturbed. For my part, I wanted to use my shed and not get stung! I decided to ask the wasps to keep to the back of the shed (they were flying in and out of a hole at that end anyway). In exchange I would store the things I needed in the front part of the shed. In this way we could share the shed without needing to interfere with one another.

Suggest a solution and see if they agree

Having come up with this solution I took a few minutes to quieten my energy, and connected with the wasps. I imagined them in a bubble of energy and began by sharing my feelings of happiness that they had found a nice warm dry place for their nest, making them feel welcome.

Next I showed them, in my minds eye, that I would be coming in and out of the shed through the door. I also showed them that I would keep to the front of the shed, away from them, reassuring them that I didn’t want to interfere with them. I asked them to let me come in and out without bothering me, and I felt a sense of agreement from the wasps.

Fine-tune the agreement

If you feel that their agreement is not clear or if you notice later on that the behaviour hasn’t changed, go back and revisit the agreement. Begin by asking what they need so that the agreement is acceptable to them. Notice any ideas that pop into your mind about ‘tweaking’ the agreement and offer those. Trust these impulses. Once you feel that they are happy and agree to the new idea, try this new arrangement for a while.

It’s also important to remain confident that the agreement will work. Try to keep a positive mindset. Any doubt, fear, or negativity, such as imaging what you don’t want to happen, will be communicated to the animal. If you carry worried thoughts in your head that the wasps might come near you, you will inadvertently be sending them a message reinforcing the opposite of what you intended!

Keep to the deal

I felt that both the wasps and I were happy about the agreement we had struck. It felt like a workable solution that met both of our needs. However, the next time that I went to the shed I was distracted – my mind was full of other things. I forgot all about the wasps as I pulled open the shed door and clomped in to get my gardening things.

Immediately three wasps were right there, buzzing around me! About half a metre from my head. Oops! I forgot about our deal!

Stepping back out of the door I took a moment to centre myself. I quietened my mind and consciously calmed my energy. In this ‘bubble of calm’ I stepped back into the shed, picked up my gardening things and left again. This time the wasps left me alone and stayed at the back of the shed.

Remain mindful and calm

It was a great reminder to me to be present and mindful each time I went to the shed. It also confirmed that the communication had worked – they had agreed to the arrangement. And now they were reminding me that I needed to be calm when I entered the shed. Otherwise the projection of my energy would feel overwhelming and intrusive to them.

For animals (birds, insects) when we move around unmindful of our energy and our thoughts, it’s as if our thoughts are on loudspeaker. They feel the projection of our energy as strong force invading their space.

However, if we take a moment to quieten and calm ourselves, they feel calm and quiet, and safe, around us. Not only does this help our relationship with the animals; I also find that it is a wonderful teacher to me, to be more mindful and calm in my movements generally.

The wasps and I shared that shed all summer, respectful of one another’s presence and happily going about our business while keeping our distance. I was sad when they didn’t return the following year. They had been wonderful teachers for me.

Hopefully you will feel confident to communicate with groups or collectives of animals yourself.

When I went back to that wasp nest in the ground a few days later, there was a huge hole in the ground where the small opening had been. Badgers had found the nest and had dug it up, in order to get the wasp larvae which they like to eat. I was sad to see it suffer that fate, but I was also fascinated to see the beautiful inside workings of that underground wasps nest.

Share your stories

Have you tried to communicate with groups – of animals, birds or insects? If so, I’d love to hear what happened and how you got on. Please feel free to put something in the comments box below, or you can email me via this link.

Meanwhile if you’d like to find out more about animal communication or my workshops, or to enquire about a consultation you can book a free 20-minute discovery call with me using this link.

Wasps are one of nature’s pollinators, along with bees, butterflies, flies and hoverflies

The Art of Subtle Activism

March 30, 2022 Jacqueline Buckingham

Subtle activism is the action of consciously connecting with people, places, animals, events and sending them loving energy. It is an active engagement that works on the subtle level. Hence the name, subtle activism. This practice has been shown to have an impact upon the recipients of this loving energy.

There are several peer-reviewed studies that have shown that when groups of meditators sit together regularly there is a measurable effect upon rates of violent crime in those places. It is thought that the field of consciousness that is achieved by these groups of meditators influences the consciousness of those around them.

If we apply this to telepathic communication, we can see that when we extend this field of loving kindness to those who are not physically close to us, they can also feel the benefit of this connection.

How does subtle activism work?

At a micro-level a friend of mine who has spent a lot of time in hospital in the last year starting to connect with her cat telepathically every evening. She imagined playing with the cat and stroking it, just as she would if she were with it physically. The neighbour that fed the cat remarked upon the change in the cat’s demeanour – from skittish and jumpy to relaxed and friendly. He was unaware of what my friend was doing, he just saw the difference.

At a macro-level we can also send feelings of loving care and support telepathically to a group of animals, or all of the animals in a specific area. They will pick it up and feel soothed by it.

It is a wonderful thing to practise. Even when we cannot do anything physically, there is always something that we can do energetically or telepathically.

How to practise subtle activism

To practise subtle activism you may want to find yourself a quiet and comfortable place to sit. Somewhere that you will be free from distractions and potential interruptions.

Simple close your eyes and watch your breathing for a while. Watch it move in and out of your lungs; as you do so you may notice that your breaths become longer and deeper and your mind begins to quieten.

When you feel calm and relaxed, bring into your awareness the place or animals that you would like to connect with. Imagine your heart sending out a beam of white light that envelopes that area, or those animals. The light could be rose pink, green, violet or any colour that you choose.

Now imagine radiating love across that beam of light to the animals or place or situation.

You could say supportive and affirming phrases silently in your mind such as: I see you and send you love / my heart is filled with compassion for you / I am sorry that this is happening to you / I care deeply about what happens to you.”

Continue to sit and radiate loving energy. You could expand the words that you use into longer sentences. But ensure that those sentences are consoling, reassuring and supportive.

When you feel ready imagine drawing the beam of light back into your heart, until you feel that your energy is once more contained within your own energy field.

Something to be aware of:

It is important that we do not bring a sense of pity to the animals or the situation. That can have the opposite effect than we intend. Have you ever experienced a time when you were struggling with life and someone pitied you? It can feel disempowering rather than supportive, and the same is true for the animals. We don’t want the animals to feel like victims. That is not how they feel about themselves, they are simply having an experience. Instead of pity, bring compassion and empathy to their situation.

Some of the ways that we can apply subtle activism

There are many ways that we can use animal communication to support animals in times of distress. We can also use subtle activism at these times. You can read more about these in my blog – Floods, fires and how animal communication can help .

HOW TO SEND TELEPATHIC MESSAGES

September 26, 2021September 27, 2025 Jacqueline Buckingham

The word ‘telepathy’ has two parts: ‘tele’ meaning ‘distance’, and ‘pathy’ from ‘pathos’ the Greek word for feeling. Telepathy literally means ‘feeling over distance’. This is a clue to how we can make sure we are successful in our communication with animals. When we learn telepathic animal communication we are learning to communicate with them in their own language.

All animal lovers know that animals are expert at picking up on our feelings. If we feel sad, they will comfort us. If we are angry or stressed, they give us space or avoid us altogether. We can’t hide our feelings from animals and if our words are not aligned with our feelings, our animal friends will know. So it is important that our words match up with what we are saying, and also that we are not flooded with emotion when we want to communicate with our animal friend.

Here are some simple steps that you can take that will help you to get your message across clearly and effectively:

Be calm and clear
Connect with your animal from your heart
Focus on one thing at a time
Use images
Use feelings
Express yourself in the positive

To expand on each of these.

1. Be Calm and Clear: slow down and centre yourself before communicating with your animal. You could try meditating or listening to relaxing music. Being calm and clear ensures that you are not coming to the conversation with a lot of your own emotions, which could confuse them.

2. Connect from the Heart: visualise a connection from your heart centre to your animal’s heart centre (the centre of their chest, or the heart chakra area). Then send them feelings of love and appreciation. This will establish the connection and will build understanding and trust between you. It will also get their attention!

3. Focus on One Thing at a Time: keep the communication nice and simple and communicate one thought at a time. Find the simplest way to tell them that. Give them a moment or two to receive it, and then communicate the next piece.

4. Add Images: reinforcing your words with images and feelings is one of the most effective ways we can be sure our message is getting across. When you speak the words (either out loud or silently in your mind) you can also show them an image of what you are communicating.

Example: If you want them to stop bringing mice into the house, show them what you would like – for example show them leaving it outside the back door.

5. Add Feelings: Because animals pick up emotions so easily, they are highly motivated by positive feelings. If you share a feeling to go with the image that you sent them, it will motivate them to do what you have asked. Example: send them a feeling of how happy you will be if they do the thing you are asking them to do.

6. Express Yourself in the Positive: this is especially important if you want to elicit a change in behaviour. Tell them ‘do this’ instead of ‘don’t do that’. When we say ‘don’t jump up’ they only hear ‘jump up’, the ‘don’t’ gets lost. Instead say ‘keep all four paws on the ground’.

Remember to close the conversation – this is simple good manners. We wouldn’t walk away from a conversation with a person without bringing it to a close, so do the same thing for our animal friends. You could end the conversation by thanking them – it acknowledges them for listening to us, and also lets them know that the conversation is at an end.

Try working with one of these steps at a time for a few days or a week, and see how your confidence in your own intuition increases.

It is important to remember that when we are communicating in order to change a behaviour, using this technique will not guarantee that your animal will do what you want just because you’ve shown them and told them what you want. They are individuals with their own free will. However it will yield more positive behaviours than yelling, threatening, or feeling helpless – all understandable responses when we feel exasperated!

Also, if you follow these steps and take your time, you will find that it will create deeper intimacy and understanding between you and your animal.

My introductory level trainings will give you the ability to ask questions clearly in a way that the animal understands. You will also learn to understand the animal’s responses. Details and dates of upcoming trainings are in the Workshops section.