Being a farm dog is a great life. When you have many acres to wander, and little danger of things like road traffic, you really get to learn what it means to be a good old fashioned Lassie-esque free-spirited Dog. Not all dogs are that fortunate, and people who live in cities and suburbs often dream of a country life for their pooches … not realizing that “stuff happens” even in an idyllic setting like your dogs enjoyed.

The first thing a communicator might have done for your family was to explain that animal communication is one tool among many at your disposal. She might have given you a list of dog trainers, or dog training books, for instance, to augment her work with your animals, and to give your family more resources to rely on. The more weapons in your arsenal, the more likely that you’d have kept your puppies around long enough for them to grow a brain.

As far as actual communication, it’s first important to try to see the world from the dog’s point of view for a moment. A puppy isn’t born with the ability to understand that the car (a strictly human contraption) that is sitting safely in the driveway, or the car that is so fun to “go bye-byes” in (once you outgrow your carsick tendencies), stops being a friend once it’s in motion. If I had been called in to help, I would have first fought to get the puppy’s attention (not easy with a puppy, even if you’re dangling a piece of bologna in front of his nose) and begun to play mental movies for him. I’d show him the danger of moving cars. Although I am not usually one to use fear motivation with animals, life-threatening dangers sometimes need a bit of shock factor to get the point across. Once I show the puppy what might happen when the car is moving, I play (over and over and over) more mental images for him, regarding how he can avoid those moving wheels. I show him the movement of the wheels, relay the sound of the engine starting, the smell of the exhaust, and do my best to imprint on the pup that these are all danger signs. I then show the pup how to move back onto the lawn, or to the porch, or anywhere that he will be safe once the car “comes to life”.

Yes, your puppy-brained puppies may have been helped, with animal communication combined with the family efforts to “supercharge” the images with positive reinforcement training. There are, of course, no 100% guarantees; talking to an animal with helpful instruction is pretty much like telling a four year old child, “Don’t chase the ball into the road.” You know they get it when you’re telling them, but you still aren’t going to let them play near traffic unattended. But it does help to get the message across, in addition to the many other tools at your disposal to keep them safe.

I do hope at least one of your childhood dogs lived to ripe old age, and brought you many happy memories.