Dear Friend,
Do you refer to your animal companions as "fur babies?"
Do you ever call them "baby?"
Have you ever wondered how animals feel about being spoken to or referred to in this way? After all, they do listen telepathically even when you're speaking to someone else about them, and regardless of where you are at the time.
One of the purposes of Animal Communication is to understand the animals' perspectives, so I checked this out with my own animal companions.
Starlight and I have had many lifetimes together.
In this life, I raised her from a 10-week old kitten.
She has always objected to me calling her a "baby."
"How would you feel if I called you a 'fur baby,'" I asked Starlight. She gave me a startled and not very happy look, and then said, "Yuck. What does that mean?" She was already an adult cat when I asked this question.
"I'm not sure what it means, but people are talking about their animals in this way," I told her.
"Don't call me that. It's insulting," she replied. "I'm not a baby. I want you to respect me. I want to make decisions about my own life, and if you think of me as a baby, you won't let me have any choices."
I will admit that there have been times when I've made decisions for Starlight without asking what she wanted. She gets angry when I do that. I've been working on asking her more and more about what she needs and wants, and respecting her point of view and her decisions. This pleases her a lot.
"Right," I told her. "Don't worry about it. I won't ever call you that."
Melissa has had 2 recent lifetimes with me.
Her attitude about being called a baby was different each lifetime.
Melissa told me, "I want to be a baby FOREVER!" and insisted that I treat her as a baby for her entire 6 years with me. She wanted me to call her my "baby," so I did, even tho' it felt really weird to me. No animal companion had ever wanted this before.
That said, it was revealed to me that she had been my human child or my cat in 11 or 12 previous lifetimes that did not end happily for her. So this time around, she was asking to be nurtured, even as a biologically adult cat.
Melissa was a super-strong-minded feline with an intense need to be in control of everything. I honored her wishes as best as I could, although we metaphorically "knocked heads" on a regular basis.
She never thought it was a contradiction for me to treat her as a "baby" and yet let her be in control.
Now at age 2, Melissa doesn't want to be thought of as my baby. She accepts me as a care-taker and friend, but definitely not in a motherly role.
I do my best to I honor her choices as much as possible, and explain thoroughly when I feel I can't let her do whatever she wants whenever she wants to do it.
She still likes to be in control of her life, but is more willing to accept many decisions I make for her well-being, as long as I explain in a way she can understand.
I personally find the term "fur babies" offensive when used as a generic way of referring to our animal companions.
A kitten or puppy is a baby, but will grow into an adult cat or dog rather quickly, compared to a human child. The same is true for a young animal of any species, whether bird, reptile, rabbit, and so on.
Just like a human child, teenage animals want to test their abilities to cope in the world and want to be treated with respect. Once they are adults, most want to be treated as adults.
While I realize that many people in our society are lonely and feel isolated, calling your companion a "baby" may not be comfortable for the animal. If your animal companion is a substitute for human children, is that fair to the animal?
ANIMAL COMMUNICATION PRACTICE.
Human teenagers rebel, and it's considered psychologically healthy. After all, if we expect them to become adults and make decisions for their own lives they have to develop a sense of independence, and it's part of parenting to help them do this.
Consider your own teenage rebellions against parental authority.
Then consider . . .
Do you expect your animal friends to be mentally and emotionally dependent on you for their whole lives? Or are you looking for a mutually healthy adult relationship with them?
They may need you for food, shelter, and medical care, but don't they have the right to make choices?
Put yourself into a place of Divine Neutrality or non-judgment before your begin the following activity. In that way, you won't feel threatened if you get an unexpected response from your animal friend(s).
Practice your Animal Communication skills by having a conversation with each of your animals on this topic: "What do think about being called a "fur baby"?
You might also ask them if they think of you as a substitute parent? Or a friend? Or a companion? Or something else? And how do they feel about this level of relationship? Do they want you to give them more choices - more power over decisions affecting their lives? In what areas would giving them choices work well for you? For the animal?
This can be a good topic of discussion between you and each of your animal companions - a good way to practice your Animal Communication skills - and a way to deepen and strengthen your relationships.
Namaste,
Nedda
