Animals in the Afterlife – Messages of Peace and Lasting Love

Believe it or not, one of my favorite things to do is to talk to the spirits of animals that have passed on. The people they have left behind usually contact me in the deep throes of grief that has lasted days, weeks, months and even years. Their pain is palpable and they come to me looking for some relief and some answers. In addition to the sadness that accompanies the death of any loved one, their suffering is often compounded by guilt and confusion. They question “Did I do the right thing? How did I not know something was wrong? Why wasn’t I there?”

For example, Joanne came to my office for a reading about her cat who had passed away three years earlier. Her face was drawn and tired looking, and I guessed she was about 55 or 60 years old. As she handed me a photo of her cat, she choked on his name and couldn’t bear to look at his picture.

I contacted Tom and asked him about where he was and how he had died. He said he had died quickly and easily because his mom was out of the house. He had chosen this time to die to make it easier on her. He assured me that Joanne thought she would be helpful and comforting to him when he died, but he knew that she would freak out and freeze up and then feel bad afterward. (Joanne confirmed that this was probably accurate.) Her anxiety would have made it harder for his soul to release from his body and it would have been harder for Joanne to cope with his death, so he chose a time when he could transition smoothly and easily – he died when Joanne was at the laundromat for about 2 hours one afternoon.

During our 30-minute reading, Joanne and Tom cleared up misunderstandings and re-affirmed their love for and devotion to each other. Joanne left my office gazing fondly at her photo, smiling, and with a spring in her step. She literally looked twenty years younger – I would have guessed her age at about 35-40 years old now – after the weight of the pain she had been carrying was lifted from her heart and her soul.

Do all animals understand dying and the afterlife? Here are some questions and answers from readings I’ve done over the last couple years.

Q: My cat died in a car accident a few years ago. Where is he now?

A: Patch answers: “I’m between the worlds.  It’s great here! I am having so much fun. I can run and run and run as much as I want. It’s beautiful and peaceful and open and free here. It’s like being in the sky and I can stay here as long as I want to. I’m just playing. Mostly by myself but there are other cats and dogs here. We all play together when we feel like it. But mostly I like to explore and run around on my own. I like running on the sand at the beach and I like running in the clouds. It’s so soft and so wide open.”

Q:  We had to put our 14-year old family dog to sleep when she was suddenly unable to walk due to (previously undiagnosed) advanced cancer and hip dysplasia.  It felt so rushed to us. Is she okay with how everything happened?

A: Glory answers:  “I am sorry that I went so fast. I wish the family had more time to adjust to my transition. They were loving and generous. All the love of my lifetime was there at the end, like a cocoon of love. It was my time. My soul had it planned. There was nothing they could have seen or done differently. Your best gift was your love and acceptance for who I was.”

Q:  My beloved dog Sabrina died three years ago and I am still grieving. Is she okay?

A: Sabrina told me that she loves and visits Christina regularly as an energy being now. She showed me a picture of the two of them lying together on a bed, their backs curved into C’s facing opposite directions. When I described the scene to her, Christina told me that was how they used to sleep together all the time. Sabrina said, “We still do.”

It’s comforting to know that after they pass, our animals aren’t suffering and that they still remember and love us.

Love is the strongest force in the universe. It survives death, transcends our earthbound reality, and keeps us connected with our loved ones, whether they are human, feathered or furry and whether they are here in physical form with us or not.