When Maria and I first met, six or seven years ago, I was struck by her intuitive ability to talk with animals. I first saw this with the donkeys, then the sheep and more recently, her pony Chloe. Animals smell and sense emotion, and Maria’s emotions are close to the surface.

She kneels down, listens, touches, and she shares ideas, thoughts and feelings with them. Every morning, they will even forego food to be near her for a few minutes. I have been working on communicating with animals for more than 15 years, and it was Maria’s special gift that first inspired me to write a book, which has become “Talking To Animals,” due out next Spring. I thought of it this morning when I saw her kneeling with the donkeys out in the pasture.

They ground her, she grounds them. I do this work with the dogs, the donkeys to a lesser degree, and sometimes the sheep. This is always a  beautiful thing to see and contemplate, it never seems old to me, learning how to talk to animals deepens our connection to them in so many ways.

In the book I describe the different tools of communication – food, emotion, visualization, body language, voice. It is, I think, one of my best books. But I suppose I am not objective.

__

If you wish to pre-order “Talking To Animals,” you can do so via Battenkill Books, my wonderful  local independent bookstore. They take credit cards and Paypal. I will sign and personalize any books pre-ordered through Battenkill, and people who pre-order the book will also receive a gift, picture postcards of the farm or tote-bags or, in about a dozen cases, one of Maria’s potholders. You can pre-order the book here.