Communicating with animals is something we think only very few people can do, but we all have the ability. How do we tap into that gift and come into collaboration and partnership with our pets? How do we create a better family communication structure with our animals and help our children communicate with them? What are the techniques we can use to communicate better with animals and people? On this episode, I talk to The Real Dr. Doolittle, Val Heart about better communication and solving behavior problems collaboratively.   Animals are really like our angels, teachers, guides and healers. -Val Heart   3 Things We Learned From This Episode   Why animals are so important in our lives (03:24 - 03:55) Animals serve a very important purpose in our lives. They are our angels, teachers, guides and healers. When we learn to recognize, respect and revere them for who they truly are, they help us become the best versions of ourselves.   Why we shouldn’t treat animals like they need to be fixed (15:38 - 15:48) When we come at something with the idea of trying to fix someone it sets us as an authority when we’re actually supposed to be in partnership and on one even playing field.   How not to treat our animals like property we own (16:26 - 18:04) It’s easy to treat our animals like something we just own, but this is the wrong way to go about it. When we treat animals, or even other people like we own them or like they are a problem to be fixed, it immediately creates resistance and pushback. We’re not owners, we’re caretakers and guardians.     We all have the ability to talk with animals, and if we know how to tap into it, it would help even how we communicate with other people. When we communicate with animals, we have to approach animals from a neutral, witness, observer space. How we do this is to start by hearing the animal without judgement, evaluating the issue, taking action to change what’s not working, relief and clearing resistance and teamwork and trust. If we want to communicate with our animals we have to see it, feel it and say it. This is a gift we’ve all been given and can start using now.   Guest Bio- Val Heart, aka The Real Dr. Doolittle is the world's leading animal whisperer. She is the CEO of Heart Communication Enterprises Inc, Founder of The HEART System™ for solving problems with pets. She is the bestselling author and a featured expert on ABC, NBC and Fox News, as well as in People Magazine, My S.A., and Great Day S.A. She solves problem with pets & teaches cat, dog, horse & animal communication. Val fell in love with horses when she was five years old and began her long term relationship getting to know and understand horses. Her work with horses led to intensive study in developing her gifts with animal communication and other supporting healing techniques. Go to https://www.valheart.com for more information.