HERE ARE WHAT 6 OF MY STUDENTS HAD TO SAY ABOUT LEARNING TO SWIM:
CISCO: "At first I thought you were mean to put me in the water. Once I learned how to move correctly I enjoyed it. The most fun was learning how to fetch my ball in the water. Now I am a good swimmer."

TOAST: "I am old and my mom always thought I was scared of the water. I love to swim. It is the best feeling in the world even though I need you to help me so my head doesn't go under. On days I am disoriented, swimming helps me to wake up my mind."

During a session talking with Scooby in spirit, his person took three pages of notes. Here is a bit of what he said during our session:

"My person has a lot of dreams she wants to manifest. She can have all of them. But sometimes she just needs to grow a little to reach them...What is so amazing about heaven is that there are all these gifts here. All my mom has to do is reach up and grab one. Tell her to stand on her tippy toes."

Gus's person asked me to tell him to stop waking her up so early in the morning. He replied, "Doesn't she know all goddesses get up at 4:30am?"

"I know I am the smartest dog in Texas." Bella received a high-school diploma in Texas and made the news. Read her story: http://grantsrant.wordpress.com/2008/03/27/bella-is-a-high-school-grad/

My brother is an investigative reporter for NBC. He is a four time Emmy Award winner and sixteen time Emmy Award nominee. GRANTS RANT is his blog. I have always admired my brother for fearlessly going after his passions. He has done stories on animal abuse, rescue and the inhumane capture of elephants in the wild for a well known circus. GRANTS RANT is his new project. I find it humorous as well as educational.

Dear Laura,

I'm glad I found this website. Ever since I can remember I'd always
passed over your column as a bunch of typical Ojai psycho-babble crap.
However, once I got my dog, Huck, people I hold in high regard urged me
to take him to you.

Vinny says, "The bridle they clean often (show bridle) hurts the top of my head and my jaw. Can they make it bigger?" and "When my mom (person) rides me I feel I have princess on my back."

Rusty and the trainer's dogs talk to one another. Rusty thought he should stay close to the sheep and bite them. In cattle yes, but not with sheep. When I told him the other dogs were right by telling him not to bite the sheep he says, "I don't like being wrong."

"Tell my mom to watch for signs of me. Watch the birds and watch for the flickering of sunlight."

"Can we walk with you?"

She says to my dogs, "Where are your mommies?"

"I miss the sound of water running outside the bedroom window."

Dear Laura,
Do dogs understand the word NO?
Sincerely, Alfred

It is around 7:30 am on a typical Monday. I am driving patiently down a curvy dirt road. My two dogs extend their heads out separate rear windows. They are catching their breathe from our morning stroll in the woods. Up a head, just past the next twist, I see what looks like

This morning as I lay in bed after one push of the snooze button the ravens outside begin to squawk incessantly. I know this sound well. They are mobbing a red tail hawk. I listen more closely. There is a distant distress call of the hawk’s mate.

Journey says, "I think the puppy is going to be a nuisance. Maybe dad (her person) and I should move out."

Abby says, "Am I suppose to play with it? I don't think it is very smart. I think it should go away."

After sometime Abby and Journey learned to love the new puppy.

"I am scared because I can no longer see. Everything looks like shadows. I want to fly so bad. It is ok if mom (person) cries. Tell her it is ok if I die."

Dear Laura,
I definitely want to hear what your posse has to say about the way animals view love.
Sincerely, Julia

"He is like a flower. Open during the day and closed at night."

"This is the best time of my life. I am going to remember every dog here. I have so many friends."

Dear Laura,
This is sort of a generic question with a specific situation. What to do with dogs who inhale their food?

This is Bee and Leo. They have recently been rescued from poor situations. Bee tells about a situation she had with her shoer, "I kicked him in the thigh and I thought it was funny. We both thought he was hurt really bad, but he was OK."
Leo talks about why he has nightmares, "People tied my legs when they first put a saddle on me. I know it was a long time ago, but I still think about it."

"I want to be brushed and I want more treats. My favorite treats are pretzels and fruit."

This is Skippy. He is amazing. He reminds me of a Border Collie. His person and I use the clicker to train him to not meow obsessively around food. He remarks, "I like to eat because I am bored. I like the texture and the taste of food."

"I want more plants in the house. I like spider plants the best."