The Pet Whisperer

Move over Caesar Milan, your Dog Whisperer days are numbered!

In the past few months of shuffling my tarot cards for so many clients, most of the questions were generally about career or love life. I have had odd questions hurled at me by some clients from time to time, some can easily be rephrased, some.. well... took a little more time and effort meditating upon.

Last night, I had one request asking for a reading for her cats, Sooty and Sweep. I had half the mind to not accept that request but how hard I tried, there wasn't anywhere in my code of ethics that said I couldn't read for pets. Besides, I thought of it as a nifty experiment with my cards.

As it turned out, my cards uncovered that Sooty and Sweep had in the past seen difficult times with different changes in environment and plenty of uncertainty. However, they are currently enjoying a warm and loving home and are fearful of being moved from their comfort zone. This was an unsettling prospect in their mind.

I was so glad that Sooty and Sweep's care-giver thought it was a great reading. What a relief! So I thought to do one on my 8 year old Maltese-Shitzu mixed, Bailey.

Bailey's Tarot Spread:

What makes Bailey happy?  - Empress:

The Empress I think is a manifestation of the energy of Evelyn, my housekeeper. She's my Chief Operations Officer at home. Without her, David wouldn't know where to find his glasses, Joel would go to school hungry, my wardrobe would be in a perpetual state of upheaval and the dogs would die of neglect. Bailey is particularly close to Evelyn and actually whined for her when she went on a vacation back to her home town in the Philippines for 3 weeks last year. If dogs naturally have separation anxiety, Bailey only feels it with Evelyn. To Bailey, she's "Mum", providing him with an abundance of warmth, love play time and plenty of walkies. Bailey loves Evelyn and would wait outside her bedroom in the mornings for her to wake up, sits outside the bathroom daily to wait for her to finish her shower and follows her into the kitchen when she is preparing our meals.

What makes bailey unhappy? - Queen of Swords reversed:

Ok, I admit. I wanted to think of the Empress as me. However, as it turned out, my cards never lie. The Queen of Swords reversed is, unfortunately, me. When the daily work stress gets to me, I am usually too exhausted to give the dogs even a wee pat on their heads. Instead, I often bark back at them for spilling their dog food around their bowls, for barking incessantly at our neighbors or the occasional deliveryman. I have stopped taking them for long walks lately because of exhaustion, leaving the job in the hands of the very capable Evelyn. My demeanor when it comes to the dogs, is pretty much like the Queen of Swords, cold, hard, and seemingly devoid of emotions. I am sorry, I am just too exhausted everyday to even notice my interactions with the dogs.

Bailey's thoughts - The Emperor:

Bailey thinks of himself as the "Boss Dog". He is indeed the older, alpha male in the midst of my other dogs, miniature pinschers, Ozzy and Zakk. Bailey sometimes pretends to be a sheep dog, herding the other two back to their "space", the kitchen, while Bailey enjoys the "Boss Dog's space" of the living room. Bailey thinks the right to the first feed of the day, the best treats, and longer walkie times are all due to him as the "Boss Dog". In fact, in the packing order, Evelyn is no.1, Bailey considers himself as no.2, and the rest of us, together with the other 2 dogs are just "mutts". Thanks Bailey.

Bailey's feelings - 3 of Cups reversed

Bailey feels unhappy and is experiencing a sense of disharmony in relation to Ozzy and Zakk. There is a certain amount of jealousy and he thinks the environment has become too over-crowded. He dislikes their presence as they impinge on what he demands as his exclusive time with Evelyn and the family. He has to tolerate Ozzy and Zakk's hyperactivity and their incessant jumping around in an attempt to get our attention. Often, it works too because David and I will placate their hyperactivity with a treat off our dinner table. However, as Bailey suffers from sensitive skin and is overweight, we never allow him any "human" food nor treats that were not prescribed by the vet.

Impact on Bailey - 4 of Swords reversed:

Bailey feels restless and frustrated by our lack of action in spending more quality time with him. He does not understand why we have a bias approach to the dogs, practicing favoritism so openly by showering Ozzy and Zakk with all those exciting treats and hugging them from time to time while Bailey gets nothing. He is so tired of attempting to get my attention everyday when I come home, only to have me walk past him like a piece of furniture. On weekends, when we are about to head out for our usual Sunday brunch, Bailey thinks he's coming out with us. However he is disappointed every time we close the door behind us, leaving him at home with the other two clowns. All he wants very much, is to know that we do love him and we still think he is top dog at home.

But we do Bailey!

This weekend, I will take Bailey out to the Botanic Gardens for a long walk.  I have a lot of making up to do.

About The Writer:


The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and a tarot card reader by accident. She has a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America and she is also a certified numerologist.  She currently runs a Tarot consultancy called Sun Goddess Tarot based in Singapore.  A member of the American Tarot Association and the Tarot Association of the British Isles, she is also a reader for the Free Tarot Network and mentors beginner Tarot readers on behalf of the ATA.

She can be contacted at www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot or www.sungoddesstarot.com