Welcome to the Soul Touched by Dogs Podcast, the show for dog lovers who
see dogs not as toys or tools, but wise souls worth our respect and care.
I'm an Herrmann, and I'm your host.
I talk to poor some humans, people who do great work for dogs and their people.
So come and join us for today's conversation.
Anke: Hello, and welcome, Jennifer.
I'm super excited to have you here with me today.
Jennifer: Thank you.
I'm so excited to be here.
Yay.
Anke: So before we, you know, talk dogs, uh, let's talk Jennifer for a second.
Um, you know, give people a 2 minute bird's eye overview.
Where are you based?
And, you know, what's
Jennifer: your connection with dogs?
Sure.
I am based in Morristown, New Jersey, and you might be able
to hear my dog at the moment.
Um, I was a cat person all of my life until about, uh, 4 years ago where my
boyfriend decided well, he's wanted 1 forever, an Australian blue heeler.
And, uh, she took 1 look at me, and I took 1 look at her, and we realized we
were soulmates, and she became my dog.
So, uh, it's really having this connection with dogs really changed my life.
Wow.
How the boys would take that?
So, you know, he's like honestly, he's like, I always
pick the dugout for you anyway.
So, um, he loves it now.
You know, I mean, he's still the papa, so there's always a lot of wagging
of the tail and kissing of the face.
And, uh, uh, you know, he tends to be, you know, the fave when, uh, he's around.
And then when I if I go to the grocery store while he's home,
she just sits by the door and waits and doesn't do anything.
So, uh, it's a good relationship all around.
You know?
We consider ourselves a family.
So, yeah, I'm pretty happy with it.
Yeah.
I love it.
Love it.
Anke: So so what has she taught you that you
Jennifer: didn't expect?
Well, she's our second dog.
So, uh, each 1 of them has taught us different things.
So Roxy, our first dog, taught us all about, you know, really
opening our hearts for love.
And heart taught taught us, you know, how to not close our hearts
and open us to being patient.
This dog takes a lot of patience.
She's a big barker.
Uh, she's a big talker.
And, uh, yet she's really sweet and really loving.
So she's really taught me how to, like, be patient and be calm and really not
really let go of control more of things.
Anke: Yeah.
I think that that being with what is.
Right?
I think those are, like, the most brilliant teacher that that like,
you see it a lot when you when when a dog has some kind of disability.
You know?
Like, there's a lick missing ant.
Like, you know?
Like, I can knock on ways of you know, they just don't have all that thinking
about what that will mean and you know?
So I think it's really beautiful to see.
Jennifer: Yeah.
I mean, there was this there was this dog at the dog park that was
in a little wheelchair, and he was running with the big dogs.
I mean, running, and it was just like we're all like, that's amazing.
Like, none of the dogs paid attention to the difference.
They would they were just like, come on.
Yeah.
It was a really beautiful thing.
Yeah.
That's that's
Anke: fascinating.
So how how would like, in what way are your your dogs different?
And, you know, so what what is the the,
Jennifer: yeah, tell me about that.
Yeah.
Well, Australia, you know, if you look at the Blue Heeler, like,
Facebook groups, everyone agrees it's like living with a wild dog.
Right?
You know?
So, I mean, they're super freaking smart, super smart.
She knows how to open the bathroom door.
She, uh, you know, brings up her leash.
It's the funniest thing.
She knows a lot of words.
The other day, I said, Hart, go get Rebecca.
We were out in Rebecca's backyard, and she went up to the back door and just stood
there until Rebecca came, uh, to the door.
Like, super smart.
I think what what's really amazing about really being touched by dogs is that I
think they open you up to a whole side that most people keep really hidden.
Right?
Because they it is that unconditional love, right, that people often talk about.
It is just being with what is and really learning to what you,
you know, their reflection of how you think about yourself.
I recently watched the movie Stray Dogs.
And if you guys haven't seen it, you should.
Uh, it's really raunchy, but it really made me think about how I
talk to my dog and what goes on in their head about how I talk to them,
which also made me think even more about how I talk to human beings.
Right?
And really not snapping, really being conscious of my words, really
understanding what I'm putting out into the universe in every aspects.
And the dog is a great reflection for that.
And plus, you know, dogs are really funny.
I mean, they can really make us laugh and not take life so seriously.
And I have warrior energy, so I tend to take life really seriously.
So she kinda forces me not to take life seriously at all.
I mean, that's like I was just
Anke: thinking of the funny thing that is that is so true, isn't it?
Jennifer: Yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, she has this little toy.
It's a mister Bill from Saturday Night Live.
And last night, I was like, what do you got in your mouth?
And she's asked mister Bill by the head.
It's the only toy that she hasn't murdered.
And she's literally chewing on it and falling asleep, and, like, she
falls asleep with it on her mouth.
Like, that cracks me up.
Right?
The other day, I walked into the bedroom, and she's asleep
with her head on a pillow.
And I'm like, oh my god.
Maybe I should get you your own pillow.
Like, you really like lean sleeping on a pillow.
And I think, you know, especially if you take the dog to the
dog park, there's so much.
Uh, the dogs tend not to be, like, on display.
It's like the humans.
And, you know, you get to really understand your own personal
beliefs and limiting beliefs when you deal with dogs and with the
human pack element at the dog park.
So the dogs have taught me a lot.
They've helped me evolve, uh, my consciousness and
get out of my own way a lot.
Anke: I mean, you know, I'm really curious how because, like, when
I think of, like, soul language belong beyond words, I think of you.
Right?
So that's how we met initially.
And and so I would love to, like you know, how how how does that relate to
dogs for you, or or how did that maybe, like, you know having the dogs, how
did that help feed the other side of
Jennifer: it?
So, you know, I created a paradigm called soul language, which puts
tangibility to soul so I can identify everyone's 3 core energies of soul.
And when I first got the first dog, Roxy, I thought, I
wonder what Roxy's here to do.
And I identified her soul languages.
Uh, and her soul languages gave me an understanding of really
what her role was in my life.
And as a responsibility, how was I going to evolve from that role, and
how was how was I going to treat her?
She was literally my soulmate.
She ran up the stairs the first time I met her from, uh, Werner
taking her out of the car.
She ran right up the stairs, right up to me.
Didn't see her at all up until that point.
She ran up to me and cocked her head, and I went, oh my god.
I totally know you.
And we were inseparable from that moment on.
So she really and I'm getting choked up because she got she got hit by a
car about a year and a half later.
And in that moment, understanding that she was here through her soul,
through understanding her languages, that she was here to teach me
about love helped me through the darkest moments of that experience.
And even in her death where every neighbor in every neighbor and I didn't even
know anybody by the when I had the dog.
Every neighbor came out to help us, to give us flowers, to support us.
That was huge.
Right?
Even in her her releasing her life, she helped us.
And I think understanding her soul languages helped me understand
and really not get mad at her.
Now with heart, that's totally the truth.
Because I go, oh, okay.
Wait.
You're here to, you know, provide patience and help me understand.
Okay.
Let me pause.
Right?
Let me not get mad.
And it's kind of dumb to get mad at a dog anyway because they're a dog.
Right?
They're not having that it's not like they have free will to stop barking.
I mean, she technically does, but she doesn't.
Right?
You know, it allows me to go, okay.
Wait.
We're here to evolve, and you're here to help me evolve.
So I know what your role here is on the planet and what your soul is here to do.
And understanding and having that knowledge in any aspect of relationship,
whether it's for your your business or with another person or a dog,
really understands how you wanna react, what you wanna put into the
relationship field between you and that animal person business, whatever.
It gives you a way to really change your life and really to put to
be in the consciousness of the solution rather than putting pain
in programming in everything you do.
Mhmm.
Yeah.
Anke: I love that.
So how how can somebody, like, find out?
I mean, do you you know, like, other than other than coming to you, you know,
or, you know, maybe that is the way.
Like, I mean, how does somebody okay.
I've got this though.
How do I figure out what the soul languages are?
Jennifer: Tools?
Technically, we need to go to a a soul language practitioner to have
any soul languages identified.
Uh, so that's the the formal way.
But the informal way is really just to notice a big theme
of between you and your dog.
Right?
You know, what what do you feel around your dog?
What what, uh, what is the dog triggering?
What you know, in your quiet time, just you and them.
You can ask to have a soul to soul conversation.
And just in meditation, go, what are you here to help me evolve?
What role are you here to play in my life, and what is my responsibility besides
taking care of the dog's survival needs?
Right?
What is my responsibility to be with this dog?
You know, a couple months after I got heart, I was I was really angry.
I was angry because we live on a very busy street, and nobody seems
to care that it's 25 miles an hour, and they speed down the street.
And I remember during the summer, this woman we live near a park, and this
woman would let her dog off the leash and then be on her phone in the dark.
And the the dog would, of course, come out of the park and stand on
the curb, and I was getting so mad.
I was so mad.
And I was like, you gotta put the dog on the leash.
And she's like, don't you know, you don't blah blah blah.
And I was like, the dog is gonna get hit.
And it made me so angry.
And I think part of our dogs are here to help us really release that
anger, really release what bothers us in the world, and really help us
understand to truly love, not just them compassionately and ourselves,
but approach the world world that way.
And that's a really good thing.
So I would spend some time just being observation and to asking the
dog, what are you here to teach me?
The dog will let you know.
Anke: I I mean, I think there's that part that that there's a
there's a saying in in Spain.
You know?
It's like, oh, if like, all all that's missing like, they they just need to talk.
Right?
So it's like dogs are so amazing.
The only thing that's missing is language.
And I'm always like, well, that makes no sense to me.
Like, they don't need language.
They communicate in a million ways, and I think it's just about getting quiet.
I think I was always worried, like, when when with my first dog.
Right?
So I was told, like, you know, when he dies, like, how am I gonna know?
That was always, like, that was my biggest fear.
Because it's like, I don't want to kind of put him to sleep too early,
you know, just because, you know, I don't know, he's old or whatever.
So I didn't wanna take life away from him.
And at the same time, I didn't want him to suffer just because
I can't let go, you know.
And I was always worried how I know, and boy did I know.
Yeah.
You know?
It was like, oh, yeah.
So there doesn't that doesn't need to be yeah.
Like, words are just not needed.
And that's what I think that's the part that always pulls me in when you talk
about soul language because it's not about
Jennifer: words.
It's not about words.
It's about understanding your key energy.
And most people, when I identify their soul languages, they're like, yeah.
I totally resonate with that.
We know we are just humans, and humans love to have words around things.
And I think that's what's important.
It helps create a bigger connection.
You know, I know the different barks of my dog.
Right?
Uh, most of the time, I know what she wants.
Right?
You know, I know the difference between the inside bark, which is
and the, oh my god, the postman's outside or the UPS side or whatever.
Right?
So I think that and I think that's really important.
It also helps people understand a lot of those silent cues that happen during
a relationship, and I'm not actually telling people to assume anything.
But we really know a lot more than we're consciously paying attention to.
And when we pause and we reflect, we get a lot of information that
allows us to bubble up that will help us, guide us, and support us.
I remember with Roxy, a friend of mine said, oh my god.
This dog has been with you and your soul and your family for centuries.
And I thought, oh, yeah.
She's and I always knew deep down inside that Roxy wasn't gonna
be here for her for a long life.
I always knew that.
Um, and I think that giving this opportunity to have a dog, to
completely allow ourselves to just let go and love create so many wonderful
things in every aspect of our lives.
And by understanding your soul languages, it gives you a way to consciously
connect with yourself, your higher power, and it gives you a little more
insight about the inner workings of your
Anke: it's kinda easier to understand somehow with with the dog.
You know, I think it feels like the dog's a beautiful pathway there into
this whole world because I think anything you said around the dogs, well,
yeah, that would apply to people too.
You know?
But I think it's sometimes do you think so?
I mean, it it feels to me as if the dog because they don't they don't have,
you know, they can't speak English.
And so you're almost like you're forced to communicate on a different level, and
it just kind of gives you an entrance an an entry into into this whole world
that that, you know, other beings kinda
Jennifer: can't give you.
Yeah.
I think it does.
It also we naturally assume that our dog is gonna love us.
Right?
We don't naturally assume that with human beings.
So we naturally assume the dog loves us and wants to be around us us and and, you
know, is naturally a part of our family.
We we're really humans tend to be really scared around what what
happens with other human beings.
My dog taught my dogs taught me to love in a whole new way.
You know?
And they also told me, you know, that you gotta let things go, that
everything is in a reflection of your limiting self, that the world is really
here to shower you with goodness.
And then when you let go and allow that to happen, it's pretty profound.
But you also have to make the effort.
You have to make the effort about putting into that relationship
field that truth, or it's gonna be reflection of the exact opposite.
Yeah.
I love that.
Yeah.
So
Anke: what if you I mean, what's on the horizon for you and dogs?
Jennifer: Like, you know?
Well, Warner said this weekend, you know, there's a blue heeler that needs adopting.
And I was like, Warner, this apartment is small.
I was like, and I don't know if Hart can be interested, you
know, to a dog in her space.
If we get a puppy, she would love that.
But a dog?
Well, I'm not so sure.
We really want.
We want a bigger space.
We want more dogs.
We'd like to breed them.
I think I will have a dog for the rest of my life in 1 shape or another.
Um, Heart loves cats, loves them.
So I would love to get a little kitten maybe at some point.
Um, you know, sometimes when, you know, your work day is getting to you or you're
having a bad day, I think about, I'm just gonna give it up and walk dogs.
Uh, that's really not in my future, but I would like I would like I
would like to raise another puppy.
I didn't really get to enjoy Hart's puppyhood because of the
post traumatic stress from Roxy.
So I was, like, always making sure she was breathing.
I was checking on her, like, you know, new mother syndrome.
So I'd really like to raise another puppy.
I think that would be fun.
Uh, so that's, I guess, in the future.
I love it.
Love it.
Anke: Actually, this reminds me of my last puppy.
It was, like, the easiest puppy to raise ever because the
middle dog was such a great mom.
You know, if you have that dog in between like, she took the
brunt of all the puppy craziness.
You know, all the playing, all the nipping, all this, like you
know, the other dog took all that.
You know?
So it was, um, yeah.
It's almost like that puppy kind of raised herself in a sense.
Love that.
You know?
So it's, um, yeah.
Definitely definitely my comment.
I can't promise that it always goes like, you know, always goes like that.
But, uh, at least that that's how it that's how it works.
So if
Jennifer: somebody wants to find, you know,
Anke: find out more about you, is interested, like, heard something
in this whole idea of, like, you know, the whole soul language in
relation to dogs or just just people.
You know, where can people
Jennifer: go and connect with you?
So it's soul language dot u s.
And if you've gone under the soul language section, you can arrange
for discovery session, and we can chat all about you and your docs.
I love
Anke: that.
Beautiful.
Well, thank you.
Thanks so much for for sharing it, you know, and and giving us a, you
know, a little bit of a glimpse in in into this world and into your
world with your beautiful pup.
And, um,
Jennifer: thanks for coming.
Thank you so much, and I love what you're doing.
And, uh, yeah, I think it's so powerful and so important that
people really understand how their lives are changed by dogs.
Love it.
Thanks so much for listening.
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That's A N k E at Soul touched by dogs.com.