Animals are great at leading by example. They listen to their bodies, follow the natural rhythms of the earth and its seasons, and don’t apologize for being themselves. When they’re tired, they nap. When they feel energized, they get the … Read More

  In New Zealand, scones are a thing. (Actually, scones withcoffee or tea are a thing here.) I haven’t tried this recipe, because wehaven’t been anywhere that had the facilities to cook them. Give it a try andlet me know … Read More

I haven’t done one scrap of holiday shopping yet, and it’s so unlike me! I’m usually finished by now. But we’ve been so busy, there hasn’t been time. If you’re in the same boat and could use a few good … Read More

On a road trip in which I’m the passenger, I can be blind to a cool car, a tall building, or a sign the size of a barn. But if there’s a critter of any sort on the side of … Read More

  Hans and I have been traveling quite a bit lately, and that includes lots of time sitting next to each other in the car. On one of these trips, we were sparring as we sometimes do, and he said … Read More

Whenever we leave the house—or come back after being away—our dogs serenade us with the most beautiful howls you’ve ever heard. Fred sings bass with his mournful-sounding howls, and Jed and provides percussion with his rhythmic woof, woof, woof, woof. … Read More

I don’t know if y’all noticed, but in last month’s newsletter, some unnecessary commas snuck in. I knew it. I saw them. I even told my newsletter/website guru who formats and posts these things for me that I’d found a … Read More

Whenever anyone asks how I’m doing these days, my answer is always, “I’m as busy as a rat.” Let’s contrast that to a similar statement that I never use: “I’m working like a dog.” Rats are always busy. Whether it’s … Read More

One reason it’s important for writers to do more than write, is that going out into the world gives us ideas. Fodder. Grist for the mill. And you never know when off time will lead to inspiration. This is one … Read More

Roxanne Perillo Shamanic Practitioner and Reiki Master I regularly do energy healing for my clients (both animal and human). But in the same way that the cobbler and their kids often go barefoot, energy healers are liable to neglect their … Read More

My mom used to make this all the time; it’s a familiar comfort food from my childhood. (She never told me what a healthy food it was!) It’s so easy to make. Here’s all you need: 4 or five medium-sized … Read More

When Hans and I were out of town recently, the dogs’ schedules were disrupted because while we had house-sitting help, it wasn’t possible for the dogs to go in-and-out-and-in-and-out quite as often as they were used to doing. This meant … Read More

I’ve always been an animal lover, and along with that came a certain amount of do-gooder mentality. Before I accepted my animal communication abilities, I felt compelled to pick up every stray I saw and help them get back home. … Read More

Hans and I went to Canada recently. The first morning in Toronto, we had coffee in the Chelsea Hotel’s courtyard. The area was very urban, so imagine my surprise when a raccoon strolled across the courtyard like he owned the … Read More

I’ve been making my own Kombucha for years, and it’s usually better than any you can buy in a store. Plus, the store-bought Kombucha is expensive while mine’s close-to free. Kombucha scobys multiply, and I always keep a scoby hotel … Read More

It’s been raining a lot here. Gully-washers pour down for hours just about every day. The snakes that live in the swamp between our neighborhood and the railroad tracks get flooded out of their homes and move uphill, finding themselves … Read More

The other two birds who live on Natalie’s lanai are the pigeons she is raising. I asked what he thought of them. “They’re my friends. They want me to be with them. They love me.” A couple of doves come … Read More

Our daughter Natalie brought two orphaned baby pigeons home to her apartment. They hardly had any feathers at first, but after a lot of hand-feeding and a little TLC, they finally began to look like themselves. One’s all white, and … Read More

As an animal communicator, I get this question on a regular basis: Q:  My dog chews on things. It seems almost neurotic. She is showing me an image of her tearing up a T-shirt. Her primary emotions when she does … Read More

A few weeks ago, I met a new friend who’s an animal communicator, blogger, and vlogger (a new word I’ve had to learn). She contacted me to see if I’d like to be a guest on her blog/vlog, and when … Read More

Every summer evening when I was a kid, fireflies made our backyard sparkle like Christmas twinkle-lights against the black velvet darkness. As magical as faeries flitting through the humid night sky, the fireflies brought the stars above within reach, tying … Read More

Copyright © 2019 by Dana Cutts, Shannon Cuttswww.loveandfeathersandshells.com

A while back, I was contacted by a client who had brought a new cat into her home, and it wasn’t long before all of her cats started peeing everywhere. Unfortunately, sometimes that’s all it takes. One cat becomes the … Read More

Cats are notorious for peeing outside the litter box. It’s the number one reason I’m asked to talk with someone’s cats. To us humans, it seems like such a deliberately spiteful act. We give them a litter box, we keep … Read More

When I do a communication session for a client’s animal, it often happens that the questions I’m given assume something that isn’t so. When I was asked to communicate with an anxious dog who always horned in on any affection … Read More

Slinky is a “somebody do something” dog in Demopolis. She lived her life on a chain with minimum shelter. We got multiple calls on her over the years. Animal control got multiple reports about her as well. It was heartbreaking … Read More

Me: Where are you?  Lost Cat: I’m in a house with wood everywhere, and it smells like mice and sometimes I get to catch a mouse. I like catching mice. I get to go outside now, and sometimes it smells … Read More

This month’s recipe is brought to us by Lisa Miller, who is featured in the Author Spotlight. A slice of pecan pie sounds like the perfect nibble to help all writers craft their stories with the help of Lisa’s wonderful … Read More

I know that a lot of my newsletter readers are interested in the writing process, and many are writers too, so I’m delighted to introduce y’all to Lisa Miller, who teaches story structure in a way that makes plotting accessible, … Read More