Animal & Pets

Animals Wish to Awaken Your Heart and Soul Connection!

Kim Shotola, Animal Communicator, Teacher & Facilitator
May – June 2026 • Vol 4, No 22

Animals are on a quest to awaken and enlighten your heart and soul connection. Animals have been watching your soul since before you were born—the animals with you now, animals from your past, animals in spirit, the wild animals, and the animal essences (also referred to as guides or totems) are all here to help you become what they already envision for you.

What do they wish for you and the rest of humanity? A world where you understand animals as well as people on a heart and soul level. A world where you embrace, utilize and share the messages and gifts from the animals, nature, and Mother Earth. The animals are a window to your soul and a doorway to your spiritual destiny. If you let them into your life and allow them to teach you, you will be better for it. The animals can show you the present, help you learn from the past, and propel you into your future. They can help heal you on a body, mind, and spirit level. The animals can reveal your soul path to align with and ignite your true soul purpose. They are here on a mission far greater than most even realize.

The wisdom of the animals can bring you love, joy, gratitude, clarity, and abundance to your life like never before. Do you want to embark on this breathtaking journey with them to awaken and magnify your inner wisdom, divine light, and sacred connection to all? Here are some simple ways to get started:

Ground yourself. Meditate and spend time in nature. Try to do this with your animals.

• Be aware of what you put on your animals, or surround them with. There are many toxic chemicals in pet, human, household, and lawn products. Use chemical-free products or create your own.
• Utilize Mother Earth’s medicine chest, just like animals do in nature. Holistic animal care can help prevent illness and heal on a physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual level.
• Talk to your animals daily about how your day was, when you feel sad, your hopes and dreams, etc. Connect your heart to your animal’s heart.
• Pay attention to the messages from wild animals. Are you seeing an animal repeatedly, in an unusual setting, or one you rarely see? Do an Internet search for that animal’s energy and totem.
• Be aware of what’s happening to Mother Earth and all living beings, including species loss and climate change. Know how this affects all life and act. Many amazing youths are taking a stand globally.
• Consider learning animal communication so you can communicate with all animals and nature. Every-one has this innate ability—it’s just a matter of waking it up. When you learn how to do this, you can know what your animal is thinking, how you can help them, and how they can help you. You will understand then the life lessons they’re trying to teach you.

Part 1 (The Foundation) Animal Communication Zoom Class is three Tuesdays • 6–8 pm • June 2, 9, 16. For more information, visit: https://www.thelightfootway.com/the-remembering/.

Kim Shotola is a professional communicator, mentor of light, and author. Intuition students and retreat participants receive special Sunday articles.

Kim’s book, The Soul Watchers, Animals’ Quest to Awaken Humanity, looks in depth at the mission of the animals and how you can help them accomplish their heart-and-soul vision. Learn more at: TheLightfootWay.com/The-Soul-Watchers. Kim has offered life-changing classes and sessions since 2006.

To receive articles every Saturday, gain access to the Archives, get updates on classes and events, and receive special gifts for readers, sign up to receive my email newsletter by clicking HERE. You’ll receive my free audio chakra meditation to help enhance your intuitive abilities. 

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What Jane Goodall, Horses, and 2026 Are Here to Teach Us About the Divine Feminine

Kim Shotola, Animal Communicator, Teacher & Facilitator
March – April 2026 • Vol 4, No 21

Jane Goodall has been on my heart since she passed last year. I’ve cried more than once—not just because the world lost an icon, but because her presence shaped who I am. I had the honor of meeting her and hearing her speak several times during my career at the Houston Zoo, and those moments still live within me.

Her legacy is profound. Her love for all animals—from chimpanzees to chickens, from her beloved dog Rusty to the horses she rode as a young girl—shaped how millions of us see the world. Jane didn’t just observe animals. She connected with them. She listened. And she invited us all to do the same.

I visited the Becoming Jane exhibit, which opened in a nearby town the same day she de-parted this earth. I’ve thanked her. I’ve spoken to her several times, as I truly believe her soul is still guiding, still teaching, still whispering encouragement to those of us who carry the torch.

Even the “Goodall Method”—her embedded observer approach—has revealed powerful in-sights into the nature of wild horses. She helped the world see animals as sentient, sovereign beings. That understanding lives on through all of us who walk with animals as teachers, healers, and sacred mirrors.

One of Jane’s greatest messages was to have hope and shine our own light in the world. And that brings me here… Have you ever looked into the eyes of a horse and felt something stir inside you?

Horses carry a presence that is impossible to ignore. They are grounded, powerful, intuitive, and deeply connected to the rhythm of life. When we stand with them, we feel our own nervous system soften, our hearts open, and our true essence reflected back to us.

In a world that moves too fast, horses remind us to slow down, breathe, and return to what matters most. They offer healing without words and teach us how to live with awareness, courage, and freedom.

And this year, their wisdom will be especially important. Last July, horses and guides told me something powerful was happening next year—and that horses needed to be involved with helping people, especially women.

It wasn’t until a few months later that I discovered that every 60 years a rare cycle returns—the Year of the Fire Horse. It is a time of transformation and rapid shifts, urging us to step more fully into alignment with our authentic selves. This year already has the energy of a bucking bronco, and this dramatic theme will become more and more apparent as we move forward.

Horses are natural healers. Their electromagnetic heart field is five times stronger than ours, which is why we feel so balanced and energized in their presence. They don’t judge or force. Instead, they meet us as we are—and in that reflection, we discover who we are meant to be.

Through their presence, horses invite us to step out of the noise of daily life and into a deeper rhythm. They show us how to live with integrity, awareness, and power. They remind us that true freedom isn’t something we chase—it’s something we embody. This is the power within the horse. In June, I am hosting The Power Within Horse Retreat in the mountains of Paradise Valley, Montana.

With the May horse retreat filled, the horses guided me to offer another opportunity. This four-day sacred journey is designed for a small circle of women who are ready to step into their next chapter with clarity, freedom, and strength.

This is not a riding vacation or a workshop. It is a transformational experience—a chance to release what no longer serves you, awaken to your true essence, and step forward into your destiny.

Together with the horses, we will move through guided interactions, meditations, sacred ceremonies, and time in nature. You will experience their healing presence, their guidance, and their wisdom in ways that will continue to ripple through your life long after the retreat ends.

This is an intimate retreat for four women in a place that is so magical. If you’ve been waiting for a sign to step into your next chapter, this is it. The horses are calling. They are ready to walk beside you—to help you restore balance, reclaim your power, and embody the freedom that is already within you.

The horse is asking you to look deep within and see if this sacred experience is calling your heart. Please know that I am happy to speak with you about how the power within the horse can help you alchemize your own power within.

To learn more and apply, visit this page at TheLightfootWay.com. No matter what path you walk, may you be inspired by Jane’s legacy—her courage, her compassion, and her connection. If you’re interested in a customized, private horse experience or retreat rather than in a small group setting, contact me directly through our website.

And may you begin to notice more deeply how animals—both wild and domestic—are reaching out to you. Teaching. Guiding. Whispering truths your soul has been waiting to hear… to help you embody the power within.

The invitation is always there. All you have to do is listen. May your light continue to grow for the benefit of all life. Please know you do make a difference in this world.

Kim Shotola is a professional communicator, mentor of light, and author. Intuition students and retreat participants receive special Sunday articles.

Kim’s book, The Soul Watchers, Animals’ Quest to Awaken Humanity, looks in depth at the mission of the animals and how you can help them accomplish their heart-and-soul vision. Learn more at: TheLightfootWay.com/The-Soul-Watchers. Kim has offered life-changing classes and sessions since 2006.

To receive Saturday articles, archive access, updates on classes and events, and gifts for readers, get on my email list at: TheLightfootWay.com/join-our-email-list. When you sign up, you’ll receive my audio chakra meditation to help enhance your intuitive abilities.

Kim offers enlightening, holistic-animal-care and spiritual-empowerment classes throughout the year that produce life changing results. Visit the Classes & Events page at: https://www.thelightfootway.com/classes/ to learn more and to register.

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Animals’ Quest to Awaken Mankind

Kim Shotola
July – Aug 2025 • Vol 4, No 17

Animals have been watching your soul since before you were born. Their quest is to oversee our souls’ journey and to awaken and enlighten our hearts and souls to the connection between them, nature and Mother Earth. Animals are here to help each person become better on a heart and soul level.

Our pets can bring us joy, companionship, strength, love and comfort. But their efforts go far beyond that. You may have animals in your life right now, or you did at one time. Or perhaps you just love animals and have not taken on that pet parent or foster role yet. Perhaps you are going through a difficult time in your life or feel lost. Maybe you just know or feel there has got to be more to life than this. The animals can show you the present, help you learn from the past, and propel you to your future.

There are more animals trying to “reach” you than you may realize—even right now. You have a divine purpose, and yes, the animals play an instrumental role in helping you discover AND accomplish this. The animals can show you how to awaken your life physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Just like they did for me.

I have always loved animals since I was a child. They have always been a constant in my life, and in ways I only discovered later, watched over me. When my parents went through an ugly divorce when my brother and I were just 6 and 7, the animals were there. When my father died tragically just several years later, the animals were there.

At 12 years old, I waited on customers at my mom’s plant nursery on the weekends. Our nursery was not just for plants. We helped raise several species of pet birds, which brought us joy and additional income. At 14, I bred, raised and sold championship pedigreed collies. Little did I know that collies were to become a major part of my life for over 30 years. Go Lassie!

The cats and other dogs that I shared my life with were amazing rescues. All kinds of pets have blessed my life from gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs and chinchillas to hermit crabs, turtles, rabbits, parakeets, cockatiels, conures, doves, ducks, turkeys, guinea fowl, chickens, cows and horses. And how could I forget tadpoles, frogs and toads!

Some animals found me. Some I found. I have loved them all. The animals guided me to a career with them. From 1991–2017, I worked full-time at the Houston Zoo in Texas, a world-class and renowned zoo recognized for their exceptional animal care and global conservation efforts. I progressed from zookeeper to senior supervisor during my 25+ year career. I helped manage the care of over 1,000 domestic, livestock, wildlife and exotic animals in the Children’s Zoo, including the animal ambassadors that were used in public presentations. I even supervised the staff of the incredible bug house. But the above figure doesn’t count the thousands of creatures that resided there—and when they have babies—it’s a lot! A highlight for me was when I taught and educated staff, volunteers and guests about the magnificent world of animals, big and small. I was even featured on a number of local TV stations, including in the NBC affiliate series, Houston Zooperstars Challenge, that ran for several years.

But while I was working at the zoo, I also reflected inward. Perhaps it was only natural for me to explore ways to help heal my body, mind and spirit. I was wounded on various levels. Between my parents’ divorce and my father’s death, you could say a “nightmare” ensued for my brother and I. That led to stomach and OCD issues.

I realized my childhood and animals had brought me to this point of seeking a path to wellness and whol-E-ness. From nutrition to energy work to animal communication and more, I was hooked for life! But what blew me away was the realization that what I had learned over the years for myself, I could also use to help animals! Through the process of helping my own animals, I knew they wanted me to do more to help the lives of other animals and those who cared for them.

And so it began….

Kim Shotola is a professional communicator, animal wellness instructor and author. Students receive weekly intuition and spiritual development articles. Kim’s book, The Soul Watchers, Animals’ Quest to Awaken Humanity, looks in depth at the mission of the animals and how you can help them accomplish their heart-and-soul vision. Learn more at: https://www.thelightfootway.com/the-soul-watchers/. Kim has taught holistic animal-wellness classes since 2006.

Kim offers enlightening, holistic-animal-care and spiritual-empowerment classes throughout the year that produce life changing results. Visit the Classes & Events page at: https://www.thelightfootway.com/animal-communication-zoom-class/ to learn more and to register.

To receive weekly articles, archive access, updates on classes and events, and gifts for our readers, get on our email list at: TheLightfootWay.com/join-our-email-list/.  When you sign up, you’ll receive our audio chakra meditation to help enhance your intuitive abilities.

Subscribe to Natural Life News