Can we communicate with Animals?

Now here is a bit of a non sequitur – call it what you wish.  And laugh if you like.  But tell it I will because I find it meaningful.

We were training our dog in fieldwork and I was required to hide behind a tree so that I wouldn’t distract the dog with my presence.

After about 15 minutes I began to feel rather bored. But then I heard a bird chattering madly so I looked up into the tree’s canopy above.

A little brown bird was chatting up a storm.  He was going crazy and I realized that he was communicating with his mate nearby – warning her of my presence beneath the tree.

He was full of anxiety and kept hopping from branch to branch chattering all the while.

I wanted to allay his panic so I started whistling a repetitive bird-call.

Immediately the panic abated and within minutes a little bird – possibly his mate – hopped onto a branch just above my head and looked at me quizzically, head to one side.

To this minute I wonder what intrigued her.  What on earth was my whistling communicating to her?  What did I say to her? I must have been sending some message because there was a definite response.

Obviously I don’t know what it was – but what I do know is this;  there is a way to communicate with animals. If only we could find out how!

If you have had any sort of experience communicating with birds or animals please tell me about it.  It’s such a fascinating field and I would love to hear your story.