Episode 16: What Animals Really Want Us to Know: A Conversation with Animal Communicator, JoLee Wingerson

Welcome to the Carousel of Happiness Podcast. On today's episode, host, Allie Wagner sits down with JoLee Wingerson, a Boulder-based animal communicator with almost 25 years of experience. For more than two decades, JoLee has communicated with animals on behalf of humans, and vice versa, and has some powerful things to say about our spiritual relationship with animals. You’ll learn what animals really want us to know, and how we can support them best. Plus, Allie tells the story of when her husband brought home a 7-week old puppy as a surprise.

Want to learn more about JoLee? She's accepting new clients via phone or Zoom! Check out her website here:

• https://pet-communication.com/

Don't forget to vote for Mayor of the Carousel – voting ends May 26!

• Learn more about the Mayor Election and the perks of voting! (https://carouselofhappiness.org/mayor-of-the-carousel/) 
• Ready to cast your vote? Here's the link to the ballot. (https://carouselofhappiness.org/mayor-ballot/)

The Carousel of Happiness is a nonprofit arts & culture organization dedicated to inspiring happiness, well-being, and service to others through stories and experiences.

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider visiting the Carousel of Happiness online (https://carouselofhappiness.org/), on social media (https://www.facebook.com/carouselofhappiness), or in real life; or consider donating (https://carouselofhappiness.app.neoncrm.com/forms/general-donation) to keep the carousel and its message alive and spinning 'round and 'round.

If you have a story to share, please reach out to Allie Wagner at outreach@carouselofhappiness.org

Special thanks to songwriter, performer, and friend of the carousel, Darryl Purpose (https://darrylpurpose.com/), for sharing his song, "Next Time Around," as our theme song.

Transcript

Welcome to the Carousel of Happiness Podcast. I’m your host, Allie Wagner. 

We are still accepting votes for the 2025 Mayor of the Carousel race. Lion is still leading the pack, with Pig and Dragon breathing down his neck, in second and third. Polls remain open until May 26th. All votes are $1 a piece, 100% tax deductible, and go directly back into the carousel to keep us spinning.

On last week’s episode, I introduced you to one of our amazing staff members, gift shop manager and social media maven, Pat Hagberg. Pat, was the original “girl boss” before that was even a term, and upon retirement, she found her way to the carousel in 2012. Through Pat’s story we learned about the tremendous po wer of compassionate listening. Turns out, it pretty much cures everything. And it’s free. And you, the listener, actually feel better when you do it for others. 

And what I love so much about that story is how Pat didn’t know any of that. She didn’t know what Thicht Naht Hahn said about compassionate listening, she didn’t read a book about it, she didn’t hear about a new study on the news. She didn’t take a compassionate listening class.

Pat engaged in compassionate listening her entire life because…it felt good. It felt natural. It felt lifegiving to her. Pat sits behind the desk and holds space for your stories and your pain….because she enjoys it. Because it brings her joy.

And it’s that connection…between joy and your purpose…pleasure and your contribution to this planet…that is what I want to talk about today. Because yesterday, I had the profound honor and privilege to sit down and visit with JoLee Wingerson, a Boulder-based animal communicator with almost 25 years of experience. For more than two decades, JoLee has communicated with animals on behalf of humans, and vice versa, and has some powerful things to say about our spiritual relationship with animals. You’ll learn what animals really want us to know, and how we can support them best. Plus, I tell the story of when my husband brought home a 7-week old puppy without telling me.

Let us begin with today’s story.

GONG

JoLee Wingerson always could talk to animals. Always. Since she was a child. On her grandparents’ farm in Kansas, JoLee sort of always knew what the cows were thinking, or how the chickens were doing. She’d watch the hawks soar above, and she, herself, would feel their joy. It was a type of connection…a type of communication… that felt so strong, so natural, she had no idea other human beings didn’t experience the same.

Each year she’d visit her grandparents’ farm, she’d ride the family’s shetland/quarter horse, Pepper. Year after year, they’d ramble through the countryside together, until one day, when JoLee was a teenager, Pepper said, “I don’t want to be ridden anymore.”

JoLee understood. And she didn’t ride him anymore.

But she couldn’t figure out why everyone else did. Clearly, he didn’t want to be ridden. He had told her as much. Why wouldn’t everyone else have gotten the message too?

That’s when Jolee knew she was different.

As a young adult, JoLee raised two wild baby birds – a starling and a robbin – who had fallen out of their nests. Each of them imprinted on her and followed her everywhere until they were ready to move out of her nest, so to speak.

Even with this experience, she didn’t think she’d be an animal communicator. She didn’t even know that was a thing. She started working in finance, then got her master’s in journalism, working as a freelance writer into her 40s. When, at 41 years old, everything changed.

JoLee’s sister got diagnosed with cancer, and the prognosis didn’t look great. Actually, it didn’t look bad, but Jo Lee was having a hard time convincing her sister of that fact. During this time, JoLee was her sister’s biggest cheerleader – she kept reminding her she had decent odds of living whole another 5 years if she listened to the doctors. And JoLee’s nephew was 3 years old at the time. Didn’t she want to spend that time with her son?

But it seemed the more JoLee cheered her sister on, the more her sister pulled away.

Around this time, JoLee had a friend who was studying in the clairvoyant program at the Psychic Horizons Center in Boulder. And her friend asked JoLee if her sister wanted a reading.

A reading? JoLee had never had a psychic reading before, and she couldn’t imagine her sister wanting one. But she asked anyway, and, to her surprise, her sister said, “yes.”

But there was one caveat. JoLee’s sister wanted JoLee to listen to the recording first, and only tell her the “good stuff.”

JoLee agreed and listened to her sister’s reading.

This was back in the day when readings came on audio cassettes. And JoLee listened to the tape, and the message that came through that day was that her sister only had a 20% will to live.

JoLee, the cheerleader, was stunned. But the woman’s voice on the tape used a phrase verbatim that she had heard come out of her sister’s mouth on at least two separate occasions.

JoLee knew the woman was right. 

She told her sister “the good stuff” in the reading and JoLee sat in stillness with the “20% will to live” stuff. She needed to accept that her sister did not want to live.

And that’s when JoLee started to really listen to what her sister was actually saying when they spoke. Her sister would say things regularly like “when I die,” please do this and that. Her sister wanted JoLee’s help planning her own funeral. 

But Cheerleader JoLee didn’t hear any of that. It was only after that first reading JoLee started really listening to her sister.

And met her sister where she was at. Stopped forcing her; stopped cheering her on. JoLee started to give her sister the help she actually wanted – planning her funeral, accepting the request to be her nephew’s spiritual guardian.

And the two sisters became close again.

JoLee’s sister was committed to doing everything she could to stay alive, but nothing more. And when she passed, JoLee started getting her own readings. They helped her grieve and heal.

And the healing she experienced as a result of these readings was too much to deny. JoLee decided she was ready to understand energy better to heal herself, so she picked up and moved to Boulder to attend the very same clairvoyant training her friend did.

But it’s important to note, JoLee came to the clairvoyant training as a way of understanding energy to heal herself. She still did not know animal communication was a thing yet. She was a spiritual seeker on a spiritual journey, and that’s how she ended up at Psychic Horizons.

And over the course of the year-long program, they did one class on animal communication.

And JoLee was hooked.

She still remembers her very first reading, and very first healing.

The school was hosting a healing clinic and JoLee met a 46 year old woman and her 43 year old turtle, Zippy. The woman lived with Zippy and her three cats, which is part of the reason he was called Zippy. Apparently, living with three cats as a turtle makes you pretty fast.

The woman brought Zippy into the healing clinic because he had stopped eating. And when JoLee asked him why, all he would say was “home.”

Home.

Which meant nothing to Jolee. And, at first, it didn’t mean anything to Zippy’s mom. Until it did…

She had moved his bed to a different place in the house. Right around the time he stopped eating.

*

At the very same clinic a woman walked in carrying a picture of a horse. Poeta was her name. And Poeta had a pretty significant injury on her leg. So, JoLee offered Poeta some healing, and didn’t think anything of it.

The next morning, JoLee woke up to see Poeta in her mind’s eye. Standing above JoLee’s bed.

It startled JoLee at first, until Poeta told her, “I’d like more healing, please.”

JoLee agreed, offering Poeta healing after healing, until she fully recovered.

That’s when JoLee knew she was an animal communicator. She ordered a box of business cards, and has been doing this work full time ever since.

*

In the fall of 2020, my husband and I were living just outside Lake Tahoe. This was peak COVID time, and the world was a really strange, scary place. 

And one September morning, September first to be exact, my husband went to pick out to “pick up groceries,” and came back with a 7-week old, nine-pound wiggly bundle of labrador cuteness.

I had no idea.

Which, according to my husband, is not true. Apparently, we had talked about it the other day when he asked me hypothetically if I ever thought I wanted another dog.

Sure, I said, half listening. I did not think anything of it.

Because I didn’t know he had a friend who worked at the local humane society who knew of a litter of 4 puppies arriving that weekend from Lovelock, Nevada.

My husband signed the paperwork, swore our friends to secrecy, and planned to have Jenny, our 4-year old silver lab on playdate that morning when her little brother showed up.

Now, let me tell you who also did not know a puppy was coming.

Jenny was not informed nor was she at all pleased about the decision. Seriously, she did not love it.

Until the next morning, when Jenny and her new little brother, Elwood, were walking on a trail and a dog ran up a little too quickly to Elwood. Jenny immediately knocked the other dog on its butt, and has been protecting Elwood ever since.

*

JoLee offered to do a check in with my dogs, Jenny and Elwood, when we talked yesterday, just like she would a client. Before we talked, I sent JoLee a picture of my dogs and their names, so she could prepare.

So, when JoLee tells me Jenny is extremely bonded to Elwood I’m not surprised. I’m also not surprised when Jenny thanks me, through JoLee, for my infinite patience with her, and acceptance of who she is. That dog is telling the truth, she is super weird and I enable/accept all of her little quirks and peccadillos in a way that I can’t always do for my husband or other human beings.

That’s what Jenny has taught me.

*

When I ask JoLee to explain how she’s able to communicate with animals, she explains that most animals talk in “pictures.” And, it turns out, human beings do too. 

For example, if I say the word, “tree,” chances are, if you’re present and listening to the sound of my voice, you might imagine or draw a picture in your mind of a tree. Some of you might go pine or willow, depending on where you’re from, but you likely have a picture right now of a tree in your mind.

And that’s part of what you experience when you’re listening to this podcast. I pick words and put them together in a way that allows you to see a picture in your mind.

And that’s how our pets communicate with each other, and with us. With mind pictures. When you get ready to take your dog on a walk, chances are they know before you’ve even say the word. Because, in your mind, you’re thinking “walk” and you might be conjuring the mind picture of you grabbing the leash, and changing your clothes. And this is the picture your dog reads, and that’s why it knows you’re going on a walk.

JoLee suggests this experiment to anyone who wants to try talking to their pets. Sit somewhere quietly, and clear your mind. You can meditate, take some deep breaths, and slowly watch the mind chatter quiet. Then, imagine feeding your pet. Don’t do it. Visualize yourself doing it. You see yourself getting up and going into the kitchen. Scooping their food or opening a can, whatever the details are for you…Walk through those steps in your mind and see how your pets react. Do they hop up into your lap? Do they stare at you and drool like mine do? See if you can draw a picture in your mind, and watch your pet respond.

JoLee worked with an elderly couple who had recently adopted a really large golden retriever. And the dog was great, they already loved him so very much, but he was super big and really excited to walk with them/on top of them when they went up the stairs.

Which was a problem because they were older, and they were worried he would knock them over. So they went to JoLee and asked for help.

JoLee explained that the owners could stand at the bottom of the stairs, and visualize themselves walking up the stairs while the dog stayed at the bottom. Then, they would call to the dog, who in this visualization, would then run up to meet them.

The couple tried it once. And never had a problem with the dog on the stairs again.

The trick, of course, is that our lives are very busy these days. Our minds go from one picture to the next to the next, and our animals don’t know which image is for them. Our minds are so cluttered it’s difficult for us to speak to them clearly. 

But that isn’t a problem with Elwood and me. Ever since he was a puppy, a goofy, flopsy, silly, wiggly ball of boundless joy and unconditional love, Elwood and I have been bonded. We are so connected that sometimes Elwood knows when I’m about to get upset before I even do.

All of a sudden, out of “nowhere,” Elwood will sense my energy shifting and gets right up in my face with his wiggly behind. He will vocalize, making little woo, woo, woo noises, and his back half will snap right and left, his tail whipping behind him.

In those moments, he is aware of my energy changing before I am. And he’s so excited. “Feel those feeling,” he tells me. “Doesn’t it feel good to be alive?!”

So when JoLee tells me Elwood’s primary agreement in this lifetime is for us to learn from each other, I am not surprised. When she tells me Elwood is slightly more of a worldly soul than his sister, I’m not surprised. Apparently, he takes much pride and pleasure in being the perfect dog.

Which he is.

Apparently, Elwood and I are destined to learn from each other in this lifetime. He is genuinely curious about what it means to be human. And through our relationship, I am learning how to trust, and how to give and take. So that I might bring these lessons into my relationships with others.

Which I am. 

Anytime I am upset, Elwood is there. Laying on my face or kissing my cheek. Anytime, I’m joyful, Elwood is there. Prancing around the living room with my slipper in his mouth. Anytime I allow myself to be fully present in this moment, with all of its joyfulness and messiness, Elwood is there. Cheering me on. “This is it,” he tells me. “This is what being a human is all about.”

*

When I ask JoLee about what she’s learned about humans and about animals doing this work, she closes her eyes for a minute. Pauses.

“It’s a good question,” she says. And then she waits.

She waits for the answer to show up, a picture in her mind.

She’s quick to point out that animals love us unconditionally. She often sees a lot of guilt among her clients. They’re often afraid to know what their pets honestly think of them. I’ll admit, that was my concern before we talked too. 

Clients come to JoLee worried about that one time they lost their temper or fed their pet late. But the truth is, they don’t think of us in that way. They look at our entire lives, they look at the big picture. They don’t remember that one time. It’s a blip.

JoLee had a client come to her because she felt guilty about traveling a lot. It didn’t matter that she had a great sitter for her dog, or that she spent as much time as he could with her dog when she was in town. The woman still felt guilty when she came to JoLee.

“What can I do to enhance your life?” she asked her dog through JoLee.

And through JoLee, the dog responded, “you can sit with me in the sun by the window and pet my tummy.” 

And “I like it when you sit on the sofa, look me in the eye, and pet me.”

The woman was shocked. It was so simple.

She didn’t need to buy anything else. She didn’t need to do anything else. Except sit in the sun with her pup and rub her belly. 

That’s how animals think. That’s what matters to them.

I ask JoLee how we can serve animals better. How can we be better cat dads and dog moms? How can we, as human beings, be better stewards of our animal friends?

She says, slow down. Step away from the electronics, be in this present moment, and enjoy life. 

Animals want us to be happy. That is part of how they experience joy in this lifetime.  Through us. When we are at our most joyful, so are they. When we are in this present moment, fully and wholly, without distraction, we become a match to their energy. To their frequency. And they absolutely love it.

But when we experience shame or guilt, we block that unconditional love from flowing to us and through us. When we experience shame or guilt, we pinch ourselves off from who we truly are. And it doesn’t serve the animals.

And it doesn’t serve us.

According to JoLee, joy is our spiritual path. When we follow joy, we follow the path meant for us. 

And animals are powerful teachers of this message. 

*

The last couple of weeks have been particularly hard for me. And Elwood has been working over time. Every tear I’ve shed, every time I’ve blown my nose, he’s been right there with a slipper in his mouth, prancing around, reminding me of how amazing it all is. How joyful it is to be fully present in this moment no matter the circumstances. How feeling alive is different than just living, 

And in those moments, when it feels like nothing is going right, I see this beautiful furry, wiggly spirit with his head held high, prancing around the living room, and I can’t help but love. Unconditionally. In this moment. Nothing needs to change right now. It is all absolutely perfect. Will you look at him already?

He licks my nose.

He flops his head on my chest.

And he rolls over in the sun to have his belly rubbed. 

And that’s when I realize, life is really that simple.

*

JoLee came to Psychic Horizons because she wanted to heal herself. And in working with animals she’s been able to find herself in this lovely cycle of give and take. She’s been able to experience a spiritual communion with animals that has taught her to love herself and others; to release judgement of herself and others; to trust herself and her divinity; and to release fear.

“You can’t be in both love and fear,” she says. They’re different frequencies. 

And that’s what I think Elwood is teaching me. One wiggle and one wag at a time. In the moments when I am in love, he’s there. And the moments when I’m in fear, he’s there. 

But his frequency is always tuned to love. 

Always tuned so I can find my way back. Like a furry, wiggly little GPS, guiding me back home.

And I sort of knew that. Until JoLee confirmed it. Now I really know that.

And that clarity is JoLee’s gift.

If you would like to reach out to JoLee for a reading, please take a look at her website in the show notes. She is accepting new clients. 

You can also find information on how to vote for Mayor. Voting is open until May 26th.

In the meantime, take care. Be well. And, as we like to say at the Carousel of Happiness, “don’t delay joy.” And we’ll see you next time around.