A few days ago I read an article in my local newspaper about three cats who found their way home. The fifteen-mile walk included crossing a major freeway. Apparently, their owner was moving and had asked a friend to look after his cats until he had settled in his new home. The cats decided that this was not a good idea, and escaped at the first opportunity. Reports of this sort appear in the press on a regular basis. The interesting aspect of this case was that three cats returned home together. Despite the difficulty of the route the cats had to take, fifteen miles is not a great distance, and it is impossible to tell if they were using their psychic abilities to achieve it. They may have returned home by orienting themselves in some way, or perhaps using some other natural capability that we have not yet discovered.

Hector's Travels
Much more remarkable than this is the well-documented story of Hector, a terrier, who traveled more than five thousand miles to rejoin his master. Willem Mante, master of a Dutch freighter, was forced to leave Vancouver without his beloved dog, who had disappeared on shore. The following day, Hector was observed inspecting a number of ships in the port. Hector walked on board at least four ships, looked around, and then left. That evening, the S. S. Hanley left Vancouver for Yokohama. Two hours after leaving port, Hector was found on board. Shortly before the ship reached Japan, nineteen days later, Hector became noticeably excited. While the S. S. Hanley was being unloaded, Hector observed another ship being berthed a few hundred yards away. Some of the crew from this ship boarded a small sampan, which sailed close to the S. S. Hanley. Hector watched it for a while, and then leaped into the water and swam to the boat. Amazingly, one of the people on board the sampan was his master, Willem Mante.

It is possible that the three cats returned home by natural means, but how did Hector travel from Vancouver to Yokohama and find his master? Dr J. B. Rhine called this phenomenon "psi trailing." In 1950, he began a research program at Duke University to investigate the ability of animals to return home over long distances. More than five hundred anecdotal accounts were studied.

Old Taylor
One extraordinary case that he investigated was a farm dog, named Old Taylor, who was devoted to the son of the family. When the boy went to college one hundred miles away, Old Taylor walked to the college town and found his master. The two were excited to see each other again, but the boy realized that his appearance created a problem. Every day, Old Taylor helped the boy's father round up the cattle at milking time. Fortunately, his master came up with a solution. He took the dog outside, and gave the regular call to round up the cattle. After doing this several times, Old Taylor got the message, and retraced his steps. Somehow, Old Taylor had managed to travel one hundred miles over terrain that was unfamiliar to him, find his master in a strange town, and then return home again. By any standard, this achievement is extraordinary, and cannot be dismissed as animal instinct, whatever that may be.

Smarter Than We Think
Obviously, there is much that we do not yet know about the capabilities of our animal friends. However, virtually everyone who has ever loved a pet has come to realize that animals have much more ability than we give them credit for. My daughter's cat always knew when she was due home, for instance. Charlotte worked in television and kept irregular hours. We never knew when she would be home, but Clyde, her cat, did. Skeptics said that Clyde's sense of hearing enabled him to be waiting at the door several minutes before her arrival. However, he was waiting for her when she arrived home in a new car. My younger sister spent a great deal of time in the hospital forty years ago. In those days it was difficult for her to phone us. Yet our cat always knew when Meredith was calling. He would rub against the phone until one of us answered it. Almost every animal owner can relate similar stories about their pet.

Could it be that our pets are really psychic? I believe so. Fortunately, we don't have to transport our pets hundreds of miles and see if they return to confirm this. With love and goodwill on both sides, we can learn to communicate telepathically with our pets, and as a result, deepen the relationship immeasurably.

Your pet is psychic, and deep down you probably know this. Listen quietly, and see what your pet has to tell you. You'll probably be surprised.