The Pet Psychic!

[firefox_b]

On the Animal Planet network at times appears a rather strange-looking English lady (Sonya Fitzpatrick) who claims to be able to psychically link to animals and discern their thoughts, feelings, and needs.  She might, for example, be shown on the show visiting people and explaining to them why their dog appears not to be himself.  In some cases, those visited claim that the woman knew things about their pet that she could not possibly otherwise know, and that her advice proved to be on target.

Have you ever seen this woman's appearances, and do you think that she or any other "pet psychic" is for real?  

The Pet Psychic!

[Rust]

Mm...no.  Don't think she's for real.  The whole thing strikes me a lot like the routine of that one TV psychic, the guy who contacted dead relatives and the like...just a bunch of educated guesses and a knowledgeable attitude.  Both that guy and Lady Cleo have been proven to be frauds, so why not her?  I've always thought that if someone had a gift like that they'd be a bit more prudent not to televise the blasted thing.

[Savaaha]

Ive seen her show and I really doubt is her contacting dead pets.Im also pretty doubtful on her talking to pets that are not even near her. Id like to think talking to one there at her touch is possible tho.
 Maybe it is all put on but its still interesting to watch.

[Shana-chan]

I dunno, I think she seems pretty decent. She at least pays attention to their body language, which is most than other animal psychics would do, I'm certain.

But.. then again, I'm one of those people who animals kind of trusted, I guess.. o.o;;

[Party Pony]

She drives me nuts!  So patronizing and phoney.  As stated by others, she is fairly good at reading the animal's body language.  Which compared to most of the owners does make her look psychic.

My favorite bit was when she walked up to a couple holding their overly obese cat.  She looked at the cat, touched its head then looked to the owners.  "She's telling me she likes to eat."  '>  The owners were astounded to hear this.  "That's true," one announced.  "You're pretty amazing," said the other owner.

[Shana-chan]

I did notice that she said stupid things when inside the studio. :3 It's possible that she just can't 'communicate' with them in such short terms... Uhmm.. Well, I know that sounds like B.S... And it is, I'm sure. o.o;

[Sabu]

she is.. TEH HORSEH WHISPERAH

[cloud]

.

[Fox G4]

Quote (Rust @ Aug. 13 2004, 1:47 pm)

Mm...no.  Don't think she's for real.  The whole thing strikes me a lot like the routine of that one TV psychic, the guy who contacted dead relatives and the like...just a bunch of educated guesses and a knowledgeable attitude.  Both that guy and Lady Cleo have been proven to be frauds, so why not her?  I've always thought that if someone had a gift like that they'd be a bit more prudent not to televise the blasted thing.

Yeah, I saw that special on Dateline a while back covering the "secret" of John Edwards show. And you're right, it takes the right sort of person like John Edwards, who can make educated guesses and manipulate feedback, to really make it seem as if he knows everything about a person's past.

It's all fake, if you ask me. Your average veterinarian knows more about what animals want than the Pet Psychic, and would probably advise you not to believe any of it.  '>

Psychics are real, but not in the sense that we're familiar with.  If we knew how, any one of us could do what they do.

We all get "sixth sense" feelings sometimes -- we don't have anything solid that would prove something, but for some reason, we just know.  Everybody gets those, but not everyone knows specifically what they mean.  Eventually, if you rely on them enough, you'll start to see patterns in what sort of feelings you're getting and be able to pass yourself off as a psychic.

In the Pet Psychic's case, she's working with minds that aren't as sophisticated, so right away she knows the problem boils down to something as simple as a lack of provisions, either at current time, or in the past.  She can narrow it down even further by first asking the owner what the problem is.  It will seem like idle conversation at first, but in talking about the animal, she'll have it narrowed down to two or three scenarios.  When they finally meet the animal, she can observe his/her body language and use her sixth sense to make a deduction of which one is correct.

John Edwards's job was even easier, because the assumption was that everyone that came to his show wanted to get in touch with a dead person.  And honestly, do you think anyone trying to reach out from the beyond would contact John to have him tell his widow that she's ugly, her feet stink and he's glad to be away from her?  Of course not -- the only messages he would have to give would either be of love or encouragement.
The first step is to pick a name or an initial, and unless you pick something like J.Q. or X.H., you're bound to get someone.  Again, he doesn't just tell him/her the full story -- he asks him/her questions to narrow it down, and again, he's experienced enough at making deductions based on his sixth sense that he can eventually paint a very good image of how the audience member and the dead person s/he believes is being contacted related to each other, which is easier than you'd think because, though we all think our families are bizzare, we really all have the same problems (if you don't believe me, start a thread at this forum asking us to describe our parents for us -- eventually it will boil down to people quoting the first five or six posters and saying 'yeah, my mom's like that too.''>.  And of course, as said before, nobody would reach out from the beyond to contact someone they hate, so the contact always has to end with something like "he wants you to know he loves you, but it's time to move on and reach for your dreams."
The only way he could have been caught would have been if someone went to his show with the intention of catching him, although he could have used his sixth sense to prevent that as well.  For example, if he gives out a set of initials that matches someone an audience member hopes to hear from, they usually become excited and jerks their hand right up.  Someone trying to catch him, however, would choose his/her moment to speak, and therefore would likely be more calm and reserved.  Edwards could use this to determine the guest's intent and either speak to him or move on.  Again, he's not actually tapping into the great beyond, but he is utilizing his sixth sense in order to convince others that he is.

[Otto Lupo]

She's probly fake. Just her behaviour that makes me think that.

Animal Magick is a good book. More along the lines of that the animal may choose to commumicate with us, not us just randomly talking to them.