Where Do Animals Go When They Die?

During a Reiki session, a cat shares a glimpse of her passage to the “other side.”

In my work as an animal communicator and Reiki practitioner, I often work remotely with animals. Sometimes, if an animal is needing extra support, and we’ve built an ongoing relationship, we’ll schedule Reiki sessions a few times a week. I’ll do the Reiki with the animal remotely, stay open to any messages they want to communicate, and follow up with their person later that day.

For a few months, I was working with one cat who had a terminal illness a few times a week. My usual routine: Connect with the cat, say hello and get consent to start the Reiki, and then channel the healing energy to her for about 30 minutes.

Sometimes the cat gave me an update on how she was feeling, showed me what she was doing (usually relaxing on the bed), or wanted to pass a message along to her person. And other days she wasn’t too communicative and just wanted to receive the Reiki. (This is usually how it went with most animals.)

But on one particular day, something peculiar happened.

I connected with the cat to get consent to do the session, as usual, but her energy felt much different than usual. She felt bigger, more expansive, and euphoric.

The cat continued to send feelings of freedom, joy, and expansion throughout the session, and she also kept showing me beautiful visuals. It was as if she was flying through a tunnel that was filled with glowing white, yellow, and purple balls of light.

I closed the session feeling a bit confused but also filled with immense joy and love. She must be dreaming or making a miraculous recovery, I thought.

I didn’t ask the cat what was happening during the session, partially because I was in awe, and partially because she seemed to be having an amazing experience that I didn’t want to interrupt. (And I don’t even know if she would have answered me if I had asked.)

I didn’t even know how I was going to explain what happened to her person. But before I could reach out, her person sent me a message: She had come home to find her cat dead and wanted me to call her as soon as I could.

I realized that I must’ve been doing Reiki with the cat as she was dying or right after she died, and she was sharing the experience of her transition to the “other side” with me. (We confirmed this later on in an animal communication session with the cat in spirit.)

I called her person right away and described everything as best as I could. She was understandably upset that she wasn’t with her cat when she died, but it comforted her to know about her beautiful experience of transitioning. This was the cat’s way of letting her person know that she was more than okay.

I decided to draw a representation of what I saw and shared it with her person, who gave me permission to share it with others. Maybe it will bring you some comfort, too:

If you want help communicating with your animal companions, living or in spirit, I invite you to book a session with me.