Look into my eyes and talk to me. And that's exactly what Coco my German pointer did as Dr Dolittle, Clare Metcalf, turned on her amazing powers of animal communication.

Tuning in to the minds of all creatures great and small has, she says, "opened up a whole new world because life is never boring".

Is it barking mad? Clare says not and insists it's all down to electro magnetic energy. We all have the power to talk to animals, she says, and they to us.

>> What do you think? Have you ever heard an animal's voice, or do you think animals have no voice? Let us know using the comment box at the bottom of this page...

Take the other day. Clare thought it was a neighbour asking her: "Where do you think you're going?"

But it was the horse in the field with his head over the fence. So she told him: "I'm off to work but I'll be back with a carrot."

You may think this woman's clean off her trolley or taking the mickey. But, as her husband Russell says: "The proof's in the pudding." And he's not alone in thinking that.

Clare has dedicated fans near and far. Some have told me how she has transformed their lives by helping their animals.

And like all animal communicators, Clare says she can connect to an animal's brainwaves, which send her messages in images, sensations and words.

And sometimes the voice has an accent, like the white ferrett that told her in a Barry White voice, "I'm a ladies'man", before jumping down the top of his lady owner and ferreting about.

Then there was the chimpanzee, now rescued from a research laboratory, who was a one-man woman. She told Clare: "My husband has other girlfriends and I'm not happy about it and I want to bash them."

At the zoo, Clare had a field day with the lion, whose keeper confided he hadn't fathered many cubs because he had a low sperm count.

"I knew that wasn't true," says Clare "because the lion had told me he didn't want to bring them into captivity but was going to give the lioness, who had recently lost her mate, some cubs for something to focus her love on."

It's hard to keep a straight face. But this is all a very serious business. Animals tell her their problems, including their ills, and she helps them.

Cynics will say Clare is making it all up and it's a load of bunkum.

A homeopath for 12 years and practitioner in the healing art of Reiki, Clare says she is not telepathic, not psychic or a medium and definitely not potty.

"It's just electrical impulses," she says. "It's like you dial someone's telephone number and get through and speak to them. All you have done is make the right connection.

"If you dial the wrong numbers you won't get through to them and learning about how to make that connection once you have done it it's quite straightforward."

She is connecting with all kinds of animals all over the country. Their owners send her a photograph, showing their pets' eyes and, hey presto, Clare goes to work.

Sometimes owners come to her, like Dorothy Lee, of Sandsay Close, Ryhope, whose three elderly cats were driving her to distraction, demanding food and behaving badly.

Dorothy, a retired teacher, says since Clare talked to Fizzy, Jessica and Sophie, they have all settled down and it's transformed the life of her and her husband, Gordon.

Dorothy said: "Clare is wonderful and what she does for animals, and helping other people with animals, is fantastic. I love her to bits."

Clare told Dorothy that Sophie thought when she was on holiday she was terrified she would starve to death.

Dorothy said: "It nearly broke my heart. She was absolutely petrified the other two cats would steal her food and she would starve. She has lost teeth and her jaw's out of alignment so she eats very slowly."

In fact, Dorothy says after what the cats told Clare about their emotional and health problems, they are much improved.

Helen Gray, a communications officer of Electric Crescent, Philadelphia, was "blown away" after Clare told her what her cat Ruby had said.

Which was that Helen's boyfriend was too loud and she didn't like him playing his electric guitar. No, Helen didn't get rid of her fella just told him to play more quietly.

Ruby, who is a rescued cat, also revealed a neck injury and her great love – of playing with pens.

Helen said: "I trust Clare because she helps animals as well as people and I have no reason to believe it isn't true."

Fern Green, who shares her Sunderland home with 17 cats, has umpteen stories of how Clare has helped diagnose all manner of health problems and provide remedies for dizziness, constant weeing, nerves and rudeness.

Gillian Connor, who runs the cat charity Feline Friends from her home in Fuller Road, Sunderland, believes implicitly in Clare's powers.

She said: "Some people are sceptical and say if she's going to be charging she would say that.

"But it's costing her in time and the remedies she provides. She never charges Feline Friends and we have asked for help on a number of occasions and she's provided remedies to help.

"She's told us things that we had no idea about, like the blind cat who we didn't know was walking badly because of a spinal injury after being knocked down.

"We thought it was because he couldn't see."

Clare, who has two cats, got the animal communicating bug after a long weekend course in the Lake District, taken by world renowned animal communicator, Amelia Kinkade.

She was agog and explains: "I came back and said to Russell, I think I can do this."

That was nearly a year ago and, since then, she has worked with animals all over the country.

She perfected her technique by asking friends to email their pets' pictures.

As for man's best friend, he not only knows every word you're saying, but Clare adds "He also knows what you are thinking."

Clare, who also helps traumatised women as a volunteer with a women's health charity, explains how important it is to talk to our animals.

And to get them to talk to us.

Clare says: "Look into her eyes and all you are doing is adjusting your brain waves so that they match hers. You have to slow yours down.

"We are always 10 steps ahead. Animals don't do that. Their brain waves are slower and more even. We need to stop all this endless chatter.
It's like tuning in the radio.

"You just keep on looking into their eyes until you get a clear signal and it depends on the animal, sometimes they can't be bothered to tell you very much and sometimes you can't shut them up."


Clare can be contacted on 0191 5121279 and during the month of April she will be making a charity donation of £5 from every consultation booked.

I suppose I should Coco

From a photograph of my dog, Coco, and with no previous conversation with me, Clare told me: "Coco showed me a blue plastic bed all chewed round the edges.

"She said 'That was my favourite bed and now I sleep on a cloth.'

Spot on. Coco's bed went the journey because it was chewed to bits. Seems like I'll have to get her another one.

And when I took Coco to see Clare, she certainly straightened her out, showing me a problem I didn't know she had – a strained hip muscle causing a twist in her back.

As Clare stroked her healing hands over Coco's back, she flopped in a heap, asleep on the floor, quite zonked out by the Reiki.

Then she stretched to her full length, gave a deep sigh of satisfaction.

Impressed, I couldn't help laughing with Clare, who told me what Coco was thinking: "I don't like you laughing at me when my health is involved."

I certainly see my dog through fresh eyes now.