The Voice of Experience column delights, enlightens, and engages readers, and this issue’s question and answers will be no exception. The subject of eating animals is a vital issue that all professional animal communicators have to face, privately and sometimes very publicly. The latter is especially true when people criticize and judge animal communicators’ dietary choices and needs based on the kind of diet the critics espouse as morally, spiritually, and physically right.

I have answered questions about diet and whether I am vegetarian or omnivore for over thirty years and covered the subject extensively in my books, articles, and lectures from my own experience and what I have learned from animals. While we have covered aspects of the diet issue previously in Species Link, another question on the subject e-mailed to me offered an opportunity to cover the matter in a comprehensive and forthright way with the help of many animal communicators offering their experience.

I was thrilled with the thoughtful and extensive coverage animal communicators gave the featured question. I enjoyed reading them all and would have loved to publish each person’s heartfelt contribution in its entirety. While some people who wrote many pages in answer to the question will not find their complete exposition here due to space limitations, the unique contributions of each animal communicator are spotlighted to offer readers a wide and balanced scope.

Some of the many aspects of being a vegetarian or omnivore considered in this article are: the suffering of factory farmed animals, the ethics of killing beings of any species, communicating with whatever species you eat, the cycle of life and death, eating organically, animals’ points of view, moral and spiritual considerations, health issues in dietary choices, guidance received in individuals’ spiritual journeys, judgments based on diet, and conscious consumption.

We showcased projects from animal communicators, NeddaWittels and Paloma Baertschi-Herrera in What’s the Buzz? And Linda Gress’ All About Them Giant Breed Rescue in SanctuarySpotlight.

Choosing articles for the Furry Heart Club sectionalways brings me joy in seeing how communicating with animals changes peoples’ lives. Salukis, conch shells, and a dolphin touch our hearts with their stories in this issue. Our Featured Animal Communicator, Seth Modelson, reveals how his early desire to merge with animals and all of nature was connected with the desire to merge with God.

In the evolution of Species Link format to make our magazine more user friendly, we created the Animal Communicator Directory as a removable insert in the spring issue. In this issue, we are adding a contents page and headlining titles on the front cover. Let us know how you like our features and the other changes we have made along with what improvements you would recommend. We look forward to your contributions to our animal communication community magazine.