Heart to Heart
Puppy Yoga x Animal Communication

How it started

We have always believed that the bond between a dog and their person is something worth celebrating. The Heart to Heart edition came from that belief. We wanted to create a space that was not just about being around dogs, but about going a little deeper with them.

So we opened the session to pawrents who wanted to bring their own dogs along. A corgi, a golden retriever, a maltipoo, a cocker spaniel. The room looked and felt entirely different from a usual puppy yoga session. Everyone on the mat had their dog beside them. Or under them. Or entirely on top of them.

Guests without their own dogs also joined, happy to share the morning with everyone else's fur.

The yoga part

Puppy yoga with your own dog is a different experience from a session with dogs you've just met. There's a familiarity to it. Your dog already knows you, already gravitates toward you. They settle faster. They're more relaxed. And you can actually watch them interact with other dogs in a new space, which is its own kind of joy.

The playtime after the yoga was genuinely lovely. Pawrents who might never have crossed paths sat on the floor together, their dogs wandering between them, having the kind of easy conversation that only happens when animals are involved. Something about being in that room together made it easy to talk.

Nicole and the animal communication session

Nicole Lai from Paws and Crystals is a certified pet communicator and retired veterinarian. The Peak described her work as creating a space where pet owners can listen more deeply. That is as accurate a description as any.

Each pawrent sat with Nicole for a few quiet minutes. She asked what they wanted to know. And then she listened, in whatever way she does, and shared what came back.

Some guests asked straightforward things. Is my dog happy? Does she feel any pain? What was her best day? What does she need more of?

Others asked about pets who are no longer here. Cats still at home. Dogs who crossed the rainbow bridge.

The Singapore Veterinary Association has noted that animal communication can play a meaningful role in pet owner grief and in strengthening the human-animal bond. We saw both of those things happen in that room.

Moments that stayed with us

One guest had lost her dog. She came hoping for some kind of closure and she got it. What Nicole shared brought her to tears, the quiet kind that come with recognition rather than grief. She did not look sad when she left. She looked like someone who had heard exactly what she needed to.

Another guest was pregnant. She had been a little worried, the way you are when your whole life is about to change and you are not sure how your dog will feel about it. What Nicole picked up from her mini bichon, who was otherwise perfectly happy and healthy, was that the dog was very concerned about mummy. Not frightened. Not confused. Just watching, and caring. The guest was touched in a way she did not expect.

There were lighter moments too. Dogs who reported strong opinions about specific toys. A cat at home who was apparently completely unbothered by everything, which surprised no one.

Why we did this

We do not run the Heart to Heart edition often. This kind of session takes real care to put together, and we want it to feel considered rather than routine. We partnered with Nicole because we genuinely believe in what she does, and because this session deserved someone who would hold the room well.

Singapore has a growing community of pet owners who take the bond with their animals seriously. Not in a performative way. In the quiet, daily way of people who share their home with a creature they love and want to understand better. The Heart to Heart edition was for them.

We made it because we love dogs. That is the whole reason.