In all my OBEs I have never encountered an animal while I was out, and I never really thought about it too much because I just 'assumed' that animals are spiritual beings as well - I mean I look into my animal's eyes (I have two ferrets) and I swear there is something there.
Anyway, on one of my astral projections where I managed to contact my Father who is deceased, I asked him the question 'What happens to the animals' and he responded with 'You wouldn't understand'.
Since then, I have become deeply engrossed in Rosicrucian literature and with great interest. They explain that animals do have spirit but not quite the same as we do, although sometime in their future spiritual developement they will reach our level. For now, they have a group spirit for species. So all ferrets for example share a group spirit although each individual animal will have individual characteristics driven by their physical brains. There is evidence to support that animals share a sort of uncanny telapathic capability. It is also explained that they do have an etheric and an astral body, but not the mental body and in their evolution they have yet to have an 'indwelling' spirit... so that is why the animal is controlled from without by a group spirit.
Would that mean that we should not be able to see individual animals in etheric or astral form at all, but instead see the group spirit's form? As in, we would see ALL dogs, not the individual dog? ALL cats, and not the individual cat? OR would the group spirit still retain the essense of what was/is that individual animal based on it's experiences here on earth - so that even though it's a group soul, you could encounter that part of it that made your animal what it was?
Has anyone here encountered any animals at all while out of body? Were they animals you knew that had passed on? Any that were still alive but possibly out of body like you were?
Ive had my dog's spirit come and visit me at a spiritual church during a Spiritualists meeting.
Thats what the medium told me. She had no idea beforehand as to whether I had a dog or not, or that it had passed away.
The thoughts just came to her spontaneously and she passed the message onto me directly, where I was a member of a large audience. So yes they do have spirit.
On another note, following on from something you said...
Just out of curiosity I dreamt about my dad and grandad last night. They have both passed away.
What I want to know is the difference between my experience and yours Synergy.
My meeting with them was purely accidental and unintentional via dream.
Your meeting with your dad was intentional via astral travel, ie you meant to visit him.
What are the diiferences between dreaming and astral travel, I always found that boundary very fuzzy!
How did you enable your pathway to your ancestor, can you share your method and experience please.