We can have one or more animals as spirit guides, these are the so-called power animals. They are always there to help us and normally invisible in the "real world". They are there without us caring for them, and they may wait for us to get into contact with them. Often they belong to our favorite animals we like for several reasons. 

The animal I'd like to discover with you today is your shamanic or power animal - you can visit it in your inner worlds if you need information or simply someone caring for you. This animal can talk to you, you understand each other without words. This animal is there to help you - it also has it's own life and doesn't need your specific care, an intensified contact eases your contact nevertheless. If your contact is more than just good and intense, it may happen that this animal shifts the worlds for you and warns you in special moments of danger. Your animal will contact you emotionally, and you will definitely be able to know it from all other animals.

All you will need is some time undisturbed - sit down comfortably in your favorite place, no straight back, no meditative music, no "must". Cover yourself with a cuddly blanket to keep your body warm. Close your eyes and breathe deeply, if thoughts appear, let them go easily, relax. And now imagine the following:

The temperature around you is pleasant. You walk out of your house, your apartment, through the entrance door and stand in the street. In front of you there is a huge door that opens now slowly while you approach it. You see flowery meadows, trees and a path on the other side. You step through the door and start to walk on the path. With pleasure you smell the pleasant scent of the flowers and the nearby forest.

As you reach the borders of the forest, the path becomes more narrow and leads you beneath the trees into the forest. You walk on and on, happy, easy, joyful. The path ends at the entrance of a cave. You know that your animal lives there, and you know, too, that you can't simply run into that cave, so you sit down right there on the warm ground comfortably and wait. Suddenly, you feel the tapping of feet before you see the shape in the entrance of the cave. Your animal approaches you - get ready to welcome it!

Which one is it? What does it look like? Is it young or old? Does it allow you to touch it, or does it stay distanced? Does it let you know it's name, or do you name it? Take your time together, you can meet each other all your life, there's no need for haste. You can go to the cave's entrance or any other place in the spirit world whenever you feel like it to meet your animal. 
Now say goodbye to your new friend and walk back the way you came - maybe your animal will accompany you a part of the way? You walk out of the forest, through the flowery meadows towards the door. It swings open just a little to let you pass through. As you approach the house you live in, you hear the door closing behind you. You come into the room where your body is still comfortably cuddled into the blanket - breathe deeply three times, say your name loudly, welcome back!

Now you have found your power animal. If you don't like it at all (honestly, who wants to have a cockroach as the personal power animal?), you can also send it back to where it came from and ask for a different one to come to you. Don't set your mind on a certain sort of animal, you may become disappointed if you meet a thin shaggy fox instead of a great grizzly bear - or you may meet the animal you thought of, but you can't get rid of the feeling that something is wrong here because your wish was too obsessive. The animal you just met must not be the only one - during your life a bunch of power animals can be with you, and certain animals can testify certain important phases of change in your life and disappear afterwards. The only really important thing is your good feeling towards the animals, the borders are only in your mind. Now go out there and enjoy it!