Temple Grandin Ph.D. is an assistant professor of animal behaviour at Colorado State Uni. She suffers from a form of autism, and describes the way she thinks as thinking in pictures. This has helped her understand the way Animals think, with direct association, rather than a logical process.
A significant statement which can apply to most people, is the fact that originally as far as she was aware everybody thought the same way. Until she asked people and found this was not the case. She describes a radio station person who said she had no pictures, in her mind, but thought in terms of emotions or words.
I'm sure I can understand my dogs. They seem to think in a manner that is simple, and straightforward, it can just be a matter of associating cues with behavior, and remembering Pavlov.
I think in Pictures and sounds. There is music I can 'hear' in my mind that not only has the same 'quality' as the original, but there is a remarkable capacity to edit.
Perhaps something like Auti

Fascinating is, in this case, an understatement.

Thank you pokkets

I think a lot in music too. Hence all my clip songs.

I work with animals and was told way back when, that when treating the animals, I should mentally picture in my mind, exactly what is was I wanted them to do and "project" that image to them. I was told to do the same with my emotions. It really DOES help and speeds up the time it takes to rehabilitate or train them. It builds up an unexplainable "trust" or understanding of sorts, between us. I think that is what "whispering" is all about.

I can't think like my parrot, Biggles, he's way smarter than me.

I was told to do the same with my emotions.

Great advice.

People with autism and animals both think by making visual associations

I'd like to announce soft scepsis about this equalization. In his autobiographical book "Fledermäuse und Buntschatten" (Bats and Colorful Shadows), the German writer Axel Brauns, who is lucky to have escaped from the autistic confines of his childhood, describes impressively that he had been unable to decode the emotional meanings of his fellow beings' verbal or paralinguistical expressions of feelings.
The doggies and kitties (for example) that I know, are pretty well capable to interprete those human feelings codes appropiately.

I agree. My above comment requires I have the animals attention. I've never met anyone with autism, but isn't getting and keeping their attention the whole problem?

If you want to communicate with animals, just put yourself in their place and imagine what you would do in their place. With a couple of years you'll get a deciple of Francesco of Assisis or another C.G. Jung.

Yeah, Erik. Maybe vk2yoc will be able to assimilate some bits and bytes from Biggles' smartness then.
(No hard feelings, of course!)

I am an autistic lab monkey. You can learn about the universe by watching me pick my butt, smell my finger and hold up a card that reads "anthropomorphism". Monkeys Rule!!