Mike Ricksecker Interviews Rob Gutro about books, mediumship, plans

Rob Gutro and Mike Ricksecker

My friend, fellow author, ghost investigator and "Ghostorian" Mike Ricksecker asked me questions for his blog, (Mike Ricksecker's Blog) so I thought I'd share my answers  here, so you can get a feel for my experience.


1. In your own words, who is Rob Gutro? I'm an average middle-aged guy who happens to be a scientist, dog dad, dog rescue volunteer, an investigator with Inspired Ghost Tracking and a developing medium.  Since I was a child I could receive messages from ghosts or spirits (who have crossed over). I wrote "Pets and the Afterlife," "Ghosts and Spirits" and "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead" to teach others how Ghosts and Spirits communicate and to give hope about the afterlife. I also provide some scientific explanations about how they do it. I'm not a medium who makes appointments - I'm not as well-developed in my abilities as learned mediums. I' consider myself more of a "medium rare."  :)

Inspired Ghost Tracking Core Group

2. When in your life did you start recognizing the abilities that you possess?
When I saw my grandfather materialize in full color before me, 6 months after he died. I was 13 years old. Now that I think about it- he appeared in July, which was the month of his birthday. That makes perfect sense because spirits come back with messages especially around birthdays and anniversaries.

3. What inspired you to start writing about your experiences as a medium?
I've had encounters with Earth bound ghosts and spirits on-and-off until 2005. That's when my puppy Buzz was killed by a car when his leash opened. Buzz immediately crossed and provided signs that he was with me - ranging from moving things to musical and audible signs to actually seeing him. He inspired me to write my first book and give others hope that pets and people communicate from the other side. My dad passed while I was writing the book and he also provided many amazing signs that even helped me convince my own family dad's spirit was present during his wake and funeral.

4. You have a passion for caring for and rescuing dogs which has led to your latest book, Pets and the Afterlife. Tell us about that.
My first dog, Buzz taught me what unconditional love means. Sure, we learn it from our parents, but it's different with a dog or cat. They love you 100% all the time and are never disappointed in you. My partner and I came together with one dog each and since we couldn't have children we wanted to help return the love to needy dogs who didn't have homes, so we began fostering dogs (adopted 2 of them), transporting dogs for several rescues and donating time and money to help dogs. Our dogs are our children as they are with many pet owners.
  When Buzz passed I was devastated. He provided proof he was still around from the other side. When we lost our dog Sprite in the summer of 2013, he also provided signs that were verified by us, three mediums we we know who don't even know each other, and friends in Maryland and New Mexico. It's an awesome story in the Pets and the Afterlife book and serves to give proof and hope to people who lost pets.
 

Buzz provided many signs from the other side

5. How did your personal experiences come to mold and shape your other books, Ghosts and Spirits – Insights from a Medium and Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead?
 As with the Pets book, I wrote all of my books for a couple of reasons: 1) to prove that people and animals who pass are still with us 2) to show people how to look for signs and understand them. 3) To give people hope and comfort knowing that spirits are still with them from time to time, helping and guiding them 4) To understand that physical death is just one part of our lives 5) to understand that our relatives and pets are waiting for us on the other side 6) I use science and science of behavior to provide proof of how ghosts and spirits are able to convey messages.

6. What’s next on the horizon for Rob Gutro?
It's a busy year since releasing "Pets and the Afterlife" on March 27. I've connected with many fellow pet parents looking for signs and comfort (and some pets have already given me messages for their parents!).  During the rest of the year I've got appearances and interviews every other weekend through October. I'll be speaking at The Frederick Book Festival on June 28th, On August 1 at Inspired Ghost Tracking,  Paracon in Pensacola, FL Aug 9-10, a rescue in NY in August followed by appearances at the New England Pet Expo in Boston in Sept., the Capital Pet Expo in Washington, DC in October and several others in between.
   I've already written my fourth book for next year, but just have to edit it. It's called "Energy, Entities and England: Ghosts in the U.K." In addition, the response from the Pets book has been so great, I'm writing a second volume with stories from others. So, there's a lot happening and the best part is helping comfort and educate people to know how to recognize signs from their loved ones, while sometimes passing messages on from the other side.