I talk to the cats like they understand and sometimes it helps. Today I had to strip the bed to clean, and told mother’s cat the process. She only hissed once! Which is much better than her flipping out. She calmed down once the bed was remade and her blanket was back where it should be. She’s forgiven me.
I have a group of crows on my back lawn that im always friendly with and feed but they don’t seem to acknowledge me.
There’s no rivers anywhere near me and I do speak to cats as equals but they’re my enemy