Certainly, entire books have been written on this question. Indeed there may be many effects on both human and animal consciousness. Hopefully, it will occur at the level of consciousness that encodes plants and minerals, as well. At the very least, a shift should provide a big growth opportunity for all those who think they already have full knowledge of the electromagnetic field around the Earth.

There are basically two qualities, or shall we say "empirical phenomena" that mark a magnetic shift. The first has to do with decreased force in the magnetic field around Earth. This is related to the slowing of the planet's spin on its axis. The second feature is the escalation of the hertz cycle, or frequency, the Earth emits. When these two things are observed, you could say they are the "symptoms" of a magnetic shift. This means that it is likely that eventually the North Pole will become the South Pole, and vice versa. The shift does not mean that the planet will do a flip flop in space, but rather the North Pole, which is now "negatively" charged, will become "positively" charged, and the South Pole, which is now "positively" charged, will become "negatively" charged. This can only happen, of course, if the planet's spin continues to slow and the Earth eventually stops spinning, hangs for a short while, and then begins to spin in the opposite direction. Should this actually occur (and it has occurred in the past), you will notice marked changes in everything that is affected by the direction of the Earth's spin. The directions of the trade winds would have to reverse, and the sun would then rise in the west and set in the east. The magnetic shift would be encoded in the rocks that form from the release of lava. Since the Earth spin would be going in the opposite direction, the magnetic components in the rock molecules would align in the opposite direction.

With regard to consciousness, the most potent time would be in the "hang time" between when the planet stopped rotating from east to west and begins rotating from west to east. During that time, there would be no (or extremely little) magnetic field around the Earth. In that brief time span (roughly two to seven days), there would literally be no history for Earth. Since it is the magnetic field that acts as the glue to hold the Earth and what is called "history" together, there would be a great release experienced the world over. For humans (animals, too) the same would be true. Think about it: if you no longer remembered who you were in the past, you would have to face the moment totally in the moment. The up side of this is that such an experience would have the potential to completely wipe the slate clean. There would be no history to create what are called "self-fulfilling prophecies," there would be no unhealthy repeating patterns; there would be no way to repeat past mistakes, etc.

The down side would reside in those who became fearful, thinking that without their past they must not now exist. There could be some pandemonium, I suppose, and perhaps some would, in effect, go insane, but since that goes on all the time to some degree, I don't think it is of particular significance. The important thing is that one might have the opportunity to experience him/herself as pure consciousness, and the probability for enlightenment would really heighten. Now simply because there is the opportunity to experience one's self as pure consciousness does not necessarily mean that will happen in all cases. Indeed, some will choose to go crazy, but such does not mean that everyone else has to follow suit. Set your sights on enlightenment, and determine to see through any fear that arises. Seen in this manner, such an experience would be very exciting, indeed.

As for the animals, know that their patterns in consciousness derive, in large part, from the collective projections of humans. If they experience in an enlightened field, they respond by going to a higher level, just like humans do. If they are subject to only lower vibrations in awareness, they follow suit. If this event indeed comes about (and it is more likely at this point in time than it has been for any time in the past 14,000 years), greet it with your very best self, as well as your determination to cut through the power of appearances and see what really is. You should face such an experience as you would any other important experience in your life: show up, pay attention, give it your best effort, and don't be too attached to the outcome.