feral Archives - The Community Cats Podcast

July 6, 2016

Brigid Wasson of the Missing Pet Partnership

July 6, 2016

Interview! Brigid Wasson, Board Member, Missing Pet Partnership, and Founder of Path Ahead Animal Shelter Consulting

“A lot of cats are not really lost.” Stacy interviews Brigid about some of the thorniest questions surrounding community cats: how do you assess whether a cat is owned, feral or a community cat, when should you intervene with a cat versus letting it be, and how to help rescues and […]

July 8, 2016

Interview! Karen Little, Founder, Alley Cat Advocates, Louisville KY

“Long term vision and careful planning leads to success.” In this episode, Karen describes how she went about determining what type of efforts and program might best solve the community cat problem in Louisville. She’s a big believer in planning and patience; when founding Alley Cat Advocates, she spent a […]

July 9, 2016

Interview! Rachel Geller, Vice President, Ellen M. Gifford Shelter for Homeless Cats, Brighton MA

“If we can keep a cat that has a solvable, fixable behavior problem in its home, it’s better for the cat and for the owner.” Volunteering at the Gifford Shelter, and helping socialize fearful, shy and semi-feral cats launched Rachel into her role today as a certified cat behaviorist. She describes […]

July 12, 2016

Interview! Julie White, Former Senior Director of Grants, Programs and Field Initiatives at PetSmart Charities

“You can save more lives by fixing one cat than you can with one adoption.” Julie applied her for-profit experience and strategic mindset to the issues facing Community Cats in her years at PetSmart Charities and Executive Director of the Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Program in Washington State. She points out […]

July 20, 2016

Interview! Scott Giacoppo, Chief Community Animal Welfare Officer Washington (DC) Humane Society

“Community cats are not homeless..they are loved and cared for.” When Scott accepted the challenge of joining the Washington Humane Society, their live release rate was 28%…today it is 90%. Scott outlines the various programs that have moved the dial, including improved coordination and cooperation with animal control, their Pets for […]

August 5, 2016

Interview! Michael Morefield, Communications and Marketing Manager for the Arizona Animal Welfare League and SPCA

“We all have our own donor sources, yes, we have our own projects and so on, but we are in this together.” Michael tells Stacy about all things animal welfare in Arizona, from a ten-month kitten season to roaming packs of chihuahuas. In addition, he emphasizes the importance of working […]

August 12, 2016

Interview! Amber Sitko, Founder, All About Animals Rescue, MI

“We don’t ever want anyone to come to the clinic and say we don’t have enough traps for you.” A computer consultant with Microsoft by day, Amber channeled both her passion for cats and her business-sense into launching Michigan’s All About Animals Rescue in 2005. Since then, she has raised […]

August 20, 2016

Interview! Jon Cicirelli, Assistant Director Public Works, Director Animal Care and Services, San Jose, CA

“The program changed our view, philosophy, and focus and what we were saving on the cat side was helping us do better on the dog side as well.” John’s background in wildlife management and a biology degree from George Washington University led him to become an animal control officer in […]

August 23, 2016

Interview! Susan Krebsbach, DVM, Founder, Dane County Friends of Ferals and Founder of Creature Counseling

“We have a better option for this subset of underrepresented cats.” In the field of animal welfare, “Dr. Susan” possesses a prolific resume. She opened her own veterinary-behavioral consulting service in 2000, has maintained a position as veterinary advisor for the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association since its beginning in 2008, runs a […]

September 13, 2016

Interview! Ollie Davidson of Almond&Olive

“Giving back should be part of your creative process.” Ollie has two passions: animal welfare and music. He and his musical partner, Natalie Alms, are about to drop their debut album, and are donating a portion of its sales to the Jackson Galaxy Foundation. Ollie met Jackson (who also plays music in […]

September 30, 2016

Interview! Valerie Ingram and Alistair Schroff, Founders of The Lakes Animal Friendship Society

“We consider education to be our number one priority.” The combination of Valerie’s nineteen years’ experience in elementary education and Alistair’s passion and business experience has led to inspiring changes for animal welfare in their rural British Columbia community. Co-authors of children’s books Nobody’s Cats and Out of the Cold, Valerie and Alistair discuss their belief […]

October 5, 2016

Ask Stacy! Questions and Answers for Inquiring Cats

“We also need to educate or partner with folks in the local community so they can be our neighborhood watchers.” As Community Cats Podcast celebrates its eightieth episode, Stacy and guest host Lisa Finkel discuss how bird lovers and cat lovers can work together to decrease both the number of […]

October 15, 2016

Interview! Brianna Lovell, Outreach and Events Manager, at Alley Cat Allies

“No action is too big or too small.” To commemorate National Feral Cat Day (NFCD), Stacy speaks with Brianna about the origins of this annual event. Originally, National Feral Cat Day was simply a way to celebrate Alley Cat Allies’ 10th anniversary, but in the years following that, it’s become […]

October 25, 2016

Interview! Stacey Carver, President and Executive Director of Berkshire Animal DREAMS (MA)

“Collaboration is a wonderful thing for all of us trying to do animal rescue work.” Stacey tells Stacy about the positive impact that forging “harmonious” partnerships has had on the number of community cats in Berkshire County, especially its “big city” of Pittsfield, MA. With Animal DREAMS providing TNR services, […]

October 29, 2016

Interview! Sheila Massey, Neighborhood Activist – NYC

“I found that I spent half my time explaining TNR and working with the community so that they would buy in and accept the cats.” Sheila dove into the world of community cats after retiring from work as a forensic accountant and corporate fraud auditor. She became certified in TNR […]

November 1, 2016

Interview! Kristen Petrie, Creative Director, Mellarium and Technical Cat, Community Cats Podcast

“The brand is important and it is an asset to any organization, whether they are big or small. It’s your face to the rest of the world.” Kristen began her career in cat rescue as an adoption counselor at the Merrimack River Feline Rescue Society while launching her own graphic […]

November 3, 2016

Interview! Deborah Schutt, Co-Founder Michigan Pet Fund Alliance

“Attending conferences, understanding what other people are doing, and adding to the tool kit is really important.” The co-founder of the Michigan Pet Fund Alliance, Deborah began her journey into the animal welfare field with dog fostering. Time and experience led her to TNR, feral cat welfare, and a passion […]

November 5, 2016

Interview! Audra Farrell, Community Cares Program Supervisor at the San Francisco SPCA

“I have found even the fiercest of ferals can be really great moms, so their concern is more taking care of their kittens than have to deal with us.” Through the Mama from the Streets program, San Francisco’s shelters are combining TNR for feral mothers with adoption of their kittens. […]

November 8, 2016

Interview! Dr. Margaret Slater, Senior Director of Veterinary Epidemiology Research and Development for the ASPCA

“One of the things that we’ve found really helpful in all kinds of programs and projects is to couch it as a pilot… you can succeed and the prove that it does actually work…” Author of Feral Cats: Problems, Alternatives, and Recommendations and Veterinary Epidemiology: An Evidence Based Approach, Dr. […]

November 10, 2016

Interview! Sharon Secovich, Co-founder, Spay Maine

“What I’ve found is a lot of people will feed but they don’t have the knowledge or wherewithal or the means to trap. So the only way to get our feral cat population down is with trapping help.” After her first career as an environmental geologist, Sharon pursued a public […]

November 12, 2016

Interview! Sally Williams, Founder, The Brodie Fund

“I think the thing that makes us a little different, and our goals quite lofty as well, is that we are putting the focus on quality of life and not the diagnosis.” Sally is a cat behavior consultant and the founder and director of The Brodie Fund, a non-profit organization […]

November 15, 2016

Interview! Katie Lisnik, Director of Cat Protection and Policy, The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)

“Taking an active role in legislation is the only way we’re going to move the ball forward.” In her return appearance on the Podcast, Katie plays “Around the Country Policy for Cats” with Stacy, detailing the successes and challenges in four different states: Delaware, Hawaii, Virginia and Illinois. In her […]

November 24, 2016

Interview! Alana Yanez, Manager of HSUS Pets For Life Los Angeles

“When we have literally put these vouchers in people’s hands at their doorsteps, there really is no excuse now.” An advocate for animals and residents of underserved communities in East Los Angeles, Alana brings compassion and political experience to her position as manager of Pets for Life Los Angeles and […]

November 26, 2016

Interview! Karina King, Director of Operations, Dakin Humane Society, Springfield MA

“Cats that bite you, cats that pee on you, cat that you’ll never see…those are the cats we get these days.” Dakin, since cat overpopulation has become less of an issue across Massachusetts. Dakin has performed over 70,000 spay/neuter surgeries, and as a result, the cats entering her adoption center […]

November 28, 2016

Interview! Andi Kola, Founder, LumenLS

“To fix the problems that are facing cats, all center around increasing the perceived importance, the perceived value, and the perceived acceptance of cats to humans.” In his second interview with Stacy, Andi discusses his organization’s approach to challenges facing community cats in Broward County, Florida. With a mission of […]

December 1, 2016

Interview! Karen Little, Executive Director, Alley Cat Advocates

“Urban cats are accustomed to urban living. Rural cats are accustomed to rural living… Keeping those colonies in tact, adjacent to where their habitat might have been destroyed, is in the best interest of the cats.” In her second interview with Stacy, Karen explores the issue of relocation in the […]

December 24, 2016

Interview! Kathy Downey, Journalist and Animal Rights Advocate, Plus Mickey’s Story

“These cats are citizens of our community, just like you are, just like I am.” Kathy was one of the earliest volunteers for the Merrimack River Feline Rescue Society when she moved to Newburyport, Massachusetts in 1992. She and Stacy reminisce about the feral cat colony on the Merrimack River and how she […]

December 29, 2016

Greatest Hits! Brianna Lovell, Outreach and Events Manager, Alley Cat Allies

“No action is too big or too small.” We couldn’t have asked for a better guest on National Feral Cat Day than Brianna Lovell! If you are still unaware of what this great day entails, this is the podcast that you’ve been waiting for! Brianna discusses how the day began, […]

January 5, 2017

Interview! Bryan Kortis, Director of National Programs, Neighborhood Cats

“We’ve been able to return cats to colonies that otherwise would have been lost in the system.” In his return to the Podcast, Bryan tells Stacy about his recent move to Maui (we’re a little jealous!), which is in crisis when it comes to stray and feral cat populations. He […]

January 17, 2017

Interview! Mary Peng, CEO & Founder, International Center for Veterinary Services (Part 1)

“This is a program for China. It is going to raise the bar on humane animal welfare.” In part one of this special two-part episode, Stacy interviews Mary Peng,CEO and founder of International Center for Veterinary Services. Based in Beijing, ICVS is the first international standard animal hospital in China. […]

January 19, 2017

Interview! Mary Peng, CEO & Founder, International Center for Veterinary Services (Part 2)

“It has to be high-quality, high-volume spay-neuter, with Chinese characteristics.” In part two of this special two-part episode, Mary Peng continues to tell the story of ICVS, and goes into more detail about the unique challenges the hospital must face in China. She says that they have had to adapt […]

July 6, 2016