Transcripts
Welcome to Animal Posse, the podcast dedicated to the
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people and rescues making a
difference in the lives of animals.
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Joining us today is Ashley Gardenier,
an animal rescuer and dog trainer.
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Welcome, Ashley.
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Thank you for coming on the show.
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Ashley: You're welcome.
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Dixie: I'm excited to talk about
your dog training and also your
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animal rescue, Southern Paws Inc.
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Ashley: Yeah.
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I'm super stoked.
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, It's really great to be here.
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. Where do you wanna start?
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Dixie: I wanna get into how dog
training can help to keep dogs in homes,
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but before we get into that, I would
like to know a little bit more about you.
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If you could tell me a little bit about
your background, how you came to start
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Southern Paws Inc, and also Oh, okay.
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How you got involved in dog training.
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Ashley: Okay.
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So, let's see.
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I am almost 40 and . I started Southern
Paws, we're about to hit 11 years.
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I have been in animal rescue
now going on 13 years.
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And honestly it started I had gotten into
volunteering with a wildlife organization
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and they had these connections to
an organization in Louisiana called
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the Humane Society of Louisiana.
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And since Katrina, and they had
been trying to help them get lower
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preventatives, like lower cost
preventatives and helping them pay for
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heart worm treatments and stuff like this.
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And , the Humane Society had actually.
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Come through and had nominated
us for thank yous pretty much
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like , an achievement award, right?
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And a thank you.
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They were honoring us at this gala and
I think I was like 25, 26 at the time.
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And the owner of the organization
was like, do you wanna go
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to New Orleans for a week?
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And I was like yes I do.
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25, 26 me was like yes.
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Put me in the car, let's go.
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And that was how I got my first glimpse
of dog rescue and things like, that
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was my first transport I ever did.
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And when I was down there I really
got to see like firsthand what people
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were experiencing in rescue in the
South and just how different it was.
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Like, it was just a big culture shock.
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So.
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After that I came home and I
just couldn't sleep at night.
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I was having a really hard time and I just
really felt like I needed to do something.
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And at the time they were
really struggling with dogs that
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needed heart worm treatments.
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And I connected back with my mentor.
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She actually has since passed away.
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Her name is Johnna.
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And I said to her like, Hey, I
have this idea, like what if we
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started this sponsorship program?
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And that's how the heartworm
sponsorship program was born.
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And we ended up treating like 80 dogs
in the course of three or four months.
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And then that kind of snowballed because
they had this hoarding case that they
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had worked and Johnna needed somebody
to come down and help with transport.
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And it was something I had always been
like, oh yeah, I'll help with that.
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That sounds cool.
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And I ended up going down and
did my first transport and
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then it just snowballed, right?
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Johnna was telling me a lot about just
how northern organizations at the time,
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and this is going back 12 years now.
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Were really taking advantage of the
southern organizations where they were
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getting all of these animals like fully
vetted and like ready to be adopted.
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The southern organizations that were
really in these like very rural like
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poverty stricken areas that didn't
have the type of money that we had
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up here were like putting everything
they had into these transports.
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They were able to run them like once
or twice a year, and they'd come up,
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they'd give them these jobs, and then
the rescues up here would turn around and
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adopt 'em out for three, $400 a piece.
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And I said they were trying to get
like this transport program up and
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running, and I said, all right, well
what if we adopted a couple of dogs
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off the truck to pay for the trip?
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Could then, could you like do more?
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And they were like, yeah.
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So that's how it got started.
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And after I would say like a year and a
half, I really was just like, I had no
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time and I was running out of money and I
was like I really gotta do something here.
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So I went to them and I said, listen,
hey, like I either have to start taking a
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paycheck or I have to get like a real job.
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And they said, okay, well
what about, a commission?
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And I was like, okay, fine.
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And I got my first paycheck
and I deposited in the bank
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and opened up Southern Paws.
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And now our organization, it's
a very small organization,
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but it has this massive reach.
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We have all kinds of different programs.
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One of our main focuses is
helping to support our sister
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organizations that we work with.
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We do still work with
Humane Side of Louisiana.
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One of the board members there has also
started Mississippi Animal Project, which
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has been our primary rescue for years.
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But we've worked with other
rescues in Mississippi, Louisiana.
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We've started spay and neuter
programs that give back to
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the community down there.
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We started disaster relief through
the 2016 floods in Louisiana, in
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Livingston and our partners down
there in assisting them, that's how
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our disaster relief program was born.
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And, it just snowballed.
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We have our facility up
here, which is not a shelter.
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We're a rescue based organization.
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But we have our facility
specifically for transport holds.
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So when dogs come up, they
stay with us for 24, 48 hours.
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I make sure they've made
it through transport.
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Okay.
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They get groomed, they get medicated.
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They get looked at by vet techs
and staff members and making sure
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that they came through everything.
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Okay.
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If anybody needs to go to the vet,
they go to the vet, we do quite a
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bit of pre-adoption, which means
they're preselected before they even
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come to the state of New Jersey.
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And then we also have now transitioned
with the animal welfare crisis.
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We've really started to transition into
more foster based stuff and working like
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I would say the big theme for the last
two years has just been like adaptability.
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And that's where.
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The Northern Spay and
neuter program was born.
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We have Spay it Forward and then
we also have the training center
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now that we opened in September.
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I figured that after all of this
time working with dogs, I mean
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I've seen all of the things, right?
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I have two trained therapy dogs that
I went through training with myself.
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I've worked with pretty much every
behavioral case in the rescue.
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I have a great support system when
it comes to a training network
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of people that I really trust and
whose opinions I valued so highly.
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And I had just seen like a lot of things.
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And I had worked in
through disaster relief.
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I had also worked in different
shelters, I've also worked in the field
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and had to work with dogs that were
terrified, in dangerous situations.
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And I just figured Hey, I
have this whole situation.
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We had always said we wanted to have
a training center, I just felt that
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training was just so important about
keeping dogs in their homes and when
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I didn't expect the upstairs of my
building to become available so quickly.
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So like the timeline was very fast.
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I was like, oh, well, yeah,
I guess we're gonna do this.
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And luckily during COVID I had this kind
of dream that I wanted to branch out and
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do more and like eventually have some
sort of eventually have some sort of like
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a property where I could do training and
we could have training and we could have
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rescue and we could have adoptions and we
could have boarding, and all these things.
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So during COVID we call it the
puppy boom, everybody was adopting.
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I was smart enough to at least
put money away for that purpose.
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And when the time presented
itself, I was like it's too good
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of an opportunity to pass up.
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Let's do it.
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I'll get my training certification so
that I can at least say, I finally have
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a piece of paper that says I can do what
I've been doing for the last, 12 years.
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But now I have a piece of paper that says
so, and it was really cool 'cause it gave
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me the opportunity to really understand
the like the evolution of dog training
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as well as a lot of the principals, but
you don't necessarily know the principals
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or like how they come about and like the
psychology of dogs and that kind of thing.
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So I know it sounds long, but it's
actually like a quick snapshot.
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It's just we do so much that, even
when you had reached out to me,
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you were like, well what do you do?
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And I was like, well, we do
a little bit of everything.
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Anytime we see a need, we try
to fill it and go from there.
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Dixie: That is a lot, but it gives us
a lot to talk about, so that's good.
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One thing that I wanna talk about, 'cause
I hear about it, but I'm from the south.
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I've been in animal rescue here forever.
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What we have going on here is a normal
thing for me because this is the
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only place that I have ever lived.
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I am used to multiple kitten seasons.
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Like I understand that.
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Oh yeah.
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We have nonstop kitten seasons here and
other areas are fortunate enough not
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to, but explain what you mean by the
culture shock in animal rescue here.
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Ashley: Well, so Dixie,
where are you guys?
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Dixie: I'm in Louisiana, in New Orleans.
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Ashley: Okay.
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Dixie: Yeah.
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And Oh, okay,
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Ashley: okay.
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Yeah,
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Dixie: yeah.
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I'm familiar with Humane Society
of Louisiana, so, I know, you
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know a lot of people there.
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Ashley: We still work with them and we
still do a lot of work with Livingston.
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Dog people of Livingston Parish
Lanelle, who runs the fix.
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The big clinics there.
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I don't know if you know
about that in Livingston.
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Dixie: No, I did not.
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Ashley: Anyway, yeah, this is
like totally off topic, but yes.
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I love Louisiana.
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I feel like there's a part of me
that just is always home there.
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I don't know if you've ever felt that,
like when you go outta state and you
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have that one state, you just fall in
love so much with, and you always feel
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like a part of you is always out there.
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That's my Louisiana, new
Orleans is my favorite city
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but yeah, and I will say we're
seeing a little bit more of it now
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because of the animal welfare crisis
that's been going on in the us.
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But when I first started, first of all,
we don't have dogs that are outside.
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Like we, nobody has outside
dogs in Northern New Jersey,
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New York, like tri-state area.
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They don't like, if people's dogs are
outside, they get the police called.
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Animal control gets called.
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It's just not a thing.
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We do have cats that like, I
know like my neighbor's got a
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cat that's an indoor outdoor cat.
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And we do have feral cats.
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We do have issues in this area
specifically with like cats in general.
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Like we do have a pretty
solid kitten season.
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There's actually a rescue I
work with that's 20 minutes
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from me 'cause we don't do cats.
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And they've really done an amazing job
focusing on spay and neuter and they're
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finally starting to see some results,
but they've been doing it for 10 years.
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It's crazy but everybody
here is a house pet.
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That's the first thing.
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We also all have fenced in yards,
or we keep our dogs on leashes.
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Nobody's animals really run wild.
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And again, if you see a loose
dog, like you call like the police
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department or animal control, and
you're like, Hey, there's a dog,
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and I think that to me was huge.
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I remember driving around down
the road the first time I was in
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either Louisiana or Mississippi.
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And I was with Johnna my mentor and
I'm driving their brand new transport
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van, and I'm giggling because it
was just such a funny experience.
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But I'm driving and there's a dog that
goes darting into the middle of the
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highway and I immediately slammed on
the brakes, pull over, and she looks
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at me and she's what are you doing?
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I was like, I gotta go get that dog.
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There's a loose dog in Jersey,
like we see a loose dog.
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I got a leash in the car.
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We got treats.
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Like the whole neighborhood
is trying to get it.
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Like we have dog trappers specifically
up here to find people's loose dogs.
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And I just remember her looking at me
and be like, you can't go take that dog.
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And I was like, what do you mean?
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She was like that's somebody's dog.
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I was like, that's not somebody's dog.
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It's running in the middle of the highway.
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I almost just ran it over and she's
like, Ashley, you can't go take that dog.
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So, that was really big.
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00:11:42,277 --> 00:11:47,057
I remember going to the the property the
first time and there were like 80 dogs
233
00:11:47,057 --> 00:11:48,977
on the property that all had heartworm.
234
00:11:49,157 --> 00:11:52,502
And this was like the first time I had
ever even heard of heartworm, aside
235
00:11:52,502 --> 00:11:56,182
from the fact that oh, hey, we give our
dog a pill once a month to prevent it.
236
00:11:56,182 --> 00:12:00,072
But I don't think any anybody,
90% of us up here, really have,
237
00:12:00,072 --> 00:12:04,492
unless you're in rescue and you're
familiar with it because of rescue.
238
00:12:05,222 --> 00:12:07,502
The average person has
no idea what that is.
239
00:12:07,802 --> 00:12:10,142
So it was also my first time with that.
240
00:12:10,142 --> 00:12:14,302
And I remember looking at one
of the members of the team and
241
00:12:14,302 --> 00:12:16,202
being like, well, what's the deal?
242
00:12:16,202 --> 00:12:16,832
And she was like, oh.
243
00:12:16,832 --> 00:12:18,692
She's you see that row of dogs back there?
244
00:12:18,692 --> 00:12:19,802
Yeah, they all have heartworm.
245
00:12:19,802 --> 00:12:21,632
And I was like, okay.
246
00:12:21,682 --> 00:12:22,492
What does that mean?
247
00:12:22,522 --> 00:12:24,172
And they were like, well,
we gotta get 'em treated.
248
00:12:24,172 --> 00:12:26,602
And I was like, well, what happens
if you don't get 'em treated?
249
00:12:26,602 --> 00:12:27,562
And she's oh, they die.
250
00:12:28,042 --> 00:12:29,302
And I was like, I'm sorry, what?
251
00:12:29,932 --> 00:12:30,472
No.
252
00:12:30,862 --> 00:12:31,642
She was like, yeah.
253
00:12:31,942 --> 00:12:35,032
She was like, we're gonna treat them,
but we have to get the money to do it.
254
00:12:35,032 --> 00:12:37,342
At this point, we're just trying
to keep 'em comfortable until we
255
00:12:37,342 --> 00:12:38,872
can get enough money to treat them.
256
00:12:39,442 --> 00:12:44,252
And I was just like, I just remember
like my mouth being on the floor and just
257
00:12:44,252 --> 00:12:46,832
being like, that doesn't happen here.
258
00:12:46,982 --> 00:12:48,512
That would never happen here.
259
00:12:48,857 --> 00:12:53,297
Like never, there's just never a
world that we would live in the
260
00:12:53,297 --> 00:12:57,447
Northeast where like the population
wouldn't rally of humans wouldn't,
261
00:12:57,497 --> 00:12:59,837
rally together and help these dogs.
262
00:13:00,137 --> 00:13:01,307
It was just baffling to me.
263
00:13:01,307 --> 00:13:06,117
So those are the things, that we see,
under that I saw that, understanding the
264
00:13:06,117 --> 00:13:10,907
overpopulation problem, I was somebody who
was always like, not really understanding
265
00:13:10,907 --> 00:13:12,287
of the shelter system, right?
266
00:13:12,287 --> 00:13:15,107
I remember saying to Johnna well,
why can't the shelter just take them?
267
00:13:15,557 --> 00:13:19,567
And her trying to explain to me, open
intake shelters and how they have a
268
00:13:19,567 --> 00:13:24,667
commitment to the public that they have
to take things in, and how that ultimately
269
00:13:24,667 --> 00:13:28,317
leads to the overpopulation issue,
which leads to the high euthanization
270
00:13:28,317 --> 00:13:33,377
rates, which again, up here, our
euthanization rates are not anywhere
271
00:13:33,377 --> 00:13:35,297
near what they are down by you guys.
272
00:13:37,547 --> 00:13:41,657
So, yeah, so I guess that's, those
are some of the things that, we, I
273
00:13:41,657 --> 00:13:46,487
really saw firsthand on that first
experience that made me be like, somebody
274
00:13:46,487 --> 00:13:48,167
needs to do something about this.
275
00:13:48,557 --> 00:13:50,627
And then I was like, oh,
I guess I miss somebody.
276
00:13:52,397 --> 00:13:52,727
Dixie: Yeah.
277
00:13:52,782 --> 00:13:56,382
It is crazy how it is here
because, I will say too the way
278
00:13:56,382 --> 00:13:58,002
people look at spay neuter here.
279
00:13:58,002 --> 00:14:00,882
It isn't like an educational thing.
280
00:14:00,912 --> 00:14:02,972
It isn't an economical thing.
281
00:14:03,462 --> 00:14:07,047
I know plenty professionals that don't
believe in spay neuter or just don't even
282
00:14:07,047 --> 00:14:11,127
know about spay neuter, which to me it's
absurd because, every animal that we've
283
00:14:11,127 --> 00:14:12,807
had has always been spayed or neutered.
284
00:14:13,287 --> 00:14:17,307
But here, I don't know what it is,
there's plenty of people that can
285
00:14:17,307 --> 00:14:20,847
afford to get it done that don't get
it done, and there's plenty intelligent
286
00:14:20,847 --> 00:14:22,587
people that still don't get it done.
287
00:14:22,587 --> 00:14:26,867
So I don't really understand, how
you can even reach people more here
288
00:14:26,867 --> 00:14:28,697
to get 'em on board with doing it.
289
00:14:30,077 --> 00:14:35,447
Ashley: So our biggest issue here is
definitely the financial portion of it.
290
00:14:35,507 --> 00:14:37,967
Like I'm about to blow
your mind right now.
291
00:14:38,357 --> 00:14:44,967
An average spay and neuter in where,
in Bergen County, New Jersey is going
292
00:14:44,967 --> 00:14:48,357
to run you anywhere from 800 to $2,300.
293
00:14:48,597 --> 00:14:49,047
Dixie: Wow.
294
00:14:51,242 --> 00:14:51,662
Ashley: Yeah.
295
00:14:51,782 --> 00:14:57,692
So we run a low cost spay and neuter
program and our low cost, which
296
00:14:57,692 --> 00:14:59,882
really is not really that low cost.
297
00:14:59,942 --> 00:15:01,382
It's way better than that.
298
00:15:01,772 --> 00:15:07,952
But our low cost program runs
you 250-450 I think it is.
299
00:15:07,957 --> 00:15:08,137
So.
300
00:15:08,837 --> 00:15:10,687
And that's considered low cost here.
301
00:15:11,077 --> 00:15:14,247
So that's one of those needs in our
community that we've been trying
302
00:15:14,247 --> 00:15:18,547
to really give, like break into
and try and provide a solution for.
303
00:15:18,647 --> 00:15:22,547
And it started actually
in Louisiana during COVID.
304
00:15:23,047 --> 00:15:29,777
I was really just feeling frustrated that
the population numbers were, everybody's
305
00:15:29,777 --> 00:15:33,167
getting adopted, we were moving everybody
out, but the numbers weren't dropping.
306
00:15:33,217 --> 00:15:38,497
And I said, we have these finances
rolling in from adoption fees and like
307
00:15:38,557 --> 00:15:42,877
donors, we had big donors back then that,
we weren't in the same like financial
308
00:15:42,877 --> 00:15:48,127
crisis that we're in now, but we had
a lot, we had a lot more money then.
309
00:15:48,157 --> 00:15:52,767
And I said, it would be really cool if
we could develop a program to give back.
310
00:15:53,772 --> 00:15:57,472
To the communities that we've
been working with, for so long.
311
00:15:57,892 --> 00:16:01,642
And Mississippi Animal
Project had a voucher program.
312
00:16:01,642 --> 00:16:05,602
Humane Society, Louisiana had a
small voucher program and it was
313
00:16:05,602 --> 00:16:07,882
actually another rescue in Louisiana.
314
00:16:07,932 --> 00:16:12,522
Walking in the Sun, Mindy
Defender, I think is her last name.
315
00:16:12,802 --> 00:16:17,362
She actually, and I were talking one
night just girl chat, like gossiping
316
00:16:17,362 --> 00:16:20,842
and like whatever, and complaining
about, being an animal rescue.
317
00:16:21,142 --> 00:16:26,002
And she had said something about this
one neighborhood and I said to her,
318
00:16:26,002 --> 00:16:31,212
I'll tell you what, if , you can get
some people to donate spay neuter to
319
00:16:31,212 --> 00:16:35,022
that area up to 10, I will match them.
320
00:16:35,832 --> 00:16:36,942
She was like, really?
321
00:16:37,152 --> 00:16:38,022
And I was like, yeah.
322
00:16:38,322 --> 00:16:41,322
And we started this really
cool, spay neuter task force.
323
00:16:41,562 --> 00:16:45,702
There ended up being like 13 different
organizations that all jumped on the
324
00:16:45,702 --> 00:16:47,862
bandwagon in the middle of COVID.
325
00:16:48,312 --> 00:16:52,722
And we did t-shirt fundraisers, we did all
this stuff and we ended up spay neutering,
326
00:16:52,722 --> 00:16:57,792
like 60 animals just through, they
would find people that would match them.
327
00:16:57,792 --> 00:16:59,532
We would find people that would match us.
328
00:16:59,532 --> 00:17:02,952
Like we ended up all doing, 60 animals.
329
00:17:02,952 --> 00:17:05,172
We had, Tito's got
involved, vodka for dog.
330
00:17:05,172 --> 00:17:06,071
People love them.
331
00:17:06,382 --> 00:17:10,702
They donated money to the task
force, like we were able to do,
332
00:17:10,702 --> 00:17:12,192
I think it was like 60 dogs.
333
00:17:12,192 --> 00:17:15,112
I think we did when all was said
and done, which I guess doesn't
334
00:17:15,112 --> 00:17:16,732
seem like a lot, but really it was.
335
00:17:16,732 --> 00:17:21,561
If you look at the numbers of the
procreation numbers, but up here we
336
00:17:21,561 --> 00:17:25,551
don't really, everybody up here wants
to spay and neuter their animals.
337
00:17:25,551 --> 00:17:28,156
It's very bizarre here.
338
00:17:28,436 --> 00:17:31,557
If we get an app and there's an animal
in the home that's not spayed and neuter,
339
00:17:31,557 --> 00:17:33,657
we're like, okay, is it a medical issue?
340
00:17:34,077 --> 00:17:40,107
There are areas, there are pockets
of areas in and around where
341
00:17:40,107 --> 00:17:42,207
we are, where it's less common.
342
00:17:42,627 --> 00:17:50,582
And those areas are definitely areas where
the socioeconomical they're poorer areas.
343
00:17:50,582 --> 00:17:53,697
I'm trying to say this a different way to
make it sound nicer, but that's the truth.
344
00:17:53,747 --> 00:17:54,017
It's the
345
00:17:54,017 --> 00:17:58,337
poorer areas up here that
we do see more of it.
346
00:17:58,437 --> 00:18:01,557
Another program we have
is we do shelter revamps.
347
00:18:01,557 --> 00:18:03,267
I'm a hazmat technician.
348
00:18:03,477 --> 00:18:07,437
So I'll go in and from a disease
control standpoint, go in and try to
349
00:18:07,437 --> 00:18:11,697
get a shelter that's super sick, try
to implement protocols and deep clean
350
00:18:11,697 --> 00:18:14,247
and show everybody the appropriate
ways to clean and what to do.
351
00:18:14,757 --> 00:18:20,037
And we actually had a shelter right
by us and they hired me for three
352
00:18:20,037 --> 00:18:21,537
months to do a contract there.
353
00:18:21,897 --> 00:18:25,887
And there is one area and like
they're still struggling with it.
354
00:18:26,277 --> 00:18:29,427
Every single thing that comes outta
that area in New York, it's right
355
00:18:29,427 --> 00:18:30,567
over the border into New York.
356
00:18:30,747 --> 00:18:34,137
Everything that comes outta that
area is not spayed or neutered.
357
00:18:34,597 --> 00:18:37,237
There's another area that's
about a half hour from us.
358
00:18:37,237 --> 00:18:39,667
Anything that comes outta that
area is not spay and neutered.
359
00:18:39,967 --> 00:18:43,087
And there are definitely areas
that are like less wealthy.
360
00:18:43,547 --> 00:18:48,557
I don't know if that has anything to
do with it, but I do think that it's
361
00:18:48,557 --> 00:18:51,167
more common in the poorer communities.
362
00:18:51,587 --> 00:18:53,747
And I do think there
needs to be more outreach.
363
00:18:53,747 --> 00:18:55,427
I think there needs to be more education.
364
00:18:55,487 --> 00:18:59,027
I think that there needs to be more spay
and neuter, and I think that there are
365
00:18:59,027 --> 00:19:02,507
people in these areas that would want
to do it, but at the end of the day,
366
00:19:03,017 --> 00:19:05,657
they can either feed their children
or get their dog spay and neutered.
367
00:19:05,657 --> 00:19:06,647
What would you choose?
368
00:19:06,937 --> 00:19:11,707
Dixie: I don't see that here because , the
parish that I'm in, we have very low
369
00:19:11,707 --> 00:19:14,427
cost, like spay neuter or cats options.
370
00:19:14,427 --> 00:19:14,667
Ashley: Yeah.
371
00:19:14,757 --> 00:19:19,497
Dixie: We have free spay neuter for
feral cats, and there's specific
372
00:19:19,497 --> 00:19:22,047
breeds of dogs that are very low cost.
373
00:19:22,362 --> 00:19:25,252
And then there's other low
cost programs for dogs.
374
00:19:25,252 --> 00:19:28,012
Some of the low cost ones, I'm
gonna say are probably like $60.
375
00:19:28,282 --> 00:19:30,742
I do cat rescue, so I could
be a little bit off on that.
376
00:19:30,742 --> 00:19:35,022
But the crazy thing, like specifically
too with the cats is we have it
377
00:19:35,182 --> 00:19:37,252
in this parish where it is free.
378
00:19:37,552 --> 00:19:40,372
If you have a feral cat
in the trap, it is free.
379
00:19:40,372 --> 00:19:45,142
And we still struggle here with
trying to get people to get them in
380
00:19:45,142 --> 00:19:46,552
to go get 'em spayed and neutered.
381
00:19:47,462 --> 00:19:48,422
Ashley: I'm so jealous.
382
00:19:48,512 --> 00:19:49,017
Dixie: Yeah, so jealous.
383
00:19:49,207 --> 00:19:49,952
It's crazy.
384
00:19:49,952 --> 00:19:55,322
So, like I said here, it's not quite
what I would say, an economical thing
385
00:19:55,322 --> 00:19:59,652
because I know people that can well afford
to just go to a regular vet and get it
386
00:19:59,652 --> 00:20:02,232
done and they just won't go get it done.
387
00:20:02,752 --> 00:20:06,972
And then like I said, with the
free programs, it's still hard
388
00:20:06,972 --> 00:20:08,532
to get people to go get it done.
389
00:20:09,687 --> 00:20:10,587
Ashley: That's wild.
390
00:20:10,767 --> 00:20:11,517
Yeah, that's wild.
391
00:20:11,517 --> 00:20:13,677
We don't have that up here
and I think that's different.
392
00:20:13,677 --> 00:20:15,747
That's a big difference
between north and south.
393
00:20:16,947 --> 00:20:21,147
But I also think that's a lot of why
the population up here is so much
394
00:20:21,147 --> 00:20:22,887
less than the population down south.
395
00:20:23,517 --> 00:20:28,317
Like our overpopulation is still
probably only a quarter of what yours is.
396
00:20:29,007 --> 00:20:34,797
We're seeing a lot more now because we
had so many animals come up during COVID
397
00:20:35,217 --> 00:20:40,197
that like a lot, I would say nine out 10
dogs that are ending up in the shelters
398
00:20:40,197 --> 00:20:42,057
right now up here are from the South.
399
00:20:42,107 --> 00:20:46,037
I do have some issues with these
organizations that have no fallback plan
400
00:20:46,307 --> 00:20:50,657
that are located out of state and they
come up and they do these like adoptions
401
00:20:50,657 --> 00:20:54,557
with random people in the northern states
and then they like leave and go home.
402
00:20:55,007 --> 00:20:58,007
And if it doesn't work out, the
dog has nowhere to go because
403
00:20:58,007 --> 00:21:00,347
there's no like northern partner.
404
00:21:01,007 --> 00:21:03,197
So that's something that
I don't really love.
405
00:21:03,602 --> 00:21:05,102
We see a lot of that up here.
406
00:21:05,382 --> 00:21:09,912
We also are seeing a lot of, like the
puppy mills that are now bringing vehicles
407
00:21:09,912 --> 00:21:16,112
full of puppies that are sick and broken
and, just these poor puppies and dogs
408
00:21:16,142 --> 00:21:20,202
and they're just passing them out up here
like they're selling them for $1,800.
409
00:21:20,442 --> 00:21:24,532
You go to a gas station and
you collect all of these dogs,
410
00:21:24,622 --> 00:21:26,362
and they're not real rescues.
411
00:21:26,362 --> 00:21:27,322
They're dogs.
412
00:21:27,322 --> 00:21:30,202
That definitely came from
really bad breeding situations.
413
00:21:30,202 --> 00:21:33,282
Backyard breeders puppy
mills, you name it.
414
00:21:33,802 --> 00:21:37,912
And animal control is trying to cut down
on them, but they're not located here.
415
00:21:38,182 --> 00:21:42,702
So it's like, how do you cut down
on that when they're not here?
416
00:21:42,702 --> 00:21:44,292
They drop the dogs and
then they like leave.
417
00:21:45,612 --> 00:21:46,122
Dixie: Right.
418
00:21:46,122 --> 00:21:48,642
Ashley: So that's another thing
that we're now seeing that's
419
00:21:48,642 --> 00:21:52,662
becoming a big overpopulation
causing our area to overpopulate.
420
00:21:52,932 --> 00:21:56,892
We're not seeing the overpopulation,
I don't think for necessarily the
421
00:21:56,892 --> 00:22:00,882
same reasons so much as you guys
are like, yeah, we still have
422
00:22:00,882 --> 00:22:04,042
the I don't want, we have the BS
surrenders and the this and the that.
423
00:22:04,042 --> 00:22:05,632
Like we still have a lot of that.
424
00:22:06,832 --> 00:22:12,792
But I would say our overpopulation is now
becoming more of a problem here because
425
00:22:12,792 --> 00:22:14,382
of dogs coming outta the south now.
426
00:22:14,412 --> 00:22:17,652
I don't think that we shouldn't
help dogs from the south.
427
00:22:17,952 --> 00:22:20,142
I think that we should just
be responsible about it.
428
00:22:20,197 --> 00:22:24,387
I still get a lot of my dogs from the
south and I love helping, being able
429
00:22:24,387 --> 00:22:28,527
to help out wherever we can, whenever
we can for whatever we need to.
430
00:22:28,987 --> 00:22:32,257
But that's something else that like,
I would say is a big difference.
431
00:22:32,257 --> 00:22:35,407
Our overpopulation rates and
our euthanasia rates here.
432
00:22:36,157 --> 00:22:39,487
Are very low compared to the south.
433
00:22:39,817 --> 00:22:42,817
And that's what one of the big
things that I constantly tell people.
434
00:22:42,847 --> 00:22:45,167
'cause everybody's well, why
don't you help dogs here?
435
00:22:45,197 --> 00:22:46,757
And I'm like, I do help dogs here.
436
00:22:47,027 --> 00:22:53,477
But when our euthanasia rates start
to match the ones in Louisiana, Texas
437
00:22:53,787 --> 00:22:59,537
Oklahoma, Mississippi, when Kentucky,
West Virginia, when we start to reach
438
00:22:59,537 --> 00:23:02,747
those levels, then you can talk to
me about not pulling outta the south.
439
00:23:03,197 --> 00:23:04,187
But we haven't reached that.
440
00:23:04,287 --> 00:23:06,627
We are very lucky and I really
think that spay and neuter and
441
00:23:06,627 --> 00:23:08,537
neuter has a big impact on that.
442
00:23:09,982 --> 00:23:10,272
Dixie: Yeah.
443
00:23:10,337 --> 00:23:14,547
You're fortunate that that many people
are pro spay neuter where you are.
444
00:23:14,677 --> 00:23:19,167
With all these dogs coming in, like
you said, from these backyard breeders
445
00:23:19,167 --> 00:23:24,357
and puppy mills, and as well as these
transports coming up from the south,
446
00:23:24,357 --> 00:23:26,427
does that affect your adoptions?
447
00:23:29,352 --> 00:23:30,432
Ashley: Yes and no.
448
00:23:30,522 --> 00:23:34,182
So when I say this, these
are not responsible rescuers
449
00:23:34,182 --> 00:23:35,022
that I'm talking about.
450
00:23:35,072 --> 00:23:38,842
Like I know a lot of responsible
rescuers who do transports
451
00:23:38,842 --> 00:23:40,162
up north like every week.
452
00:23:40,212 --> 00:23:41,442
I've been doing this for a long time.
453
00:23:41,442 --> 00:23:43,782
That's been like our main
source of getting dogs.
454
00:23:44,122 --> 00:23:46,852
So I wanna be very clear that
I'm not talking about responsible
455
00:23:46,852 --> 00:23:49,822
rescuers who are doing transport
to the Northeast with receiving
456
00:23:49,822 --> 00:23:51,632
partners and, that kind of thing.
457
00:23:52,172 --> 00:23:57,452
I think that there is definitely a need
for puppies that we don't typically have
458
00:23:57,452 --> 00:24:00,122
a lot of puppies here that are available.
459
00:24:00,122 --> 00:24:03,662
I hate to say this 'cause it makes it
sound like it's a t-shirt store, but
460
00:24:03,662 --> 00:24:06,902
it is a business at the end of the day
when it comes to the nonprofit and the
461
00:24:06,902 --> 00:24:09,542
rescue, there is a supply and demand.
462
00:24:09,592 --> 00:24:12,712
And my thought process is, if.
463
00:24:13,732 --> 00:24:16,972
We don't have a lot of puppies
and we need puppies and you guys
464
00:24:16,972 --> 00:24:19,162
need to move puppies, that works.
465
00:24:19,352 --> 00:24:22,282
Little fru dogs do a lot better here.
466
00:24:22,282 --> 00:24:23,602
Like they go faster.
467
00:24:23,842 --> 00:24:24,612
So yes.
468
00:24:24,672 --> 00:24:27,732
If there's not a lot of them locally,
then yeah, I think that getting them
469
00:24:27,732 --> 00:24:30,642
from the south is definitely beneficial.
470
00:24:31,122 --> 00:24:34,782
The problem I have is with
organizations that are brokers
471
00:24:34,782 --> 00:24:37,272
ultimately that are posing as rescues.
472
00:24:37,602 --> 00:24:39,612
Some of them didn't
even get their 5 0 1 C3.
473
00:24:40,022 --> 00:24:42,872
But there's a couple of them that,
like we know of that animal control has
474
00:24:42,872 --> 00:24:44,672
been trying desperately to cut down.
475
00:24:45,062 --> 00:24:49,112
And they go and they either breed 'em
in the backyard, they know backyard
476
00:24:49,112 --> 00:24:54,192
breeders that they're getting them from,
they're going to puppy mill auctions.
477
00:24:54,192 --> 00:24:55,062
That's a big one.
478
00:24:55,392 --> 00:24:58,482
And they're ultimately brokers,
like they're puppy store brokers.
479
00:24:58,482 --> 00:24:59,322
That's what they are.
480
00:24:59,382 --> 00:25:02,827
And then they pose as rescues
and they bring 'em up, here.
481
00:25:03,417 --> 00:25:10,467
Then, so in that regard, yes, because
if I can go as, as a adopter, right?
482
00:25:10,467 --> 00:25:16,187
And I can go pay $1,500 and
somebody is telling me this dog
483
00:25:16,187 --> 00:25:19,427
is quote unquote rescued, why?
484
00:25:19,427 --> 00:25:23,207
And I can get a pure
breed, multi poo from them.
485
00:25:23,477 --> 00:25:27,527
Why am I gonna come to Southern Paws
and get like a little hound, pity puppy,
486
00:25:29,057 --> 00:25:29,447
Dixie: right?
487
00:25:29,597 --> 00:25:32,717
Ashley: So that's where we see the issue.
488
00:25:32,957 --> 00:25:37,907
The other issue is when these dogs get
up here, whether they're from rescues,
489
00:25:37,937 --> 00:25:42,172
they're either from rescues who don't
necessarily have a fallback plan for
490
00:25:42,172 --> 00:25:46,672
them up here, we will see a lot of
organizations from the south come up.
491
00:25:47,272 --> 00:25:49,312
There's not like a receiving rescue.
492
00:25:49,312 --> 00:25:51,052
And that's what I mean by responsible.
493
00:25:51,052 --> 00:25:55,132
Like they're just doing random
adoptions and they don't have a rescue
494
00:25:55,132 --> 00:25:57,892
that they're partnering with, so
that if that adoption doesn't work
495
00:25:57,892 --> 00:25:59,992
out, the dog has somewhere to go.
496
00:26:00,322 --> 00:26:02,302
So is that influencing us here?
497
00:26:02,302 --> 00:26:05,752
Yeah, it definitely is because
now that dog doesn't work
498
00:26:05,752 --> 00:26:08,332
out, the rescue is in Texas.
499
00:26:09,262 --> 00:26:11,362
There's no way to get
the dog back to Texas.
500
00:26:11,362 --> 00:26:17,632
So now the dog ends up in a shelter here
and takes away our space that we have for
501
00:26:17,632 --> 00:26:19,432
our local animals that need a place to go.
502
00:26:22,492 --> 00:26:26,062
Dixie: How are surrenders since you
did bring that subject up on people
503
00:26:26,062 --> 00:26:29,952
that might adopt a dog from these people
that are just randomly driving it up and
504
00:26:29,952 --> 00:26:31,782
decide they don't want the dog anymore.
505
00:26:32,022 --> 00:26:35,382
How are your adoption returns in general?
506
00:26:35,412 --> 00:26:38,262
Because I knew here it seems
to be, at a high right now.
507
00:26:39,372 --> 00:26:43,422
Ashley: Knock on wood, my return
rate is still less than like 3%.
508
00:26:44,052 --> 00:26:48,222
But I am also a psychopath
when it comes to my adopters.
509
00:26:48,702 --> 00:26:54,652
Like I am very picky to the point
where the, probably the biggest
510
00:26:54,652 --> 00:26:57,082
complaint is that I scare everybody.
511
00:26:57,112 --> 00:26:58,942
And at the end of the day, if
they're still interested in the
512
00:26:58,942 --> 00:27:00,352
dog, then maybe they can have it.
513
00:27:01,042 --> 00:27:03,772
I am a jerk like that
and I pride myself on it.
514
00:27:03,772 --> 00:27:05,302
Like I am a very real person.
515
00:27:05,542 --> 00:27:10,042
I tell everybody all the time, I'm
like, you are really nice and my job is
516
00:27:10,282 --> 00:27:12,442
to find a good, perfect match for you.
517
00:27:12,442 --> 00:27:15,952
But at the end of the day, my
responsibility my priority is not you.
518
00:27:16,012 --> 00:27:17,302
My priority is this dog.
519
00:27:17,392 --> 00:27:20,592
So it's really nice that you've
had a hundred dogs and you've never
520
00:27:20,592 --> 00:27:23,442
had to do training, and all of them
have been circus pets and they're
521
00:27:23,442 --> 00:27:25,212
fantastic and blah, blah blah.
522
00:27:25,602 --> 00:27:29,182
But I have a really specific criteria for
the things that you're gonna need to do
523
00:27:29,182 --> 00:27:31,162
with any of my dogs for the first year.
524
00:27:31,522 --> 00:27:34,182
And if you're not gonna do them,
i'm sure you're a great home, but
525
00:27:34,182 --> 00:27:35,502
you can't have one of my dogs.
526
00:27:36,132 --> 00:27:39,792
So my return rate is still less than 3%.
527
00:27:40,182 --> 00:27:47,292
However, our foster program is like
overwhelmed, so overwhelmed from trying
528
00:27:47,292 --> 00:27:50,352
to help out with local surrenders,
helping out our local shelters.
529
00:27:50,862 --> 00:27:54,882
Last week I pulled two dogs from
our local Rockland shelter, one of
530
00:27:54,882 --> 00:27:57,012
which is a diabetic like disaster.
531
00:27:57,382 --> 00:27:58,912
He's the best and I love him.
532
00:27:58,912 --> 00:28:04,732
His name is Remy, and he is completely
emaciated and was like a diabetic mess.
533
00:28:05,022 --> 00:28:07,722
He finally made it through his
first night without wetting
534
00:28:07,752 --> 00:28:09,342
his diaper, which was huge.
535
00:28:09,592 --> 00:28:12,562
And he's finally stabilizing
on his insulin after a week.
536
00:28:13,012 --> 00:28:15,592
Then I have two dogs right now
that I'm desperately trying
537
00:28:15,592 --> 00:28:16,972
to pull out animal control.
538
00:28:17,132 --> 00:28:19,232
I pulled one a couple weeks ago from them.
539
00:28:19,292 --> 00:28:21,602
I tried to get my adult
dogs locally from them.
540
00:28:22,022 --> 00:28:24,392
We are just so overwhelmed everywhere.
541
00:28:24,612 --> 00:28:28,422
The other day, it was like before
one o'clock, I had six calls from
542
00:28:28,422 --> 00:28:30,402
people trying to surrender dogs.
543
00:28:30,972 --> 00:28:35,457
And they're not my dogs, so I can't say
the returns are bad in my organization.
544
00:28:35,727 --> 00:28:38,947
But I can say that surrenders are so bad.
545
00:28:38,947 --> 00:28:41,827
Like , today I got a call from
somebody in Pennsylvania, not
546
00:28:41,827 --> 00:28:43,657
even locally in Pennsylvania.
547
00:28:43,657 --> 00:28:47,917
He somehow heard about me from somebody
and heard about my organization,
548
00:28:47,917 --> 00:28:52,057
and he has two deaf and blind white
boxers that he would like to rehome.
549
00:28:53,767 --> 00:28:54,427
Dixie: Why?
550
00:28:54,597 --> 00:28:55,707
Ashley: I didn't even call him back.
551
00:28:55,957 --> 00:28:56,137
Every
552
00:28:56,137 --> 00:28:56,917
day is like this.
553
00:28:57,602 --> 00:28:59,612
I could read you, I have visual voicemail.
554
00:28:59,762 --> 00:29:03,452
I could literally read you every
single one in my inbox for like
555
00:29:03,542 --> 00:29:07,172
my voicemail inbox for the last
four days is just surrender
556
00:29:07,172 --> 00:29:08,462
requests after surrender requests.
557
00:29:08,462 --> 00:29:09,152
It's disgusting.
558
00:29:09,602 --> 00:29:09,812
Yeah.
559
00:29:09,812 --> 00:29:14,632
And it is the animal welfare crisis that
we are all in right now during COVID.
560
00:29:14,682 --> 00:29:21,642
I have theories on this, like the animal
welfare crisis to me during COVID.
561
00:29:21,672 --> 00:29:24,792
And I remember one night sitting here, it
was like midnight and I was on the phone,
562
00:29:24,792 --> 00:29:26,942
like gossiping with Jess, my one partner.
563
00:29:27,422 --> 00:29:29,072
And we said this was gonna happen.
564
00:29:29,472 --> 00:29:30,792
She was like, this is coming.
565
00:29:30,952 --> 00:29:32,122
And it's gonna be bad.
566
00:29:32,212 --> 00:29:37,762
And to be honest, that's why I stockpiled
money because I knew that this was
567
00:29:37,762 --> 00:29:41,102
gonna come and I'm so grateful that I
did because we wouldn't have survived
568
00:29:41,102 --> 00:29:43,952
this last two years without the
money that we put away during COVID.
569
00:29:44,522 --> 00:29:48,682
We had the puppy boom during COVID, and
during the puppy boom, everybody's big
570
00:29:48,682 --> 00:29:51,742
concern was like, what's gonna happen
when everybody goes back to work?
571
00:29:51,952 --> 00:29:54,532
That's, at least in my area,
like that was a big thing.
572
00:29:54,562 --> 00:29:58,042
Everybody's getting these dogs and what's
gonna happen when they go back to work?
573
00:29:58,372 --> 00:30:02,722
90% of these returns are not, at least
the ones that like, or I shouldn't
574
00:30:02,722 --> 00:30:04,522
say returns, I should say surrenders.
575
00:30:04,912 --> 00:30:08,182
Everybody that's calling me wanting
to return surrender their dog.
576
00:30:08,882 --> 00:30:11,582
It's not because of their work
schedule, surprisingly enough.
577
00:30:11,972 --> 00:30:18,242
Like it's because they're
behaviorally awful.
578
00:30:18,272 --> 00:30:20,222
Because, they're
ultimately COVID children.
579
00:30:20,462 --> 00:30:20,852
Okay.
580
00:30:21,122 --> 00:30:24,032
They were never properly worked with,
they were never properly socialized.
581
00:30:24,032 --> 00:30:29,242
And now , they have aggression issues,
they have they have anxiety disorders.
582
00:30:29,302 --> 00:30:32,332
You name it, they've got it and
that's why they wanna return the dog.
583
00:30:32,442 --> 00:30:36,252
We are seeing a lot of people that
can't afford to keep their dogs.
584
00:30:36,542 --> 00:30:38,222
Our economy right now is trash.
585
00:30:38,272 --> 00:30:39,472
People are having to downsize.
586
00:30:39,472 --> 00:30:40,342
They're having to move.
587
00:30:40,522 --> 00:30:42,382
When you move the place you're moving to.
588
00:30:42,512 --> 00:30:45,922
Personally I'm currently looking
for rentals right now for myself.
589
00:30:46,192 --> 00:30:49,982
I have three dogs where and I've been
looking now for three months now.
590
00:30:49,982 --> 00:30:51,722
Luckily, I'm okay where I am.
591
00:30:51,902 --> 00:30:55,382
Like I could stay here forever
if I wanted to, but at the end of
592
00:30:55,382 --> 00:30:57,392
the day, I can't find a rental.
593
00:30:58,442 --> 00:31:00,692
So I'm like, okay, so now what do you do?
594
00:31:00,692 --> 00:31:03,872
Now you're losing your home,
so what are you gonna do?
595
00:31:03,902 --> 00:31:07,742
Or you really have no money, you
can barely afford to feed your kids.
596
00:31:08,012 --> 00:31:09,242
How are you gonna feed your dog?
597
00:31:09,932 --> 00:31:11,012
So we're dealing with that.
598
00:31:11,042 --> 00:31:13,262
That's a big portion of the rescue crisis.
599
00:31:13,652 --> 00:31:14,042
Yes.
600
00:31:14,042 --> 00:31:16,352
Do we have the people that are
like, oh, I just feel like I
601
00:31:16,352 --> 00:31:17,942
don't have enough time for my dog.
602
00:31:17,972 --> 00:31:18,842
Yeah, we do.
603
00:31:19,262 --> 00:31:22,022
I feel like they're few and far
between than the other ones.
604
00:31:22,072 --> 00:31:25,102
The other thing that's contributing
is during COVID, everybody
605
00:31:25,102 --> 00:31:26,512
that wanted a dog got one.
606
00:31:26,962 --> 00:31:33,742
So our adoption pool right now is
so small because everybody got one.
607
00:31:33,742 --> 00:31:37,862
So these are either the kids that
are now coming up that were, in high
608
00:31:37,862 --> 00:31:41,502
school during COVID that are like
early twenties, that kind of thing.
609
00:31:41,682 --> 00:31:43,212
They're now looking to adopt.
610
00:31:43,212 --> 00:31:44,532
So we have that population.
611
00:31:44,832 --> 00:31:47,892
We also have the people that
want a second dog, right?
612
00:31:47,892 --> 00:31:52,522
Like most of my adopters are actually
returning adopters for their second pup.
613
00:31:53,692 --> 00:31:54,982
So that's another element.
614
00:31:55,042 --> 00:31:57,702
And this is probably not
something I should say to the
615
00:31:57,702 --> 00:31:59,442
public, but I'm gonna say it.
616
00:32:00,012 --> 00:32:03,792
We live in a generation where
nobody is accountable for anything.
617
00:32:04,332 --> 00:32:08,082
Everything is everybody else's
problem and people are lazy.
618
00:32:08,412 --> 00:32:11,292
Nobody wants to put the
time, the effort, the money.
619
00:32:12,057 --> 00:32:15,147
Or anything when they can dump
the dog off somewhere else.
620
00:32:16,437 --> 00:32:17,817
And that's the culture we live in.
621
00:32:18,217 --> 00:32:21,277
I say all the time, the only way
we're getting out of this animal
622
00:32:21,277 --> 00:32:26,077
welfare crisis, like everybody's got
a band together, now the population
623
00:32:26,077 --> 00:32:27,517
has to start helping themselves.
624
00:32:27,847 --> 00:32:29,887
And that's actually where
the training center was born.
625
00:32:30,097 --> 00:32:33,427
'cause I was like, all right, we gotta
start doing something to help the people
626
00:32:33,427 --> 00:32:35,977
that are actually willing to put the
time and the energy into doing it.
627
00:32:36,877 --> 00:32:38,887
So that's what led into training.
628
00:32:38,937 --> 00:32:41,457
And everybody that calls me
and all of these calls, I say
629
00:32:41,457 --> 00:32:42,567
to them like, can you foster?
630
00:32:42,567 --> 00:32:43,527
Everybody wants me to help.
631
00:32:43,977 --> 00:32:44,997
Can you help this dog?
632
00:32:44,997 --> 00:32:45,837
Can you help this dog?
633
00:32:45,837 --> 00:32:46,767
Can you help this dog?
634
00:32:46,977 --> 00:32:48,687
But nobody wants to foster the dog.
635
00:32:48,897 --> 00:32:50,457
Nobody wants to help us pay for the dog.
636
00:32:50,667 --> 00:32:52,167
Nobody wants to buy food for the dog.
637
00:32:52,797 --> 00:32:54,237
Where are we supposed to put them?
638
00:32:55,297 --> 00:32:56,917
Dixie: We see that here too.
639
00:32:56,977 --> 00:33:00,937
I know from my personal experience
we have a lot of the people here that
640
00:33:00,937 --> 00:33:02,917
are, oh, I don't have time anymore.
641
00:33:03,227 --> 00:33:06,047
For a dog it's a little bit
different than it is for a cat.
642
00:33:06,567 --> 00:33:10,707
A cat is absolutely fine
if you go to work all day.
643
00:33:10,857 --> 00:33:13,977
In fact, your cat probably is get
out the house and leave me alone.
644
00:33:13,977 --> 00:33:17,247
I just like to tolerate you when you come
home 'cause that's just how cats are.
645
00:33:17,817 --> 00:33:21,757
But here it's like a lot of people are
like, well, I just don't have time.
646
00:33:21,967 --> 00:33:26,887
So they're reaching out to rescues
and what aggravates me about it is
647
00:33:26,887 --> 00:33:29,917
a lot of these people don't realize
what a rescue is actually for.
648
00:33:30,307 --> 00:33:33,727
A rescue is not for you getting
out of your responsibility.
649
00:33:33,937 --> 00:33:37,087
A rescue is there for the dire situations.
650
00:33:37,267 --> 00:33:40,357
And those things that
just come up unexpectedly.
651
00:33:40,357 --> 00:33:43,967
Like something like a
hospitalization, a death in the
652
00:33:43,967 --> 00:33:45,407
family or something like that.
653
00:33:45,407 --> 00:33:46,457
But it's not for people.
654
00:33:46,507 --> 00:33:49,357
That are just like, I wanna
just get rid of my dog or my cat
655
00:33:49,357 --> 00:33:50,797
today 'cause I don't have time.
656
00:33:52,237 --> 00:33:52,537
Ashley: Yeah.
657
00:33:52,927 --> 00:33:53,287
Yeah.
658
00:33:53,287 --> 00:33:54,157
And we see that.
659
00:33:54,157 --> 00:33:58,057
And in that moment, have you seen that
meme that's like circling, that says
660
00:33:58,057 --> 00:34:01,157
something about your dog would much
rather lay on their couch all day in
661
00:34:01,157 --> 00:34:06,717
the air conditioning like, than be,
in a shelter or something like that.
662
00:34:06,717 --> 00:34:07,617
Have you seen that meme?
663
00:34:08,067 --> 00:34:09,327
That's how I feel about that.
664
00:34:09,327 --> 00:34:13,617
And I say that to people and I, everybody
that calls me that I do talk to that
665
00:34:13,617 --> 00:34:14,817
doesn't like just get our voicemail.
666
00:34:14,817 --> 00:34:17,447
'cause at this point I've stopped
calling them back because I don't
667
00:34:17,447 --> 00:34:21,177
have the mental capacity to be
polite anymore to sometimes.
668
00:34:21,597 --> 00:34:25,887
So if I do happen to answer and they do
say it, I explain it to them and I say,
669
00:34:25,887 --> 00:34:32,786
Hey, listen, you are trying to rehome
your animal in the absolute worst time.
670
00:34:32,847 --> 00:34:35,127
Let me tell you about the
animal welfare crisis.
671
00:34:35,187 --> 00:34:38,697
And I educate them and I'm like,
honestly, the best thing you can do for
672
00:34:38,697 --> 00:34:40,887
this dog right now is go find a trainer.
673
00:34:41,427 --> 00:34:42,447
Train your dog.
674
00:34:43,047 --> 00:34:44,577
Okay, get a dog walker.
675
00:34:45,206 --> 00:34:46,887
Go to doggy daycare.
676
00:34:47,397 --> 00:34:51,737
Or, I hate to say it, but sitting
at home in the air conditioning is
677
00:34:51,737 --> 00:34:55,817
a lot better than being in a shelter
and then being euthanized for space.
678
00:34:57,587 --> 00:35:00,707
Dixie: We've reached all the time that
we have for today's episode, so we're
679
00:35:00,707 --> 00:35:05,331
gonna cut the conversation short,
but I will be back next week with the
680
00:35:05,331 --> 00:35:09,623
conclusion of the conversation that I
had with Ashley and we're gonna get in
681
00:35:09,623 --> 00:35:11,393
more into talking about the dog training.
682
00:35:11,723 --> 00:35:16,397
So I hope you can join us next
week . If you are enjoying our show,
683
00:35:16,397 --> 00:35:18,497
please consider leaving us a donation.
684
00:35:18,827 --> 00:35:21,657
A hundred percent goes to our animals.
685
00:35:24,357 --> 00:35:26,777
Paws in
686
00:35:29,607 --> 00:35:38,147
the night Claws in the
fight Whiskers twitch and
687
00:35:40,167 --> 00:35:40,937
tails
688
00:35:43,397 --> 00:35:44,067
take flight
689
00:35:44,122 --> 00:35:50,472
They’re calling in Stories to spin
From the wild to the heart within
690
00:35:51,492 --> 00:35:57,042
Broken wings and hopeful springs
We’re the voices for these things
691
00:35:57,507 --> 00:36:01,147
animal posse hear the call.
692
00:36:02,807 --> 00:36:04,187
We stand together.
693
00:36:05,407 --> 00:36:17,267
Big and small Rescue tales We’ve
got it all Animal posse Saving
694
00:36:19,347 --> 00:36:19,767
them
695
00:36:25,637 --> 00:36:25,757
all
696
00:36:26,047 --> 00:36:32,707
The vet’s got tips The rescuer’s
grit The foster homes where love
697
00:36:32,707 --> 00:36:44,817
won’t quit From a pup in the rain to
a bird in pain , Every soul’s worth
698
00:36:47,092 --> 00:36:47,292
the
699
00:36:49,652 --> 00:36:51,472
strain
700
00:36:51,737 --> 00:36:54,647
Animal posse
701
00:36:59,617 --> 00:37:03,927
Hear the call
702
00:37:06,687 --> 00:37:10,577
We stand together Big
703
00:37:12,617 --> 00:37:20,997
and small Rescue tales We’ve got
it all Animal posse Saving them all
704
00:37:21,307 --> 00:37:27,417
Every caller tells a tale, every
howl a whispered wail, we rise up.
705
00:37:27,877 --> 00:37:28,537
We never
706
00:37:32,957 --> 00:37:33,117
fail.
707
00:37:35,907 --> 00:37:35,997
This
708
00:37:38,057 --> 00:37:38,117
is
709
00:37:40,537 --> 00:37:40,597
the
710
00:37:46,917 --> 00:37:49,057
bond
711
00:37:51,837 --> 00:37:53,567
The holy grail
712
00:37:53,597 --> 00:38:08,943
Animal posse Hear the call We stand
together Big and small Rescue tales We’ve
713
00:38:08,943 --> 00:38:17,712
got it all Animal posse Saving them all
714
00:38:17,762 --> 00:38:25,027
Every caller tells a tale Every howl
a whispered wail We rise up We never
715
00:38:25,027 --> 00:38:28,897
fail This is the bond The holy grail.
716
00:38:29,567 --> 00:38:32,647
Song by Suno.ai
