76. Coral Reefs, Cloning Cats & Clear the Shelters

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Speaker 1 (00:00):

Pets, add Life, your guide to the latest in Pet Trends products and the joy of the Human Animal Bond with Kristen Levine and Chris Bonafide, powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog tv. Well, hello and welcome to another episode of Pets Add Life. I am Chris Bonti, and joining me is the perfect, flawless, never made a mistake in her entire life. Don't try and tell her otherwise. It's Kristen Levine. Kristen, how are we doing today?

Speaker 2 (00:32):

What are you buttering me up for?

Speaker 1 (00:34):

I'm constantly buttering you up because you know I'm going to say something stupid during the show that is going to require a little bit of forgiveness, so

Speaker 2 (00:41):

You're getting a little bit of credit at the top of the show,

Speaker 1 (00:44):

Which

Speaker 2 (00:44):

Is going to get debited later on. Yeah, I get it.

Speaker 1 (00:46):

That makes sense. Exactly. Yeah, we're building a bank of positive goodwill. That's always an important aspect of this, but how's it going over there? It's

Speaker 2 (00:55):

Going good. It's going good. We're just getting through these dog days. I know you love to say dog. Days

Speaker 1 (00:59):

Of

Speaker 2 (01:00):

August, so we're just getting through it. It's so funny how I used to live in Florida, and in Florida you have a nine month summer, and here in Western North Carolina, we just have a three month summer,

Speaker 1 (01:12):

But

Speaker 2 (01:15):

My resistance to the heat has just completely gone away. It's like I never lived in Florida and it's just I get so tired spending time out outdoors. Now,

Speaker 1 (01:24):

Do you get real swampy in Western North Carolina?

Speaker 2 (01:28):

We don't. And that's probably, that's

Speaker 1 (01:29):

Really great. The

Speaker 2 (01:30):

Key, I mean, it gets a little humid, but nothing like it does in Florida.

Speaker 1 (01:36):

Yeah, it's swampy here. It's like inside with the air conditioner on only, it's 75% humidity and I have a dehumidifier that could bring it down to 50%, but that's like using all of our human ingenuity in science. I could get that of 50% humidity. So yeah, it's swampy up here in Connecticut, but hey, we make it work and we're keeping it cool with this little episode. We've got two cool guests too. Cool products too. Cool questions, two cool stories. Everything about us is cool. We've never, ever, ever done anything that made people hot and uncomfortable. We are a cool family friendly podcast.

Speaker 2 (02:24):

Hey, tool's dreaming right now. I don't know if you could hear. She's making those little dream y. Yep, yep. Sorry, go

Speaker 1 (02:30):

Ahead. What do you think she's dreaming about? Do you ever think about that?

Speaker 2 (02:34):

Well, probably about the little, there's a little terrier mix down the road here and whenever she sees him, she goes crazy barky. So maybe that's what she's thinking. Do

Speaker 1 (02:45):

You think it's a crush or rivalry?

Speaker 2 (02:49):

It could be a crush.

Speaker 1 (02:50):

Could be either.

Speaker 2 (02:52):

He is a little boy and he's pretty cute.

Speaker 1 (02:55):

There we go. I like to think that Tiger dreams about her days as an outdoor cat. She used to be an outdoor cat and I think she dreams of the great outdoors, but hey, enough of these poultry dreams. Let's move on to real hard hitting stories. Kristen and Chris, present story time. Kristen, what do you got for us today?

Speaker 2 (03:20):

Okay, so August is a really big month for pet events and I was doing the research for the show and I thought, oh, what pet event do I want to talk about? And there are so many, I just thought I'd rattle off a few of them and then I'll end up with the one that I really want to drive home. So there are some major monthly observances, including August is National Dog Month, it's Itchy Pet Awareness Month, it's World Re Rescue Month. There are also a couple of weekly events. Give a Dog a Bone Week, which is the first week International Assistance Dog Week. And I'm not even going to bore you with, there's literally a dozen more holidays during August. But the one that I wanted to really drive home is that it's clear the shelters month. And this is an annual event that's held in partnership with NBC owned TV stations and they partner with hundreds of animal shelters all over the country. And to date, this is actually their 10th anniversary because they, well, maybe it's their 11th, they started in 2015, but they have adopted collectively over a million pets since Clear the shelters began. So if you've been thinking about adding a pet to your family or someone who does encouraged them to be part of the Clear the Shelters program during August, because most of these shelters have special discounts, special bonus packages and things like that. They want to make it really easy for people to adopt. So keep it in mind. Adopt Don't Shop.

Speaker 1 (04:49):

Adopt Don't Shop. Yeah, clear. The Shelters is awesome. So Clear 'em Out. Fire Sale, everything must go.

Speaker 2 (04:56):

What's your story, Chris?

Speaker 1 (04:58):

I've got a little story about this. It's kind of half product, half story, but it's not really a product because I don't want to talk about the product. I kind of want to talk about the nonprofit that kind of partners with the products. So you may have seen Sheba Cat Animal Food or Cat Food and Products out in the wild. They're pretty popular brand, but they have a foundation called the Sheba Helped Grows Initiative that supports global coral reef restoration, recognizing the link between healthy reefs and sustainable fish for cat food, which I just think is just such a cool partnership. Apparently one of the founders of Shiba is either a Hawaiian transplant or military kid who was over there for a while, but they work with the Hawaii based, and I'm going to try my best to not butcher some of these Hawaiian words and I apologize to our Pacific friends. Yes, the Kuleana Coral Restoration, which is a innovative company. They use this thing called a Reef star to replant and monitor coral growth locally. And the link to this article will being the show notes, they have a lot of pictures and it's very difficult to describe, but a reef star is essentially what ends up happening with the coral reefs is they fall apart from bleaching and they get real, what they kind of grow on falls apart and so they die. And this is restructuring the coral. It's almost like these cages

(06:41):

That they're putting down there so that the coral can climb

Speaker 2 (06:43):

A climb

Speaker 1 (06:44):

Onto something new like a renovation. So there's also a documentary you guys could watch. It's called the Reef Builders. It's raising awareness about coral conservation and Amazon is donating to Kilana every hour streamed in the us. So be sure to check out that documentary as well. I just thought that this was a really cool partnership. I know that there's a lot of pet product brands that partner with shelters and do a lot for animals, but this is a really unique one. Partnering with Coral and Reef restoration is certainly something worth our attention.

Speaker 2 (07:27):

A very refreshing story, Chris. Thank you.

Speaker 1 (07:31):

You're supposed to do the puns at the end, Kristen. I know, but I couldn't hold back. You couldn't hold back. Yeah, that's acceptable. You are forgiven beyond the leash, exploring the untold stories of pet passion and professionalism. It is my absolute pleasure to introduce David Grim, an award-winning science journalist and the online news editor for Science Magazine, specializing in animal welfare rights and the science of cats. He has earned a PhD in genetics from Yale and teaches science communication at Johns Hopkins. That is a well-learned man. Grim is the author of Citizen Canine, our evolving relationship with cats and dogs. And I'm trying to keep a straight face because Citizen Canine is just Chef's Kiss. So good. It's a New York Times bestseller, praised for its insightful exploration of pets roles in society. His reporting has appeared in major outlets including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post Slate Time and Scientific American. What a resume. David, thank you so much for taking some time out of your day to join us on the podcast today.

Speaker 3 (08:34):

Thank you guys for having me.

Speaker 1 (08:36):

I got to jump right into Citizen Canine. So first I feel like, is this cart before the horse or did you come up with that name and then go, I got to make a book about this.

Speaker 3 (08:47):

I spent four years on that book and maybe the hardest part was coming up with a title, the title. That was definitely the last thing that happens.

Speaker 1 (08:53):

There we go. There we go. So there's that answer, but what was some of the, maybe let's just do the most surprising discovery during your research for that book that you could share with the audience.

Speaker 3 (09:02):

Yeah, I was really interested in investigating the history of pets and sort of how we got to this place in modern society, at least in the US and some of a lot of the western world where we sort of treat cats and dogs like children, family members. How did we get there? And I was really surprised, a pet lover. I've had cats for my whole life. I love dogs too. And one of the big surprises I found was especially in terms of the legal aspect, which is that the law is something I knew almost nothing about. And I learned a lot about the law in this book, but I was really surprised to learn that pets were technically considered property. So in the eyes of the law, your cat and dog is really no different from a couch or a toaster. Now that's kind of evolved a little bit over the years, but I think a lot of pet parents would be surprised to learn that if they go into a court or something legal happens with their pet for all. Well, let's say for most intents and purposes, the court, the judge, whatever, is not going to treat your cat or dog an animal you maybe love more than anything else on this planet. Anything more than a semi valuable couch or something like that. And I think when I was really surprised when I learned that, I was really surprised when I talked to other people about that people just don't have that conception of their animals as pieces of property.

Speaker 2 (10:19):

Yeah, yeah. Well, and you perfectly teed up my next question, David, because we see pets as family members. How has this shift going to influence legal rights, public policy, or societal expectations around pet ownership?

Speaker 3 (10:34):

Well, it kind of already has. I mean, even though pets are property, which again will probably strike a lot of people as surprising, they used to be considered so worthless that they weren't even considered property. So in the late 18 hundreds, early 19 hundreds in the US, somebody could shoot your dog, your cat could get run over. I wrote about a case in Baltimore where somebody stole somebody's cat from their backyard and the judges did nothing like these animals have no legal value. They're less valuable than livestock, which actually have the purpose. They said, cats and dogs don't have a purpose, so somebody kills your cat dog or steals your cat or dog. There were no legal repercussions. And then as we get further into the 20th century and we see this rise in pet culture with pet vets and all this industry around pets and people really welcoming cats and dogs into their home, which really only started in maybe the early 19 hundreds, then the law begins to evolve where they become property. But to your question, that's even started to evolve more. So even though I said pets are property, you can leave money to your cats or dogs, which is like you can't leave money to your toaster. We

Speaker 1 (11:41):

Covered one of those stories. I remember that Kristen, we covered the dog getting inheritance. Yeah,

Speaker 3 (11:47):

Exactly. And you guys probably also heard about custody battles over pets where a divorcing cuddle couple will fight over the cat or dog. And in some cases the judge will go, well, what's in the best interest of this dog or cat? Which home would they be happiest for? And you would never say, well, what home would the toaster be happier in?

(12:05):

And then one of the biggest things that happened was actually, and it's kind of sad, but during Hurricane Katrina a while back, there were a lot of cases where rescue boats would come or rescue helicopters would come, people were on their roofs and the rescuers would say, we will take you, but we're not going to take your pets. And a lot of those people, in fact, I think maybe by some stats, almost half those people stayed behind because they said, we're not going to leave without our pets. And a lot of those people ended up dying. And so now it's actually federal law that rescue agencies are supposed to try to include pets in disaster planning. So even though technically cats and dogs still remain property, we've seen a lot of evolution in the past couple of decades where the law is treating them as something more than just pieces of property.

Speaker 1 (12:49):

Absolutely, absolutely. I want to turn to your role as a teacher of science communication, which I think is just such a unique niche to have. Can you talk a little bit about the responsibilities of writers who are reporting on scientific findings and animal behavior and welfare and how that type of integrity may differ from reporting on politics or just pop culture news and sort of the due diligence that needs to be done when communicating discoveries or findings?

Speaker 3 (13:26):

Yeah, it's a great question. And one of the big challenges with animal welfare stories, especially in today's society is animal stories can be very emotionally charged, especially when you're talking about whether you're talking about animals and research or puppy mills or whatever you're talking about. And so I sort of view it, even though I'm a big animal guy when I'm writing about animals, the goal for me is not to tell readers how to think or how to feel or inject my own viewpoints. It's just to, and this is what, it's something I told my students as well, this, we present the facts, we present what happened, and we can quote people on both sides who maybe have very different opinions, but ultimately we have to leave those judgment calls in the mind of the reader. We can't make, that's not our job. We're not here to editorialize. And so it's really important that we present all the information and let the readers make decisions for themselves.

Speaker 2 (14:21):

Yeah. Well, there are so many really cool emerging trends in pet, like pet bioengineering, AI enabled pet gadgets. What developments are most fascinating to you or concern you the most?

Speaker 3 (14:35):

Yeah, I mean, I think cloning concerns me a lot. Again, I don't want to get too opinionated here, but I think we had a real severe problem for a long time in the US where shelters were really overcrowded. I think at some point in the seventies there were 20 million cats and dogs being euthanized in the US every year alone. Those numbers are way down. I think it's, well, I'm going to say don't quote me on this, but I know this is being recorded, but I think it's down to about a million or so, which is still a lot of cats and dogs being killed because there's not homes for them. And so I sort of get a little uneasy when we're developing new ways to produce cats and dogs when there are wonderful, wonderful pets in shelters that are just waiting to be adopted. And still a lot of places where shelters are overflowing.

(15:24):

So I'm not a huge fan of cloning. I had my wife and I had very, very beloved cats that passed away about three years ago, and my initial thought was, we've got to find a way to clone them because I can't imagine living life without them and grief will do funny things to you. And once we sort of regained our composure, we saw the value in trying to love new cats. And so we went out and we adopted new cats. So I certainly understand the impulse there behind cloning, but I just do think that it's not the way I'd love to see things go. I'd love to see people finding new pets to save and bring into their home.

Speaker 1 (16:06):

We're at a stage here, we have a 22-year-old cat. I do think when you bring up cloning, it's like, yeah, that sounds like a great idea. But then in the back of my mind, I'm like, you freak, stop. Quit it. That's weird. That's too much. That's a little too much.

Speaker 3 (16:26):

Yeah, that's pretty wild.

Speaker 1 (16:27):

Yeah. I want to talk a little bit about some of the key questions that pet owners should be asking about the scientific research behind modern pet care. I know we live in interesting times where experts are being called into question all the time, whether it's doctors or researchers or politicians or lawyers. Everybody's credentials are being brought up and everybody's a critic. So when somebody's looking at a piece of research, how can they know that, okay, what I'm reading here is accurate information that I can trust so that they can make good decisions about their pet care.

Speaker 3 (17:14):

Yeah, it is true. There's just so much information out there. Yeah, there's a lot of information, head care, there's so much information. I mean, peer review journals are always a great place to start. They're not always the most accessible for the general public. I've actually found that a lot of veterinarians have websites now, or the clinics have websites that answer a lot of questions. And there you're getting that information from a source. They'll say five common questions about if you're thinking about decline your cat or things to think about during the pandemic about COVID and your pets. And I actually wrote a couple articles about that too because there was obviously a lot of fear and misinformation about there. And so I think the same goes with pets, goes with anything else, make sure you check your sources, make sure that you're looking at peer reviewed journals, make sure you're getting your answers from licensed veterinarians and not just people sort of opining on various social media platforms.

Speaker 1 (18:11):

Yeah,

Speaker 3 (18:12):

People like me, it's tough because there's so

Speaker 1 (18:15):

From people like me,

Speaker 3 (18:17):

You guys seem very trustworthy, so I'm sure it would be fine. But yeah, I mean always, just because there's information out there doesn't mean it's good information. And I think that goes

Speaker 1 (18:25):

With everything. Yeah, I agree with that wholeheartedly. I was one of the guys who has to pick and choose what information I share. It's always, I mean, we do questions on the show, we answer people's questions, and I think one of the things Chris and I keep saying is, talk to your vet. Don't ask us. Yeah, that's almost always the answer. This is a question for your vet. We yell into a microphone over here. We don't know anything about animals.

Speaker 3 (18:49):

A hundred percent.

Speaker 2 (18:50):

David, we're coming up on time here, but I wanted to ask you if you're working on any new projects, any new books or what do you got up your sleeve these days?

Speaker 3 (19:01):

Well, thank you. Yeah, I mean, the book almost killed me. So think I'm taking a little break from books from now, but for science and sometimes other outlets, I continue to write about cats and dogs. And one of the things that really fascinates me is just figuring out where these animals came from. It's really funny that these are sort of, especially in the western world, these are the most popular pets, and yet we really don't know when or where dogs were domesticated. We sort of thought we knew for cats, but now that's been called into question. So I think you were asking about what does the future hold? And one of the things I just find fascinating is because these animals are so important in our lives, just getting to the bottom of where they came from. I mean, we know what their ancestors were, but we just don't really know how it happened and when it happened and where it happened. And I just love to get a little bit more insight into that. I think that'll be a really fascinating story when we have some more answers. That's

Speaker 1 (19:55):

Awesome. And David, where can folks go to keep up with you, find the book, find some more information, find some of the stuff you're working on?

Speaker 3 (20:03):

Yeah, the books on Amazon. Just make sure it's the right citizen canine. Actually, it's such a good title that it's been used a few times. Oh no. So Citizen Canine are Evolving Relationship with Cats and Dogs Also on Blue Sky. I think I'm David slash Grim on Blue Sky. Those are great places to stay in touch with what I'm writing about and also have a blog. It's David David h grim.com where I regularly update on various cool things happening with what we're learning about cats and dogs. So that's a great place to check out too.

Speaker 2 (20:36):

Awesome. Well David, thank you so much for your work and thanks for joining us today on the Pets Side Live podcast.

Speaker 3 (20:42):

Thank you guys so much for having me. It was a lot of fun.

Speaker 2 (20:46):

Wow, that was fun. Geeking out with that guy.

Speaker 1 (20:49):

Yes, there is an alternate reality somewhere down the line where I did more science stuff and I'm looking at this guy, I'm like, yeah, would ended up like this. I think couldn't have shoulda have. The thing I found most interesting was him kind of starting to look into how, not just what species, but where and when did we start domesticating animals and what that looks like. I do think it's such an interesting slice of evolutionary history. We're missing because of a lack of records and things like that. So it's a huge history nerd. I love stories if you couldn't tell. So when science and history sort of intersect like that, my ears perk up for sure.

Speaker 2 (21:33):

Yeah, well I'm definitely adding his book to my list of books to read. We have so many great guests with great books, but this one might get bumped a little bit to the top. So

Speaker 1 (21:43):

Read All the Citizen Canines. He said there's a few different ones. So you could do a ranked list on the podcast of All the Citizen Canines, your favorite

Speaker 2 (21:52):

Citizen Canine book.

Speaker 1 (21:54):

Yep. I think David's is going to be at the top though.

Speaker 2 (21:59):

Alright, everybody. Join me in welcoming Tina Lundquist faus, the co-president of Houston Pet Set a nonprofit that she leads with her twin sister for over 15 years. They've raised more than $5 million to fight companion animal homeless. Homeless Lessness, I should say. Now under their leadership, Houston Pet Set helped pass Texas's Safe Outdoor Dogs Act in 2022 and co-founded the Highland Village Adoption Center. Tina's also executive producer and subject of the new documentary for the Animals which follows her and her sister Tam is Grassroots Efforts to combat Houston's Stray Dog Crisis. This is a story that's now streaming on Peacock, Amazon Prime and others. Welcome Tina. Thank you for having me. So glad to be here. It is such a pleasure to meet you. So just to start things off, what was the moment or the experience that motivated you and your sister to start working with Houston Pet Set?

Speaker 4 (22:59):

Well, we were blessed enough to be invited to join the board, and it was a small, potent organization that was raising funds through one event every year and the funds were being raised for other grassroots organizations. So if you know a lot about rescue, rescuing animals is very different than fundraising. So this was really, we thought ingenious that these women had started this organization to raise funds to help support other groups doing really, really important work in our community and we liked the strategic thinking around that. So we were just so blessed to be invited to join.

Speaker 1 (23:34):

Yeah, that's phenomenal. In the introduction, Kristen had mentioned that Safe Outdoor Dogs Act. I'm a little curious. Can you tell us a bit about the ACT and the impact it's made since January of 2022?

Speaker 4 (23:51):

I'd love to talk about it. We are blessed to have partnered with Texas Humane Legislation Network, THLN, here in Texas, and they're 45, 50 year plus organization that works specifically with legislation in Texas. And so they're actually the lead on this, but we were able to support their work and work with our legislators, work with the people that we have relationships with to help pass this. What it said basically was every dog needed protection from the elements, whether it's zero degrees in Texas, which is very, very cold or 110 in Texas, which is very, very hot. They needed protection. It also said that they needed drinkable water and food and we had never had anything like that. Those are just basic measures for survival. And it may sound common sense for anybody that doesn't live in the South, but what we were seeing were dogs dying on the ends of chains, no protection. And so this says you must protect your pet, otherwise you are violating this law. And so it has been really important. It's been a really good measure, but the thing that we have to follow up with is the enforcement.

Speaker 2 (25:15):

Yeah, yeah. Tulip is barking in the background. She's very, very excited about your work.

Speaker 1 (25:22):

Yeah. Tulip's an animal advocate for sure.

Speaker 2 (25:24):

She is.

Speaker 1 (25:25):

She's a dog lawyer.

Speaker 2 (25:27):

Yeah. Dina, I wanted to ask you about the Highland Village Adoption Center, which basically turned a temporary event into a long-term adoption hub. So what made it successful and how many pets have you found homes for so far?

Speaker 4 (25:42):

Well, that was a few years back, but it was kind of an introduction to our work in animal welfare with the city. Shelter Bark at the time was not under good leadership. Bark is the Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care for the city of Houston, and they had a reputation for literally washing puppies down the drain. And it had been my vision at Christmas time to say, how much is that doggy in the window? Let's bring the animals out of this shelter and put them in a space where people see them fall in love. So it was supposed to be a three weekend event. It turned into two and a half years is when you take animals out of this, what I would deem as a unattractive, crappy city shelter environment and put them in a high-end shopping center, all of a sudden they become much more attractive. And we were able to, with the help of hundreds, probably thousands of volunteers adopt out about 2,500 or 3000 animals during that. So it really changed things in the way that a lot of Houstonians see rescue animals.

Speaker 1 (26:55):

Yeah, that's phenomenal. I love animal rescues. I'm grinning like an idiot right now. For those of you not watching this on video, I wanted to ask about the film for the Animals, the documentary. Can you tell me a little bit about it and maybe are there some moments in the documentary that had a larger impact on you?

Speaker 4 (27:16):

Yes. We are so blessed to be able to have met good filmmakers that help us develop this film. And what our desire to do this was to show the rest of the world what animals, or I'm sorry, the stray animal crisis looks like in Houston and the South. I'm from Minnesota. We don't have this problem in Minneapolis. We don't have this problem in the north, but in the south it is really horrible and it is a crisis. So yeah, the documentary was made. We spent a whole summer filming. It was taxing. It was hot, it was cold. We started in March, and I think that the moments that were really emotional for us was yes, when we touched on the animals, but also when the filmmakers dug down deep and realized how animal rescue and welfare impacts and person emotionally and how, and not to make it about us, but I didn't realize the impact that it had had on us.

(28:23):

And I think that's what was really smart on the filmmaker's part, is to kind of expose how rescuing animals and being in this industry hurts the people that love animals so much. And by saying this, I'm thinking of all of our street feeders, our rescue groups, the people that give until it hurts the tax that they pay because they love animals and they're willing to lay literally their lives on the line to help save them. And so it was kind of a shout out to everybody who so generously gives in our community and beyond to help save animals. And with that, I want to say our city and our county need to do more.

Speaker 2 (29:10):

Yeah. Well, and along those lines, Tina, I was going to ask you how do you address both the street level issues? You mentioned the feeders, the rescuers. How do you balance that with the policy side of your work?

Speaker 4 (29:29):

We started out as a group that helped support grassroots organizations that will always be in our DNA. And to date, we have raised more than 20 million in our organization and most of that has gone out this year alone. We have spent almost $300,000 just providing vet services, food, dog houses, through street feeders, through rescue groups, and through citizens who can't afford to care for their pets, pets. Ultimately, I sign every email, every text, and it says for the animals, because the work that we do is for the animals and we could easily get caught up in that. We have to catch ourselves every once in a while and say, we need to be strategic. We need to fill the gaps in legislation. We need to fill the gaps in law enforcement. We need to fill the gaps in local ordinances. We need to be the group that helps strategically move forward this crisis that we have, not move forward the crisis, stop the crisis and move forward animal welfare at a local, regional state, and even federal level.

Speaker 1 (30:43):

Yeah, I mean you mentioned before that this isn't as much of a problem in Minnesota. Do you sort of look at some of their policies and try to get those enacted in Texas or do you think that the issue runs deeper and it's really almost like a cultural problem?

Speaker 4 (31:02):

I think you hit on it. I think it's more of a cultural problem. Number one, animals unfortunately don't survive the cold Minnesota winters. We live in a climate where animals can survive year round. So this problem that has gone unchecked for literally decades has created this crisis where we have hundreds of thousands of animals on the streets of Houston. But yes, cultural is correct in that it's kind of sexy in the North Pacific, Northwest northeast to adopt an animal. It's not as sexy in the South to adopt. There's still a stigma attached to a rescue animal, and that's what we're working to change. So yes, legislation is important where we say, where we can't educate, we legislate. But also this is a movement. It's got to be a movement of the heart, of the soul of the people to say this is not a civilized society where we live amongst hundreds of thousands of stray animals. We fear for our lives, we fear for our children's safety. We have a public health and public safety crisis, and also the animals are suffering. So we need to change everything at the legislative level and then also at the heart and soul of the people.

Speaker 2 (32:24):

Yeah, it's a delicate balance both sides for sure. So Tina, after the film's release and all of your years of advocacy, what's next? I know you've kind of alluded to it already, but what's next for Houston Pet Set and for our listeners and viewers, what actions can they take to help or to support the efforts in their own communities even?

Speaker 4 (32:48):

You know what? Find good rescue groups. Find good 5 0 1 C3 s in your community, support them. Five, $10 makes a difference. $10 will microchip an animal. A hundred dollars will make sure that a pet doesn't reproduce. Those are all really critical functions. Also, foster our whole nation needs more fosters to get the animals off the streets to avoid euthanasia and to kind of soften the hearts of people. And then reach out to us through our website. We answer info@houstonpetat.org regularly. We do it every day. If anybody wants to get involved, Houston PetSet was actually set up as a nonprofit that can go to other cities. Our six point solution for animal overpopulation can be transferred anywhere. And so anybody that's a strategic thinker, we would love to hear from you.

Speaker 1 (33:56):

That's amazing. Tino, we got to let you go. We're on time here, but thank you so much for joining us. Listeners, check out the website, do more in your community. If you are passionate about this stuff, foster it is such a help and it is a blessing to foster animals. So check out their website. Shoot Tina some emails if you have questions. Tina, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to join us on the podcast today.

Speaker 2 (34:23):

So

Speaker 1 (34:23):

Blessed to be here. Thank you for everything you

Speaker 2 (34:25):

Do and likewise, thank you for what you're doing. It's very important

Speaker 1 (34:28):

Work. Yeah, it's really important work. Thank you. It's

Speaker 2 (34:31):

In honor.

Speaker 4 (34:31):

Bye

Speaker 2 (34:31):

Guys.

Speaker 1 (34:35):

Kristen, I forgot to ask Tina important questions.

Speaker 2 (34:37):

What's that?

Speaker 1 (34:38):

Where could I get glasses like that?

Speaker 2 (34:41):

Well, you know what, before we started the interview, you weren't back yet and I asked her that question.

Speaker 1 (34:48):

I'm a sucker,

Speaker 2 (34:49):

So I have the answer. Do you want to guess

Speaker 1 (34:52):

H and m?

Speaker 2 (34:54):

Amazon,

Speaker 1 (34:56):

Jeff Bezo. Damn it. Jeff Bezos. But Tina's awesome. These programs are so important. In our little after chat we talked about how important the spay and neuter programs are. So they're starting some really cool stuff with that. So I think we're going to end up having Tina back if we could keep the show going for a little bit, bit of time while they got that program up and running. Alright, it's time for the product of the week and I'm going to kick it off here with a cat supplement for stubborn old cats who refuse to drink water.

(35:42):

So this is from Purina ProPlan Vet Direct, and it is a hydrocare supplement, which kind of looks like a little gel, like a meat flavored gel, a cat friendly flavored, I don't know what the actual flavors are. They don't list them here, but you have them eat this gel and it's shown to increase total liquid intake and promote hydration. They say that cats consume on average 50% more liquid each day and it helps dilute urine and support urinary health. And it's really not a complicated thing. You shake this bad boy up, they give you a weight to amount ratio that you're supposed to feed, and it basically just encourages hydration and helps them hold that water water's. Interesting. Yeah, if your cat is suffering from any type of illness that may make them stop drinking water or any type of kidney problems that's affecting their ability to properly hydrate through water retention and urinary retention, this could be a good option for you.

(36:56):

So ask your vet, make sure you bring up these little tiny details that you notice when you're at the vet and say that you're interested in at home care because a lot of vets don't want to put the onus on the animal owner. They want to try and take care of problems there, especially with cats. Cats are very difficult to care for at home. They're very stubborn. So for example, when Tiger got sick, we had the option to go home with the antibiotic, but we'd have to feed her a pill every day and guess what folks, that's not happening. Instead they gave her an injection that ended up working and yeah, obviously I don't want the cat to have to go through the traumatic experience of having an injection, but it is scary. They got to take her into the room and put her in the little harness and deliver the injection, but that is

Speaker 2 (37:48):

Less traumatic than having to go to the vet back and forth and

Speaker 1 (37:51):

Back and forth and all that kind

Speaker 2 (37:52):

Of stuff and getting pilled every day. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (37:53):

Yes. So this seems like a very good option for cats who may be having some issues with their hydration. So talk to your vet, check it out. I'm pretty sure this is prescription free. All vet direct stuff can just be delivered to your house without a prescription. So that said, talk to your vet. Do it.

Speaker 2 (38:15):

Do it. That's a good one. I have what I think is a pretty good one this week too.

Speaker 1 (38:20):

I'm

Speaker 2 (38:20):

Always excited when I discover new products that are really putting a lot of different technologies together. And this one's called Pup Gum and it's by Spot and Tango, which is I believe they make fresh food for pets. This is the first dental chew for dogs that's made with a patent pending post biotic, and it's clinically proven to reduce bad breath in just seven days. And it also combines four core periodontal disease interventions in one chew. So I know we feature a lot of dental products, we talk a lot about the importance of dental care here on the podcast. So this could be potentially a game changer for your pet's. Dental health, obviously not just using this by itself, getting your regular checkups and teeth cleanings, but we know that dental disease affects 90% of dogs that are over three years old and 67% of dog owners admit that they don't brush their pet's teeth. And I'm sure there's another large percentage that

Speaker 1 (39:27):

Lied on the survey

Speaker 2 (39:28):

That don't admit it. Yeah, exactly. So the way it works is it disrupts oral biofilms by 98% preventing plaque from actually sticking to the teeth, and it also neutralizes 50% of the volatile sulfur compounds that cause bad dog breath.

Speaker 1 (39:46):

So

Speaker 2 (39:46):

Yeah, so it's made with a hundred percent human grade A FCO approved ingredients, no artificial preservatives or additives. And you can get it@pupgum.com.

Speaker 1 (40:00):

Did you say sulfur compounds?

Speaker 2 (40:02):

Yes.

Speaker 1 (40:04):

That explains a lot. That's why bad dog breath literally smells like hell.

Speaker 2 (40:08):

Yeah, it does, it does. It's also a sign that there is probably, or possibly dental disease. So if your dog has really, really, really stinky breath, I'm not suggesting you do pup gumm instead of going to the vet, I'm suggesting you go to the vet, but Pup Gumm could be one of those great maintenance tools for you.

Speaker 1 (40:27):

That is great. Great advice. Check them TIFs, get them TIFs checked. Q as. Alright, Kristen, it's time for our favorite segment of the show. That's right. We're going to answer two questions from our spectacular viewers. And I say viewers, not listeners, because you should be checking us out in video format. But hey, I know what you're thinking. How do I get my question answered by Chris and Kristen? Well, the answer couldn't be simpler. You're going to head on over to pets at life.org/podcast. Scroll on down to the bottom of that page. You'll see a form to submit your question. Or if you are feeling as brave as a dog owner inspecting their dog's mouth for dental disease, you can record a voice memo and you will hear your question played live on air as I just completely fumble the bag there at the end. I thought that

Speaker 2 (41:21):

Was quirky pig making an advance.

Speaker 1 (41:24):

There's a little porky pig for everybody and if you don't know who that is, you are too young to be listening to this program. I'm so glad you knew who Porky Pig was. I didn't know if you would know. So way back when my dad first started working, he had to wear ties to work and he hated it. So he only wore Looney Toons ties.

Speaker 2 (41:47):

Oh, I love that. Thats great.

Speaker 1 (41:49):

He had a whole closet full of Looney Toons ties.

Speaker 2 (41:51):

Your dad. Sounds like fun.

Speaker 1 (41:54):

I mean, come on man, where do you think I get it from? Alright, so Kristen, I've got a question for you. Sure. Hit me. So this question comes to us from Sophia. Thank you Sophia from Chicago. I want to switch my dog to a healthier food and avoid obesity. What should I be asking my vet to ensure I'm choosing the right diet?

Speaker 2 (42:19):

Okay, well thanks for the question Sophia. And I love Chicago. I'm from Chicago, so how's Chicago doing?

Speaker 1 (42:28):

I heard it's windy.

Speaker 2 (42:29):

I heard it's very windy there. So this is a really good question. I think that here you're asking me what the questions for the vet are. I would say you want to find out first of all, how many calories does your dog need each day based upon their age, their size, their breed, their lifestyle, that kind of thing. And then you want to understand what activity level is sufficient for your dog and then what is their ideal weight. Your vet can give you a range based upon again, their size and age and lifestyle, what they should weigh. And then I think that your veterinarian can certainly recommend food options for you, but I think the most important thing is to choose a food that you feel confident about the quality that is affordable and isn't a stretch on the budget. But the most important part of this is to make sure you're not overfeeding your pet. You're talking about avoiding obesity. So it's pretty simple, just the right number of calories, the right amount of exercise, healthy lifestyle and your pup should be in good shape. And again, I always say this, I feel like I say it every week, but check out the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention. They've got some really great tools on there that can help you figure out how to keep your pet at a healthy weight

Speaker 1 (43:54):

And avoid them table scraps.

Speaker 2 (43:56):

Yeah, a few treats a day is okay, but you got to factor the calories of the treats into the total calorie requirements. So there we go. Alright Chris, I've got a question for you.

Speaker 1 (44:09):

Hit me.

Speaker 2 (44:10):

This one comes from Olivia and Olivia says, my cat has been vomiting occasionally and has diarrhea. Should I wait it out or head to the vet right away?

Speaker 1 (44:21):

Well a never wait it out if you're asking should I wait it out? No, the answer is always no. The vomiting is pretty common in cats. Cats throw up. That's something they do. They either eat too fast or they eat a little too much or they drink a little too much water and then they throw up. So if it's just throw up and it's occasional like once a week or once every other week, I wouldn't worry about it. Especially if it's not stopping the cat from just going right back to the bowl and eating more. The diary is a problem. Cats don't get that without there being some type of issue. It could be you are feeding them people food that you shouldn't, that might have fat in it or dairy. Fun fact, I know we let all have seen the cartoons where little kitty cats are drinking the bowls of cream.

(45:12):

Cats really shouldn't have any dairy in their diet at all. And I know I've always talked about giving tiger American cheese. American cheese isn't real and it's a small, it's not dairy and it's always such a small little bit. But if you, you're giving your cat milk because you've seen it on TV and think it's cute, that right there is causing the diarrhea or any food with fat. If you're going to give your cat people food, I do sometimes we're talking lean proteins and we're talking completely unseasoned and we're talking cooked without any butter or oil. If you give your cat some Costco rotisserie chicken that was smothered in all that delicious oil and salt and pepper, that could definitely make 'em sick. Anything with garlic or onion could definitely give your cat diarrhea. So if the cat is only eating their cat food and is still experiencing that could be a sign of any type of gastrointestinal disease or worms or something worse. So diarrhea, straight to vet, occasional vomit, cat being cat. Okay, that brings us to the tail end of our show. I can't believe I've never made that pun before, Chris, how you did that hanging in front of us all this time, almost a hundred episodes in and making it there. So listen, we are going to be back next week, but I won't. I've got a special mission that I need to go take care of.

Speaker 2 (46:48):

Dun dun,

Speaker 1 (46:48):

Dun dun. And in the meantime, you may see some banked episodes or some special guest programming. Kristen will be here. She is not lean and never quits anything, but never fret. I

Speaker 2 (47:03):

Don't have a special mission.

Speaker 1 (47:04):

You don't have a special mission. My

Speaker 2 (47:05):

Mission is this show.

Speaker 1 (47:06):

There we go. Wow. That is dedication. I will be back and when I get back I will be sharing all sorts of stuff about what I am going out into the world and doing. I can't wait to hear it until then. Like and subscribe, share the episodes with your friends and I'll see you when I see you. But come back next Tuesday and something will be here.

Speaker 2 (47:30):

I'll be here

Speaker 1 (47:31):

Something. I'll be here. Crystal I'll And that's enough. And that's enough. You're getting like 90% of the quality of this show, so don't worry about it.

Speaker 2 (47:39):

Oh, don't be silly. We are clear in the airwaves. So you go clear those shelters. Adopt a shelter pet in August.

Speaker 1 (47:46):

Pets, add Life, your guide to the latest in Pet Trends products and the joy of the human Animal Bond with Kristen Levine and Chris Bonafide, powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog TV.