74 episodes

Hosted by Duncan Strauss, Talking Animals is a weekly radio show about animals and animal issues. It currently airs Wednesdays, from 10-11am ET, on WMNF (88.5 FM), a 70,000-watt NPR affiliate in Tampa.

The core of Talking Animals is a long-form interview with prominent figures in the animal world or notable folks in other fields who have ties to animal welfare.

Past guests include Jane Goodall, Alec Baldwin, Temple Grandin, Dr. Neal Barnard, Lily Tomlin, Bob Barker, Neko Case, Nathan Runkle, Dr. Lori Marino, Jackson Galaxy, Paula Poundstone, Brian May, and Sy Montgomery.

Alongside the interview, Talking Animals is rounded out by animal news and announcements, animal songs, animal comedy, and a quick quiz feature, Name That Animal Tune. https://talkinganimals.net

Talking Animals Duncan Strauss

    • Society & Culture

Hosted by Duncan Strauss, Talking Animals is a weekly radio show about animals and animal issues. It currently airs Wednesdays, from 10-11am ET, on WMNF (88.5 FM), a 70,000-watt NPR affiliate in Tampa.

The core of Talking Animals is a long-form interview with prominent figures in the animal world or notable folks in other fields who have ties to animal welfare.

Past guests include Jane Goodall, Alec Baldwin, Temple Grandin, Dr. Neal Barnard, Lily Tomlin, Bob Barker, Neko Case, Nathan Runkle, Dr. Lori Marino, Jackson Galaxy, Paula Poundstone, Brian May, and Sy Montgomery.

Alongside the interview, Talking Animals is rounded out by animal news and announcements, animal songs, animal comedy, and a quick quiz feature, Name That Animal Tune. https://talkinganimals.net

    Ed Stewart, co-founder, president and CEO of the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS)

    Ed Stewart, co-founder, president and CEO of the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS)

    Ed Stewart, co-founder, president and CEO of the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS)—which blazed a trail in animal rescue, welfare, education, and legislation, and this year, marks its 40th anniversary—recalls what she and co-founder Pat Derby were doing in the earliest days of PAWS. Stewart notes that Derby, his longtime partner who died in 2013–and an eloquent, red-headed dynamo, who was not to be trifled with—had long rescued animals before they joined forces in forming PAWS. He points out that animal rescue and advocacy characterized their formative years, but so, too, did efforts early on assisting in the formulation of California legislation, including a law that helped mitigate the ivory trade as well as the bull hook ban (a collaborative campaign with the Oakland Zoo and the Humane Society of the United States)—a critical regulation in that it precluded circuses and other entities with performing elephants (which use bull hooks to “control” them) from plying their trade in California. At my urging, Stewart offered a rapturous remembrance of Derby (and I added my own affectionate recollection of her), enthusing about everything from her deep familiarity with great literature, to her immensely articulate statements as a high-level animal advocate, to her supreme talents in helping traumatized elephants heal. We talked about ARK 2000, the glorious 2300-acre sanctuary PAWS operates in San Andreas, CA, housing 11 elephants, as well as big cats, bears, capuchin monkeys, and more, noting the newest resident is a skittish bobcat, and other animals are on the horizon, but Stewart said he couldn’t discuss those because they’re part of court cases where those critters have been seized. Stewart says the annual cost to feed and care for an elephant there, not counting additional medical costs, is about $70,000. PAWS welcomes donations: https://www.pawsweb.org/donate_online.html The broad intention of this conversation was to urge Stewart to reflect on the 40 years of PAWS, including key developments, challenges and milestones across those four decades. I also asked him to look ahead a bit to PAWS’ future, to which he chiefly replied by mentioning that he’s 73, and had his own battle with cancer a couple of year ago. So a succession plan centers around Stewart ceding leadership to Dr. Chris Draper, currently Chief Operations Officer, and whose experience includes serving as Head of Animal Welfare & Captivity at the Born Free Foundation. [Photo Credits: Courtesy PAWSweb.org] (https://www.pawsweb.org/, https://www.facebook.com/pawsweb.org, https://www.instagram.com/pawsark2000/)
    ALSO: I spoke briefly with George Heinrich, the field biologist and environmental educator who specializes in Florida reptiles, who on April 6, is slated to deliver a lecture entitled “Conserving Wildlife and Wildlands: Building a Career in Herpetology,” at Brooker Creek Preserve Environmental Education Center, in Tarpon Springs. Heinrich explains that this lecture, along with other endeavors—very much including his summer nature camps—are intended to cultivate in kids an interest in reptiles, echoing how his lifelong passion for amphibians and reptiles began during his childhood in New England, where he observed salamanders and turtles in the local woods there. All these years later, it’s worked out pretty well: He has his own related company, Heinrich Ecological Services, and serves as the Executive Director of the Florida Turtle Conservation Trust. (https://www.ftct.org/, https://www.heinrichecologicalservices.com/)
    COMEDY CORNER: Paul F. Tompkins’ “Alternative Pets”  (https://paulftompkins.com/)
    MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
    NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE:  We didn’t play “Name That Animal Tune” today.
    AUDIO ARCHIVE:
    Listen Online Now: https://talkinganimals.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/TAMarch27Final.mp3 | Open Player in New Window

    Temple Grandin, autistic animal scientist and author–The Sequel

    Temple Grandin, autistic animal scientist and author–The Sequel

    In what might be called The Sequel, this represents the second portion of the interview I conducted on Feb. 12 with Temple Grandin, onstage at the Paramount Theatre in Austin. We covered a wide range of topics last week, though that discussion featured a preponderance of autism talk, hardly surprising given Grandin’s expertise, personal experience and the audience assembled to hear this conversation. Again, this interview wasn’t designed for “Talking Animals”—it was created for a conversation to be conducted onstage at the Paramount, in front of an audience of about 1200 Grandin admirers–but I do feel it was worth sharing on the show. And  today’s installment is a good deal more animal-oriented than last week’s, and also more varied, as we’re additionally presenting the audience question-and-answer segment, which inherently was characterized by a mishmash of subjects. So, this portion of the conversation ranged from her lamenting that she no longer rides horses (at 76, she says she’s worried that she might fall), to confessing that before our talk, she Googled me and read some of my old Washington Post pieces, to describing her favorite ways to spend a rare day off. The audience question-and-answer segment included queries from folks on the spectrum—including a young girl whose classmates think autism is weird, and she was seeking guidance for how to handle this (Grandin responded, in part: “Tell them Einstein was autistic…he had a pretty good career”—the parent of an autistic child, and a woman who had been a student of Grandin’s in one of the first years of her longtime stint as a professor of animal science at Colorado State University. (https://www.templegrandin.com/, https://www.grandin.com/, http://www.tgecautismfund.org/)
    ALSO: I spoke briefly with Courtney Scott, Elephant Consultant with In Defense of Animals, who first provides an overview of the animal protection organization that’s been toiling in this field for some 40 years. Scott filled us in on the disturbing development of the Bay Area Renaissance Festival in Dade City, Florida now featuring a live elephant, named Lady Essex, performing tricks and, apparently, offering elephant rides. She outlines the harm—from a skeletal and physiological standpoint—done to an elephant providing rides to humans on its back. Scott recommend steps people can take to urge Festival organizers to halt this elephant action–ideally well before the Festival is slated to end on March 31—offering a phone number (352-999-5946) and an email: info@bayarearenfest.com to contact those organizers.
     
    COMEDY CORNER: Beth Stelling’s “Beth’s Pests”  (https://bethstelling.com/)
    MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
    NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE:  We didn’t play “Name That Animal Tune” today.
    AUDIO ARCHIVE:
    Listen Online Now: https://talkinganimals.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/March6FINAL.mp3 | Open Player in New Window
     

    Temple Grandin, autistic animal scientist and author

    Temple Grandin, autistic animal scientist and author

    Temple Grandin–sometimes referred to as the world’s most famous autistic person, amidst several ways to describe her, including expert on animal behavior, prolific author, longtime professor of animal science at Colorado State University, fervent activist for autistic people, and tireless lecturer—sat with me onstage at the Paramount Theatre in Austin for what became a truly wide-ranging interview. I began the conversation describing the first of two hypothetical situations I introduced, involving my fictional three-year-old son, with behavior and communication issues, and an appointment yesterday with the doctor, who told my wife and me that our child is on the spectrum. I asked Grandin about the first steps we should take. Her response included immediately getting the child into therapy, and and other measures, including playing games and engaging in other activities that involve taking turns. Grandin outlines the virtues of taking turns, citing the way it cultivates impulse control and other longstanding educational benefits. In this part of the conversation, we touched on one of uber-prolific-author Grandin’s latest books, “Autism and Education: The Way I See It: What Parents and Teachers Need to Know,” which she explained is aimed at the teachers and parents of young, newly-diagnosed autistic children. The second “hypothetical” I raised inquired about adults—say, in their 30s, 40s, 50s—who come to realize (or loved ones do) that they’re on the spectrum. This seems potentially vexing, given the urgency of intervening rapidly on behalf of a newly-diagnosed child. But Grandin suggests undertaking a therapeutic measure may not be paramount, but rather these latter-day autistics may be relieved to place their social awkwardness or certain unsuccessful relationships in a new context. We discuss Mr. Carlock, her high school science teacher and enormously important mentor—and the significance of mentors for autistic kids, plus how to identify a potential mentor. We also discuss her mother, Eustacia Cutler, who was instrumental in Grandin developing socially, personally, and professionally—often by giving her choices, but narrowly designed ones. For example, Grandin recalled that just before the summer she spent at her Aunt’s ranch in Arizona, she was scared to go, so her Mom gave her the choice of going for two weeks or for the summer; there was no option to not go to the ranch at all. Turns out she loved it, sparking her lifelong interest in horses and cattle. (https://www.templegrandin.com/, https://www.grandin.com/, http://www.tgecautismfund.org/)

    ALSO: I spoke briefly with Tasha Cohen-Glynn of Achieva Credit Union, which—in partnership with Feeding Tampa Bay– is collecting pet food at all of their branches in Pinellas, Hillsborough and Pasco Counties, with both Achieva employees and clients contributing the pet food. This “PAWS-for-a-Purpose” campaign started Friday, March 1, and runs thru March 13. The collected pet food—which Achieva has committed to match, up to 500 pounds–will be distributed to pet owners in need. That process, Cohen-Glynn explained, will be overseen by Feeding Tampa Bay. She goes on to note that “PAWS-for-a-Purpose” will culminate with a March 15 event at the credit union’s own dog park, Achieva Paw Park (1659 Achieva Way, Dunedin, FL 34698). All of this is rooted in an effort to recognize National Puppy Day, on March 23. (https://www.achievacu.com/events, https://www.feedingtampabay.org/)
    COMEDY CORNER: Mike Vecchione’s “Vegetarian Chicken”  (DS edit) (https://mikevecchione.com/)
    MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
    NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE:  The B-52s’ ”Rock Lobster”
    AUDIO ARCHIVE:
    Listen Online Now: https://talkinganimals.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/TAFeb28Final.mp3 | Open Player in New Window
     

    Josh Fox, founder of The Brady Hunter Foundation

    Josh Fox, founder of The Brady Hunter Foundation

    Josh Fox–founder of the Brady Hunter Foundation, a Miami-based nonprofit whose mission reflects a commitment to helping end animal cruelty, protecting wildlife, and making a positive impact in the lives of children—observes his love of animals is truly lifelong, citing a photo of Fox as an infant in his crib being happily licked by the family dog “and the dog’s tongue was bigger than my face.” That passion for canines (and other critters) truly constitutes a thru-line of Fox’s life, including having a dog at his side while a student at the University of Michigan—including taking the unusual step of having the dog live with him at the fraternity house—where the football team’s quarterback was Tom Brady. In a nod to the singular QB, Fox named his dog Brady; his current dog is Hunter. Any questions how the Foundation got its name? Fox describes how he felt an urgent issue the Brady Hunter Foundation should address–even before the Foundation existed–is horse-drawn carriages, which still function in a number of American cities (and beyond). He goes on to say that horse-drawn carriages represent an outdated and cruel form of transportation, with horses forced to work long hours in hot and cold weather, and often neglected, even abused. The Foundation’s website indicates that one of its “core initiatives is to replace horse-drawn carriages with electric carriages in American cities…Electric carriages…are a clean, safe, and humane alternative.” He outlines some of the other issues and organizations the Foundation has supported, with locales extending from south Florida to South Africa. These include the South Florida Wildlife Center, where, Fox enthused, they found themselves witnessing a turtle undergoing surgery (with a positive prognosis). The Foundation bought the Wildlife Center a second ambulance, and pledged to pay the vehicle’s driver a year’s salary. On a global level, the Foundation has funded the purchase by Animal Survival International (ASI) of ten state-of-the-art collars, enabled with AI, in a collaborative effort to combat the illegal hunting and poaching of animals at the Addo Elephant National Park in South Africa. These collars will play a crucial role in the real-time monitoring and detailed data analysis of rhinos and elephants to better protect them against poaching attempts in Addo Elephant National Park. Occasionally, at least two pillars of the Foundation’s mission intersect, like the instance, Fox recounted, when children were brought from a homeless shelter to the Lucky Horse Sanctuary, in Coconut Creek, FL spending time with the sanctuary’s horses and other animals, in an enriching experience for all parties. The Brady Hunter Foundation does not accept donations currently, but does accept requests from organizations for funding and other means of support, directed to their website: https://bradyhunter.org/ 
    [Photo Credits: The Brady Hunter Foundation, Animal Survival International/Addo Elephant National Park, others]
    ALSO: I spoke briefly with Jenn Leland, a librarian at Rocky Bluff Library, a branch of the Manatee County Library System. That’s where they’re slated to hold “The Barkelor,” a dog adoption event–inspired, they say, by the drama and excitement of a similar-named dating show!–Saturday, Feb. 10, from noon to 3pm. The eligible dogs on hand, around a dozen, Leland estimates, will be from Manatee County Animal Welfare, and are spayed/neutered, microchipped, and vaccinated. Wait, it gets better: Adoption fees will be waived at “The Barkelor.” Plus, Leland explained, those attending who don’t find quite the right canine love match at the event will be given a rose, which they can subsequently take to the County’s Palmetto Adoption Center (305 25th Street West, Palmetto, FL 34221) and consider adopting a dog there, with the same perks. Manatee County residents adopting a pet will be required to purchase an annual County pet license [...]

    Deborah Howard, founder of the Companion Animal Protection Society

    Deborah Howard, founder of the Companion Animal Protection Society

    Deborah Howard, founder of the Companion Animal Protection Society (CAPS)–self-described as “the only national nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to protecting companion animals from cruelty in pet shops and puppy/kitten mills”—recalls how, in 1989, her disgust upon visiting an Atlanta pet store, and her ensuing examination of the deplorable conditions, led to launching CAPS. Howard recounts the feverish wave of activity that followed, organizing numerous protests of the Docktor Pet Center—the store she found jarring in Atlanta, which had grown to 300 franchises—and generating major media coverage (“20/20,” People magazine, etc.) of the nefarious puppy mill operations stocking these shops with often-ill dogs. She notes the impact of similar protests in Canada, Florida (turns out Howard is a New College of Florida alum), and elsewhere, often resulting in the stores closing, though she says the shops often just relocated or sometimes even stayed put, reopening under a new name. To ensure everyone listening was on equal footing in their understanding of the dreadful conditions and cruelty inherent to puppy mills, I ask Howard to go remedial and describe exactly what a puppy mill is. She goes on to address the ways in which puppy mills have changed in the three decades since she founded CAPS, calling attention to the monumental impact the internet has had on the dog-selling business. Howard fields a number of listener calls and emails, some reporting their own experiences with puppy mills, including one guy not realizing until this interview that he had purchased his dog from one. A few of the emails specifically sing Howard’s praises, one enthusiastically labeling her a “heroine!”  (https://www.caps-web.org/, https://www.facebook.com/CompanionAnimalProtectionSociety,  https://www.instagram.com/caps_web/)
    ALSO: I spoke briefly with Chuck O’Neal, veteran environmentalist, and advocate—for eight years, for instance, he worked closely with Barry Law School’s Earth and Environmental Law Clinic to affect change both on the state and local level—to fill us in on what’s been taking place in Tallahassee regarding this bear bill, HB 87. (In what may telegraph plenty, it’s titled “Taking of Bears.”) O’Neal outlines the bill’s initial intent, notes some of the recent amendments, and characterizes a number of public comments about the bill made to the House Infrastructure Strategies Committee. Having watched a video feed of some of the Committee’s hearing the day before this interview, I suggest there’s more than a little baloney involved in some public comments—and some Committee members’ responses. And that the passage of this bill will likely lead to a lot of dead bears. The Committee voted 16-5 in favor of the bill. When asked what concerned citizens/animal lovers can do to register their objection, O’Neal recommends calling the Governor’s office, and asking him to veto the bill. (https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2024/87/ByCategory, https://www.flgov.com/contact-governor-2/)
    COMEDY CORNER: Nick Kroll’s “Cats Vs Dogs”  (https://www.nickkroll.com/)
    MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
    NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE:  We didn’t play “Name That Animal Tune” today.
    AUDIO ARCHIVE:
    Listen Online Now: https://talkinganimals.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/TAJan31Final.mp3 | Open Player in New Window

    Dr. Daniel Promislow, principal investigator of The Dog Aging Project

    Dr. Daniel Promislow, principal investigator of The Dog Aging Project

    Dr. Daniel Promislow–a biogerontologist, professor at the University of Washington, and principal investigator of The Dog Aging Project, a long-term study of health and longevity in dogs—recounts the genesis of the Project. **NOTE: There is static on the line during the first portion of the interview; it does clear up. He explains that it was inspired by a study examining the genetics of dogs across an array of breeds and sizes. As someone who specializes in studying aging, Promislow was excited by the notion of launching a project with that focus, while including thousands of dogs. He proposed the idea to a colleague, Dr. Kate Creevy, a veterinarian who shared his enthusiasm for the Project (and is a co-founder). It wasn’t too long, he says, before the foundation of The Dog Aging Project was coming together. Promislow speaks to the striking scope of the Project, including that some 47,000 dogs are enrolled, and that the researchers intend to track all these canines spanning their entire lives. (Promislow made it clear the study continues to welcome additional dogs: https://redcap.dogagingproject.org/surveys/?s=DYYDHK8HAP) When asked about the monumental number of participating pooches—specifically,what does 47,000 dogs tell the Project researchers that, say, 40,000 dogs cannot—Promislow suggests it’s a matter of degree, or shading. He goes on to note, by way of example, that some dogs have skin disorders, which may give the team an opportunity to investigate underlying causes, maybe genetic factors. We hear about—and briefly, from—Pete, the Promislow family dog. This sort of naturally gives way to Promislow chronicling Pete’s predecessor, Frisbee (no longer with us), whom he not only described as “the best dog,” but for an array of reasons—including that she lived to be 16½ years old—acknowledged that she helped shape his thinking about dog aging and longevity. And therefore, helped shape The Dog Aging Project. Promislow discusses the details behind the study’s primary funding—provided by the National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health—expected to end in June, and the remedy: He and the other two founders of the The Dog Aging Project formed the Dog Aging Institute, a nonprofit organization whose primary mission is to raise funds for research. (https://dogagingproject.org/, https://www.facebook.com/dogagingproject/, https://www.instagram.com/dogagingproject/, https://dogaginginstitute.org/)
    ALSO: I spoke briefly with Kate MacFall, Florida State Director at The Humane Society of the United States, about Humane Lobby Day, scheduled for Jan. 29 in Tallahassee. Registration ended on Jan. 24 (the day I conducted this interview), but MacFall explained that Humane Lobby Day represents a significant opportunity to speak with lawmakers about important legislation that will protect animals—meaning, she elaborated, bills that are pending (re puppy mills, black bears, etc.), but also new laws that Humane Lobby Day attendees intend to propose that are specific to their district or county. (https://www.facebook.com/HSUSFlorida, kmacfall@humanesociety.org)
    COMEDY CORNER: Brian Simpson’s “Missing Pets” [DS edit] (https://www.briansimpsoncomedy.com/)
    MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
    NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE:  We didn’t play “Name That Animal Tune” today.
    AUDIO ARCHIVE:
    Listen Online Now: https://talkinganimals.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/TAJan24Final.mp3 | Open Player in New Window

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