Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
This is Pet Life Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
Let's talk Pets.
Speaker 3 (00:10):
Wrap Aport to the Rescue with award winning animal advocate,
best selling author, journalist, and pet products creator Jill Rappaport.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
Hi. I'm Jill Rappaport and welcome to Rappaport to the Rescue.
I have a really exciting event coming up next Monday,
which I'm thrilled to attend. October twentieth is best Friend's
annual GALLA called best Friend's Benefit to Save Them All,
and I have to tell you it is truly a wonderful, heartwarming,
celebrity field event to highlight the tireless work this organization does.
(00:44):
And here's a little bit about best Friends if you
don't already know about the incredible things they've been doing
and have been since nineteen eighty four.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Since then.
Speaker 4 (00:54):
Best Friends Animal Society is dedicated to saving the lives
of dogs and cats in America's shelters and making the
entire country no kill by running life saving facilities and
programs nationwide in partnership with more than fifty five hundred
shelters and rescue organizations and from their headquarters in Canab, Utah.
(01:15):
They also operate the nation's largest no Kill Animal Sanctuary.
They believe every dog and cat deserves a home and
by working together they can save them all. So I
am so thrilled to have the co founder and CEO
Julie Castle with us today when Style magazine celebrated as
one of fifty Badass women who quote show up, speak up,
(01:39):
and get things done. Also, she was one of CNN's
Champions of Change in twenty twenty four, and Julie Castle
continues to lead the No Kill Movement to achieve its
mission of saving every dog and cat in a shelter
who can be saved. When we come back, you won't
want to miss it. Julie Castle would.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Be joining us.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
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Speaker 5 (02:41):
Let's talk pets on Petlife Radio dot Com.
Speaker 4 (02:50):
Welcome back to Rappaport to the rest of you. I
am really honored to have this special lady here with
me today, the co founder and the CEO of Best Friends,
Julie Castle. This is really a great opportunity for me
to finally get to talk to you about your mission
of the heart, which has always been mine.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 6 (03:12):
It's an honor to be here with you, Jill, and
I'm such a super fan of yours.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
You're amazing.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
Oh well, coming from you, that is the ultimate compliment
because you and your husband, and first of all, my
deepest condolences on the loss of your husband, Gregory. He
was just amazing, and the two of you co founded
this organization and did something at a time that no
other animal organization was doing. You believed in life for all.
(03:45):
Tell us about your mission and why you and your
husband were so passionate and driven to saving every dog
and cat you could and still do well.
Speaker 6 (03:57):
It's an interesting story and essentially it comes down to
a really simple notion, which is when the organization was founded,
the question was asked, why is everyone working not to
save their best friends, but rather the best way to
kill their best friends, and there was no one that
(04:19):
was really asking the question of why aren't we creating
the wealthiest country in the world, creating a situation where
back then seventeen million animals were dying in america shelters
and we have the resources and the means to save
them all.
Speaker 4 (04:37):
And that's your tagline, save them all?
Speaker 7 (04:40):
Right?
Speaker 6 (04:41):
And everyone everyone thought we were crazy. And back then
there were no no kill shelters. It was it felt
like a pipe dream to a lot of people, and
everyone thought we were absolutely nuts. And here we are today,
four hundred and twenty five and animals are still losing
(05:02):
their lives every year in America's shelters, and that's still
way too many. But when I look at the progress
we've made since nineteen eighty four, it's remarkable. We're in
the middle of creating societal change. And how many people
in their lifetime get to raise their hand and say
I was part of making history. So it's incredibly rewarding.
Speaker 4 (05:26):
It's interesting because over the years, I remember when I
first became truly aware of best friends, Oprah was going
to have me come to your sanctuary, to your facility
in Utah to do a story on the Michael vicdogs.
That's when you really gained international awareness. Tell us a
little bit about that for people who might not remember
(05:47):
the situation well.
Speaker 6 (05:49):
As you know, Michael Vick was one of the most
tailed quarterbacks in NFL history, and he was caught running
a dog fighting operation and all of the dogs were
seized and the attorney who was appointed to oversee the
process knew about Best Friends, and at that time, officials
(06:12):
had contacted some of the other big animal agencies and
every single one of them were saying, you know, these
dogs are not redeemable. They should be euthanized humanely. It's
part of their DNA, their killers. And we were contacted
and asked if we'd be willing to take a chance
(06:32):
on them. So we sent a team out there to
evaluate all the dogs, and we ended up taking twenty
two of the most difficult dogs. And when they arrived
at the sanctuary, you know, of course it was a
risk for us because we didn't know if these dogs
have the ability to be rehabilitated, and so we were
(06:54):
taking a really big chance. When the dogs arrived, it
was remarkable how many of them were just scared out
of their minds. They would pancake on the ground out
of fear. Many of them had their teeth removed so
that they wouldn't bite during the fights. You know, their
faces were all scarred up, their bodies were scarred, and
(07:16):
the most remarkable miracle happened. We spent months and months
with these dogs, delivering kindness to them, training protocols that
were positive and would you know that we ended up
adopting twenty of the twenty two dogs. Many of them
went into programs where they became ambassadors, would visit children
(07:41):
in hospitals. They were the most incredible resilient animals and
that was the big lesson for us, is that these
animals are forgiving their resilient. They're amazing and that level
of kindness that we showed them, they showed it right.
Speaker 4 (08:00):
And that is your resounding message, Julie. I think people
have misconceptions about what no kill really is. Can you
explain to our listeners what does no kill really mean? Yeah?
Speaker 6 (08:13):
Well, so when the organization was founded, we really drew
a line in the sand where we started with the
sanctuary being a no kill sanctuary where no matter the condition,
an animal can live out its life here. But the
bottom line is we know the best place for an
animal as a home, and so our whole point is
(08:34):
to bring them here and rehabilitate them and try to
find them homes. There are cases the best thing to
do is to end suffering. You know, we don't want
to keep an animal alive for us, it's a selfish act.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
You know.
Speaker 6 (08:49):
Medically, if an animal is suffering, we do humane euthanasia.
And our whole point is how do we spread this
to the rest of the country and shelters all over
the country. So that we knew that we had to
set a benchmark for shelters, a goal for them, and
so we determined that roughly ninety percent of animals that
(09:14):
enter shelters are savable. Ten percent are you know, maybe
they have terminal cancer or a situation that just is
it's inhumane to keep them alive. And so essentially we
set that ninety percent benchmark for shelters all over the country.
And today two out of every three shelters in this
(09:37):
country have hit that benchmark, which is really outstanding and incredible.
And so we know that that's a number, but we
know that in many cases more than ninety percent can
be saved.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
And you know, you see a.
Speaker 6 (09:52):
Situation like Los Angeles, that's an enormous shelter system with
seven shelters, and they are at hovering around ninety percent.
But yet when you look at those shelters, many more
animals in that city can be saved. So the no
kill threshold for us is a goal for every shelter
(10:15):
to attain. Once they hit that goal, then it's a
matter of saying, hey, how many more of these guys
can be saved?
Speaker 4 (10:23):
And that's the problem that I just experienced because I
had one that I was determined to save, and I
called in every shelter group, can you help me? Can
you help me? And it was a big ask. A
ninety pound dog who had a bite history six years old?
Can you take him? Well, a responsible shelter would say no,
(10:43):
he's not adoptable if he has a bite history. So
then I was looking at sanctuaries. There are so fugeulie.
We have to figure out and have alternatives for these
animals that might not be perfect for in somebody's home,
but they deserve to live.
Speaker 2 (10:59):
Where are they going to go?
Speaker 4 (11:00):
We're in big trouble here.
Speaker 6 (11:02):
Well, we have I think two of the biggest issues
that we face in our field today. The first one
is the veterinarian shortage. There simply are not enough veterinarians
in this country to take care of people's pets, let
alone shelter animals, So that is a really big problem.
The second one is behavior issues with dogs and cats
(11:26):
to some degree, And the first thing that we look
at is what exactly is the bite history, because a
lot of times these bites are a dog is startled,
a dog that wouldn't otherwise bite, a human is startled,
or maybe a toddler doesn't understand the interaction with the
(11:46):
dog yet, and so you have these unfortunate situations where
a dog ends up with a bite history. But really
the question is what was the bite, how did it happen?
You know, digging in of that is really important, and
so for us from our point of view, the behavior
situation with dogs is very under resourced in our field,
(12:10):
and there aren't a lot of organizations that have the
skill or the resources to be able to relate to
these dogs.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
Yeah, you hit it right on the head.
Speaker 4 (12:20):
What you and your husband, Gregory created long before anyone
had any idea it could even be done. You really
invented the wheel and It is just incredible to me
that all of these years later, you're still doing God's work.
Speaker 6 (12:35):
When I think about that, First of all, thank you,
And secondly, you know, I think it's a blessing to
know what your life path is so young in life.
For me, I knew that this was my life path
and to be able to be a part of that
and fulfill that and see this come to fruition is
(12:56):
a gift.
Speaker 2 (12:57):
It really is a gift to me.
Speaker 6 (12:58):
And you know, so it's my hope and dream that
we can continue to inspire others to do the same,
follow this path because I know that that simple act
of kindness to a helpless being is about the highest
level of generosity that us as humans can offer, and
(13:21):
I think it elevates everybody's game. It elevates humanity to
show that degree of kindness and figuring out how to
save a life, because to us, these animals are intrinsic
beings and they all have individual value and our society
is measured on that.
Speaker 2 (13:42):
That is so beautifully put.
Speaker 4 (13:44):
And you have this gala coming up where so many
people come to support you and spread the word at
this wonderful gala, tell us about that, Oh, it's so fun.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
It's such a cool event.
Speaker 6 (13:57):
We do it every year in New York City and
it's an oppertuny unity to really celebrate the work we've
done and bring together celebrities, our supporters, advocates, everyone who
believes in this cause for an evening to be inspired
and to continue to push the mission forward. And you know,
obviously it's a fundraiser for the animals for our mission
(14:20):
so that we can save more lives, and to do
it in a city as important as New York is
a big deal for us. And the fact that we're
blessed to have so many people supporting us is just
really cool. And so if you're interested in going to
the event, please buy a ticket because you'll have a
lot of fun.
Speaker 4 (14:39):
And tell us where our listeners can go to to
go online to buy a ticket. If you can't go
to the event, there's a lot you can do to help.
Speaker 7 (14:46):
There's a lot you can do.
Speaker 6 (14:48):
Just go to our website bestfriends dot org. If you
can't make the event, you can donate online to us there,
or you can support us by becoming a volunteer, fostering
or helping a local shelter in your area, or a
rescue group because we're all in this together. You know,
(15:08):
Best Friends created a network of over five thousand no
kill organizations and we have members of that network in
every single state in the country. There's a lot of
need locally, so you know, volunteer for us nationally, Volunteer
at our sanctuary, volunteer at one of our life saving centers,
(15:32):
or go to your local shelter because they always need
the help. If you can't open your wallet to help
a local group or an animal welfare organization, open your
heart and foster because every time you foster, you're freeing
up space for another animal that needs a spot in
the shelter. And when you foster, you're saving two lives.
(15:56):
And so for me, there are many more ways that
you can give of yourself than just providing resources in
the form of money. And so I would just encourage
all the listeners to get out and volunteer. You know,
a couple hours a week means the world of these
animals who are really defenseless.
Speaker 4 (16:15):
That's so such a great and important message during this time.
And Julie Castle, so great to have you on today,
and I'm really excited to see you next Monday. October twentieth.
Speaker 2 (16:25):
I'm so excited to see you. Thank you so much.
You're amazing.
Speaker 4 (16:29):
Thank you so much, and we have so much more
on this show, including your co chair, model, fashionista, influencer,
animal advocate Ivy Getty, and one of your very special guests,
a superstar talent on Broadway, Sierra Bogas, who will be singing,
and she gave us a little sample I must tell
you one of the most heartwarming songs that brought me
(16:50):
to tears.
Speaker 8 (16:51):
So definitely stay tuned, take a bite out of your competition.
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Speaker 4 (17:38):
Let's talk past, Let's done, pet atom at Life Radio,
Petline Radio.
Speaker 9 (17:42):
Pet Live Radio dot Com.
Speaker 4 (17:50):
Welcome back to Wrap Report to the Rescue. I'm very
excited for our next guest, who's really an inspiration to
young people everywhere.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
You're a trend set.
Speaker 4 (18:00):
You have done so much in the world of fashion.
She's a model, but most important, she is an animal advocate,
which she inherited from her grandmother. Ivy Geeddy, so great
to have you on the show.
Speaker 7 (18:13):
Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
For our listeners that can't see, Ivy is holding the
most adorable pet. Tell us about Martini. What kind of
a little animal is he?
Speaker 2 (18:23):
They have this like.
Speaker 7 (18:24):
Twenty three and me type of thing for dogs, and
he came back as a pure bread Chuoma, which was crazy.
Speaker 4 (18:31):
He doesn't look like a Chihuahua.
Speaker 10 (18:32):
No.
Speaker 7 (18:33):
I was certain he had like a mix of so
much more. But I rescue Martini from There's a lot
of dogs that are stillving ethanized in certain states. Texas
is one of them. So they will transfer rescues from
Texas to other states that they feel like they have
a better chance. And so he came from Texas and
(18:56):
was at eleventh hour rescue in New Jersey and that's
righted him officially, and now he's three and he is
the cutest ever.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Look at that he's giving you a little kiss.
Speaker 4 (19:09):
Well, obviously, you are a huge animal lover and advocate.
As I said in the intro, you inherited that from
your grandmother. Tell us about that relationship and why it's
so important to you to save lives.
Speaker 7 (19:23):
Well, really, I mean, my grandma very much continued it.
But initially my stepfather worked at the SBCA in San Francisco,
and so I grew up only knowing about rescuing dogs.
It was never any question otherwise. So we had probably
like four pitbulls at one point, we had birds, We
(19:44):
had all sorts of animals, So I kind of grew
up around that, and I would even rescue like mice
if I found them in the house. I was obsessed
with like the wild thorn berries and animals and just
all of that. And then when I moved into my
grandparents' house when I was thirteen, my grandma also had
three rescues, and my aunt Vanessa, she's super involved as
(20:06):
well with the SBC in San Francisco. So it's kind
of just a thing throughout my family.
Speaker 4 (20:12):
Well, and your family is one of the most prominent
families in the country. The name Getty is known worldwide.
When you are part of a legacy, part of that name,
part of the family, do you feel a responsibility to
carry forward something that is good and important?
Speaker 2 (20:30):
Absolutely.
Speaker 7 (20:31):
I think it's important to understand the values you were
taught and to continue them and honor them and become
passionate about whatever that is that you want to support.
Especially coming from a privileged position, it's really important to
give back and to spread the word. If you have
any sort of platform.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
This is so important.
Speaker 4 (20:51):
But you'd be surprised, and I'm sure you realize so
many people in those positions don't, which is so frustrating
because animal welfare is in a dire state right now.
We need help.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
We need money.
Speaker 4 (21:03):
We need people stepping up to the plate, whether it
be fostering, donating their time or their funds. We need
help now absolutely.
Speaker 7 (21:12):
Like I heard about a year ago that for the
first time in ages, the rate of adoptions went down,
in the rate of buying dogs went up, and to
me that was so concerning. And then I've even had
personal experiences with a lot of friends their respect in
love where they're talking about Oh, I'm going, like, what
(21:32):
do you think about this dog? And I can tell
it's from a reader and the picture they're showing me.
And when I explained to them they shouldn't be like
supporting that kind of industry. They really just have such
a lack of information on it. It's not that people
are against it, it's just for whatever reason, it's kind
of been forgotten about. So it's very important to bring it.
Speaker 4 (21:53):
Back exactly and that's what you're doing. And I love
that you are co sharing this important event this year.
Best friend Scala On October twentieth, you and Dylan Lauren,
who's a very good friend of mine.
Speaker 7 (22:05):
So cool. I've never met her, but I'm so excited
and like, I love Dylan's candy bar.
Speaker 4 (22:10):
Dylan's candy bar, but she is even sweeter than her products.
But why was it important for you to co chair
this event this year?
Speaker 7 (22:18):
Well, I was honestly devastated last year. I was out
of the country when it was happening, so I was
very very adamant about definitely making it happen this year
and meeting the team once I've moved to New York.
Everybody is just so lovely and it really makes you
want to have as much as you can with them.
(22:40):
I had a dinner last December, but when they asked
me to coach her, I was super honored to even
be involved like that, because I would have gone regardless.
Speaker 4 (22:49):
Well, it is a big honor and I'm so thrilled
to get to meet you.
Speaker 10 (22:54):
Thank you.
Speaker 7 (22:54):
I feel like you're making me sound so much better,
and I feel like it should be said. But I
do recognize that a lot of the people that follow
me are younger, and so it's important to have these
galas in locations like New York City because you can
My own friends didn't know that much information. So by
having them see this, when you really watch a video
(23:17):
and you're around people explaining to you how important it
is to adopt, you can be very easily influenced to
make the right choices.
Speaker 4 (23:24):
That's the best message the day, Absolutely, Ivy Getty. I
will be seeing you on October twentieth, and my dogs
are going to be coming. Can't wait to see all
of you now when we come back. More about the
Best Friends gala with Sierra Bogas, an amazing Broadway star
who has a very special song that she will be
(23:45):
singing at this event, and I'm going to try to
get a little bit out of her when we come back.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
I want to know who the latest trendsetters are in Hollywood.
Tell about Irish setters. Find out who's been spotted with spots,
chowing with her jaw and shopping for pucchi with their pucci.
Get the scoop on all the latest celebrity pet patter
right here pet Life Radio. Let's talk pets, Let's talk.
Speaker 4 (24:09):
Pass, Let's done pets on pat Life Radio, Headline.
Speaker 9 (24:12):
Radio, Petlight Radio dot Com.
Speaker 4 (24:21):
Welcome back to Rappaport to the rescue. I'm Joe Rappaport.
My next guest who is very involved with this galap
for Best Friends is a Broadway superstar Sierra Bagas. Now.
Of course, she is best known for originating the role
of Ariel in The Little Mermaid on Broadway, and then
for her multiple appearances as Christine and The Phantom of
(24:41):
the Opera, and then in twenty twelve she played Fantine
in the London production of Le Mizarob. She also originated
the role of Rosalie Mullens in School of Rock in
twenty sixteen, and besides her incredible talent. It's her huge
heart for animals in need, which is why this event
is so so important. I am so thrilled to have
(25:03):
you on Rapoport to the Rescue.
Speaker 10 (25:05):
Thank you, I'm so happy to be here.
Speaker 4 (25:07):
Well, you are a big part of this event coming
up for best Friends. Tell me how you got involved
with this wonderful organization and this gallo.
Speaker 10 (25:16):
Well, I was asked by a friend of mine named
Mark tu Minelli if I would want to sing something
for a gala that is all about saving animals, and
I'm like, I couldn't say yes fast enough because two
of my favorite things making sure the animals are okay
on this planet and singing. So it was a really
(25:39):
easy yes for me. I have two rescue cats myself,
and I've been a vegetarian for my entire life, simply
because I care about animals so much, not for health reasons,
just because I couldn't. I just can't do that for myself,
and so I've always been a huge, huge animal lover,
and so this is just I'm really really thrilled to
(26:01):
be able to be a part of this evening.
Speaker 4 (26:03):
Now, are you able to tease us a little or
actually tell us what song you're gonna be singing for
those of us who cannot attend. I don't know.
Speaker 10 (26:11):
I don't know if I'm supposed to, but I mean,
I guess emotions great will help sell tickets.
Speaker 4 (26:17):
Tell us what the song isy.
Speaker 10 (26:19):
I'm seeing Till There was You from the music Man,
and I just think it's the most perfect song because
all of us who know who have adopted animals. It
makes me cry because I just am like, that's what
it feels like, is like I didn't know what love
was until there was you and you know. And I
(26:40):
think also the animals feel like that too, when they
finally get to feel safe. It's our job to also
protect them. They do so much for us, and so
I just think that song encapsulates all.
Speaker 4 (26:53):
Of that perfect choice. And your career, ever since you
were so young, has been on just a meteoric rise
from the beginning. And I love what Andrew Lloyd Webber
said about you and this is back in twenty thirteen Sierra,
and he said, Sierra is one of the most talented
girls in musical theater period and it's only a matter
(27:15):
of time before she becomes an absolute megastar. That coming
from Andrew Lloyd Webber, Does it get better?
Speaker 10 (27:23):
No, He's been such a huge part of my career
and really one of the people who gave me my start,
and I just am Yeah, those words that meant everything
to me then and still do to this day. So yeah,
that's pretty nice.
Speaker 4 (27:38):
About it as good as it gets. And considering what
an incredible career you've had for those of us in
different parts of the country that might not be able
to get to Broadway, where can we see you right now?
What's going on in your life and your career.
Speaker 10 (27:51):
It's funny. I'm currently waiting for one of the shows
that I'm involved in to get a Broadway theater, which
is just how that works. It's kind of a real
state game really for Broadway because you have to wait
for a theater to become available. So there's a show
called Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil which
is based off of the novel and it's been turned
into a musical. The music is by Jason Robert Brown
(28:14):
and the book is by Taylor Mack and directed by
Rob Ashford. What's funny is Rob Ashford was actually my
very first choreographer when I graduated college and my first
professional show in New York out of town with him,
and so now it's really amazing, like revisiting working together
all these years later. So that's what we're waiting on.
And while I wait for a show to happen, I
(28:37):
do concerts all over. So I'm going to Pittsburgh. I'm
at the Pittsburgh Cultural Center in the beginning of November,
and then in Greensboro, North Carolina. So yeah, that's really
what we do while we wait for a show, is
that we get to sing our own shows all around
the country.
Speaker 4 (28:57):
So yeah, well those lucky enough like myself, we'll get
to hear you sing firsthand. On October twentieth. We are
so excited for this best friend's gala. And as we
wrap up this interview, you teased us with the name,
you tease us with the little lyrics. Do you want
to just tease us with a little song to send
us off?
Speaker 2 (29:16):
Oh, what they're gonna.
Speaker 10 (29:17):
Hear is a little There was love all around, but
I never heard it's singing. No, I never heard it too.
Speaker 5 (29:30):
There was you.
Speaker 4 (29:33):
I think I sound like you in my shower. I
only wish that was incredible. Sierra Bagas, you are truly amazing.
I totally agree with what Andrew Lloyd Webber said, and
I can't wait to see you singing the song to
the people that make such a difference for these animals
lives and to the animals themselves that will be there.
Thank you so much, Sierra.
Speaker 10 (29:55):
Thank you, thank you so much for having me, and.
Speaker 4 (29:58):
Thank you all joining us on this very special edition
of Rapaport to the Rescue and Don't forget Best Friends
Gala October twentieth.
Speaker 2 (30:06):
You don't want to miss it.
Speaker 4 (30:07):
Get your tickets now.
Speaker 5 (30:09):
Let's Talk Pets every week on demand only on Petlight
radio dot com.