October 17, 2025 • 28 mins
Are you ready for a heartwarming tale that combines the thrill of hockey with the joy of pet adoption? In this episode, Julie sits down with Jason Shaver, the play-by-play announcer for the Chicago Wolves Hockey Team, to discuss their incredible Adopt-A-Dog Program.
A Unique Blend of Sports and Animal Welfare
Jason shares how the Chicago Wolves have been championing dog adoption for decades, resulting in 1,885 dogs finding forever homes so far. We explore their partnership with local rescues and their strategy for hosting their Adopt-A-Dog Program at games. Their trusted rescue partners are Border Tails Rescue in Northbrook, Illinois and Wright-Way Rescue in Morton Grove, Illinois.
Key Takeaways:
- Learn about the Chicago Wolves' successful dog adoption program
- Understand how sports teams can make a difference in animal welfare
- Gain insights into the adoption process at these unique events
- Discover the impact of giving shelter dogs a second chance
This episode is a must-listen for animal lovers, hockey fans, and anyone interested in innovative approaches to pet adoption. You'll come away inspired by how a professional sports team is making a real difference in the lives of dogs and their new families.
Learn more about their rescue partners, Border Tails Rescue visit their Website and Follow on Instagram, and Wright-Way Rescue visit their Website and Follow on Instagram.
Jason Shaver has served as the voice of the Wolves since being named the team’s play-by-play announcer in August 2008. Shaver has been a huge advocate in the community, adopting many dogs over the years from the Wolves' Adopt-A-Dog program.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_00 (00:06):
Hello, my friends and fellow animal lovers.
Welcome to a new episode of theStory of My Pet Podcast.
I am your host, Julie MartyPearson, as always, and I am
happy to welcome a new guest tothe podcast today.
Jason, welcome to the story ofmy pet.
SPEAKER_01 (00:23):
Julie, good to be talking to you, and we all love
our pets.
SPEAKER_00 (00:26):
So Jason is the first person related to a
professional sports team to beon the podcast.
I always love a good first.
Jason is the play-by-playannouncer for the Chicago Wolves
hockey team.
And I was reached out to by theteam because a big part of what
they do in their community ispromote dog adoption.
(00:47):
And they host adoption events atsome of their games, which I
love.
SPEAKER_01 (00:52):
That's an initiative that Don Levin, our owner,
started many years ago, and it'sbeen a huge success and kind of
one of the staples, not onlywinning on the ice, but the
amount of dogs that we'veadopted throughout the seasons.
SPEAKER_00 (01:05):
I love that because we can have events, but that
doesn't mean there's alwaysadoption.
So it's always great to hearabout successful events that are
ongoing, especially.
SPEAKER_01 (01:14):
Yeah.
There's so many people that areattending a hockey game and they
didn't realize there was goingto be dogs there, and they end
up going home with a little bitof dog food and a whole lot of
love and rest.
SPEAKER_00 (01:24):
Before we get into all of that and your role with
the team, as well as whatthey're doing to help a dog in
the Chicago area, let's leteverybody listening learn a
little bit more about you.
So have you always had pets?
Did you grow up with animals inyour family?
SPEAKER_01 (01:41):
Not a lot of pets.
I was an only child.
We had a cat that when I wasreal young that adopted us for a
short period of time.
It was an outdoor cat for themost part and ended up that we
lived in a pretty rural area.
And I think the cat moved on toother things.
So we had that for a shortperiod of time, and then in
(02:01):
junior high, we did have a cat.
SPEAKER_00 (02:04):
So when did you as an adult adopt your first pet or
maybe get your first realconnection with an animal?
SPEAKER_01 (02:12):
I had the cat growing up, and that survived
through college and then passedaway once I was well out of the
house.
And then I did not have a petuntil I met my now wife who had
her own.
I always joke that she kind ofhad a petting zoo.
She had a couple cats, she had acouple dogs, her roommate had a
(02:34):
dog, and then when we firststarted dating, in order to not
seem like she had a lot of pets,she hid a rabbit that she also
had as a pet that, you know, sixmonths into dating was
introduced.
SPEAKER_00 (02:46):
You're like, hey, wait, I don't remember that one.
SPEAKER_01 (02:49):
Yeah.
So I found a spouse and thenfound a lot of animals.
SPEAKER_00 (02:55):
Love that.
Always love it when, you know, acouple or a family brings pets
together for others.
I would say I'm very lucky tohave a husband who loves the
animals.
I can go off and travel and dothings, and he's always here
holding down the fur family fortfor us.
SPEAKER_01 (03:08):
It absolutely is.
We both travel for work, so it'suh passing the baton sometimes.
SPEAKER_00 (03:14):
Yeah, that makes sense.
Your role as the announcer uhfor the Chicago Wolves.
Do you travel with the team?
How does that work?
SPEAKER_01 (03:22):
Yes, we do travel.
I'm the broadcaster, so webroadcast all the home and away
games.
So last year I was in Near Neckof the Woods in Bakersfield.
Tomorrow we're leaving for DesMoines, Iowa to open up our
season against the Iowa wild,and we get to go to some nice
places like San Diego and TomSprings.
SPEAKER_00 (03:43):
I'm sure for you and Chicago, those are nice little
vacations during the hockeyseason.
SPEAKER_01 (03:49):
And then we go to places like Winnipeg, Canada in
the middle of winter where it'snot beautiful out.
SPEAKER_00 (03:55):
That's funny.
When I think of hockey, I thinkof a winter sport, but obviously
it's played all over becauseit's inside.
And so that makes sense thatyour role kind of moves with the
team and you get to kind of goalong with the journey every
season.
SPEAKER_01 (04:09):
Yeah, and it's fun to see different communities and
you know try out differentrestaurants that are staples
that we play every year, andthen there's some kind of a
rotation of new cities or citiesthat we haven't been to in
several years.
So it's always nice to go back.
I think even like last year, itwas the first time we were in
Bakersfield in five years.
So it's kind of fun to seewhat's changed and what's the
(04:30):
same.
SPEAKER_00 (04:30):
So, how long have you been with the team?
SPEAKER_01 (04:33):
This is my 18th season.
I was with the team in Houston,Texas, prior to that, and a
couple other stints as I wasworking my way through the minor
league hockey system beforegetting to Chicago.
SPEAKER_00 (04:46):
Wow, that's amazing.
I love that.
I always love when you can tellpeople really love what they do
and they've been doing it for along time.
So you've been through a lot ofevolutions of the team for sure.
SPEAKER_01 (04:55):
Yeah, and then our pets have gotten to live in a
wide variety of cities becausewhen you're first beginning this
business, you tend to movearound a lot for better
opportunities.
SPEAKER_00 (05:03):
So, at what point during your career with the
Chicago Wolves has the dogadoption events always been
happening?
What's been your role with thatpart of the organization?
SPEAKER_01 (05:15):
It was something that was already in place by the
time that I got to theorganization.
This is the 32nd season for theChicago Wolves.
And boy, I probably should knowthis.
Yeah, I might get a little slapon the wrist for I I don't know
what season it began, but itdefinitely was well entrenched
before I got there 18 years ago.
In fact, they've adopted 1,885dogs throughout the seasons
(05:41):
heading into this year.
I think we will probably surpass2,000 dogs by year's end, which
is pretty incredible.
SPEAKER_00 (05:49):
Yeah, that deserves a moment of congratulations.
That's huge because you know,you can have adoption events.
That doesn't mean animals getadopted and that they're
successful.
I'm sure over those 18 yearsyou've been with them, you've
seen some changes with respectto the events.
I think there's even more of aneed for adoption events and
education in our country anddifferent locations now.
(06:11):
And it sounds like really whatum the team is doing is really
making an impact in your localcommunity.
SPEAKER_01 (06:18):
Yeah, and there's several people like myself that
uh either work for the team orare longtime fans that have, you
know, when a dog passes, youreplace them with another
adopted dog.
So there's several of us thatare on our third and fourth
adoption.
So it's kind of neat to see.
And then, you know.
(06:39):
As you know, being an animallover, it's just so important to
try and take some of those dogsthat haven't had the easiest
life so far and provide a littlebit more stability for them.
And that's the most rewardingthing is just seeing the
evolution of a dog that you havefor the first three days, three
weeks, then three months, andhow much their personality
(07:00):
changes and as they become moreand more comfortable with the
new environment.
SPEAKER_00 (07:05):
Absolutely.
And I so appreciate youmentioned the 333 rule that some
people probably have heard of.
We talk about it with rescuesand shelters that, you know,
just like you, if you werepulled from your home and put
somewhere new the next day andhave no way of communicating or
why it's happening, it would behard.
If that happened to us aspeople, we would be upset and
anxious and all these things.
(07:26):
And it's important for people torealize that any animal, dog or
cat or otherwise, needs time toadjust.
No matter how wonderful thefamily is and where they get to
live now, they've been throughsomething that ended them up in
a shelter or a rescue.
And so you have to give themthat time to get to know you and
get comfortable and get to knowyour schedule, and then they
become a part of the family.
SPEAKER_01 (07:47):
Yeah.
You're not quite sure whatyou're getting until the
three-month time, and thenyou're oh, okay.
SPEAKER_00 (07:54):
Absolutely.
I could I agree.
And I volunteered and worked inmy own local shelters, and the
dogs you see in a kennel in ashelter in a loud, overcrowded
kennel, versus when we wouldtake them out to an adoption
event in our community andthey'd get to walk around and
play.
And it was just sometimes nightand day from what you saw one to
the other.
(08:14):
And I so it sounds like a lot ofwhat you guys are doing with
your adoption events at thegames, the dogs get to come to
the games and people get to seethem in this different
environment versus seeing theminside a shelter or a rescue.
SPEAKER_01 (08:28):
Yeah, that's we work this season with two separate
rescues that we'll each bringout, you know, a couple, a dozen
to maybe two dozen dogs to haveavailable.
And it's just good.
Obviously, some dogs need to beseparated because they're single
family homes.
And then, you know, those whoalready have a pet, they can see
(08:48):
the interaction with the otherdogs at the game, too, that are
they seems to be very sociallyadjusted.
So bringing a dog homeunannounced to the other pets
that are already in thefacility.
And I think the shelters andrescues do such a good job now,
too, because the last thing youwant is a revolving door of dogs
coming back to you.
Hey, identifying, you know,these are the characteristics of
(09:10):
this dog.
This dog's good with smallchildren, this one maybe not so
much, or it's going to be goodwith cats, or it has lived in
the past.
You know, and some of thosedetails are hard to get
depending on where those dogswere picked up and brought into
the shelter or rescue.
SPEAKER_00 (10:04):
Yeah, that is so important.
We don't always know where thedog or cat has come from, what
their history is, but it isgreat to have offsite events
like this where they can bringtheir current dog and see how
they react to each otherinitially, because there's a lot
of that you don't know untilthey're in the situation.
And we don't always know thebackstory or what they've been
(10:24):
through.
And I think sometimes people arestereotypes about certain
breeds, but not every dog isexactly the same.
They all have their quirks andtheir personality, and that's
why we love them.
But it's so great to havesomewhere like the games that
they get to come and meetdifferent dogs and get to know
them a little bit before theyadopt them.
SPEAKER_01 (10:43):
Yeah, absolutely.
And that I mean, you wantsuccess stories, right?
So that's the most importantthing is as much as possible to
let you know what you're gettingyourself into with this pet.
And a lot of the pets, uh as youknow, working and volunteering
in shelters yourself, thatthey're under nourished.
All three of the dogs that wehave adopted have had
significant weight gain overtime, too.
(11:05):
So that's also important, isjust to get them healthy.
SPEAKER_00 (11:09):
Absolutely.
So tell us about your currentdogs.
It sounds like you've adoptedthem from either one of the
events or organizations.
What are they like right now inyour family?
SPEAKER_01 (11:19):
Yeah, so we've got two.
We've got Gary.
We adopted him over 10 seasonsago now, and we were told that
he was two-ish when we got him,so that puts him 12, 13.
He was a pit mix, andunfortunately for him, he was
most likely a bait dog, but hehas been just the most loving,
(11:40):
wonderful dog that we've ever uhhad.
He's getting a little longer inthe tooth right now, so he's
having a little bit of healthissues.
And my wife just today said, Ithink he's the best dog we've
ever had.
You know, you can't always judgea book by its cover, and you
know, our rescues have alwaysbeen either pit bulls or
shepherds, just because we don'thave any kids, we live by
(12:00):
ourselves.
So just giving those dogs thatsometimes are not as highly
desirable as the little dogs orlabs or retrievers that are very
easy to adopt.
So we've kind of taken it on.
And I can tell you, all threedogs that we uh have adopted
have been, you know, very socialand very good, loving dogs.
(12:21):
Some have taken a little bitlonger to adjust than others,
but that's the good thing aboutdogs.
They're pack animals at the endof the day, enough time
together.
Then our other dog is wereplaced our first adopted dog
when she passed about six monthslater, and his name was John
Wayne when we adopted him.
So there's no way that we arechanging the name John Wayne.
(12:44):
So my wife was quick to get aJohn Wayne, the Duke, collar for
him, and he's got a lot ofenergy, which was fine when
Gary, our other dog was a littleolder, but now we're trying to
do a little bit more walks andjogs with him just to because
Gary's slowing down and Johnstill has some energy he'd like
to expel every day.
But he is the most loving dogthat we've had.
(13:05):
He loves giving kisses and wantsto be sleeping with someone.
He's got to have a body parttouching someone in bed.
They're both great pups.
SPEAKER_00 (13:14):
Uh, I love that.
And I love what you said aboutthe breeds.
You know, I've met many a pity,and they are the sweetest, most
lovable, loyal animals.
They get such a bad rap and theyhave such a hard time getting
adopted when people see them.
I mean, we have a hugeproportion of pit bulls, German
shepherds, and huskies in ourshelters and rescues.
So it makes sense, and it'sgreat that you guys have a
(13:36):
family and an environment whereyou can adopt them and give them
a second chance.
And it sounds like they've hadwonderful lives, and that you
guys really adjust your scheduleand what their needs are because
you know, just like anything, aswe get older, we slow down, but
the younger animals still needthat energy put out, and the
older animals don't want ittaken out on them.
SPEAKER_01 (13:57):
Yes.
I'm glad that the wrestlingmatches are over because it got
a little loud at times.
They were not afraid to speaktheir mind, but in a very loving
way, but loud.
SPEAKER_00 (14:07):
One of the things I've done it, I get to be an
auntie to both human and furkids.
And I have friends with dogsthat I've dog set, and there's
always this time, no matterwhat, that they would just start
going berserk and circles andjust running around.
It was like chaos, and you'relike, okay, now what?
SPEAKER_01 (14:24):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (14:24):
And so much for shelter dogs and rescue dogs, a
lot of times they have thatenergy and they're stuck in
crates or in kennels and all ofthis, and they can't get it out.
So I'm sure when you guys haveadopted, there's maybe a little
more energy at first before theyget used to the schedule and the
new environment.
SPEAKER_01 (14:41):
Yeah, and I think the one good thing is we've
always had one dog when you'rebringing a second dog home.
So that kind of helps with thelay of the land of ooh, hey, I
wouldn't be scratching that dooror this house, we don't chew on
shoes.
SPEAKER_00 (14:55):
You know, yeah, it's always good to have the older
first sibling to show them theropes.
But I also think hearing aboutyou having dogs at different
ages, sometimes those older dogsneed a younger dog to keep them
young and keep them active, too.
SPEAKER_01 (15:08):
Yeah, no, I mean, we went probably six months between
having two dogs to one dog, andthen you're like, oh man, our
dog's really slowing down, andthen you bring another dog home,
and it's oh, he was maybe eithera little depressed or just
bored.
And he gets second lease inlife, like he gets his energy
back.
SPEAKER_00 (15:27):
Yeah, I love seeing how dogs and cats and new family
structures get used to eachother.
I think that's something whenpeople are going to shelters,
thinking it about adopting oradding a second dog to their
family, those are things tothink about.
But sometimes it's actuallygonna be even better, you know.
Once they get used to eachother, they can create bonds
that you never expected.
SPEAKER_01 (15:49):
Yeah, absolutely.
They all seem to get alongreally good.
There's definitely a peckingorder.
The senior dog always seems tobe the boss.
And in both situations, I thinkthe younger dog could probably
take the older dog if it came tothat, but they seem to have a
respect.
SPEAKER_00 (16:02):
So I know that the adopt a dog program that the
wolves has.
Was it one game every month thatthese adoption events happen?
And what does that look like?
If someone's listening and theywant to come to one of the games
that has this event, what doesthat look like for them?
SPEAKER_01 (16:19):
Yeah, so once a month, you were absolutely dead
on with that on October 18th asour home opener, and that will
be the first adopt a dog of thenight.
And there's some strategy to it.
We have adopted dogs once amonth on a Saturday night, and
it's the games that historicallyhave been high-attended games
(16:39):
because you want the most amountof people there as well.
And if you're looking on theWolves website, you can see
already what those games willbe.
But oftentimes there's a lot ofpeople just showing up to the
game and didn't realize it wasAdopt a Dog Night, and you'd be
surprised at the number ofpeople that had no idea that
they were going to bring home adog that night, end up falling
in love with one of the dogs inthe concourse.
(17:01):
So they'll be there, doors openat six o'clock.
The game starts at seven, and soyou'll have a full hour to look
at the dogs that are available.
And a lot of them will getadopted uh before the game even
starts.
And then during the periodintermissions, they'll bring
dogs onto the ice.
And yes, some dogs have used theice to relieve themselves, which
(17:23):
is always a good roar from thecrowd when you have a nice
audience in attendance, and thenyou just kind of push through,
and then after the game,there'll be those people that
are on the fence that aregetting those last pets in.
Do we want to do it?
It happens quite frequently thatpeople will not adopt a dog that
night, but they'll go back tothat shelter a day later or a
(17:43):
week later, and just you knowhow dogs are, they leave an
impression on you.
You just can't sleep until youbring that pet home.
SPEAKER_00 (17:50):
True.
I saw that happen myself when Iwas at you could tell they're
like, I don't know, we'rethinking about it.
We love them.
Sometimes we I would be at anevent and a couple hours later
they'd come back and they'relike, we cut something in about
it, we got to take it with usnow.
It's always great when peoplefeel that instant connection or
something makes them want tocome back.
But it sounds like you guysreally set these up for the best
(18:12):
possible situation, time beforethe game for people to meet the
animals.
I I could just like picture inmy head the dogs walking out on
the ice in the middle of thegame.
That it sounds like it's alsojust a lot of fun to get to see
the dogs participate in theactivities too.
SPEAKER_01 (18:28):
Yeah, absolutely.
And you know, our two rescuesthat we're working with this
year, Border Tales Rescue andWhite Right Way Rescue, they're
not pushy.
So they're not trying to get ridof dogs that night.
They ideally, but you know, theywant to place as many as they
can, but they certainly aren'tpushy.
So I think that helps.
It's not like a hard sellsituation.
SPEAKER_00 (18:47):
And I think what some people don't realize is
when there are off-site events,they're coming out of the rescue
organization or shelter, it'sactually great for the dogs.
They get a break from thestressful environment and being
kept in the kennel so much ofthe day that it's just fun for
them to get out and interactwith people.
And it also helps the rescue seehow they interact with people,
learn a little more about theirpersonality so that even if
(19:09):
they're not adopted that night,they have more info to be able
to get them into a good homelater.
SPEAKER_01 (19:14):
Yeah.
We did a calendar giveaway lastyear, too, where all the players
were with different uh dogs.
So helping them try to get toadopted was fun too.
Oh, I saw Ryan Suzuki with thisdog, and I want to adopt this
dog now.
You know, there's there's someother tie-ins that have led to
success, maybe not even at agame.
SPEAKER_00 (19:32):
I love that.
So I'm sure there are some.
I mean, you've mentioned you'veadopted other staff and people
in the organization.
Maybe some of the players end upbeing the ones that fall in love
with the dogs that are at thegame that night.
SPEAKER_01 (19:44):
Yep.
Yeah, there's definitely beenplenty of players that have
adopted dogs and staff members.
And, you know, Don, our Levin,our owner, is such an animal
lover and has invested so muchmoney with the city of Chicago
to help with the spading andneutering and making sure his
shops are up to date.
He bought a special vehicle thatgoes around the city to do free
(20:04):
vaccinations and that kind ofstuff.
So it he's not shy of, hey, youknow, if you adopt one of these
dogs, maybe there's an extravacation day in there for you,
you know?
SPEAKER_00 (20:14):
Hey, anyway, we get it to happen.
That's how we all work together.
I love that.
I love that you said that too,because not only are you as an
organization hosting theseevents, helping the rescues find
home, but you're also givingthem access, it sounds like, to,
you know, getting vaccines,getting spay neuter, which
sometimes is the reason peopledon't adopt because they can't
(20:36):
afford to worry about all ofthat.
But if that's covered by eitherthe rescue or community
organizations, that makes a bigdifference in people being able
to say yes to a new animal intheir family.
SPEAKER_01 (20:47):
Yeah, I believe the adoption costs like$65.
Uh, speaking from memory ofthat, but yeah, all the dogs are
spated and neutered.
At least the last time that Iadopted a dog, they had a free
clinic to go in there and get aphysical like a week later to
make sure everything was good.
So there's some nice perks whenyou're adopting through a wolves
game, too, that lead to a littlepeace of mind.
SPEAKER_00 (21:10):
Absolutely.
And I think that is important.
I think sometimes people seewhat's gonna cost all these
things or these all these thingsthat are involved in adopting a
pet.
But a lot of times, like yousaid, whether it's the wolves
team themselves or the rescuesare offering these other support
services so that you do havethat all covered and you get to
just enjoy having a new pet.
And I always say, you know, whorescued Hugh, who we always get
(21:33):
sometimes more from them thanthey get from us.
SPEAKER_01 (21:36):
100%.
SPEAKER_00 (21:38):
Yeah, every animal's amazing, in my view.
But rescue animals are justsomething different, you know.
They know they're being given asecond chance, or and we don't
know where they're coming fromor how they ended up where they
are, but when they come into ourlife, we get to just change
their world.
I always say that rescue,adopting it doesn't change the
(21:59):
world, but it changed the wholeworld for that one animal that
you're saving.
And that's what we're all about.
So I really love everything thatyour organization is doing to
help animals in this Chicagocommunity.
And I really appreciate youcoming here and sharing this
with our listeners.
SPEAKER_01 (22:15):
Yeah, two of my favorite passions, hockey and uh
dogs.
So it's a good one-two punch forme.
SPEAKER_00 (22:21):
It's a win-win.
Yes.
Everyone listening, all thisinformation we've been talking
about, the Wolves website, aswell as the websites for the two
rescue organizations they areworking with this season, which
is Border Tales Rescue and RightWay Rescue, will all be in the
show notes so that you can learnmore.
You can follow them.
(22:42):
Even if you're not in theChicago area, you can follow
these amazing organizations onsocial media and help share and
repost their things to help findmore homes for the animals in
their care.
SPEAKER_01 (22:53):
I was just gonna say one of the things, too, some
communities suffer naturaldisasters or whatever.
So a lot of the dogs too willcome from other areas that the
rescues reach out to try andhelp the underserved areas, you
know, during a flood or a fireor something like that.
So those dogs sometimes havetraveled a long way to get to
Illinois.
So if you're watching inCalifornia, it might be a
(23:13):
California dog that actually isgoing back the other way.
SPEAKER_00 (23:16):
That is so true.
Where I live in California isonly a few hours away for where
the horrific Palisades fires andthe Al Tadita fires were earlier
this year.
And our county and other areasand other states took on a lot
of animals that were displacedfrom those.
So thank you for mentioning thatbecause even if you're in a
certain area that isn'toverpopulated or doesn't have
(23:36):
more of a need, oftentimes we'retransporting animals from areas
like mine that are soovercrowded.
That's what it's about.
No matter how it happens orwhere they get to, it's about
getting these animals the lovinghomes that they deserve.
SPEAKER_01 (23:50):
Yeah, certainly.
SPEAKER_00 (23:51):
Thank you so much, Jason, for being here and
spending a little time with meand my podcast listeners.
I really appreciate everythingthat you and the Chicago Wolves
are doing to help the animals inyour community and those that
come from other communities.
And anyone listening, make sureyou go to a game.
It sounds like they are superfun.
(24:12):
And make sure those games areone of the adopt a dog nights
because even if you can't adopt,you can take photos and help
share and help find homes fordogs who really need it.
SPEAKER_01 (24:23):
Yes.
Julie, it was great talking withyou.
And thank you so much for notonly shedding a light on the
wolves and what they're doing,but to just uh adoption and pets
in general.
That's a great topic for apodcast, and I'm glad that
you're facilitating that foreveryone.
SPEAKER_00 (24:37):
I appreciate that.
It's definitely my passion.
And I always say if one animalgets saved by someone listening
to this, then I've done what Iset out to do.
I appreciate you being here.
(25:31):
If you haven't done so already,make sure to check out our brand
new YouTube channel, Story of MyPet Podcast.
Again, hit the subscribe button.
Give us some likes and commentson our videos, and that will
help the podcast grow on its newhome on YouTube.
Thank you so much for beinghere, and much love to you and
(25:53):
your pet.
Hello, my friends and fellow animal lovers.
Welcome to a new episode of theStory of My Pet Podcast.
I am your host, Julie MartyPearson, as always, and I am
happy to welcome a new guest tothe podcast today.
Jason, welcome to the story ofmy pet.
SPEAKER_01 (00:23):
Julie, good to be talking to you, and we all love
our pets.
SPEAKER_00 (00:26):
So Jason is the first person related to a
professional sports team to beon the podcast.
I always love a good first.
Jason is the play-by-playannouncer for the Chicago Wolves
hockey team.
And I was reached out to by theteam because a big part of what
they do in their community ispromote dog adoption.
(00:47):
And they host adoption events atsome of their games, which I
love.
SPEAKER_01 (00:52):
That's an initiative that Don Levin, our owner,
started many years ago, and it'sbeen a huge success and kind of
one of the staples, not onlywinning on the ice, but the
amount of dogs that we'veadopted throughout the seasons.
SPEAKER_00 (01:05):
I love that because we can have events, but that
doesn't mean there's alwaysadoption.
So it's always great to hearabout successful events that are
ongoing, especially.
SPEAKER_01 (01:14):
Yeah.
There's so many people that areattending a hockey game and they
didn't realize there was goingto be dogs there, and they end
up going home with a little bitof dog food and a whole lot of
love and rest.
SPEAKER_00 (01:24):
Before we get into all of that and your role with
the team, as well as whatthey're doing to help a dog in
the Chicago area, let's leteverybody listening learn a
little bit more about you.
So have you always had pets?
Did you grow up with animals inyour family?
SPEAKER_01 (01:41):
Not a lot of pets.
I was an only child.
We had a cat that when I wasreal young that adopted us for a
short period of time.
It was an outdoor cat for themost part and ended up that we
lived in a pretty rural area.
And I think the cat moved on toother things.
So we had that for a shortperiod of time, and then in
(02:01):
junior high, we did have a cat.
SPEAKER_00 (02:04):
So when did you as an adult adopt your first pet or
maybe get your first realconnection with an animal?
SPEAKER_01 (02:12):
I had the cat growing up, and that survived
through college and then passedaway once I was well out of the
house.
And then I did not have a petuntil I met my now wife who had
her own.
I always joke that she kind ofhad a petting zoo.
She had a couple cats, she had acouple dogs, her roommate had a
(02:34):
dog, and then when we firststarted dating, in order to not
seem like she had a lot of pets,she hid a rabbit that she also
had as a pet that, you know, sixmonths into dating was
introduced.
SPEAKER_00 (02:46):
You're like, hey, wait, I don't remember that one.
SPEAKER_01 (02:49):
Yeah.
So I found a spouse and thenfound a lot of animals.
SPEAKER_00 (02:55):
Love that.
Always love it when, you know, acouple or a family brings pets
together for others.
I would say I'm very lucky tohave a husband who loves the
animals.
I can go off and travel and dothings, and he's always here
holding down the fur family fortfor us.
SPEAKER_01 (03:08):
It absolutely is.
We both travel for work, so it'suh passing the baton sometimes.
SPEAKER_00 (03:14):
Yeah, that makes sense.
Your role as the announcer uhfor the Chicago Wolves.
Do you travel with the team?
How does that work?
SPEAKER_01 (03:22):
Yes, we do travel.
I'm the broadcaster, so webroadcast all the home and away
games.
So last year I was in Near Neckof the Woods in Bakersfield.
Tomorrow we're leaving for DesMoines, Iowa to open up our
season against the Iowa wild,and we get to go to some nice
places like San Diego and TomSprings.
SPEAKER_00 (03:43):
I'm sure for you and Chicago, those are nice little
vacations during the hockeyseason.
SPEAKER_01 (03:49):
And then we go to places like Winnipeg, Canada in
the middle of winter where it'snot beautiful out.
SPEAKER_00 (03:55):
That's funny.
When I think of hockey, I thinkof a winter sport, but obviously
it's played all over becauseit's inside.
And so that makes sense thatyour role kind of moves with the
team and you get to kind of goalong with the journey every
season.
SPEAKER_01 (04:09):
Yeah, and it's fun to see different communities and
you know try out differentrestaurants that are staples
that we play every year, andthen there's some kind of a
rotation of new cities or citiesthat we haven't been to in
several years.
So it's always nice to go back.
I think even like last year, itwas the first time we were in
Bakersfield in five years.
So it's kind of fun to seewhat's changed and what's the
(04:30):
same.
SPEAKER_00 (04:30):
So, how long have you been with the team?
SPEAKER_01 (04:33):
This is my 18th season.
I was with the team in Houston,Texas, prior to that, and a
couple other stints as I wasworking my way through the minor
league hockey system beforegetting to Chicago.
SPEAKER_00 (04:46):
Wow, that's amazing.
I love that.
I always love when you can tellpeople really love what they do
and they've been doing it for along time.
So you've been through a lot ofevolutions of the team for sure.
SPEAKER_01 (04:55):
Yeah, and then our pets have gotten to live in a
wide variety of cities becausewhen you're first beginning this
business, you tend to movearound a lot for better
opportunities.
SPEAKER_00 (05:03):
So, at what point during your career with the
Chicago Wolves has the dogadoption events always been
happening?
What's been your role with thatpart of the organization?
SPEAKER_01 (05:15):
It was something that was already in place by the
time that I got to theorganization.
This is the 32nd season for theChicago Wolves.
And boy, I probably should knowthis.
Yeah, I might get a little slapon the wrist for I I don't know
what season it began, but itdefinitely was well entrenched
before I got there 18 years ago.
In fact, they've adopted 1,885dogs throughout the seasons
(05:41):
heading into this year.
I think we will probably surpass2,000 dogs by year's end, which
is pretty incredible.
SPEAKER_00 (05:49):
Yeah, that deserves a moment of congratulations.
That's huge because you know,you can have adoption events.
That doesn't mean animals getadopted and that they're
successful.
I'm sure over those 18 yearsyou've been with them, you've
seen some changes with respectto the events.
I think there's even more of aneed for adoption events and
education in our country anddifferent locations now.
(06:11):
And it sounds like really whatum the team is doing is really
making an impact in your localcommunity.
SPEAKER_01 (06:18):
Yeah, and there's several people like myself that
uh either work for the team orare longtime fans that have, you
know, when a dog passes, youreplace them with another
adopted dog.
So there's several of us thatare on our third and fourth
adoption.
So it's kind of neat to see.
And then, you know.
(06:39):
As you know, being an animallover, it's just so important to
try and take some of those dogsthat haven't had the easiest
life so far and provide a littlebit more stability for them.
And that's the most rewardingthing is just seeing the
evolution of a dog that you havefor the first three days, three
weeks, then three months, andhow much their personality
(07:00):
changes and as they become moreand more comfortable with the
new environment.
SPEAKER_00 (07:05):
Absolutely.
And I so appreciate youmentioned the 333 rule that some
people probably have heard of.
We talk about it with rescuesand shelters that, you know,
just like you, if you werepulled from your home and put
somewhere new the next day andhave no way of communicating or
why it's happening, it would behard.
If that happened to us aspeople, we would be upset and
anxious and all these things.
(07:26):
And it's important for people torealize that any animal, dog or
cat or otherwise, needs time toadjust.
No matter how wonderful thefamily is and where they get to
live now, they've been throughsomething that ended them up in
a shelter or a rescue.
And so you have to give themthat time to get to know you and
get comfortable and get to knowyour schedule, and then they
become a part of the family.
SPEAKER_01 (07:47):
Yeah.
You're not quite sure whatyou're getting until the
three-month time, and thenyou're oh, okay.
SPEAKER_00 (07:54):
Absolutely.
I could I agree.
And I volunteered and worked inmy own local shelters, and the
dogs you see in a kennel in ashelter in a loud, overcrowded
kennel, versus when we wouldtake them out to an adoption
event in our community andthey'd get to walk around and
play.
And it was just sometimes nightand day from what you saw one to
the other.
(08:14):
And I so it sounds like a lot ofwhat you guys are doing with
your adoption events at thegames, the dogs get to come to
the games and people get to seethem in this different
environment versus seeing theminside a shelter or a rescue.
SPEAKER_01 (08:28):
Yeah, that's we work this season with two separate
rescues that we'll each bringout, you know, a couple, a dozen
to maybe two dozen dogs to haveavailable.
And it's just good.
Obviously, some dogs need to beseparated because they're single
family homes.
And then, you know, those whoalready have a pet, they can see
(08:48):
the interaction with the otherdogs at the game, too, that are
they seems to be very sociallyadjusted.
So bringing a dog homeunannounced to the other pets
that are already in thefacility.
And I think the shelters andrescues do such a good job now,
too, because the last thing youwant is a revolving door of dogs
coming back to you.
Hey, identifying, you know,these are the characteristics of
(09:10):
this dog.
This dog's good with smallchildren, this one maybe not so
much, or it's going to be goodwith cats, or it has lived in
the past.
You know, and some of thosedetails are hard to get
depending on where those dogswere picked up and brought into
the shelter or rescue.
SPEAKER_00 (10:04):
Yeah, that is so important.
We don't always know where thedog or cat has come from, what
their history is, but it isgreat to have offsite events
like this where they can bringtheir current dog and see how
they react to each otherinitially, because there's a lot
of that you don't know untilthey're in the situation.
And we don't always know thebackstory or what they've been
(10:24):
through.
And I think sometimes people arestereotypes about certain
breeds, but not every dog isexactly the same.
They all have their quirks andtheir personality, and that's
why we love them.
But it's so great to havesomewhere like the games that
they get to come and meetdifferent dogs and get to know
them a little bit before theyadopt them.
SPEAKER_01 (10:43):
Yeah, absolutely.
And that I mean, you wantsuccess stories, right?
So that's the most importantthing is as much as possible to
let you know what you're gettingyourself into with this pet.
And a lot of the pets, uh as youknow, working and volunteering
in shelters yourself, thatthey're under nourished.
All three of the dogs that wehave adopted have had
significant weight gain overtime, too.
(11:05):
So that's also important, isjust to get them healthy.
SPEAKER_00 (11:09):
Absolutely.
So tell us about your currentdogs.
It sounds like you've adoptedthem from either one of the
events or organizations.
What are they like right now inyour family?
SPEAKER_01 (11:19):
Yeah, so we've got two.
We've got Gary.
We adopted him over 10 seasonsago now, and we were told that
he was two-ish when we got him,so that puts him 12, 13.
He was a pit mix, andunfortunately for him, he was
most likely a bait dog, but hehas been just the most loving,
(11:40):
wonderful dog that we've ever uhhad.
He's getting a little longer inthe tooth right now, so he's
having a little bit of healthissues.
And my wife just today said, Ithink he's the best dog we've
ever had.
You know, you can't always judgea book by its cover, and you
know, our rescues have alwaysbeen either pit bulls or
shepherds, just because we don'thave any kids, we live by
(12:00):
ourselves.
So just giving those dogs thatsometimes are not as highly
desirable as the little dogs orlabs or retrievers that are very
easy to adopt.
So we've kind of taken it on.
And I can tell you, all threedogs that we uh have adopted
have been, you know, very socialand very good, loving dogs.
(12:21):
Some have taken a little bitlonger to adjust than others,
but that's the good thing aboutdogs.
They're pack animals at the endof the day, enough time
together.
Then our other dog is wereplaced our first adopted dog
when she passed about six monthslater, and his name was John
Wayne when we adopted him.
So there's no way that we arechanging the name John Wayne.
(12:44):
So my wife was quick to get aJohn Wayne, the Duke, collar for
him, and he's got a lot ofenergy, which was fine when
Gary, our other dog was a littleolder, but now we're trying to
do a little bit more walks andjogs with him just to because
Gary's slowing down and Johnstill has some energy he'd like
to expel every day.
But he is the most loving dogthat we've had.
(13:05):
He loves giving kisses and wantsto be sleeping with someone.
He's got to have a body parttouching someone in bed.
They're both great pups.
SPEAKER_00 (13:14):
Uh, I love that.
And I love what you said aboutthe breeds.
You know, I've met many a pity,and they are the sweetest, most
lovable, loyal animals.
They get such a bad rap and theyhave such a hard time getting
adopted when people see them.
I mean, we have a hugeproportion of pit bulls, German
shepherds, and huskies in ourshelters and rescues.
So it makes sense, and it'sgreat that you guys have a
(13:36):
family and an environment whereyou can adopt them and give them
a second chance.
And it sounds like they've hadwonderful lives, and that you
guys really adjust your scheduleand what their needs are because
you know, just like anything, aswe get older, we slow down, but
the younger animals still needthat energy put out, and the
older animals don't want ittaken out on them.
SPEAKER_01 (13:57):
Yes.
I'm glad that the wrestlingmatches are over because it got
a little loud at times.
They were not afraid to speaktheir mind, but in a very loving
way, but loud.
SPEAKER_00 (14:07):
One of the things I've done it, I get to be an
auntie to both human and furkids.
And I have friends with dogsthat I've dog set, and there's
always this time, no matterwhat, that they would just start
going berserk and circles andjust running around.
It was like chaos, and you'relike, okay, now what?
SPEAKER_01 (14:24):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (14:24):
And so much for shelter dogs and rescue dogs, a
lot of times they have thatenergy and they're stuck in
crates or in kennels and all ofthis, and they can't get it out.
So I'm sure when you guys haveadopted, there's maybe a little
more energy at first before theyget used to the schedule and the
new environment.
SPEAKER_01 (14:41):
Yeah, and I think the one good thing is we've
always had one dog when you'rebringing a second dog home.
So that kind of helps with thelay of the land of ooh, hey, I
wouldn't be scratching that dooror this house, we don't chew on
shoes.
SPEAKER_00 (14:55):
You know, yeah, it's always good to have the older
first sibling to show them theropes.
But I also think hearing aboutyou having dogs at different
ages, sometimes those older dogsneed a younger dog to keep them
young and keep them active, too.
SPEAKER_01 (15:08):
Yeah, no, I mean, we went probably six months between
having two dogs to one dog, andthen you're like, oh man, our
dog's really slowing down, andthen you bring another dog home,
and it's oh, he was maybe eithera little depressed or just
bored.
And he gets second lease inlife, like he gets his energy
back.
SPEAKER_00 (15:27):
Yeah, I love seeing how dogs and cats and new family
structures get used to eachother.
I think that's something whenpeople are going to shelters,
thinking it about adopting oradding a second dog to their
family, those are things tothink about.
But sometimes it's actuallygonna be even better, you know.
Once they get used to eachother, they can create bonds
that you never expected.
SPEAKER_01 (15:49):
Yeah, absolutely.
They all seem to get alongreally good.
There's definitely a peckingorder.
The senior dog always seems tobe the boss.
And in both situations, I thinkthe younger dog could probably
take the older dog if it came tothat, but they seem to have a
respect.
SPEAKER_00 (16:02):
So I know that the adopt a dog program that the
wolves has.
Was it one game every month thatthese adoption events happen?
And what does that look like?
If someone's listening and theywant to come to one of the games
that has this event, what doesthat look like for them?
SPEAKER_01 (16:19):
Yeah, so once a month, you were absolutely dead
on with that on October 18th asour home opener, and that will
be the first adopt a dog of thenight.
And there's some strategy to it.
We have adopted dogs once amonth on a Saturday night, and
it's the games that historicallyhave been high-attended games
(16:39):
because you want the most amountof people there as well.
And if you're looking on theWolves website, you can see
already what those games willbe.
But oftentimes there's a lot ofpeople just showing up to the
game and didn't realize it wasAdopt a Dog Night, and you'd be
surprised at the number ofpeople that had no idea that
they were going to bring home adog that night, end up falling
in love with one of the dogs inthe concourse.
(17:01):
So they'll be there, doors openat six o'clock.
The game starts at seven, and soyou'll have a full hour to look
at the dogs that are available.
And a lot of them will getadopted uh before the game even
starts.
And then during the periodintermissions, they'll bring
dogs onto the ice.
And yes, some dogs have used theice to relieve themselves, which
(17:23):
is always a good roar from thecrowd when you have a nice
audience in attendance, and thenyou just kind of push through,
and then after the game,there'll be those people that
are on the fence that aregetting those last pets in.
Do we want to do it?
It happens quite frequently thatpeople will not adopt a dog that
night, but they'll go back tothat shelter a day later or a
(17:43):
week later, and just you knowhow dogs are, they leave an
impression on you.
You just can't sleep until youbring that pet home.
SPEAKER_00 (17:50):
True.
I saw that happen myself when Iwas at you could tell they're
like, I don't know, we'rethinking about it.
We love them.
Sometimes we I would be at anevent and a couple hours later
they'd come back and they'relike, we cut something in about
it, we got to take it with usnow.
It's always great when peoplefeel that instant connection or
something makes them want tocome back.
But it sounds like you guysreally set these up for the best
(18:12):
possible situation, time beforethe game for people to meet the
animals.
I I could just like picture inmy head the dogs walking out on
the ice in the middle of thegame.
That it sounds like it's alsojust a lot of fun to get to see
the dogs participate in theactivities too.
SPEAKER_01 (18:28):
Yeah, absolutely.
And you know, our two rescuesthat we're working with this
year, Border Tales Rescue andWhite Right Way Rescue, they're
not pushy.
So they're not trying to get ridof dogs that night.
They ideally, but you know, theywant to place as many as they
can, but they certainly aren'tpushy.
So I think that helps.
It's not like a hard sellsituation.
SPEAKER_00 (18:47):
And I think what some people don't realize is
when there are off-site events,they're coming out of the rescue
organization or shelter, it'sactually great for the dogs.
They get a break from thestressful environment and being
kept in the kennel so much ofthe day that it's just fun for
them to get out and interactwith people.
And it also helps the rescue seehow they interact with people,
learn a little more about theirpersonality so that even if
(19:09):
they're not adopted that night,they have more info to be able
to get them into a good homelater.
SPEAKER_01 (19:14):
Yeah.
We did a calendar giveaway lastyear, too, where all the players
were with different uh dogs.
So helping them try to get toadopted was fun too.
Oh, I saw Ryan Suzuki with thisdog, and I want to adopt this
dog now.
You know, there's there's someother tie-ins that have led to
success, maybe not even at agame.
SPEAKER_00 (19:32):
I love that.
So I'm sure there are some.
I mean, you've mentioned you'veadopted other staff and people
in the organization.
Maybe some of the players end upbeing the ones that fall in love
with the dogs that are at thegame that night.
SPEAKER_01 (19:44):
Yep.
Yeah, there's definitely beenplenty of players that have
adopted dogs and staff members.
And, you know, Don, our Levin,our owner, is such an animal
lover and has invested so muchmoney with the city of Chicago
to help with the spading andneutering and making sure his
shops are up to date.
He bought a special vehicle thatgoes around the city to do free
(20:04):
vaccinations and that kind ofstuff.
So it he's not shy of, hey, youknow, if you adopt one of these
dogs, maybe there's an extravacation day in there for you,
you know?
SPEAKER_00 (20:14):
Hey, anyway, we get it to happen.
That's how we all work together.
I love that.
I love that you said that too,because not only are you as an
organization hosting theseevents, helping the rescues find
home, but you're also givingthem access, it sounds like, to,
you know, getting vaccines,getting spay neuter, which
sometimes is the reason peopledon't adopt because they can't
(20:36):
afford to worry about all ofthat.
But if that's covered by eitherthe rescue or community
organizations, that makes a bigdifference in people being able
to say yes to a new animal intheir family.
SPEAKER_01 (20:47):
Yeah, I believe the adoption costs like$65.
Uh, speaking from memory ofthat, but yeah, all the dogs are
spated and neutered.
At least the last time that Iadopted a dog, they had a free
clinic to go in there and get aphysical like a week later to
make sure everything was good.
So there's some nice perks whenyou're adopting through a wolves
game, too, that lead to a littlepeace of mind.
SPEAKER_00 (21:10):
Absolutely.
And I think that is important.
I think sometimes people seewhat's gonna cost all these
things or these all these thingsthat are involved in adopting a
pet.
But a lot of times, like yousaid, whether it's the wolves
team themselves or the rescuesare offering these other support
services so that you do havethat all covered and you get to
just enjoy having a new pet.
And I always say, you know, whorescued Hugh, who we always get
(21:33):
sometimes more from them thanthey get from us.
SPEAKER_01 (21:36):
100%.
SPEAKER_00 (21:38):
Yeah, every animal's amazing, in my view.
But rescue animals are justsomething different, you know.
They know they're being given asecond chance, or and we don't
know where they're coming fromor how they ended up where they
are, but when they come into ourlife, we get to just change
their world.
I always say that rescue,adopting it doesn't change the
(21:59):
world, but it changed the wholeworld for that one animal that
you're saving.
And that's what we're all about.
So I really love everything thatyour organization is doing to
help animals in this Chicagocommunity.
And I really appreciate youcoming here and sharing this
with our listeners.
SPEAKER_01 (22:15):
Yeah, two of my favorite passions, hockey and uh
dogs.
So it's a good one-two punch forme.
SPEAKER_00 (22:21):
It's a win-win.
Yes.
Everyone listening, all thisinformation we've been talking
about, the Wolves website, aswell as the websites for the two
rescue organizations they areworking with this season, which
is Border Tales Rescue and RightWay Rescue, will all be in the
show notes so that you can learnmore.
You can follow them.
(22:42):
Even if you're not in theChicago area, you can follow
these amazing organizations onsocial media and help share and
repost their things to help findmore homes for the animals in
their care.
SPEAKER_01 (22:53):
I was just gonna say one of the things, too, some
communities suffer naturaldisasters or whatever.
So a lot of the dogs too willcome from other areas that the
rescues reach out to try andhelp the underserved areas, you
know, during a flood or a fireor something like that.
So those dogs sometimes havetraveled a long way to get to
Illinois.
So if you're watching inCalifornia, it might be a
(23:13):
California dog that actually isgoing back the other way.
SPEAKER_00 (23:16):
That is so true.
Where I live in California isonly a few hours away for where
the horrific Palisades fires andthe Al Tadita fires were earlier
this year.
And our county and other areasand other states took on a lot
of animals that were displacedfrom those.
So thank you for mentioning thatbecause even if you're in a
certain area that isn'toverpopulated or doesn't have
(23:36):
more of a need, oftentimes we'retransporting animals from areas
like mine that are soovercrowded.
That's what it's about.
No matter how it happens orwhere they get to, it's about
getting these animals the lovinghomes that they deserve.
SPEAKER_01 (23:50):
Yeah, certainly.
SPEAKER_00 (23:51):
Thank you so much, Jason, for being here and
spending a little time with meand my podcast listeners.
I really appreciate everythingthat you and the Chicago Wolves
are doing to help the animals inyour community and those that
come from other communities.
And anyone listening, make sureyou go to a game.
It sounds like they are superfun.
(24:12):
And make sure those games areone of the adopt a dog nights
because even if you can't adopt,you can take photos and help
share and help find homes fordogs who really need it.
SPEAKER_01 (24:23):
Yes.
Julie, it was great talking withyou.
And thank you so much for notonly shedding a light on the
wolves and what they're doing,but to just uh adoption and pets
in general.
That's a great topic for apodcast, and I'm glad that
you're facilitating that foreveryone.
SPEAKER_00 (24:37):
I appreciate that.
It's definitely my passion.
And I always say if one animalgets saved by someone listening
to this, then I've done what Iset out to do.
I appreciate you being here.
(25:31):
If you haven't done so already,make sure to check out our brand
new YouTube channel, Story of MyPet Podcast.
Again, hit the subscribe button.
Give us some likes and commentson our videos, and that will
help the podcast grow on its newhome on YouTube.
Thank you so much for beinghere, and much love to you and
(25:53):
your pet.
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