Matt Hamilton–writer-director of “Raptors: A Fistful of Daggers,” an unusual two-part edition of the PBS series, “Nature,” which premiered April 10, while the second episode debuts on April 17—recalls the impetus for creating this double-shot of cinematic raptor mania. Part of his explanation involved not having seen a documentary that delved deepl…

Deborah Howard—founder-president of the Companion Animal Protection Society (CAPS), self-described, you may recall, as “the only national nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to protecting companion animals from cruelty in pet shops and puppy/kitten mills”—returns for a conversational sequel to our January interview, because we didn’t have …

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 …

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 …

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 Aus…

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 […] The post…

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 deplora…

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 […] T…

Jessica Kelly—who, along with Sue Rountree, runs Cat Trap Fever, a nonprofit focused on improving the lives of feral cats, chiefly in Pinellas County—recounts the “hodgepodge” of jobs she held before devoting herself to long days of TNVR: Trap, Neuter, Vaccinate, Return. Kelly’s jobs included teenage waitress, traveling with the carnival, and balle…

As we’ve done eight times prior—spanning the better part of three years–today’s program involved setting aside the usual “Talking Animals” format in order to present the show-length feature, “Ask The Trainer.” Listeners are invited to call or email questions about their dogs or cats, particularly involving behavioral issues or training concerns. Th…

I once again set aside the customary “Talking Animals” format to deliver the Annual Holiday Animal Song special—that is, a show almost entirely devoted to Holiday-oriented animal tunes. As has been required in the past, and as I acknowledged while over-explaining this program’s premise (over-explaining the premise has become its own tradition—one o…

Jason Schramm–a web developer and founder of Veg Groups, where he creates websites intended to help people go vegan, stay vegan, or become informed on vegan-oriented events, or films, on his VegMovies site—notes that he got deeply into computers as a seventh grader. While he was drawn as a youngster to exploring some aspects of […] The post Jason S…

Mark E. Hauber—professor, ornithologist, and author of “Bird Day: A Story of 24 Hours and 24 Avian Lives”—recalls becoming seriously interested in birds at age four or five. This was in his native Hungary, where, as that little boy, he dragged his mother to view the Spring Migration. His passion for birds was precocious and […] The post Mark E. Hau…

Jill Horstmann–founder of Squirrelly AF Rescue, a squirrel-focused rescue and rehabilitation operation she runs at her St. Petersburg home—recalls growing up in Wisconsin, where she was that neighborhood kid who tended to injured or ill critters. But it’s hardly been a straight line from Jill Horstmann, Kid Animal Rescuer to Jill Horstmann, Adult A…

Dr. Justin Perrault–vice president of research at Loggerhead Marinelife Center (LMC), a nonprofit sea turtle research, rehabilitation, education, and conservation operation in Juno Beach, FL—recalls the early, pioneering work on sea turtles performed by Juno resident Eleanor Fletcher, establishing the beginnings of what became LMC. Perrault unspool…

Carey Theil, executive director of GREY2K USA Worldwide, the largest greyhound protection organization in the world, and Rory Goree, who for many years ran the largest industry-funded greyhound adoption group, Greyhound Pets of America, explain how–as former enemies in the battle to end greyhound racing–they transformed into allies. Goree and Theil…

Dr. Faraz Harsini–biomedical scientist and speaker at the 2023 Tampa Bay Veg Fest—remembers growing up in Iran, including a possible foreshadowing of his future activism, when participating in a student protest of the country’s leadership resulted in his being chased by someone wielding a machete. Harsini left the country at 22, recalling being mys…

Pete Walsh–who lives in Tasmania, where he found himself becoming deeply concerned about the plight of local platypuses in the capital city of Hobart, part of narrative that unfolds in “The Platypus Guardian,” a documentary kicking off the new season of the PBS series “Nature”—describes his background before becoming a platypus partisan. In doing s…

Ann Paul–an organizer of the Florida Birding and Nature Festival, a multifaceted, multi-day extravaganza, scheduled to take place Oct. 12-15, in and around Apollo Beach, Florida—revisits, at my request, the story of her first real foray into birding, and how arriving late at that outing proved fortuitous. She spotted a black and white warbler, and …

RaeAnna Saks–founder and CEO of The Little Cats’ Rescue, the New Port Richey cat rescue and sanctuary—recalls the first cat she loved and felt truly connected with. But, Saks points out, she grew up with dogs: her family always had a dog; never a cat—Saks remains a dog lover, usually living with one, amidst the […] The post RaeAnna Saks, founder of…

As we’ve done seven times prior—spanning about two years–today’s program involved setting aside the usual “Talking Animals” format in order to present the show-length feature, “Ask The Trainer.” Listeners are invited to call or email questions about their dogs or cats, particularly involving behavioral issues or training concerns. The Trainer these…

Mark Meyers–founder and executive director of Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue, the largest donkey rescue operation in the U.S.—recalls how it all began, when he and his wife brought home a donkey named Izzy as a companion for their horse. That was nearly a quarter of a century—and thousands of donkeys—ago. Meyers acknowledges they knew nothing […] Th…

Dr. Catherine Macdonald–a marine conservation biologist and assistant professor at the University of Miami, who conducts, and oversees, research on sharks—recalls a childhood less enamored of the sea, at first, than of mud. This, Macdonald says, was part of being a kid who loved being outdoors, exploring nature, endlessly curious, and not at all op…

Scott Blais–co-founder of the Global Sanctuary for Elephants, whose initial facility is the Elephant Sanctuary Brazil (ESB); he also co-founded The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee—starts by attempting to field my curveball opening question: what makes elephants special? Drawing on 35 years of caring for elephants, he responds chiefly observing how …

Dr. Temple Grandin–who truly wears multiple hats: fervent activist for autistic people, longtime professor of animal science at Colorado State University, expert on animal behavior, prolific author, tireless lecturer—discusses her forthcoming book, “The Grandin Papers.” Grandin explains that this new book collects some of her most important the sci…