5 Best Podcasts for Cat Parents
You know what pairs well with washing dishes, taking walks, or staring into the abyss? Podcasts! As a certified podcast junkie and cat parenting nerd, I have found the following 5 podcasts about pet care/animal rescue to be consistently worthwhile. Do you listen to any of them?
PawPrint | Animal Rescue Community
Hosts: Nancy and Harold Rhee, OG animal rescue volunteers
Why You Should Listen: PawPrint is an oldie but goldie, a treasure box full of heartwarming, eye-opening, and educational interviews (mostly around 30 min) with everyday heroes of animal rescue. Sure, the most recent episode is from Nov 2018, but you don’t stop reading Jane Austen just because Pride and Prejudice was published back in 1813, do you? Hosted by Harold and Nancy Rhee, a husband and wife team who have been fostering, adopting, volunteering with, and amplifying animal rescue since an adopted chihuahua-mix named Allie came into their lives in 2004, PawPrint dives into all angles of animal rescue and pet parenting. What I find especially uplifting about PawPrint is that, although there are plenty of interviews with animal rescue professionals (shelter directors, pet behavioral consultants, authors of books about animals etc.), many of the conversations are with ‘ordinary people’ who decided to step up in extraordinary ways for improving animal welfare. #InspirationGalore
P.s. The world of animal rescue can be heartbreaking, dicey, or too technical for younger audiences, but PawPrint is one that I feel could be suitable to listen to with kids.
Species focus: All companion animals, with a slight bias towards dogs (esp pitbulls)
Start here: If you want an experience like Disneyland’s Soarin’ Around the World ride - but better, because animals - check out the episodes about the Bay Area Pet Fair. These speed-date style interviews are packed with gems about numerous rescues and companion animal species. For example, did you know that birds’ intelligence is on par with that of elephants? Or that “rabbits are great pets because they are the best of both dogs and cats,” i.e. self-grooming and litter box trainable, independent yet hella loyal? If you’re more in the mood for a fireside chat type of interview, check out Ep 41 in which real estate agent Jen Barkan explodes your mind with her ingenuity in leveraging her occupation for animal rescue. Fun fact: Ep 89 is how I first came across Frankie’s Feline Fund!
Veterinary Advice, Animal News & Views
Hosts: Dr. Roger Welton and Dr. Karen Louis, practicing veterinarians
Why You Should Listen: Tell me I’m not the only cat mom who loves *secretly* listening in on veterinarians’ conversations? Where else can you get so much insider knowledge and juice? Practicing veterinarians Dr. Karen Lewis and Dr. Roger Welton are, IMO, a pair that will go down in history as a dynamic duo. Dr. Karen runs an Illinois-based boutique practice that specializes in home visits and treatment modalities like veterinary medical acupuncture, whereas Dr. Roger leads an ER and general practice in Florida. They are each incredibly knowledgeable, and the range they cover together encompasses the full gamut of small animal veterinarian care. What’s surprising and delightful is that listening to this podcast feels more like watching an episode of Grace & Frankie or reading Chrissy Teigen tweets (scintillating!). Dry or abstruse clinical monotone babble? Won’t find that here. With a conversational, humorous, and at times irreverent tone, these two vets dispense actionable and accessible information about cat and dog healthcare. Even their tangents drop knowledge bombs. I listen religiously to the episodes as they come out, and I like to search the archives before taking Junipurr to the vet, so I can ask my vet informed questions (e.g. before Junipurr got blood work recently, I re-listened to Why Veterinarians Both Love and Hate Blood Work).
Species focus: Cats & Dogs, equal focus
Start here: 5 Ways to Get Your Pampered House Cat to Exercise. True story: I followed these tips and helped Junipurr trim down from “slightly obese” to “perfect weight,” thereby earning major brownie points from our vet, which #lifegoals
Host: Mariann Sullivan, animal rights law professor at Columbia Law School
Why You Should Listen: Law = not something I ever thought about much, beyond being a law abiding citizen, of course. And although 40% of my college classmates, including several of my closest friends, became lawyers, working in law was not a path I ever considered for myself. (Listen, I like reading as much as the next liberal arts grad, but someone’s gotta aspire to be an ice cream flavor developer to counterbalance all that lawyering! :) After Junipurr came into my life, however, I discovered a surprising truth: Law is hella important for animal welfare! From paradigm-shifting theoretical work (e.g. a systems solution that addresses food justice and farmed animal rights) to policy development to judicial action, animal law is a vast field that speaks to the very structural framework of animal welfare in each society. From a systems-level, few levers are more impactful in disrupting animal abuse and cruelty. If you have even the vaguest of interest in animal law or intersectional activism, The Animal Law Podcast is a must listen. Host Mariann Sullivan is an academic + activist who is fluent in the languages of Ivory Tower animal welfare theory but never loses sight of praxis and change-making. Even for people like me with no background in law, this podcast is reasonably accessible. Each episode effectively unpacks the issue at hand, provides the relevant context, and focuses on solutions and implications.
P.s. The Animal Law Podcast is an indie, pro-animal, women + LGBTQ-run, and vegan podcast. Street cred, much?
Species focus: All animals, including companion, farmed, captive, and wildlife
Start here: Ep 57 The Case of the Empty Pet Store is an excellent one for dog and cat lovers. For those who are interested in exploring animal law as a career path, Ep 33 Harvard’s Animal Law & Policy Program makes me want to quit my job and start a new career at my advanced age of 847 years old :)
You know how I promised you five podcasts? Trust, friend, you are going to get that and some — top five + an honorable mention! However, I don’t want to perpetuate information overload or overwhelm, so let’s take a community break. Check out these first three, let me know in the comments what you think, and come back next Tuesday for Part 2!
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