(upbeat music)
- So, this is a collaboration between GreaterGood and Wag!
You are a chief strategist for Wag!
Tell me a little bit about the genesis of this initiative.
- With GreaterGood.org, they wanted to start
this movement, the Stay At Home And Foster initiative.
They created this website where anyone can go and sign up
and then you can see which animals
they have that you connect with.
We already have 30,000 people signed up,
which means there's just fewer and fewer dogs
in shelters now because of that.
- What motivated you to get involved with
the Stay Home and [Foster] Initiative?
and I know right now, it's like high puppy and kitten season
at the shelters, and there's already a huge influx
of animals coming into the shelters,
and take on top of that, we've got a dramatic decrease
in people walking into shelters now
because we've got everyone quarantining
and staying at home, so if we can find homes
for these dogs to stay in during quarantine,
during this time, whether it's just being fostered by people
or if it becomes a long-term situation,
which would be great as well,
it's something that I think that people should know about.
It's a really great way to take away a lot of that stress
that we're feeling in the world right now,
when you bring in an animal into your home.
- I'm one of those people, who I'm such a proponent
of adopt, don't shop, and sometimes it's kind of baffling
to me that we still are having to have this conversation.
Why do you think that we're still having to get out there
and say, "Hey, animals in the shelters need help."
- And you make a really great point,
because it's, like, people who want animals,
but then they'll go and go through a breeder
instead of going to a shelter.
And it's always, it is confusing for me as well,
and I find that with a lot of people, they will say to me,
Chance right here is full-bred Cavalier King Charles.
So, this is like a show dog,
this is a very fancy kind of dog,
but he was in a puppy mill that was raided,
and he and his mom were rescued.
People don't always kind of understand that
any dog that you can think up or want,
- For anyone right now who is thinking they wanna foster,
thinking they wanna adopt, what's your advice for them?
- In times like this, I find that when you're doing things
that help other people,
and how it's all gonna be okay if we all work together,
and right now, animals need so much help
and so much love, especially because of the quarantine.
I say at the beginning,
don't pressure yourself into doing one thing or the other,
just, once you sign up, you start to see animals
that you connect with, or don't connect with,
you'll be able to filter through that
and one day when it hits you,
you should just go ahead and take that step
because it doesn't just make their lives better,
- What are you and Frankie and Chance doing
to stay sane during this time?
How are you guys keeping it together.
- Well, I'll tell you what we're not doing,
'cause I feel like that's all I see
people on Instagram doing.
I'm like, "Is there anybody that's just like
"watching 'Ozark' like me?"
On my to-do list, is organize this one drawer
and then watch "Ozark".
That's pretty much it, and I just hope everyone stays safe
and healthy out there, and knows that we're gonna
get through this, we just gotta flatten the curve
as they say, and get through this,
and if you can, bring a little friend into your family
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