This week on Keep it Humane: The Podcast, we sit down with former St. Clair County Animal Control Director Melissa Miller following her recent resignation after a controversial vote by county commissioners to rewrite the county’s animal control ordinance. The changes shifted criminal animal cruelty investigations away from Animal Control and placed those responsibilities with local law enforcement agencies, a move Miller publicly opposed before stepping down. (St. Clair Area View⁠)

Melissa joins us to discuss the events leading up to her resignation, her concerns about the future of animal cruelty investigations, and what these changes could mean for animal welfare professionals, law enforcement, and the animals they serve. This candid conversation explores the challenges of leadership, advocacy, and navigating policy decisions that impact the profession.

Whether you’re an animal control officer, shelter professional, veterinarian, or animal welfare advocate, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

In this episode of Keep it Humane: The Podcast, Daniel Ettinger and Ashley Bishop sit down with the team from Feral Fixers TNR Club to discuss the important role Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) programs play in managing community cat populations and improving the lives of cats and the neighborhoods they call home.

We explore the realities of community cat management, the challenges faced by volunteers and animal welfare organizations, and how grassroots efforts can create meaningful change. From reducing shelter intake to improving cat welfare and strengthening community partnerships, this conversation highlights the impact dedicated advocates can have when they come together with a shared purpose.

Whether you’re an animal welfare professional, volunteer, rescuer, or simply someone who cares about cats, this episode offers insight into one of the most discussed and important topics in animal welfare today.

Join us for a thoughtful conversation about community cats, collaboration, and helping people help animals.

In this episode of Keep it Humane: The Podcast, Daniel Ettinger, Ashlee Bishop and Ashley Bishop sit down with Dr. Sara Pizano, founder of Team Shelter USA, for a candid conversation about the current state of animal sheltering in America.

From intake diversion and community-based programs to public policy, field services, and shelter operations, Dr. Pizano shares lessons learned from working with shelters and communities across the country. The discussion explores how animal welfare has evolved over the years, the challenges shelters face today, and the difficult decisions that come with balancing animal care, public expectations, and limited resources.

Whether you agree, disagree, or fall somewhere in between, this episode is an opportunity to hear one of the most influential voices in modern animal sheltering discuss where the profession has been, where it is today, and where it may be headed next.

Daniel and Ashley are joined by Nicole Navarro from Pawsitive Beginnings to talk animal rescue, advocacy, and the realities of working in animal welfare. From helping vulnerable animals to supporting the community, Nicole shares the passion and challenges behind the work being done every day to make a difference.

The conversation covers rescue efforts, public perception, collaboration in animal welfare, and the dedication it takes to keep showing up for animals in need. Honest, insightful, and fun, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

Ashley Bishop takes over the mic solo for this episode of Keep it Humane: The Podcast as she sits down with the team from Anti-Cruelty, Chicago’s oldest and largest open-door animal welfare organization. Founded in 1899, Anti-Cruelty has spent more than a century evolving alongside the animal welfare profession while staying committed to the bond between people and pets.

Ashley and her guests dive into the realities of modern sheltering, including access to care, community outreach, veterinary affordability, pet retention, and what sustainable animal welfare really looks like in 2026. The conversation explores how organizations can move beyond statistics and focus on helping both animals and the humans who love them.

From the challenges facing shelters nationwide to the importance of collaboration, innovation, and compassion fatigue awareness, this episode offers an honest look at where the profession has been — and where it needs to go next.

Whether you work in animal welfare or simply care about animals and the communities they live in, this episode is packed with insight, perspective, and a few laughs along the way.

What started as a classroom demonstration about how quickly cats can reproduce without spay and neuter somehow turned into the CATTOO challenge, 27 tattoos, and now a Forbes article.

In this episode of Keep it Humane: The Podcast, Daniel and Ashley break down the story behind the article, why the CATTOO challenge was created, and the bigger conversation around cat overpopulation, access to care, and responsible animal welfare.

They also discuss the real impact of spay and neuter programs, the strain shelters and rescues continue to face, and why community-based solutions matter more than ever.

Sometimes the best way to start a serious conversation is with something people will never forget.

In this episode, we sit down with the team behind Journey Home Animal Control, a community-driven organization redefining what animal control can look like. Built on compassion, education, and real-world problem solving, Journey Home is filling critical gaps in traditional services—helping keep pets with the families who love them while supporting communities in practical, humane ways.

We dive into their innovative approach to lost pet recovery, including the use of trail cameras and behavior-based strategies, and explore how programs like Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) and their Home-to-Home rehoming model are reducing shelter intake while improving outcomes for animals and people alike.

Founder Rachael shares how a background in veterinary medicine and a passion for community outreach led to the creation of an organization that blends animal control with empathy—challenging outdated perceptions and proving that enforcement and compassion don’t have to be at odds.

This conversation is a must-listen for animal control officers, shelter professionals, and anyone interested in the future of community-based animal welfare. If you’ve ever wondered what it looks like to meet people where they are—and keep more animals out of the shelter system—this episode delivers.

In this episode of Keep it Humane: The Podcast, we sit down with Deborah Felin McGaldi from Helen Sanders CatPAWS to talk all things cats, community, and compassion.

Deborah shares how CatPAWS is transforming feline welfare in California through their trap-neuter-return (TNR) programs, low-cost spay/neuter clinic, kitten fostering network, and community outreach efforts across Southern California. We dive into the ethics and realities of TNR, including the often controversial topic of spay-abort procedures for pregnant feral cats, and discuss the legal challenges surrounding TNR practices in California.

The impact of their work is undeniable—Deborah explains how their programs have helped reduce kitten euthanasia rates at local shelters from roughly 1,000 per year to around 100. We also talk about the barriers that keep people from fostering, from time commitments to financial concerns, and why community involvement is essential to saving more lives.

If you care about cats, animal shelters, and practical solutions in animal welfare, this is an episode you won’t want to miss. 🐱