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Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Make Your Passion for Helping Animals Sustainable!
Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Make Your Passion for Helping Animals Sustainable! episodes
- Ep. 70: Finding Purpose on the Other Side of Loss with Dan Trachtenberg and Michelle Nielsen
In this episode, I’m joined by Dan “The Cat Man” Trachtenberg and Michelle Nielsen, hosts of The Shelter Cats Podcast, for an honest conversation about what it’s really like to spend so much of your life focused on cats, rescue, and animal welfare.
Dan shares how the loss of his beloved cat Tyler ultimately inspired Shelter Cats & Redemption, the blog he created in Tyler’s memory—and how that journey eventually became The Shelter Cats Podcast. We also talk about the emotional challenges that come with being immersed in animal rescue, including grief, compassion fatigue, and the cumulative weight of caring about animals who desperately need our help.
Dan and Michelle share what compassion fatigue has looked like for them, how they cope when the work starts taking an emotional toll, and what keeps them going when things get hard.
In this episode, we talk about:
- The emotional realities of being involved in cat rescue
- How Dan's loss of Tyler inspired his work
- The evolution from Shelter Cats & Redemption to The Shelter Cats Podcast
- The unique challenges of constantly being exposed to stories of animals in need
- Compassion fatigue and how it can show up in animal advocates
- The importance of recognizing when caring starts to take a toll
- How Dan and Michelle cope with the emotional demands of their work
- What keeps them going when rescue feels overwhelming
- Finding meaning and connection in the work—even when it's hard
Resources Mentioned:
The Shelter Cats Podcast
Other Resources:
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
Pre-order your copy of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy here.
44 min - Ep. 69: You Are Enough: Identity and Self-Worth Affirmations for Animal Advocates
In animal welfare, it’s easy to fall into the belief that we’re only valuable when we’re helping, or that we’re never doing enough. After years of exposure to suffering, trauma, and loss, those beliefs can become deeply ingrained.
In this episode, I guide you through a series of identity and self-worth affirmations designed to help you practice a different way of talking to yourself.
These aren’t about toxic positivity or pretending everything is okay when it isn’t. They’re about recognizing that you have inherent worth, regardless of what you accomplish or how much you’re able to give.
Resources:
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Pre-order your copy of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
8 min - Ep. 68: Is it Compassion Fatigue...or PTSD?
Have you ever been awake at 2 a.m. replaying a cruelty case in your mind? Or found yourself unable to shake an image, constantly on edge, or avoiding a place because it reminds you of something you experienced while working or volunteering with animals?
If so, you may have wondered: Is this compassion fatigue, or is it something more?
In this episode of Beyond Compassion Fatigue, I explore the similarities and differences between PTSD, secondary traumatic stress, and compassion fatigue, and why understanding the distinction matters for people working and volunteering in animal welfare.
We explore:
- Why PTSD and compassion fatigue are often used interchangeably—but aren't technically the same thing
- What PTSD is and why it is considered a diagnosable mental health condition
- Why compassion fatigue is better understood as an umbrella term rather than a formal diagnosis
- How secondary trauma and secondary traumatic stress can affect animal welfare professionals
- The ways PTSD and secondary traumatic stress can look similar
- Why not every experience of distress should automatically be labeled PTSD
- How compassion fatigue, burnout, moral distress, grief, secondary traumatic stress, depression, and anxiety can overlap
- Why accurate assessment matters when determining what kind of support someone needs
- Why experiencing trauma or suffering does not mean you're weak or "not cut out for the job"
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
Pre-order your copy of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy here.
18 min - Ep. 67: Suicide Awareness and Prevention in Animal Welfare: Breaking the Silence
Warning: This episode contains discussions of suicide, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts, overdose, and death by suicide. Please take care of yourself while listening. You are always welcome to skip this episode or step away if the content feels overwhelming.
Suicide is a difficult subject, but one we can’t afford to avoid.
In this episode, I share an excerpt from Chapter five of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy, which explores suicide awareness and prevention in animal welfare.
In this excerpt, we explore:
- Why suicide can be particularly relevant to animal care and advocacy professionals
- The impact of euthanasia exposure and repeated encounters with animal suffering
- How workplace culture, isolation, and lack of support can increase vulnerability
- The connection between perfectionism, self-sacrifice, guilt, shame, and suicide risk
- Why we need to move beyond statistics and talk openly about the human beings behind them
- The importance of recognizing warning signs and risk factors
- Why creating cultures where people can ask for help is an essential part of suicide prevention
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, you don't have to face it alone. In the US, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. If you are in immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy is available for pre-order, with publication coming February 9, 2027.
More Resources:
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
8 min - Ep: 66: You Can Love Your Work and Still Experience Compassion Fatigue with Melissa Sherman and Sunny Gandara
In this episode, I’m joined by Melissa Sherman and Sunny Gandara, hosts of The Whole Pack Podcast, for a conversation about the emotional side of caring for animals. We explore how compassion fatigue can show up in less obvious animal-care roles, why the accumulation of small emotional experiences can be just as significant as major crises, and what happens when our passion makes it difficult to set boundaries.
We talk about emotional boundaries, coping skills, morning routines, walking meditation, EFT, the importance of peer support, and more.
We also explore compassion satisfaction and why reconnecting with the joyful, playful parts of our relationships with animals can help protect the very thing that brought us to this work in the first place.
About the Guests:
Sunny Gandara is a certified holistic pet health coach and canine nutritionist specializing in cancer prevention, TCVM food therapy, and whole-food nutrition for dogs, work she built after losing her Cane Corso Nacho to hemangiosarcoma and realizing that the support she desperately needed for pet parents in that position simply did not exist. Based in Beacon, New York she also works at Full Circle Veterinary Hospital alongside an integrative veterinarian twice a week. She bridges the gap between conventional and holistic care through her practice Nacho Average Dog Health Coach, helping pet parents navigate chronic illness, inflammation, and cancer.
Free Resource: “From Itchy Skin to Cancer: The Inflammation Roadmap” is a free guide that walks dog owners through the five stages chronic inflammation moves through, starting with things as ordinary as itchy skin or a sensitive stomach and ending at the cellular changes tied to cancer risk. It includes five healing recipes built on Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine food therapy, plus a seven-day inflammation reset checklist to start putting the information to work right away. It's built for owners who want to catch inflammation early, while there's still time to change the outcome.
Connect with Sunny:
WebsiteInstagram:@nachoaveragegdoghealthcoachFacebookTikTok: @doghealthcoachMelissa Sherman is an animal communicator and the founder of Calming Creek. She has dedicated her work to helping animals and the people who love them better understand one another, fostering deeper connection, healing, and a stronger bond. Melissa specializes in supporting sensitive animals and their guardians through behavior concerns, grief, and end-of-life transitions.
Free Resource: Beginner’s Guide to Energy Healing for Animals: A gentle introduction to simple practices that can help you slow down, ground yourself, and create a calmer, more connected space with the animals in your care.
Connect with Melissa:
Website: calmingcreek.com
Instagram: @calmingcreekhealingFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/calmingcreekTikTok: @calmingcreekThe Whole Pack Podcast – available on most platforms (Apple, Spotify, etc.) as well as on Substack
Instagram: @thewholepack_FacebookSubstackMore Resources:
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
Pre-order your copy of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy here.
29 min - Ep. 65: You’re Allowed to Say No: Boundary Affirmations for Animal Advocates
If you're someone who struggles with saying no, setting limits, or putting your own needs on the list, this episode is for you.
In animal care, welfare, rescue, vet med, and activism, boundaries can be particularly complicated. When you're surrounded by animals who need help and people who are struggling, it can be incredibly easy to fall into the belief that you have to keep giving—and that taking care of yourself means you're letting someone else down.
In this episode, I talk about affirmations and how they can help us practice a different way of talking to ourselves, particularly when it comes to boundaries.
And don't worry, this isn't about standing in front of the mirror declaring that everything is wonderful when it absolutely isn't.
You'll learn:
- Why affirmations aren't the same thing as toxic positivity
- How repetitive thoughts can become automatic
- What neuroplasticity has to do with changing thought patterns
- Why knowing you need a boundary isn't always enough to actually set one
- How affirmations can help you practice new beliefs
- Why you don't have to fully believe an affirmation for it to be useful
- How to incorporate affirmations into your everyday routine
- Boundary-setting affirmations specifically for animal welfare professionals
Resources:
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
Pre-order your copy of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy here.
18 min - Ep. 64: How One Radio Host Became a Voice for Shelter Animals with Holly Haze
On today's episode, I talk with animal advocate and longtime radio personality Holly Haze, whose journey into rescue began with a dog named Taco. After sharing Taco's story on social media and learning that he had been euthanized, Holly realized that awareness alone wasn't enough—she needed to do more.
That moment sparked a mission that eventually led to Furry Friday, a weekly radio feature highlighting shelter animals in need of homes. Through her voice and platform, Holly has helped countless animals find families while becoming deeply involved as a volunteer, foster, and board member.
We Explore:
- How grief and guilt can become catalysts for action
- The emotional realities of volunteering in animal welfare
- Compassion fatigue, burnout, and the "zealot phase"
- Why boundaries are essential for staying in the work long-term
- Finding compassion satisfaction in the small wins
- The systemic issues driving shelter overcrowding
- The importance of spay/neuter and public education
- Why every person—regardless of their skills or emotional bandwidth—has a place in helping animals
- How fostering, daycations, photography, social media, and even laundry can save lives
- Learning to accept that we cannot save them all while still making a difference
Resources Mentioned:
Holly’s Instagram
Country Acres Rescue
Additional Resources for Managing Compassion Fatigue:
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
Pre-order your copy of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy here.
38 min - Ep. 63: Emotional Numbness in Animal Welfare: When Compassion Fatigue Leads to Shutdown
In this episode of Beyond Compassion Fatigue Podcast, I explore one of the most misunderstood and least talked about experiences in animal welfare work: emotional numbness.
Many animal care professionals, rescuers, advocates, veterinary staff, shelter workers, wildlife rehabilitators, trainers, and activists eventually reach a point where they stop reacting emotionally the way they once did. Cases that used to keep them awake at night no longer seem to register emotionally. Tears stop coming. Compassion can begin to feel distant or inaccessible.
This episode dives into why emotional shutdown happens, how the nervous system adapts to chronic exposure to suffering and trauma, and why numbness does not mean you have stopped caring.
You’ll learn:
- The connection between compassion fatigue and emotional detachment
- How chronic stress and trauma exposure impact the nervous system
- The difference between caring deeply and feeling intensely
- Fight, flight, freeze, and shutdown responses
- Why emotional numbing is often a survival response
- The guilt and shame many helpers experience when they feel disconnected from their passion
- Bottom-up (body-first) and top-down (mind-first) strategies for reconnecting with yourself safely and sustainably
Resources mentioned:
Episode 57: Compassion Satisfaction: The Anchor in the Storm
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
14 min - Ep. 62: Rock-n-Recovery: How Holly Fontaine Manages Compassion Fatigue with Music
Lost dog recovery is a race against time, fueled by hope, heartbreak, patience, and perseverance. In this episode, I’m joined by Holly Fontaine, an award-winning animal advocate from Connecticut and volunteer with Connecticut Dog Gone Recovery. Holly spends countless hours helping frightened, lost dogs find their way back home, often under difficult and emotionally demanding circumstances.
Holly shares what drew her into lost dog recovery work, what the public often misunderstands about recovering lost dogs, and the emotional toll that comes with witnessing fear, loss, and suffering. We discuss compassion fatigue, anger, and the unique challenges faced by animal advocates who care deeply but cannot save every animal they encounter.
We also explore the strategies Holly uses to stay grounded, including exercise, focusing on small victories, and turning up her favorite 80s music when she needs to reset her nervous system. From the healing power of movement to the uplifting energy of classic songs, Holly offers practical and relatable insights for anyone working in animal care, rescue, welfare, or advocacy.
We discuss:
- The mission and work of Connecticut Dog Gone Recovery
- The emotional realities of animal advocacy
- Managing anger and frustration in animal welfare work
- How exercise helps regulate stress and emotions
- The surprising role of 80s music in emotional recovery
- Why celebrating small wins matters
- Finding peace through consistent action rather than perfection
Resources Mentioned:
Connecticut Dog Gone Recovery
More Resources:
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
Pre-order your copy of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy here.
38 min - Ep. 61: A Sneak Peek at Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Chapter One
On today's episode of Beyond Compassion Fatigue, I read a snippet from my forthcoming book of the same name. This reading is from chapter one: Pain versus Suffering. Want even more? Click here to download a free Sneak Peek Bundle which features the introduction, chapter one, and chapter six!
Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy publishes February 9, 2027 but is available for pre-order now!
Who is this book for?
- Animal shelter staff and volunteers
- Animal control officers
- Animal rescuers
- Animal sanctuary staff and volunteers
- Foster parents
- Veterinary professionals
- Wildlife rehabbers and conservationsists
- Adovcates and activists
- Anyone else involved in animal care and welfare!
More resources:
Sign up for my free monthly newsletter here.
Got a suggestion for a future topic? Reach out to me: [email protected].
Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!
Follow on social media:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Grab your free resources to help manage compassion fatigue here.
Visit my free virtual calming room here.
Get your copy of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior here.
Pre-order your copy of Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Trauma, Resilience, and Recovery in Animal Care and Advocacy here.
10 min
About Beyond Compassion Fatigue: Make Your Passion for Helping Animals Sustainable!
From the publisher's feed
A raw and authentic podcast for those who work or volunteer in animal care, welfare, or activism, who are struggling with compassion fatigue, burnout, grief and loss, secondary traumatic stress, and other mental health concerns. Through both solo and guest episodes, I blend science, psychology, spirituality, and even a touch of "woo woo" to help you manage compassion fatigue, build resilience, and make your passion for helping animals sustainable. If you're involved in animal caregiving, rescue, trap-neuter return (TNR), sheltering, animal control, cruelty investigations, veterinary medicine, fostering, wildlife or marine rehabilitation and conservation, animal law or lobbying, ethical veganism, or any other role in animal care, welfare, or activism, and struggling with the consequences of caring so much that it hurts, this podcast is for you!
The host, Jen Blough, LPC, is a licensed professional counselor, compassion fatigue coach and speaker, and author with more than 35 years of experience in animal welfare and activism. She is the author of To Save a Starfish: A Compassion Fatigue Workbook for the Animal Welfare Warrior and the upcoming book, Beyond Compassion Fatigue.