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: 

Resources: 

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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.

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:

Resources Mentioned:

Holly’s Instagram 

Country Acres Rescue

Additional Resources for Managing Compassion Fatigue: 

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Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!

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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.

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:

Resources mentioned: 

Episode 57: Compassion Satisfaction: The Anchor in the Storm

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Interested in becoming certified in compassion fatigue? Learn more here!

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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. 

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:

Resources Mentioned: 

Connecticut Dog Gone Recovery

More Resources:

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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.

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? 

More resources: 

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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: 

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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.

Working in animal welfare and behavior can be incredibly rewarding—but it can also take a significant emotional toll. In this episode, I sit down with Carol Sumbry, a Certified Behavior Consultant, Force-Free Certified Professional Dog Trainer, Trauma-Informed Approach Professional, Therapy Dog Evaluator, and Family Dog Mediator™, to discuss the realities of compassion fatigue in behavior work and the importance of finding sustainable ways to care for yourself while caring for others.

Carol shares her journey into animal welfare, the emotional impact of working with aggression and trauma cases, and the lessons she's learned after decades of helping dogs and the people who love them. We also explore how movement, creativity, hobbies, and other self-care practices have become essential tools in helping her navigate the challenges of this work.

We discuss: 

Resources: 

Carol's website

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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. 

In this episode of Beyond Compassion Fatigue, I open up about a recent emotional meltdown that left me overwhelmed by intrusive thoughts, painful memories, and a dysregulated nervous system. After struggling to calm down, I finally turned to a surprisingly simple grounding technique called cognitive shuffling, a science-backed tool that helped me settle down.

I explore how intrusive thoughts, trauma memories, grief, chronic stress, and secondary traumatic stress often intensify at night, especially for those working in animal care, welfare, rescue, veterinary medicine, sheltering, and activism. I explain why the harder we try to suppress distressing thoughts, the stronger they often become, and how cognitive shuffling works differently by gently redirecting the brain into a more relaxed, sleep-friendly state.

You’ll learn:

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: 

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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. 

In this episode, I sit down with Kelly Motter for an honest conversation about sustainable fostering, boundaries in animal rescue, and the emotional weight that comes with caring deeply for animals in need.

If you’ve ever struggled with guilt for saying “no,” felt overwhelmed by the endless need in rescue, or wondered how to continue helping animals without completely burning yourself out, this episode is for you.

Kelly shares the realities of fostering, the lessons she learned about emotional limits, and the boundaries that helped her continue showing up for animals in a healthier and more sustainable way.

In This Episode, We Discuss:

Resources mentioned:

Listen to The Foster Files on your favorite platform or watch on YouTube

Kelly’s Instagram

Other resources:

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. 

In this solo episode of Beyond Compassion Fatigue, I talk about my rescue goat, Gracie, and how she represent compassion satisfaction—the joy, meaning, and fulfillment that comes from helping animals and making a difference.

I share Gracie’s rescue story and explore how animal welfare professionals and advocates can experience both burnout and deep fulfillment at the same time. Drawing on research, personal reflection, and the wisdom of Viktor Frankl, this episode examines why compassion satisfaction matters and how it can serve as a protective factor against compassion fatigue, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress.

I discuss:

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. 

In this eye-opening episode of Beyond Compassion Fatigue, I sit down with veterinary receptionist and animal advocate Sam Anderkay to explore the often-overlooked emotional toll carried by veterinary support staff.

Sam shares her journey from volunteering at Valley of the Kings Wildlife Sanctuary and Retreat, where she cared for abused and neglected tigers, wolves, bears, and farm animals, to spending nearly eight years on the front lines of veterinary medicine as a customer service representative.

We dive into the unique ways compassion fatigue impacts veterinary receptionists, who are often the very first and very last point of contact for distressed and grieving pet parents. Sam opens up about the emotional weight of euthanasia appointments, absorbing client grief, balancing constant multitasking, and the anxiety and depression that nearly pushed her out of the field entirely.

We also explore:

Resources:

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.