Question of the week: To all my vegan and vegetarian friends: what was the catalyst that convinced you to change your eating habits? I read your answers in this episode.

Q&U Vegan Catalysts

If you're a pet lover, an animal shelter volunteer, or an animal advocate of any kind, this is the show for you! A good story will seep into your soul, grip your heart, and linger in your memory. Your story could be the spark that inspires action and saves lives. This is the podcast that shares rescue stories about love, tragedy, and survival told by rescuers just like you. There will be one new episode every week, rotating between a new narrative, rescue story AND our Q&U episode which will feature your answers to one of my many rescue and pet related questions. This show will be broken up into two seasons every year, with short breaks in between. You can expect to see new episodes popping up from February through May, and then again from August through November.

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Get links to everything we talked about at http://myrescuerocks.net/45 Welcome to the season finale of My Rescue Rocks! It’s kind of become the tradition for each season to end with a conversation, and today’s conversation is all about a powerful concept that’s totally changed my life over the past few years. In 2010 I was working hard to establish myself as a professional photographer, I was building my portfolio, working any and all photo-related jobs from portraits to products. For most of that year it was all work and no play for me… I’m not sure what first inspired me, but a holiday was coming up, Nick was going away, and I found a bag full of Yoshi’s beautiful feathers that I’d collected over the years… he’s an orange-winged amazon, so his feathers are really colorful and unique. Somehow, free time and inspiration collided and I found myself playing with my camera. I got two really beautiful photos out of my playtime, but more than that, I felt really charged and refreshed and I wondered why I didn’t play with my camera more often. So I decided that I would. This is essentially the story of how I became an artist, but I don’t want you to zero in on the artist outcome, what’s more important than that, and what I want you to know is, that this is also the story of how I recognized that I was creative. My point being, not everyone wants to be an artist, I know that, but everyone is creative in some way, and everyone can really benefit from having creative play in their lives. So, after playing around for awhile, I showed one of my flower photos to a photographer I assisted, and he told me that it reminded him of Georgia O’Keefe. I was floored, he was comparing my photo to a real artist, a real and quite famous artist. It might sound silly, but before I had that validation, I always told myself that I wasn’t creative. In fact, if I knew that photography could be so creative, I probably would’ve been afraid to pursue it. But to make a long story short, that was the spark that inspired me to keep making art and to figure out what it would take to become an artist. And that, my friends, is how I discovered today’s guest. I assume I Googled “how to become an artist,” or “how to sell art,” and I came across an online course that would teach me all about it. The course had two teachers, one taught all the tactical approaches to running an online art business, and the other taught us how to overcome the mindset issues that plague us in the pursuit of creativity. Both teachers gave us so much value, but being able to recognize and put a stop to all the negative voices in my head is the skill I value most these days, and I’m not sure I would have developed it at all if it weren’t for Melissa Dinwiddie. That course doesn’t exist anymore, but I’ve followed Melissa ever since. Her blog, and now, her podcast too, have inspired and empowered me over the past few years, and I’m honored to be able to bring her into your ears today. And, because this is a podcast about adopted pets, I asked Melissa to share the story of how she met her soul-kitty, because I knew you’d enjoy it. But this episode is more about you, and we quickly move into the fascinating ways that creative play can make your world a better place. Ok, here we go, I hope you enjoy our conversation. Get links to everything we talked about at http://myrescuerocks.net/45 Please help us spread our rescue stories by sharing this show with a friend, PAWlease, I’d really appreciate it! You can also help out by subscribing, and leaving a rating and review on either  iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks so much for your support!

Recharge, Refresh, and Change the World with Creative Play with Melissa Dinwiddie

Get all the spooky stuff we talked about right here: http://myrescuerocks.net/44 Happy Halloween!! Well if you’re listening to this on the day it goes out that is, if not well you’re about to regress a little bit, because this is a Halloween special and things are about to get spooky. Back when Britany and I were making plans to do these Q&U; shows together I sent her a list of possible questions I wanted to send out to you and when she told me that her favorite question was the same as mine, I got so excited, because it was my favorite question too! We wanted to know if your pets have ever done anything to make you believe in their 6th sense. We got a few intriguing answers, too. Animals are so amazing… The other thing that made me giddy about this episode, is that Britany spent some time as a paranormal investigator, so we dig into a bunch of her creepy and strange experiences with the supernatural, as well as a couple of ghost stories of my own… Some spooky stuff has been going on in our new house… So, here we go, there’s a few minutes of behind the scenes, podcasty, technical talk in the beginning, but that’s just what happens when you try to be real… I hope you enjoy our conversation… it’s a little spooky, but all true! Get all the spooky stuff we talked about right here: http://myrescuerocks.net/44 Please help us spread our rescue stories by sharing this show with a friend, PAWlease, I’d really appreciate it! You can also help out by subscribing, and leaving a rating and review on either  iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks so much for your support!

Q&U: Spooky… but True, A Halloween Special

Get the show notes at http://myrescuerocks.net/43.  Ya know, even though I’ve been involved in animal rescue for a few years, I feel like the rabbit hole is never ending. It’s more like a black hole than a rabbit hole, because ever since I dipped my toe into the inky blackness I got totally sucked in and I haven’t been able to climb back out… not that I want to climb back out. No, I’d rather know the truth, which is another funny thing because I used to live by that whole ignorance is bliss rule, and while that expression might still be true, ignorance is also just ignorance. Ever since I started this podcast, I feel like I’ve been on this journey and it’s taken me places I never expected to go. I mean, I have to give you credit, because if I didn’t have anyone listening I probably wouldn’t dig nearly as deep as I do… making these podcasts propels me more than anything else has so far. And, I thank you for riding along with me as I learn and grow. So, I was introduced to today’s guest by the Debs, and if you haven’t listened to our past two storytellers I highly recommend you check out episode 39 and episode 41. They are two of the most courageous stories I’ve had the pleasure to share on this show. They told me they had a friend who runs an animal sanctuary who’d love to share some stories on the show. Today’s guest discovered her passion for animals with the same gateway drug I was always high on… dog love. I’m honored to introduce Sandra Cordero and this is her story…  To access links to resources and see some photos submitted by our storyteller, please visit http://myrescuerocks.net/43. Please help us spread our rescue stories by sharing this show with a friend, PAWlease, I’d really appreciate it! You can also help out by subscribing, and leaving a rating and review on either  iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks so much for your support!

The Birth of an Animal Sanctuary with Sandra Cordero

Get the show notes at http://myrescuerocks.net/42 A couple of weeks ago we learned all about how we can overcome some of the challenges Pit Bull parents face… and even though it is Pit Bull Awareness Month and I mention that particular label quite a bit in this show, Pit Bulls are not the only dogs who get stereotyped. I’ve seen more than one rental property ad that listed Rottweilers and Dobermans and even German Shepherds as banned breeds. These dogs are thrown under the “dangerous” category, while other breeds are automatically labeled as “safe” or “friendly.” These stereotypes are accepted subconsciously by many of us – our conditioning simply a product of too much faith in the mass media, in my opinion anyway. But when you take a minute to think about it, dog breed stereotypes are just as ridiculous as labeling any one race of human as dangerous or safe. We are individuals and so are dogs. “Dogs are individuals.” I say that in quotes because I can’t take credit for this simple truth… I see it on bumper stickers all the time now, because this is actually the slogan of Animal Farm Foundation, which is a local animal shelter that’s been educating the public on breed equality for the past several years. Today’s guest was the assistant director of Animal Farm Foundation until 2015, and she continued to speak on their behalf even after she moved onto her dream job… as you’ll soon hear she now works as the Director of Operations at HeARTs Speak, and it’s through HeARTs Speak’s Perfect Exposure Project that I got the chance to bond with her this past spring. And just in case you’re new here, or you need a little refresher, the Perfect Exposure Project is a 2-day photography and marketing workshop that has visited shelters all over the country. It’s also through HeARTs Speak that I was guided to a post on the Animal Farm Foundation blog that totally intrigued me, it was called “Breed Labels: When Guesses Turn into Predictions.” That’s the issue we’re talking about today, and my lovely guest, Caitlin Quinn, is here to tell us what some shelters are doing to fix it! To access links to resources and see some photos submitted by our storyteller, please visit http://myrescuerocks.net/42 Please help us spread our rescue stories by sharing this show with a friend, PAWlease, I’d really appreciate it!   You can also help out by subscribing, and leaving a rating and review on either  iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks so much for your support!

To Breed Label or Not to Breed Label with Caitlin Quinn

To access links to resources and see some photos submitted by our storyteller, please visit http://myrescuerocks.net/41.  I’m super excited about today’s show not just because it’s an amazing story, but also because we’re breaking the paw barrier with this episode, that’s right, no dogs or cats in today’s story… nope, today we have a story about saving piggies! Two weeks ago, Deb Ozarko shared her story with us, and our storyteller for today was actually her partner in crime in the puppy rescue she told us about. I also told you about her book, and one of the tear-jerkers inside, was a touching story, about a pivotal time in her partner’s life. This woman both stunned and inspired me with her impulsive nature… I was really intrigued about how she was able to practically flip a switch and change everything about her life. It wouldn’t have shocked me if she did it for money or fame… people chase these dreams anywhere… but no, today’s guest was changing her entire life for love and love alone. Love for herself, love for her partner, love for animals, and love for this planet. I found out later on, that shortly after she moved on from her previous life, our storyteller also spent some time working for the International Fund for Animal Welfare and rescuing animal victims of natural, and not-so-natural, disasters all over the world. I’m thrilled to present to you, Deb Gleason… and this is her story.  To access links to resources and see some photos submitted by our storyteller, please visit http://myrescuerocks.net/41.  Please help us spread our rescue stories by sharing this show with a friend, PAWlease, I’d really appreciate it! You can also help out by subscribing, and leaving a rating and review on either  iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks so much for your support!

Q&U Vegan Catalysts

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