Dori Durbin: Welcome to, that's Good Parenting, the podcast that helps parents get results from experts. And you know what? Sometimes it even helps us have better kids and better dogs as well. Today we're talking about something that touches so many families, lives, adding a pet to your home. You know, pets can bring love, laughter, and teach us our kids about empathy, but they also bring challenges that maybe we're not always prepared for today.

My guest knows all about that. Her name is Amy Castro and she is the host of Pet Parent Hotline. And before we begin, Amy, would you just take a moment to introduce yourself to our listeners in case they don't know who you are yet, and tell 'em what you do. 

Amy Castro: Sure. So, um, I do a lot of things. I wear a lot of hats, so I have a business, I do communication training for humans, so try to keep them in line.

But I also am the founder and president of Starlight Outreach and Rescue. So I've [00:01:00] seen the pet world from the inside of rescue, and I've personally had come through my home more than 4,000 pets. So I know what it's like to bring a new pet into your home. And so the pet parent hotline, the podcast was started, it was it started from conversations that I was having with people who were calling the rescue, looking basically to surrender their pets.

And I hate to see a good family, a good person give up their pet. And so I thought I can either answer these questions one-on-one on phone calls. Or I can start a podcast and answer the questions that I get and hopefully reach more people. I mean, my goal is a hundred percent to, if I could have all shelters and rescues go away, I would be glad for that, that we didn't need those anymore.

I think that's highly unlikely, but I'd sure like to see a lot less of 'em. 

Dori Durbin: Yeah, I, I feel like so many parents get dogs or cats in hopes that this is gonna be their kid's new best [00:02:00] friend. And I know that in reality when you add a pet, it really changes how your family, their daily rhythm of things and even like the stress level.

So what's one thing already just off the top of your head that you wish parents really already knew before they even got their family pet? 

Amy Castro: I so what I wish is that people would go into getting a pet with some criteria beyond just a single word. I'm looking for a dog, I'm looking for a puppy, a cat, whatever, hamster, whatever it might be. I think we spend more time researching the car that we're gonna get, and we don't just go to a car lot and say, just give me whatever, or let me see what the, what mood hits me, and I'll just buy, I'll buy that.

We go in with a list and we are looking for certain gas mileage and certain number of seats and towing capacity, whatever we're looking for, and we use that to screen what we're gonna consider. And we absolutely need to be doing kind of the [00:03:00] same thing when it comes to a pet. and it's like, yeah, Just because you had a certain pet when you were a child. Doesn't mean that that's gonna be a good pet for you as a parent.

Mm-hmm. Because I think I hear that quite a bit too. Like, oh, I grew up with golden retrievers, or whatever the animal is, and it's like, yeah, but your parents were taking care of it and they were the ones that did the training or whatever. You don't, or even just something as simple as not remembering what it's like to have a puppy.

You and I talked about that. The other, you know, the other day it's like, oh, my dog's awesome, I wanna get another one just like it. And you forgot that it was a monster when it was a puppy Basically to avoid the spontaneous, emotional, or impulsive decision that we sometimes up end up getting when you go to a shelter or a rescue and you see all the little sad faces.

Dori Durbin: It's funny, I remember our first dog that we got. We decided based off of which one came to us first. And I've always heard that, that was a good way. But honestly, like if we, we had gone into it [00:04:00] with the perspective of we want one that does this and, really checked out what the breed was even like, and what problems they had and

that would've been probably a totally different adoption at that point. We did great, but it wasn't without surprises and lots of obstacles along the way. So, and that's what you're saying, if they did that research, that would probably solve a 

Amy Castro: lot of it. Hundred, a hundred percent. You know, I've had people, uh, one of my first podcast episodes was about a friend who had called me looking for a, you know, do you know somebody who breeds this kind of dog?

And I never try to chastise anybody. I mean, I do believe that there is a need and a purpose for pure bred dogs. But what I wanna know is why do you, why that, why are you looking for that? What do you hope that's gonna bring to you? What do you know about that? In the end, she actually ended up adopting a dog from a rescue that was not that breed.

And, and that's okay. It's really about finding, to me it's all about fit. What, you know, doing your homework so that you get the right fit pet for you and your family to [00:05:00] minimize the chaos that comes from bringing a new pet in. I mean, it's, it's always gonna be a change, like you mentioned. It's gonna be a change to your routines and things like that, but the more that you've prepared for it, the less of a slap in the head.

It tends to be when it happens. 

Dori Durbin: And, and sometimes it really is that. Exactly. Yes, it 

Amy Castro: is. 

Dori Durbin: Well, it's interesting that you brought up the rescue because I think a lot of people beyond wanting purebreds, they also have the terms rescue and shelter kind of interchangeably used, and I know that they're not the same.

Um, so can you explain the differences between adopting from a shelter versus working with a rescue organization and how they're different? 

Amy Castro: That's a, a great question because you're right, people do blend them together and there is overlap, you know, because it is terminology. Sometimes people use different words, but to me there's kind of two maybe three sides of things, 

Amy Castro: but we'll just focus on two.

A shelter is generally [00:06:00] going to be. Run by a government entity. So a county shelter. I know in, I live in Alvin, Texas. We have the city of Alvin Animal Control and they have a shelter. So a shelter is going to be, in general a facility that their primary responsibility is going to be picking up stray and abandoned animals and basically turning them around as quickly as possible.

So oftentimes a shelter will pick up an animal. They hold it for three days. An owner doesn't claim it, and if it is safe and adoptable, and that's a whole gray area right there. They put it on the adoption floor and then it's available for you to come and pick. They don't generally know as much about the animal as you probably need to know.

So you're taking a little bit of a more chance. But when you do a job adopt from a shelter and you do your homework, you're probably more likely to be saving a life because that's another thing that people get. Very honed in on, you know, they'll say things, which makes no sense. [00:07:00] I don't wanna adopt from a kill shelter.

You know, one that euthanizes pets. Well, that's where you really should be going first, because that's where you're saving the life. Whereas if it is a no kill shelter, the odds are that ch that animal's got a much better chance. So there's, and there's subtleties in there as, as well. But you know, if you've got a city of fill in the blank shelter, then that's kind of what, how it runs.

On the rescue side, rescues are private entities. They should be non-profit. So I would definitely look for that. But it's a much wider range. There are rescues that have facilities that they've either purchased or donate or been donate donated to them. My Rescue, Starlight Outreach and Rescue is a foster based rescue.

So we take in animals and then they live in volunteers' homes. And so, and you might find that rescues will hold onto animals longer. They may know more about that animal because it's lived in someone's home [00:08:00] versus living in a kennel in a facility that I work at from nine to five. So those are, those are some of the differences.

The, you know, the other thing that you'll find when it comes to adopting a pet, and again, we're talking about the two extremes of the experience, is that it's gonna be easier and less hoops to jump through in general to adopt from a shelter than from rescues. Some rescues have very extensive processes to adopt.

They might wanna come look under your bed. Okay, maybe not really under your bed, but home. They do home visits, they do background checks, they do all these other things, whereas a shelter might just do an application and say, this is a fit or not a fit, but they're probably not gonna come to your home.

Check your fence, check your yard, things like that. So be prepared when you go with a rescue that. It might be a little bit more of a process than it would be walking into your city shelter. 

Dori Durbin: Hmm. I love the idea of them that the animals living in people's houses [00:09:00] because it's so much more revealing than being in a pen with a whole bunch of other dogs.

I mean, right. You can get information either way, but. Seeing how they react to other animals, um, cats, you know, uh, kids, all of the things that's, that's 

Amy Castro:so 

Dori Durbin: much different. 

Amy Castro: And it's hard to judge an animal in a shelter. It, it's always because you're a stranger and it's a strange environment.

But I've had many times, 'cause I've volunteered at a shelter for 10 years, and when you go and you take a family down the dog aisle, let's say. Everybody goes ballistic. And so you're gonna have the ballistic ones, and then you're gonna have the ones that are terrified by all the noise and hiding in the corner.

And neither one of those seems super desirable, but you're not getting a clear picture of what that animal's gonna be out of that cage and out of that environment. And that's, that's the sad reality sometimes with pets. 'cause uh, as a volunteer, I would try to steer people towards something I felt like was a good fit based on my conversation with them.

And then the animal doesn't [00:10:00] show, well that's the, you know, because it's acting wild and excited and it's like, let's take it out, let's see, see what it's like outside of the, uh, the cage environment. So is it's, that's an ideal situation. At least get to see the animal outside of that environment. 

Dori Durbin: Okay, let me ask you this.

So when families decide to get dogs, do they often bring their kids. And if they bring their kids, is there always a classic promise of, I'll take care of the dog, I promise it'll be mine, I'll take care of it. Do you see that a lot? And does it tend to not pan out? 

Amy Castro: Come on, moms and dads, you know already how it's gonna pan out.

Gimme a break. I think it depends on the age of the child. I think that, and I tell this to parents all the time, that if you're gonna get a pet, you better love it and look forward to doing all of the care, because the odds are you're gonna be doing all or some of it. If nothing else, you'll be the one taking it to the vet because you're gonna have to deal with that.

So I always [00:11:00] say, if you don't want a pet, I had this happen the other day, a young woman, and she was older. I mean she was an adult, but living at home and. As the conversation progressed, it was quite obvious to me that her mother did not want a pet. And she already had started saying things like, it better not.

And it's like, I don't think this is gonna be a good fit, because I already see where the fighting is going to start down the road. So I would say go into it knowing you're, you're gonna probably do everything, or at least most of the work. 

Dori Durbin: Yeah. And do you have, I mean, that was actually one of my other questions was even with the best preparation, even with the best planning, the research, sometimes animals just don't get along with the family right away.

And it might take, there might be a settling period. Is that typical for a lot of families? Like they'll get a pet and then. They're overwhelmed by, you know, the change and I what all this means. And then how do they fix that? What do they do? 

Amy Castro:Yeah, that's a good, that's a good question. Yes, there's always [00:12:00] gonna be a change because an animal, you know, whether it's come, even if it's come from a home environment, you know, that would be the ideal, right?

It wasn't in your home environment. So it's going to be more guarded, more careful, more this or that. I mean, you're, what you see is not what you get when you first bring that animal home. And so you've gotta be prepared for that adjustment period. And it's always, people will oftentimes turn around in 24.

I've had people try to return an animal and try, I mean, I've allowed them to return the animal, but called to return an animal less than 24 hours after they brought it home and. You know, it's, it's gonna take time for that animal to adjust and to get used to your routines and to really show its true personality and really show how well does it get along with your kids or your other pets.

And the one thing I would say along that is follow the advice of the f facility you're getting the animal for from, for [00:13:00] adapting that animal to your home. And that's also part of your homework if you don't get that advice, is to think about what do you do when you first bring it home? How do you introduce it to everybody?

Where do you keep the pet? There's lots of great information about how to make that transition smooth. To decrease a bad outcome. 

Dori Durbin: Because we've been talking about some of the challenges of having pets. What are some of the positives of having pets 

Amy Castro: I think this stereotypical things that we hear about pets and what they bring to life, unconditional love. Yes. You know, I, I do agree. Even though I just did an episode about why you shouldn't get a pet for your child under the age of five. And one of the examples I gave is 'cause it's not gonna teach them responsibility 'cause they're four, you know, that kind of thing.

But in the grand scheme of things, yes, it can teach children responsibility, it can teach them compassion, it can teach them about putting. [00:14:00] Something else above themselves. You know, the inconvenience of taking the dog for a walk in the rain because he's gotta go potty, that kind of thing. It's, you know, there, there are a lot of, a lot of benefits and they, they do fully, if you're doing things right, they do fully become part of the family.

And when you lose them for whatever reason down the road, out of age or what, you know, old age you'll feel the gap. I mean, I can even as somebody who's run a rescue and has had so many animals, and I, sometimes I feel like I'm a bit jaded to it, when you lose one of your own personal pets, you feel it when they're not there anymore and you then you remember how much they added to your life.

So a lot of benefits. 

Dori Durbin: Do you have any tricks for parents about making the connection? Because I, I bring this up because I think a lot of times when the pet seems like more energy, more work parents are maybe straddled between their kids needing the attention, the pets needing the attention, [00:15:00] we lose that sense that this is a member of the family that, that this dog or cat has feelings and emotions.

So do you have any tricks that you teach people as how to connect to that animal a little bit easier? 

Amy Castro: Well, I think it starts with getting, and I hate to keep stressing this, but getting the right animal in the first place. You know, the energy level, the, you know, the family that is, maybe not as active, but they get an animal that has an extreme need for exercise.

You know, it's like if you want to get something that has a, you know, a high energy dog for an example that needs to run, you better have a runner in your family because letting them run around the backyard is, is not gonna work. And so the fit, you know, finding the right fit pet for you in the first place.

And then I think just like you carve out time as you should, hopefully as a parent, you carve out time to spend one-on-one time with one of your children at a, you know, if you've got multiple children or you spend, you try to car, carve out a little bit [00:16:00] of time for yourself to have some alone time or some me time, or whatever you wanna call it, to carve out that time for the pet too.

And I, what I have to do with my pets, because I've, even though I don't have as many rescue pets at the moment, I still have six animals in, in my house, living in my house. And so I try to make a point, even something as simple as. Closing the bedroom door in the morning while I'm sitting, having my coffee and leave, you know, and giving attention to one of them at a time for 15 minutes brushing or petting or whatever it might be.

But you've, you've gotta kind of carve that time out. The other thing I would say too is give yourself Grace A. Little bit when you can't, because I, so much of things in life are seasonal or stages, and so yeah, maybe when your kids are really little, you can't do it as much, but maybe you can make up for it in other ways.

So it's, uh, it's a balancing act for sure. 

Dori Durbin: If listeners don't know this already, we have a Portuguese water dog and it's a [00:17:00] high energy dog. Um, she is still young and she does require a lot of attention. And what I've been learning, and it, it's been accidentally more than anything, is that if we try to give her attention just through physical exercise, she wants more physical exercise.

And I think some of this parent owning or this dog owning is also about learning what else you can do with them besides just one thing. Yeah. So like for her, it's like she loves for us to hide her toys and have her find them, and I'm shoving them into cupboards, I'm putting 'em underneath things. And you know, same thing with treats.

That wasn't something that we ever did with our first dogs because, you know, they, they didn't need that wasn't the kind of personality they were. Right. So I think that kind of goes back to this whole thing of like relating to them and finding their, what they enjoy. Right. Do you have other tricks or things like that you've heard work well for families too?

Help entertain their dogs besides [00:18:00] taking them for walks. 

Amy Castro:Yeah. Well, I mean, and, and I think, you know, broadly beyond just dogs too, uh, you know, the what people are focusing on a lot these days instead of exercise is enrichment. So what you're describing is an example of enrichment finding, seeking something, especially for a dog that is inherently maybe bred to do that.

Just even just changing up. And I'll tell you one thing I did that was very, a very interesting thing. So I live on seven acres and I always let the dogs out in the backyard. They've got a huge backyard, it's probably an acre just for the backyard part. And I did an episode where somebody was talking about enrichment and just being in a different location to smell different stuff, see different trees, whatever it might be.

So I started letting him out. The front is fence too. Letting 'em out the front door. Oh my gosh. These animals would at four 30 in the afternoon, they would get so excited sitting by the front door to go out the front door. It's like, it's the same yard, but it's different smells. You know, there have been barn cats up [00:19:00] there that there wouldn't have been in the backyard.

Maybe there's a different squirrel. There's goats that live across the street and cattle next door. So there's, I think, looking for just different locations and not doing the same old, same old thing. And I think it also goes back to the pet itself. You know, cats, just as an example, cats still need enrichment, but your opportunities for doing that are gonna be maybe easier, uh, and maybe more confined to your home.

And so knowing, going into it, what am I able to provide this pet? Am I able to take it to a different park every day to smell different stuff? If the answer's no, then maybe, you know, looking at a different type of pet where you can provide what it's, what it needs, the other thing I would say too, we've been talking about puppies and bringing home puppies, is that adopting an older pet that maybe has less energy, less need for training, things like that.

So that what time you do have is not focused on the, I must teach it to come when I call [00:20:00] it. If that's already done, then you can focus on things that might be a little bit, a little bit easier, like enjoyable activities versus tasks, if that makes sense. 

Dori Durbin: It does. It does. I think that's something that when people think of dogs, they think of puppies first.

But what you're saying makes so much sense because those dogs have already gotten some of the training and they also have the ability to reason through without being impulsive and crazy like puppies. They tend to, they just have so much 

Amy Castro:energy 

Dori Durbin: and excitement 

Amy Castro:That's what they do. Exactly. Yeah. I mean, I think adopting, you know, especially if you have young children adopting an older and, and it doesn't have to be old, old, I mean, it could be three years old or something like that, because with an older animal, what you see is what you get.

You know, a puppy might exhibit a certain personality and be completely different as an adult, but for the most part, an adult's personality is already established. And so if they're chill and mellow, they're probably gonna remain relatively chill and mellow. And if that's what [00:21:00] you're looking for, then you're seeing it right up front.

Versus I get a puppy, it's bouncing off the walls, and then I think, oh, surely it will calm down later. Maybe,

and maybe not. Maybe it'll be like that till it's 10 years old. Yeah. Yeah. You just don't know at this point. 

Dori Durbin: Okay. As a children's book coach and illustrator, I like to think of things in story sense. So what would be the right story that needs to be told? If I was a family who wants to adopt a pet, what would I need to have in order to be ready to do that?

Amy Castro:I think the mindset that any animal, I don't care if it's a goldfish in a bowl or a dog, and everything in between to you, that is part of your life. To them, you are their whole world, like their whole life, and they rely on you for everything and you are their everything. And I think when we remind ourselves of [00:22:00] that, it allows us to be much more empathetic and understanding with their non-human quirks that sometimes get us annoyed, or that bother us.

Like why can't they just understand? And we have a lot of high expectations. But, um, I think keeping that foremost in our minds or that is the lesson, is the we are their everything and use that as your filter for how every interaction that you have with them. 

Dori Durbin: It's such a huge statement to think about that, that you're literally there.

Everything, I think about that every once in a while. Just in the house even, you know, like this is their territory, you know? Okay, our dog gets on the couch. I allowed her to do that. Well, because she only has so much room and this is comfortable for her compared to the floor and all those kinds of things.

But, you know, it, it does give you like a different perspective when, you know, that let's say you're gonna be gone for multiple hours and they're [00:23:00] waiting for you to come back, like literally waiting for you to come home and they're crazy 'cause you're home. And it just, it's different when you think that's, that is their world.

I think if a lot of people thought that way, it, it'd definitely make that decision even more important for them to choose the right dog and to choose the right behavior that they want in their house. 

Amy Castro:Yeah, 

Dori Durbin: a hundred percent true. Oh, so, okay. So we're not scaring anybody away from pets. We're encouraging them that if they choose wisely, it's gonna be a lot smoother road for everybody.

If you were to give them one really important piece of advice, as a parent who's thinking about bringing a, a pet of some kind into their home, what is absolutely crucial for them To consider? The very first thing

Amy Castro: To do all the homework and to have everything set and ready before you go looking for the pet. So that you don't end up in a situation where you make that impulsive decision. So [00:24:00] even something as simple as, you're gonna go get a, again, it could be a goldfish. Do you already have the bowl?

Have you already set it up? Do you know where it's going to be put? Do you have the food? You know, having everything ready just makes that transition into the home a lot more smooth. Versus what I see sometimes is people will, I'll get it and I'll bring it home and I'll put it in the bathroom, and then I'll run out and buy all the stuff.

And it's like, and, and that's just a simple example, but it's a, it's a, it's a, to me, a symptom of not being a hundred percent prepared. You know, try to be a, as a hundred percent prepared as you possibly can be. 

Dori Durbin: That's huge. Actually, I was thinking even like their crates, uh, where mm-hmm. A dog or, or a cat depending on where your cat, most cats just kind of choose where they sleep.

But some places, you, you don't want kids to sleep with a cat. Let's say maybe your Yeah. Has minor allergies and they'll do better if they sleep outside of the bedroom. Right. All of those pieces. Yeah. Right. 

Amy Castro: And you're gonna need a place, you know, with any animal that you bring [00:25:00] home, it's not, you know, and I, 'cause I, we adopt out a lot of cats.

You, you're not gonna, I don't care if you live in a two bedroom apartment or a 4,000 square foot house, if you can't just bring a cat home and put it down on the floor. See what it does go from there. It's just not, it's not gonna work. It's gonna disappear under a bed. It's gonna not know where the litter box is.

So where are you gonna put that litter box and the food and the cat and close them in so they have a safe place to decompress and then start to venture out from your house. You know, thinking those things through are important. And another thing I wanna stress too is you can get help with these processes, right?

Instead of waiting. I think I've done several episodes with trainers about training, things like that. A lot of trainers are more than happy to go with you when you go to the shelter, or if you visit a breeder and help you make decisions based on them helping you assess your goals. And so, you know, take advantage of that because the money [00:26:00] that you might spend doing that upfront is gonna be money.

You won't have to spend fixing a mistake later on. 

Dori Durbin: So tell me more about that. 'cause that's new to me. So you actually can hire trainers to check your house out, or how does that work? 

Amy Castro: Well, you could, I mean, I've, I've interviewed many trainers, as a matter of fact. Uh, did an interview fairly recently with a head person in a, you know, certification body.

I won't name the name, but certification body for dog trainers. And you, I'm not saying every trainer you call is gonna be willing to do these things, but there are trainers out there that would be more than happy to come over to your house, talk to you about what you're looking for in, uh, and this is gonna probably be mostly dogs, right?

Um, what are you looking for in a dog? Assess your family, your lifestyle? It's probably, it's probably less about your house because. You know, when you think about your house, dogs sleep like 18 hours a day or more. So it's not about how big your [00:27:00] house, how small your house is, but you know, it might be about your yard, it might be about what kind of crate you're planning on getting, where are you gonna put it.

But I think the more important piece is helping you pick the, pick the animal, because we don't have that expertise in looking at a dog, interacting with other dogs at the shelter and knowing is that dog gonna be, aggressive towards other dogs or dominant or a challenge to train or whatever it might be.

But a trainer would know those things. So getting the help upfront is great. And if you don't, the other thing I would say is don't wait until a small problem becomes a big one. Get the help. Then when you start seeing something that, you know, I, I don't like where this is working. I don't like the direction that this is going.

Whatever the behavior is, get help with it. 'cause there's a lot of help out there. 

Dori Durbin: This is maybe a question that is more an assumption than a real answer, but what usually stops people for asking for that hope from other, the outsiders? 

Amy Castro: I think it [00:28:00] is. You know, sometimes it could be financial.

They're afraid of how much it might cost to do that and the time element. But you know, because when you do go through training with a pet it's not a magic fix. It's not like you're gonna send that pet off someplace and have it come back perfect. Even though there are opportunities where you can send your pet away for training, you're still gonna have to do the work when the pet comes back and, you know, if you have a trainer come to your home or you take a class somewhere, it's time, you know, it's, it's time that you have to put into it, but that time needs to be done anyway.

And so at least you're doing it with professional guidance instead of just guessing. And maybe people don't, sometimes I think people don't understand what's the difference between. This is normal and it's just gonna go away. And this is, even if it's normal, it's not just gonna go away, it's just gonna get worse.

Um, or they just don't have time. You know, they're so busy with other things, they just keep putting it off, keep putting it off. And that's where I see a sad progression of people get a [00:29:00] puppy, the puppy starts to get bigger, it starts to get possibly destructive. Or it's knocking down the 4-year-old now and causing a lot of crying.

So then the puppy gets moved to the backyard where it gets very little interaction and no training, and then it hits two years old and we've had enough, and then they're looking to rehome it. Mm-hmm. And there's a lot of opportunity that was missed along the way to make things better.

Dori Durbin: I wonder too, sometimes if people would feel like they failed in some way or they made a bad decision.

And so calling a trainer would feel like, okay, well 

Amy Castro:I'm admitting to my my mistakes a little bit maybe. Yeah. I mean, you're, you probably have a lot better insight into that than I do, but yeah, I mean, that's, that's quite possible. It's like anything else, you know, we think we can handle things and we don't ask for help when we need it on a lot of levels, especially as parents, you know, you think you've gotta, you've gotta have all the answers and it's hard to admit that you don't.

Dori Durbin: Yeah, for sure. Well, okay. None of us are perfect, by the way. [00:30:00] Yeah. And especially when they, even it comes to pets. I mean, they're still, they're furry kids is what it comes down to. And, and they need and require a lot different things than our own kids. But it's still similar in some way. I think it's kind of neat.

Amy Castro: Oh yeah. And they go through stages and, you know, similar stages. There's the teenage years and the toddler years, and they just happen a lot sooner. So there's teenage years coming at, you know, come at about a year and a half, two years old versus 12, 13, 14 years old. So be prepared. 

Dori Durbin: Ooh. It's like, yeah.

That's a good thing to keep in mind, yeah. Well, Amy, can you tell us a little bit more about where people can find you and more about your podcast? 

Amy Castro:: Sure. So the, uh, the podcast, well, you can, you can find me at the podcast, on the podcast website.

My contact information is on there. But it's, it's pet parent hotline.com is the website and the podcast itself, if you wanted to listen to it, you can find it [00:31:00] anywhere, wherever, wherever you might listen to a podcast. We're there. So, apple, Spotify, all of the other platforms or on the website, if you wanna listen to our website what the podcast.

Is based on, the questions that I hear and the challenges that pet parents face. Um, as I said earlier, my podcast is the goal is to answer those questions and help you get through those challenges. I have experts that come on the show because I certainly don't know everything and, you know, and I've been wrong on a lot of things.

And so I get experts to come on the show to talk about, you know, everything from nutrition to behavior, to how to bring home a new pet. We just did a whole series on crates and you know, how to choose one, why they're good and how to train your puppy or dog to use them. I think pretty much any topic that you might have a question about, there's probably an episode, and if there's not one, there's one coming because we wanna get those questions answered.

Dori Durbin: I love it. And I've been on your website and or your podcast site and mm-hmm. [00:32:00] I, I kept scrolling through like all the different topics through great topics. And I feel like if you're especially a new pet parent or even a pet parent who's just, you know, got a new dog, um, or cat, I think it has so much information there that feels comfortable to listen to and get, you know, kind of dig in deeper.

So it's amazing. You should definitely check it out, listeners for sure. Thank you. Yes, yes. Amy, I'm gonna ask you one last question before we go. 

Amy Castro:: Okay. So, 

Dori Durbin: is there such a thing as a bad pet? 

Amy Castro:: No. Okay, lemme back that up. I think there are certain things that should not be pets. So in that instance, yes, that would not be a good, like, you know, good, a good choice, like having a rattlesnake as a pet, probably not the best choice.

But as far as you know, your average dog or cat, there are not bad animals because bad implies intentionality or, cognitive choices. And [00:33:00] so, no, there are really only bad fit pets because you see it all the time in rescue. Something that was a disaster in one person's home is the love of the life in another person's home.

And so it's really about you knowing what you need and finding the one that's a good fit for you. 

Dori Durbin: Well, I love it. I love it. Again, if we can help people come up with exactly what they need by researching exactly what they want, it'll definitely make a, a perfect fit. As close to perfect as pets can be for a family like that.

So I really encourage people to check out your podcast and to take that opportunity. And are you open to them reaching out to you with further questions? 

Amy Castro: Absolutely. Um, as a matter of fact, do you wanna email me? Um, you know, the, the phone number that's on the podcast website makes its way to me, so there is a, a phone number out there.

But if you wanna email me, amy@petparenthotline.com, I'm happy [00:34:00] to answer any questions. And if you've got questions, maybe we'll even do a whole episode on it and, uh, maybe have you on if you wanted to be. So all kinds of, uh, opportunities. But yes, I, I love being a resource for people. I don't know everything, but I will certainly point you in the right direction.

Perfect.

Dori Durbin: Well, Amy, thank you so much for your time today. We really appreciate all the information you've given us. And again, I really encourage listeners to find you, and follow you, and give you, an email 

Amy Castro:With their questions. Awesome. Well, thank you so much for having me. I appreciate the opportunity to get the word out.

Thank you.