An Adopter's Journey: From Shopping to Adopting

Join Amy as she chats with Laurie Hall about her journey from seeking a pure-bred dog to adopting a rescue. They discuss breed characteristics, adoption challenges, and the rewards of bringing home a new pet. Tune in for insights and more!

Shoutouts in this episode:
Starlight Outreach and Rescue
SAVE Rescue Coalition

Transcript

Season 1 Episode 1: An adopter's journey: from shopping to adopting.

Announcer: [00:00:00] Welcome to the Starlight Pet Talk Podcast, where we'll talk about and explore ways to help pet parents and future pet parents. Learn everything they need to know. Do you have a happy and healthy relationship with their pet. So, sit up and stay for Starlight Pet Talk Rescue Adoption and pet Parenting done right.

Amy Castro: All right. Welcome to Starlight Pet Talk. I'm your host, Amy Castro, and in this episode, we're gonna hear one person's experience going from an original thought of getting a dog from a breeder to ultimately deciding to adopt a rescue dog. So, my guest today is not only a colleague in the speaking and leadership training profession, but she's also a good friend.

Amy Castro: Lori Hall, welcome to the podcast, Lori. 

Laurie Hall: Hello, Amy. Thank you. I am super honored to be on your podcast and to share the story of this little lady and then another guy Kobe, [00:01:00] who was the start to it all. You hear more about that in just a second. 

Amy Castro: Yeah. Awesome. Obviously, Hazel, who is the dog that you adopted from Starlight Outreach and Rescue was the second dog.

Amy Castro: And Kobe was the, was dog number one. So why don't you tell us a little bit about his story and then we'll get into why on Earth would anybody want another dog? No, I'm just kidding. . .. 

Laurie Hall: Yeah. Happy to share. Amy, you have no idea the difference that you make in people's lives, so I, it's an honor to share that story with other people too. In 2020, we unfortunately lost both of our dogs. I had a Greyhound, and she died at the very beginning of February 2020. And then my husband had a boxer and he died in June of 2020.

Laurie Hall: And they were just both kind of old age related. My Greyhound did unfortunately have bone cancer, but it was like apparently a really slow progressing one. And so, we unfortunately had to put her down because she, she broke her hip in a place where it just wasn't fixable. Super, super sad, you 

Amy Castro: know?

Amy Castro: [00:02:00] Yeah. That's hard. 

Laurie Hall: Yeah. And 2020 was like such a good year anyway, right?

Amy Castro: Yeah. Don't get me started on that. 

Laurie Hall: So, in June when we had to put the boxer down, thought, we'll, we've had dogs for about 12 or 13 years now. Maybe we'll take a break and you know what we're gonna do?

Laurie Hall: We're gonna travel more. That's what we're gonna do. We're gonna travel and not have the constraint of having to figure out what to do with. Little pups, or in that case the big pups that we had and just take a little break. So, by July of 2020 we were looking for another dog, cuz we weren't traveling anywhere.

Amy Castro: Yeah, nobody was going no place, 

Amy Castro: Nobody was traveling 

Laurie Hall: and we don’t know when we'll ever travel again. So, I thought, maybe I would like another Greyhound, but maybe a smaller one, like a whip it or an Italian Greyhound, an Iggy. So, I started looking around and wow, those are expensive dogs and you have to get on a waiting list even to get an Iggy puppy.

Laurie Hall: And I remember at one point I found a website for an Italian [00:03:00] greyhound, a puppy place, and it was near you. I don't know if you even remember this, Amy and I reached out to you and I said, hey, have you ever heard of these people? Are they reputable? I don't want to; I don't want to continue to find somebody that's not taking care of.

Laurie Hall: That's just maybe taken money off of them. And you said, I've never heard of them, and I don't know if you remember, but at one point you said, tell me more about why you want this particular kind of dog, no judgment, just interested to find out what you're looking for.

Laurie Hall: And so, I explained the story and. And you were like by all means, get the dog that you really want. But in, in your beautiful way of communicating, you had also indicated, like at some point though, 

Amy Castro: consider there are. Like 

Laurie Hall: tens of thousands of dogs that are available for adoption right now, that would be lovely and probably would fill all of the needs that you're trying to accomplish.

Laurie Hall: But if you want that specific dog, continue to try to look for it. So, it was just perfectly timed cuz it was on the heels of a few weeks already of finding these different websites [00:04:00] that were. Yeah, we can give you this dog as long as you give us your firstborn kid, fill out this 75-page questionnaire and then it might be a thousand or $2,000.

Laurie Hall: And we were like, whoa. You, all of that. And your conversation was helping me to realize we just want a fun l little loving and companion. So, thank you for that, Amy. That was so then I went to the glorious Petfinder and thought let me just look and see what kind of dogs are out there.

Laurie Hall: And it actually really helped my husband and I narrowed down what kind of dog are we looking for? What size of dog are we looking for? What long or short hair male or female, older or younger. And so that's when we found little Kobe advertised through. I think it's Save Animal Coalition.

Laurie Hall: Rescue 

Amy Castro: Coalition. Yeah. I think it's SA Save Rescue Coalition here in Houston. And it's a very good rescue. 

Laurie Hall: Yeah. That is awesome. So, I worked with the lady there and she said you are second in line. We already have somebody who probably wants Kobe. So, if she doesn't end up [00:05:00] taking him, we'll let you know by the end of the weekend.

Laurie Hall: And so, we never heard anything, unfortunately by the end of the weekend, but you can already see how the story went. So, we thought we'll keep looking, we'll keep looking for another dog. We thought Kobe was super cute though, and it just seemed like he'd be a good boy. And so, I let it go.

Laurie Hall: But then I was doing a vision board. With another one of our colleagues, another colleague, Amy, and of course I had a picture of Kobe and I'm looking at the vision board up there and it says, shelter, pet, life of the party, all these other things that I was hoping to attract in 2020 and beyond.

Laurie Hall: And so, I, you can't make this up. I had literally like just glued the picture of Kobe in place on my vision board and I get a phone call, like the vision board. Stuff's still out. My friend Amy's still sitting there doing her vision board and it's the woman from Save and she says, Hey, Kobe's still available.

Laurie Hall: Would you like him? Oh wow. And I'm like, woo. Like God blesses. That's crazy. In amazing. So, we said, of course we'll take him. So that's when we got little Kobe, who you might hear [00:06:00] a little in the background, talking to his younger sister. Loved it. Absolutely love Kobe. It was a little transition cuz he's a smaller dog and he is a Chihuahua Staffordshire terrier mix, along with who knows what else we did DNA on him.

Laurie Hall: So, he's very he's very active and he likes a lot of attention. I remember when we were talking to the ladies, she said, you know how long might you be gone? What's the longest you'll be gone? You know these questions you asked them in your question? Yeah. And I said maybe eight hours at the most, because before 2020, Baron and I, my husband, we would work 

Amy Castro: sometimes.

Amy Castro: Yeah. And sometimes be gone. 

Laurie Hall: For a while. And she was like, Ooh, I don't know if that's gonna work. And I was like, oh, okay. We'll have to figure that out. And lo and behold, 2020 completely changed everything. I don't think he's been by himself for more than maybe four hours at a time.

Laurie Hall: But we got through all the transitions of, what's it like to have a smaller dog who now sleeps with us? God bless it. I actually sleep better when I have dogs with me. So fast forward then to, so your question, thank you for letting me elaborate, your [00:07:00] question is, so why on earth would you get another dog?

Laurie Hall: Yeah. By about the spring of 2022, we had been thinking maybe we're not as active. As Kobe would appreciate, he's great about just being able to mess up with us, but maybe it would be nice to have a dog that Kobe could play with. As you can see, they're playing in the background, So we were looking for the dog that would fit with his personality. And I remember at one point my good friend Amy Castro had coached on a. I think it was on Facebook. We're part of a professional association together. Of course. And I think you had posted on the professional association.

Laurie Hall: Is anybody available to help us Foster? Because I think at one point you had 70 plus animals that were in different phases and maybe you still do, I don't know. God bless me for what you do.

Amy Castro: Not quite as many right now, thank goodness. But spring is coming and that's when things tend to jump up.

Amy Castro: For sure. Yeah. 

Laurie Hall: Yeah. Good time to adopt y'all. So, my friend Amy posts [00:08:00] this kind of plea for help. Is anybody available help Foster? Unfortunately, we were in the middle of about ha to have some we do a space school thing, so some students were coming to stay with us and anyway. But as I'm scrolling through all the pictures, there's this little one Hazel on your website.

Laurie Hall: Yep. And so do you mind if I tell Hazel’s. 

Amy Castro: I want to hit a couple of points before you do about some things that you said that I think were super important about your experience. One, I would like to back up and say that I'm glad that, I handled that original conversation with you.

Amy Castro: I think for those of us, for anyone that's listening, that's involved in rescue, because we see so many bad things sometimes, and we see the. downside of pet overpopulation that sometimes we can get very judgey about people that might want to purchase a dog or get a dog from a breed. And my thing has always been different breeds of dogs were developed for different purposes and they're going to fit not, not only do they have specific [00:09:00] jobs perhaps that they were bred to do, but you made a really good point about when you started thinking about getting a second dog, the lifestyle aspect that you're Maybe, more sedentary than Kobe needed.

Amy Castro: He has a lot of energy and he needs more running around playing exercise, and I think that's something that more people need to think about when they're thinking about getting a pet, is if you're looking at a specific breed, great. Why? Why specifically? Hopefully it's not just because you like the way it looks, but what does that animal, what does that animal bread to do?

Amy Castro: What's that animal's energy level? How does that fit with your lifestyle? It's such an important question because I think half the. that pets end up in shelters is that people selected the wrong pet for their family, for their lifestyle, for the way that they like to live their activity level, things like that.

Amy Castro: Yeah. Yeah, I just wanted to hit on that because I think that's so important for people to consider before they get any kind of a pet. Let alone looking for a specific breed of animal [00:10:00] that's more likely to have certain characteristics or traits than a mixed breed. Yeah. Yeah. Thank you for letting me make that point.

Amy Castro: But yeah, so you came across our darling Hazel who was living at my house at the time. 

Laurie Hall: Yeah, came across Hazel and for some reason I thought she would be about the same size as him, Hazel, about 20 pounds. Hazel was about seven pounds; I think when you had first gotten her. So, on these videos that Amy shocked, so we could see all these beautiful creatures that she had available for adoption.

Laurie Hall: I remember looking at Hazel and you told me, you said, here's Hazel’s. A woman calls, and I think you said you get three or four phone calls like this every day. A woman calls and says, Hey, there's this tiny little black dog that keeps coming into my yard. And they also let us know when anything's happening.

Laurie Hall: There's this tiny little black dog that keeps coming into my yard and it looks like maybe she's missing some hair by her tail. Maybe she's not real, real well taken care of it. She's. and can you help? And I believe you, you had asked [00:11:00] does she have an owner? Because of course if she has an owner, we can't do that.

Laurie Hall: It's like taking someone's dog. It's like dog napping. Dog napping. Yeah. dog napping. Yeah. Not the good kind. No. But I think you said if you can get a letter or something from the owner saying that he or she releases this dog, then of course we could try to help. And she says Okay. I think you said normally you get a lot of phone calls and then you never hear.

Laurie Hall: From people. In this case I believe you had said about 20 minutes later, yeah. This woman's I've got the paper and I've got the dog.

Amy Castro: Yep. And just a little backstory on that too, cuz now, we adopt so many animals out. I had almost forgotten Hazel's story to be perfectly honest, but it turned out the gentleman lived right behind the neighborhood where the lady had the dog continually coming under the fence.

Amy Castro: And he had, people try to do the right thing. They, they see a dog, they find a dog, they rescue it, and then sometimes they just get in over their head. And so, he was in a situation where he had several dogs, including this little [00:12:00] hazel, and just didn't have the finances or the physical capability.

Amy Castro: He was also unfortunately dealing with late-stage cancer. To care for that pet. And oftentimes people don't know who to reach out to for help in those situations. And so not only is the person suffering, cuz it's, they feel bad about it, but the animals suffer because they're not getting the, heartworm treatment or flea medication or whatever care, good nutrition that they need.

Amy Castro: So, it's really, I think, important that we keep an eye out for things like that. Don't always assume that, because this is another thing that happens in our world in rescue, is that you'll post an animal that you find that oh, this animal's riddled with fleas, or it had heartworm, and the first thing that people want to do is jump on and vilify the person who owned the animal.

Amy Castro: Like, how can anybody do that? And just really. Make them feel bad. Either make the person feel bad or say bad things about that person. And yes, I'm a hundred percent on board that there are bad and abusive people in the world, but I [00:13:00] think there's also a lot of people that just get in over their head.

Amy Castro: Their intention was good. They just didn't have whatever it took to do the follow through to do right by the animal. And in this situation, like you said, 20 minutes later, this woman comes back with a signed relinquishment sheet from this gentleman because he was glad to have somebody help him with this animal and find it a better home.

Laurie Hall: Yeah, that, that's very well said, Amy, because I think if we continue to shame people for sometimes not knowing until you’re. What's that? Maya Angelou quote? I think it's Maya Angelou. We must forgive ourselves for not knowing what we needed to know before we needed to know it.

Laurie Hall: Exactly. Life happens. Oh my gosh. Kobe was different than we thought he was. A lot more energy. We still love him, but we did have to adjust along the way. Luckily, we had the flexibility to do that, yeah. We can tell that Hazel had gotten quite a bit of loving where she was before and, maybe still needed some help.

Laurie Hall: So, when you first had her, I think you kept her for another month because she [00:14:00] did have such a bad flea infection that she had scratched off all of the hair on her back, right before her. And then y'all got her spayed you got the flea infection taken care of. So, I think for that month or month and a half or so, between when you, y'all got her and then when we got her, she had quite a bit of stress in her life.

Laurie Hall: Yeah. But we were so thankful to get her two things. We got Hazel for Kobe, but we've all fallen in love with her now. Even my husband was like, are you sure? Another dog, I just thought, it just seems like it's gonna be a fit, even though she was smaller than we thought.

Laurie Hall: I don't think she's gonna grow into 20 pounds. She's a little, I think she's a. Chihuahua miniature pincher mix a (inaudible)

Amy Castro: Yeah, that's what she looks like. You said that you had DNA tested Kobe and he came out to be what? Chihuahua and Staffy. Staffy 

Laurie Hall: and then Yeah.

Laurie Hall: And then maybe a whole bunch of other stuff that we can't really pinpoint. 

Amy Castro: Do you remember by any chance, when he was with Save, what did they have him labeled as? [00:15:00] 

Laurie Hall: Yeah, they had him labeled as ahu. Okay. Which I know if you can see him very well in the video, he doesn't really look like a chihuahua.

Amy Castro: Yeah. And it's just for those who are listening. When you are going on a petfinder.com or you're going to a shelter list of animals, and they list a breed, you can almost a hundred percent be sure that animal has not been DNA tested. So, what ends up happening is when we go to advertise these pets, people want to know what is it the software programs that we use to advertise.

Amy Castro: You can't put an animal in the system without picking at least one breed. And so, we guess based on looks, which we'll talk about this in a future episode, about what does it look like versus what it really is, but looks are not the most accurate way to identify a breed of a pet. So, I think we always have to be cautious about labeling animals certain things based on their appearances.

Amy Castro: And, sometimes we guess, right? And sometimes we're way off. because I don't know that I would've guessed guess Staffy. Although once you say it, now you see it, now you see it. [00:16:00] Us 

Laurie Hall: Staffy that level, they're no, they're big. Yeah, they're big. So, I love that you said that too because I think that's the thing.

Laurie Hall: You best laid plans right. But you don't really know until you get that dog into your life. And so, you do want to have some flexibility. You do want to have some time flexibility, maybe some financial flexibility and then just a whole bunch of energy flexibility to maybe do some training with them and try out different things.

Laurie Hall: Because it took us probably six months or so to figure out the right sleeping situation okay. For. And when we finally just gave in and said dude, buddy, come on. Why don't you just sleep with us? We never thought we'd be dog people that let dogs sleep with us and now oh my gosh, when I have travel, I just feel so alone.

Laurie Hall: But as soon as that happened, all of the struggles that we were having with him at night went away cuz he just wanted to be with us. He's al, he almost imprints on one human. And that's known, that's a thing of that breed, this Staffy breed specifically. . . 

Amy Castro: So that's another interesting point as far [00:17:00] as adopting a pet that people don't, we have a saying in rescue, give it 72 hours and then you'll see what it really is.

Amy Castro: Because when an animal comes into a rescue situation, a., and it's not that it's an intentional, like I'm gonna be on my best behavior, it's usually fear and anxiety that kind of suppresses their personality in many instances. So many times, we've had dogs specifically come into the rescue and they seem, very calm, very quiet, very.

Amy Castro: Behaved and then 72 hours later when they become a little bit more comfortable, then you'll start to see other behaviors Sometimes. Sometimes they stay just as great and sometimes some not-so-great behaviors come out. And so, it's important that people who adopt realize that., number one, what at the shelter is not always the behavior you're gonna get at home.

Amy Castro: There's a lot of anxiety and excitement in a shelter. And then what in the first couple of days is gonna change. Animals need time to adjust and decompress. And I think also we need to time to adjust [00:18:00] our what we think is the right way to do things versus what that pet needs. Because I think where you're going with that, and correct me if I'm wrong, is that you probably followed that advice and we give it.

Amy Castro: You set him up in a crate, put him in his own area, and that's the best thing for him. Is that about, right? 

Laurie Hall: Yep. Yep. Uh huh.

Amy Castro: Exactly. And but and what happened when you tried to do that? 

Laurie Hall: He would cry and he has a wow, a super high pitch that he can try it if he wants to. And so, I think that's a good point. We even did that with Hazel. It's funny, as you were just talking about, give him 72 hours. So, Amy comes over, she brings Hazel. One of the things I loved about what you did, and it I think is the pull through thread of part of this podcast is do your best to try to do some homework around what you really want and then be.

Laurie Hall: to try to adapt to the situation because even that breed may have some uniquenesses of the dog you got. So, you, when you brought Hazel over, I think you had said she's a little bit of a runner. Probably cuz she's been used to getting in and out a lot and then especially with a lot of stress, in that [00:19:00] month or month and a half where she's going to doctor's appointments and in a new place with a whole bunch of other dogs.

Laurie Hall: So, you drop her off and we had tried to block off our backyard cuz she was so little, but we didn't really know what to expect until you came and. And you had said for about a week, let's do a trial period. Let's see how this works out, and, I wasn't sure. I guess I just didn't know that would be okay.

Laurie Hall: I guess I thought oh gosh, once we say yes, then if something doesn't work out, then it would almost be shameful. To give the dog. and you said, absolutely not. We want you to take a week or two to have that trial period and just make sure that it's working, and we'll do everything we can to try to help you.

Laurie Hall: So that was one of the things I loved about you and Starlight specifically, is that you, I felt like you really worked with us. So that, that first evening that, that Hazel was with us, she found a hole in the fence like 30 minutes after you left. And I was like, oh my God, Amy's gonna kill me. Like this beautiful little dog [00:20:00] that she just saved, ran out.

Laurie Hall: So, I, I'm grabbing the leash. I'm trying to go out. We live by a green space so I'm running out to get her, my husband's going to get his car just in case she took off. And I can tell by some people that are walking on the green space where she. Because I think everybody's looking at oh, tiny little flash of black just went that way.

Laurie Hall: So, I'm walking out to get her, and I see her and I call her and she comes to me. She goes flying at me. She actually goes past me. Baron at this point has this car pulled around. And so, he is trying to where's the dog? So between me and the car, we're like corralling ours.

Laurie Hall: She crawled right back in the same hole that she crawled out in her backyard. No stinker. Whoa. Yeah. So, she did that a couple more times, but she always came back. And now we have found all the holes in the backyard, make sure that they're blocked. And now it's at a point where she doesn't do that anymore.

Laurie Hall: But I just am, long story short, sorry. I can we tell so many stories about these creatures that we love so much, But I love the way that [00:21:00] you all created that process to, to make it a little bit of a trial, had the right questions on the paperwork., that didn't really feel like shaming or no, you can't even find out any information until you give us your firstborn child or something.

Laurie Hall: Oh my God, I'm just trying to find out about this dog. Yeah. So, thank you for the attention and detail that y'all have spent on your processes and then also the forms that are used along the way to make sure that it's a. 

Amy Castro: Yeah. Yeah. I, no, I appreciate that. And it's and I'm glad you brought that, that up because it's such a balancing act with for those of us in rescue, we see those forms as being the protection that we want to provide for the animal that we're adopting out to make sure that they have a safe, long, happy life with whoever it might be.

Amy Castro: It's not about Like you said, making people feel bad. It's not about trying to screen people out; it's about making sure that people know what they're getting into and that we find the best possible fit for the [00:22:00] pet. At the same time, I think sometimes rescues will make it almost impossible to adopt a pet because of all of the.

Amy Castro: Steps and hoops that they have to go through to match the pet up. And then at the other end, with a home. And then at the other end of the extreme, there are organizations and oftentimes it'll be high kill shelters that have very minimal standards for adoption. Which, sometimes those work out and sometimes that's the animal that ends up in another shelter or ends up being returned.

Amy Castro: So, I think we try to take the approach of finding some. Logical balance that is, is right for the person and right for the animal. But it's tricky. And people even the form that you say, hey, it wasn't as, it wasn't shaming, it wasn't as intrusive as some things. But some people do complain about our paperwork and we just try to explain that.

Amy Castro: I realize that it's a lot of paperwork to fill out, and we're just trying to make sure that this animal that we have oftentimes saved from the brink of death, does not have to find themselves in that situation [00:23:00] again. Anytime soon. And as I think as to the point of the trial period, I think that's important too.

Amy Castro: I do try to stress to people and sometimes I'll even tell people if they're having, if they're struggling with, oh, I could never give the animal back. If it makes you feel better, think about the fact that you are babysitting this dog for two weeks. For me, you're ju you're just fostering it for two weeks, or you're babysitting it, you're watching it while I'm out of.

Amy Castro: Because we want to make sure it's a fit. You want to give it some time to figure that out. But at the same time, if it's not a fit, there's no point in hanging onto an animal that's making your life miserable and, making, maybe making the animal's life miserable if it's not getting along with one of your pets or something like that.

Amy Castro: And I, and two weeks, I don't think two weeks is a magic number. You said that, it took you six months to, to settle in. I think. I think people have to decide for how much time and energy they have to put into that adjustment period. 

Laurie Hall: Yeah. Yeah. It really is. And it's individual to the little pup too.

Laurie Hall: Yeah. And long story short, so absolutely [00:24:00] terrifically worked. It worth it when it works out. Baron and I, my husband, we talk so much about, I don't know what our life would be like if we didn't have these little p. They are absolutely the life of the party 

Amy Castro: for us. That's great. I'm so glad that that everything worked out.

Amy Castro: You're happy with those guys that they're, that they get along well as brother and sister. So have you ever, have you had any thoughts about adopting a third, because I've got some in the pipeline. No, I'm just kidding. No pressure.

Amy Castro: Yeah, everyone's got their number limit, everyone's got their number. And also, legal limits. There are legal limits in many communities as to how many pets you can have too. So, it's important to, to know that. So, to summarize, and I know you've made some great points of advice along the way, but if you had to summarize kind of some top bits of advice that you would give to somebody else who's gone through what you've gone through in.

Amy Castro: Seeking a pet. Adopting a pet. Transitioning a pet. Any particular things that you'd want to share as a [00:25:00] last thought, that lasting thought for them to hear? No pressure. No pressure at all? Yeah. 

Laurie Hall: just think about just like any relationship, what you're willing to put in to the relationship for the reward.

Laurie Hall: That you can get back out. I had always thought I was a cat person. And then when I my first dog, I realized I'm a dog person. And maybe a lot of people feel that way. I still love cats too. I don't think this little guy and cats would work out quite as well. But dogs are just this fountain of unconditional love and God bless in 2020.

Laurie Hall: I know we needed that. So, this graded the heart of our home. And then little hazel bunnies just, she's just so cute. My, she gives my husband a facial sometimes at night. But so, think about what you're willing to put into the relationship and remember on those forms, while they may seem maybe long or gosh, why are they asking me this?

Laurie Hall: It really forced us to think about how would we handle that situation. So, there's a lot of thought behind that, some integrity behind that. And then just go with your, go with what feels right. And then I think [00:26:00] the universe provides a lot through people like Amy. So, thank you for your vision and thank you for what you're doing to try to help these little guys that ultimately make our lives 

Amy Castro: better too.

Amy Castro: It's a, it's definitely a labor of love. I never thought when I started the Rescue Starlight Outreach and Rescue back in 2017 that it would take over my life as much as it has. But it's it definitely gives my life meaning to see animals, find great homes like., your two guys have found with you.

Amy Castro: So, I really appreciate you so much taking your time. I know you're busy to visit with us today and share your experiences. And for those of you who are listening, if you like what you heard today, make sure you subscribe to Starlight Pet Talk and keep on listening. If you have ideas for the show, we want to make this show as interactive as we possibly can, and we want to make sure that we get your questions answered and your ideas addressed.

Amy Castro: So, make sure you go to our website at www.starlightpettalk.com and submit your show ideas if you'd like to be a [00:27:00] guest or somebody who has., an unusual experience or a great experience adopting or acquiring a pet, or any pet experts that you think would be a great fit for the show, make sure you send them our way as well.

Amy Castro: So, thank you so much for listening, and we'll see you next time on Starlight Pet Talk.

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