Robert well, to start us off on our clear the shelters mission is the founder of a group called love and second chances. Joining me now is melody chen, who decided to start this rescue, love and second chances, because she loves animals and met many, as she put it, amazing people along the way. Welcome to the show. Melody chen thank you for having us. Robert and, now, you brought another guest as well . Melody yes, this is nemo. Robert nemo . Okay, so you found nemo. Melody nemo was one of our international rescues from korea. He was actually going to be sold into the meat market there before a rescue was able to get him, and now hes been adopted and even have his own instagram page. Robert wow. Melody hes just having a good time. Robert gotten into the social media right away then, huh . Melody yes. Robert that is amazing story becausei dont know. I dont think people would necessarily know all the dramatic situations sometimes that these animals come from. Melody yeah, a lot of people still dont know whats going on in certain places around the world, and thats why we wanted to, kind of, start the program to, kind of, open peoples eyes to whats going around, and our program was also dedicated to help our local dogs too. Robert mmhmm. Your organization then specializes in certain dogs that have a certain traumatic kind of experience, or what . Melody we are actually a allbreed rescue, so we rescue all breeds. As long as were able to help, we do whatever we can to, so it doesnt matter about their age or if they have any kind of special needs. Robert mmhmm. We do, having adopted dogs ourselves, our family, i know that one of the things that you do look for is how much a dog has been affected by whats happened to it before and things like that. Melody yeah, we wanna make sure the home that we find really understands what theyre getting themself into. That way, were setting the dog up for success, so they go to that home, and that home is able to help them really get over what theyve been through and blossom to what they can be. Robert i know. I think that one of the most rewarding things about that is being able to take a dog that couldve had a very unhappy life, and give it a happy life, huh . Melody yes, its the most amazing thing for us in rescue to find that perfect match. Robert mmhmm. How do you go about selecting the dogs you get . How do you go about selecting people who get them . Melody its all on space. Thats why foster homes matter a lot cause we can only save what we have space for, so if we have more fosters, we can save more dogs. Robert tell me somethin. I understand that you came from taiwan. Thats in your background . Melody yes. Robert how does that maybe shape your perspective a little bit . Melody so i went back when i was around 13, and i just saw how horrible it was for stray dogs there. There was dogs with missing paws and, just, so skinny and emaciated. We bumped into one that was so friendly. It came up to us, but my aunt actually came and shooed it away, and thats when i kind of realized its Just Perspective of how different cultures see dogs, so that wasyou know, educationwise, we needed to kind of have people know what dogs are, in general, cause they saw them as diseaseridden, just, that they carried disease and to stay away from them. So i couldnt rescue that dog, but i kind of made a promise that if, down the line, i was able to have a opportunity to save even one from taiwan, then i would, and that opportunity came a few years later, and then i started the international program. Robert oh, my goodness. How many have you saved from taiwan . Do you have ballpark figure . Melody ballpark, overall, weve adopted around 2,000 or so. Robert wow, thats a lot of rescues. Tell me something. You were talkin about the cultural differences in the way they view dogs and everything like that. What did you see . When you saw those dogs there, what is it that you saw that made you wanna do this . Melody i just saw potential cause theres just so many dogs there that i know could find homes here, and being that i rescue locally here too, its, just, you kind of know what people are looking for, and i think, for me, it was the opportunity cause you cant really convince someone that wants to adopt a golden retriever to go adopt a pit bull from the shelter, no matter how great that pit bull is. Robert right, yeah. Melody but the avenue was there, and if we had the opportunity to connect the dots, i wanted to be able to do that, and thats what we did. We justthere were so many, like, golden retrievers, like, purebred breeds there that a lot of people here wanted, so thats what we started off when we did our international is we, kind of, took the dogs there and found them homes here and then gradually started adding in the mixes, and that took about seven years to really get the public on board. Robert wow, thats a amazing story. You should be quite proud of what youve done. All right, and nemo is a great example what people can find, right . Melody yeah. Robert all right, thank you. Thank you, nemo. Melody thank you for having us. Robert all right, well, next up, going from fostering to adopting. More about what families need to know, so stay with us. Robert well, most of us know what it means when we talk about the concept of a foster home. Well, there are similarities when you talk about fostering an animal. With me now is a foster mom, maria macaspac with muttville senior dog rescue. Great name. Maria has dedicated her life to animals, working with Animal Rescue and welfare organizations and, in the past 12 years, has fostered well over 100 senior dogs and hospiceadopted a dozen terminally ill dogs for muttville senior dog rescue in san francisco. Welcome to the show. Maria macaspac thank you so much, robert. Robert and you brought another guest. Maria i did. This is lovely wanda. Robert very lovely. Maybe a little bored at listening to me speak, but, otherwise, looks fine. Tell us about wanda. Maria well, wanda has recently joined muttville. Shes been with us about a week. She was rescued by a local bay area shelter when her guardian fell ill and could no longer take care of her, and we partner with many bay area shelters, and they know that, since we specialize in seniors, shes 11 years old, and they gave us a call, and we welcomed her with open arms. Robert interesting when you say senior dogs, right . Because thats a different kind of thing when youre talking about taking care of it and what your expectations should be, right . Maria for sure. You know, seven years and older is what we specialize in, and when they get to that age, you know, there are Certain Health issues that, you know, i think are important for somebody to know about caring for a dog who is in thoseyou know, in their middle age and older. Robert mmhmm, yeah, yeah, a lot of us also like to, you know, tout the advantage of being older as humans. So what are the advantages for when people take a senior dog . Maria well, whats great about adopting a senior dog and need for fostering a senior dog is it matches a lot of peoples lifestyles, you know . Theyre not as active, but they still love walks. They are usually, like, at home and accustomed to living in a home, so theres not as much training or as much that you would need to put into the time of having a dog be trained. Like, many muttville dogs came from a loving home and, in her case, you know, where they just couldnt take care anymore, or even the owner passed away, that they know what its like to live in a home. Theyre housetrained. You know, they love to snuggle. They already know what its like to be in a loving family, and theyre just looking for, you know, a new loving family. Robert now, a lot of us think that, when we hear foster home or fostering as a concept, we kind of know what that means. Is it the same for a dog . What is it that youre looking for . What are you talking about when you say, fostering a dog . Maria im happy to explain. So, many dogs, before they even come to muttville, you know, they were in a loving home, or maybe they were a stray, but most of them, you know, theyre sad that theyve changed their environment. They came from a shelter, and now theyre coming to muttville. It can be very stressful. So a foster family can welcome them into their home and give them some stability, and they can come out of their shell and learn to feel safe and trust people, and thats perfect for somebody whos coming to adopt because they get to see the best side of that dog, which makes me, as a foster mom, very happy to see when they are ready to meet families, and you see families, you know, are impressed by, you know, how wonderful they are, and thats what i think is the best past about being a foster mom. Robert is the fact that theyre older make it more difficult or less difficult to adopt to that transition time, being in a foster home . Maria well, i think that because they are older, they have experience, you know . And i think that really makes a difference. And maybe for a family who, theyre new to adopting or maybe new to a senior, sometimes its an easier transition because the dog can kind of show what its like to have a dog. They can show you, like, you know, im already housetrained, or i can show you, like, best way to walk me, or how to snuggle in bed, which i think is always a great thing, especially when i see families with kids. I think that thats actually a great pairing. And also with seniors who just want a dog with a little less activity, and thats actually one of our programs is the seniors for seniors adoption program. Robert yeah, that seems like a perfect fit. Maria yeah, it is. Its really great. Robert but i could actually picture somebody taking wanda into their foster home, and then wanting to keep them permanently. Are youtry to make sure that doesnt happen . Or does that maria matchwere happy with that. We have an interesting term called foster failure, but, you know, it happens, and i think its perfectly fine. I mean, you get to know a dog, and maybe they really are a perfect fit for you home, and why not . Its perfectly fine, and usually those same fosters, even after they adopt, they still foster another dog. They have room for more, you know, as i do too, you know. Robert and, of course, were gonna make it easy for them to find out during the process when we have our, you know, clear the shelters. But what should peoplehow should people, kind of, keep in mind throughout the time and not just that day if they are thinking about doing it . What do you want them to kind of think about . Maria well, if theyre interested in fostering or adopting, you know, we have weekend events which are really great places just to get to know the kind of dogs that we rescue, and you can ask volunteers there. We have people who are fosters, because the fosters will bring their foster dogs to adoption events, and are happy to explain and share the joys of fostering. And what else is great is when someones coming to adopt, and maybe its your foster dog. You know, weve been living with them for a considerable amount of time. You can tell em what its like when they wake up in the morning and when theywhat time they like to go to bed and whats their favorite tv show, or, you know, the favorite kind of toys and things like that. Robert real quick plug for wanda. What do you want people to know about wanda . Maria wandai mean, look, she kind of sold herself. She is a sweet, calm dog who enjoys everything. She enjoys car rides. She enjoys sitting on laps. She is great with all dogs. She makes friends easily. Robert all right, you know it then, wanda is available. The clear the shelters at muttville senior dog rescue will be saturday, august 17, from noon to 4 p. M. , at the muttville senior dog rescue facility at 255 alabama street in san francisco. Reduced fees on that day. Next up, going from fostering to adopting. What we told you we were gonna show you, were gonna show you now what families need to know about that, so stay with us. Hacked a warning from our responds team on that equifax settlement. What the ftc wants you to know before you try to cash in. Pluskari hall is tracking your work week forecast. Join us monday morning from 4 30 to 7. Shelters process, going from fostering to adopting. To help us with that is gillian chao, a volunteer for the Peninsula Humane Society spca, an avid animal lover for her whole life. Gillian has been volunteering at the Peninsula Humane Society for six years. Welcome to the show. Gillian chao thank you. Thank you for having us. Robert all right, and who is our other guest . Gillian this is aggie. She is a recent adoption of ours. She is a hospice adoption, so she was diagnosed with an untreatable illness, and so thats why she is not available for adoption, and i decided to take her home to give her whatever time she has left. Robert oh, well, thats a inspiring thing to make sure people know that you can help a dog have a happy life that maybe dont seem like theyre destined to, huh . Gillian right, i mean, you know, she might have cancer, but she doesnt know the meaning of that word, and so, to her, every day is a good day. Robert yeah, yeah, i mean, i think, in a way, that is sort of such a big thing about, you know, rescuing dogs and everything is just being able toa lot like adoption, you know, being able to rescue a life, you know . Tell us a little bit about the program, going into, like, how is it going . Are you getting, you know, like, a lot of dogs, a lot of animals coming in these days . Gillian well, you know, Peninsula Humane Society is an opendoor shelter, so we take in every animal that comes through our doors. We accept all of them, so, you know, thats not just dogs, but cats, bunny rabbits, lizards, you know, pigeons, ducks, horses, geese, you know, like robert yes, i know, its just a variety there, yeah. Gillian yes, yes. Robert we were talking a little earlier, quite extensively, about fostering, and then we did talk a little bit about fostering to adoption, oh, and sometimes even the two, sort of, meld together. Gillian yes, i have a foster failure, myself. Robert yes, exactly. I like that phrase, by the way, foster failure. It sounds like a success, to me, but gillian best failure, but, yes. Robert but when you do that transition, what are some of the key things for people to know . Gillian well, you know, most people arent transitioning from fostering, right . Theyre mostly just showing up and wanting to adopt, and i think theres a few things that, you know, i think could be really helpful for people. You know, first of all, its not necessarily to have that one image in your mind of what type of dog they want, and be more open to listening to what type of dog might fit their lifestyle. You know, right now we have a lot of huskies, and people think that theyre beautiful dogs, and they are, but theyre a really tough dog to have for most of our typical lifestyles. Robert yeah, we owned one. Gillian oh, you own one, so you know. Robert yeah, we did, and it took beautiful pictures, but it was probably the most complicated dog, yeah. Gillian yeah, so we find that were getting a lot of those back to the shelter. Robert oh, really . Gillian mmhmm, because people realize that its not right. Robert which is why people should keep in mind, huh, and maybe listen to some advice in terms of what they need to know about what kind of dog is best for them . Gillian right, and our adoption counselors, really, they can make excellent suggestions, and, you know, it might not necessarily be the image of the dog you had in mind, but its still gonna be an excellent dog for your family. Robert yeah, when is it maybe advantageous to have a dog go through the fostering process versus taking them immediately . Whats thefor you, would be maybe some discerning factors . Gillian you know, we dont actually do a lot of fostertoadopt. I think if youre a volunteer, that is fostering. You know, we have a wide range of dogs that go into foster. They might be for cause they need more extensive medical care. They need a quieter home environment. Robert yeah, its almost more for the animal, in a way, huh . Gillian yeah, totally, and others, they might be so shy that the shelter environment is overwhelming. Robert and i might not be correct, but i thoughtin my mind, i thought maybe somebody who is owning a pet for the first time might benefit from an animal thats already beenhad gone through the foster process, but i dont know. Gillian not necessarily, yeah. We actually have many animals that just go straight from, you know, kind of, the evaluation process to adoption, so, yeah, i think partly its just, you know, being openminded about the type of dog, but also, you know, if you have, you know, kids or other dogs, definitely bring them along so that they can meet the dog that youre interested in, to make sure its a good fit cause you might fall in love with that dog, and then your other dog might say, mmmm. Robert mmhmm, yeah, orand i can speak from experience on this, just from numerous families where the children want a dog, but then, once the dog comes home, the parents are the ones that end up taking care of it. Gillian right, right, thats very common. Robert yeah, and they still love the dog, but it does fall on the parents to do it, so they have to kind of know the circumstance of being able to take care of a dog cause they cant probably depend on their children to take on that kind of responsibility, huh . And it is a responsibility. Gillian oh, very much so. Robert but you have to really stress that to people that, you know, it is we wanna clear the shelters. We want people to do this, but we also want people to know what theyre getting themselves into, advantages and disadvantages. Gillian right, we talk about placing. We wanna place them in their forever homes. Robert mmhmm, yeah, so as we approach this kind of day, you know, and theres a lot of enthusiasm built up for it and people get, kind of, caught up in doing it, whats the right perspective for people to have when they come into it . Gillian you know, i think the things weve talked about already, but, you know, also that this is not a toy. You know, an animal is not a toy, and when they enter your home, that, you know, theyve come from a pretty stressful environment, and theyre gonna need some time to decompress, so dont go home and throw a Party Immediately and invite all your friends over to meet your new dog because you know what . Youre gonna freak your dog out, so, yeah, we always say you wanna give em time to decompress. Really, what they probably wanna do is just go home and just sleep for a while. Robert right, yeah, we want people to think about it, but we want them to think about it positively cause it is a positive experience. Gillian yeah, very much so. Robert gillian, thank you very much. Gillian thank you for having us. Robert all right, keep up the good work. Well, clear the shelters at the Peninsula Humane Society spca is saturday, august 17, from 10 a. M. To 6 p. M. , where you can name your own adoption fee on more than 100 animals and, as you heard, including dogs, puppies, cats, kittens, reptiles, rabbits, and birds. That will all take place at their facility at 1450 rollins road in burlingame. Now stay with us. More on clear the shelters as well as anotherother i