Dogfighting is often misunderstood as a relic of the past — or as a cruelty confined to the margins of society. In reality, organized fighting networks continue to operate across the United States, leaving behind a pipeline of animals who are brutalized, discarded, and in urgent need of highly specialized care.

In this episode of The Animal Wellness Podcast, host Joseph Grove examines the continuum between federal policy and frontline rescue work — and why both are essential to ending organized animal cruelty.

He is joined by Rochelle Steffen, founder of Mac’s Mission, a Missouri-based nonprofit rescue whose work “specializes in special.” Her organization focuses on dogs in severe medical crisis: neonatal puppies with congenital defects, survivors of extreme abuse, and animals whose injuries or conditions place them beyond the capacity of traditional shelters.

The conversation also explores the policy dimension of this work, including Animal Wellness Action’s advocacy for the FIGHT Act — federal legislation designed to strengthen enforcement against dogfighting, increase penalties, and disrupt trafficking of fighting paraphernalia.

Listeners will come away with a deeper understanding of:

• The modern reality of organized dogfighting
• The medical and behavioral challenges faced by surviving dogs
• How specialized rescues manage complex, resource-intensive cases
• Why federal legislation like the FIGHT Act remains urgently needed
• The emotional toll — and rewards — of this work on rescuers

Listeners may learn more at Animal Wellness Action and by visiting Mac’s Mission online.

The Animal Wellness podcast is produced by Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. It focuses on improving the lives of animals in the United States and abroad through legislation and by influencing businesses to create a more humane economy. The show is hosted by veteran journalist and animal-advocate Joseph Grove.

www.animalwellnessaction.org

www.centerforahumaneeconomy.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnimalWellnessAction

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/centerforahumaneeconomy/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AWAction_News

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHumaneCenter

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/animalwellnessaction/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/centerforahumaneeconomy/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/animal-wellness-action/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCI_6FxM4hD6oS5VSUwsCnNQ

Why do we love some animals as family while treating others as commodities?

In this episode of The Animal Wellness Podcast, host Joseph Grove is joined by Melanie Joy, Ph.D. — Harvard-educated psychologist, international speaker, and author of the landmark book, “Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows.”

Dr. Joy introduces and explores the concept of carnism — the largely invisible belief system that conditions people to eat certain animals while caring deeply for others. Drawing on psychology, sociology, and ethics, she examines how cultural norms shape perception, why systems of animal exploitation often go unquestioned, and why even compassionate people may participate in practices they would otherwise reject.

The conversation also reflects the perspective of Animal Wellness Action: an acknowledgment that many people eat animals, paired with a firm ethical insistence that animals raised for food deserve lives free from needless suffering. If there must be a “bad day,” it should be only one day — not a lifetime of cruelty, confinement, or neglect.

Together, Grove and Joy discuss moral dissonance, defensiveness, and how advocates can speak about animals in ways that invite reflection rather than resistance — offering listeners a thoughtful, humane framework for understanding both animal suffering and the belief systems that sustain it.

The Animal Wellness podcast is produced by Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. It focuses on improving the lives of animals in the United States and abroad through legislation and by influencing businesses to create a more humane economy. The show is hosted by veteran journalist and animal-advocate Joseph Grove.

www.animalwellnessaction.org

www.centerforahumaneeconomy.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnimalWellnessAction

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/centerforahumaneeconomy/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AWAction_News

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHumaneCenter

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/animalwellnessaction/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/centerforahumaneeconomy/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/animal-wellness-action/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCI_6FxM4hD6oS5VSUwsCnNQ

Despite the closure of U.S. horse slaughter plants nearly two decades ago, tens of thousands of American horses are still exported every year to Canada and Mexico for slaughter. The practice persists quietly, fueled by policy loopholes, weak enforcement, and public misunderstanding—while horses who once served as companions, athletes, and working partners pay the price.

In this episode of the Animal Wellness Podcast, we’re joined by Thalia Fischer, founder and director of All Seated in a Barn, a California-based equine rescue dedicated to pulling horses from the slaughter pipeline and giving them a second chance through rescue, rehabilitation, training, and adoption.

We’re also joined by Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action, who brings a national policy perspective to the conversation—explaining why Congress has repeatedly failed to halt live exports of horses for slaughter and what it will take to finally close that loophole through legislation like the SAFE Act.

Together, Thalia and Wayne connect the dots between what happens at auctions and kill pens, the grueling cross-border transport of horses, and the political choices that allow this trade to continue. This episode explores the emotional realities of horse rescue, the scale of the slaughter crisis, and the concrete actions listeners can take to help protect America’s horses.

Topics covered include:

• How horses end up in the export-to-slaughter pipeline
• What equine rescues face on the front lines
• The welfare concerns tied to long-distance transport and slaughter
• Why live exports persist despite public opposition
• How advocacy and legislation can end horse slaughter for good

If you care about horses—and about aligning U.S. law with our values—this is a conversation you won’t want to miss.

Learn More and Take Action

Go here to read our thorough report on the state of horse slaughter, “Horse Slaughter in North America: U.S. Live Exports Fade as Foreign Demand Abates,” and go here to tell your elected officials you want to end the slaughter pipeline.

About the Show

The Animal Wellness podcast is produced by Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. It focuses on improving the lives of animals in the United States and abroad through legislation and by influencing businesses to create a more humane economy. The show is hosted by veteran journalist and animal-advocate Joseph Grove.

www.animalwellnessaction.org

www.centerforahumaneeconomy.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnimalWellnessAction

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/centerforahumaneeconomy/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AWAction_News

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHumaneCenter

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/animalwellnessaction/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/centerforahumaneeconomy/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/animal-wellness-action/