When animals are in danger, people are in danger. We know that there is a direct link between animal abuse and interpersonal violence, which is the driving force behind mandatory reporting laws. This is not just for cases of violence but also of neglect. Our guest Rachel Batten, Humane Officer at the Medina County SPCA in Ohio, shares her experience with a case of animal hoarding that revealed child neglect. Thanks to her efforts both the animals and the child were removed from the situation. Li...
May 28, 2024•46 min•Ep. 62
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Snakes! What you don't know may hurt you. Robert O'Horo from Florida Fish and Wildlife discusses the venomous snakes most commonly found in the U.S., the mechanism of their venom, and how to...
May 23, 2024•8 min•Ep. 61
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Dr. Diego De Gasperi, Equine clinician and faculty at the University of Florida, helps us understand the uniques needs of horse dental care, common problems, and the consequences of dental d...
May 23, 2024•12 min•Ep. 58
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Adam Leath shares his knowledge on cockfighting, and we contrast it to dogfighting to learn the similarities and differences of both forms of criminal activity. We would also like to invite ...
May 23, 2024•17 min•Ep. 59
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Ken Trusley, from Florida Fish and Wildlife, discusses the types of hunting incidents seen in the field, from human causes to animal causes. We would also like to invite our listeners involv...
May 23, 2024•6 min•Ep. 60
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Dr. Courtney Valerio, Veterinary Forensic Pathologist, breaks down the process of a forensic necropsy and describes the information that can be obtained when investigating an animal crime or...
May 22, 2024•22 min•Ep. 56
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Dr. Jim Crosby is an expert on animal aggression and dog bites, especially fatalities. With a previous background in police work, he brings a different perspective to crimes involving dog bi...
May 22, 2024•18 min•Ep. 55
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Dr. Rachel Barton, Chief Veterinarian for Tallahassee Animal Services, discusses the importance of recognizing and reporting blunt force trauma in cases of suspected abuse. We would also lik...
May 22, 2024•9 min•Ep. 57
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Preparing for court has many moving parts and Jamie McManus discusses the process from initial hearings to trial. She also explains witness preparation and what veterinarians can do to be be...
May 22, 2024•17 min•Ep. 53
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. We all have rights against illegal search and seizure, but how are our rights leveled with victim rights and what can officers do to ensure that evidence collected is allowed in trial? Prose...
May 22, 2024•13 min•Ep. 52
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Dr. Maria Serrano explains the live animal forensic examination and what veterinarians can do to be better advocates for animals. We would also like to invite our listeners involved in anima...
May 22, 2024•17 min•Ep. 54
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. We all know, or at least think we know, the uses of DNA in criminal cases, but with true crime and criminal drama shows, our expectations may not be realistic. Ginger Clark, DNA Analyst at t...
May 21, 2024•14 min•Ep. 51
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. What is photogrammetry and how can it help in animal crime investigations? Eileen Roy-Zokan discusses the use of known objects in images to estimate the size of other objects, how this is do...
May 21, 2024•9 min•Ep. 50
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Geographic Information Systems is the use of technology to identify crime hotspots through the use of spatial data. This is very useful in the prevention of wildlife crimes and poaching. Exp...
May 21, 2024•7 min•Ep. 49
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Dr. Jason Byrd, Board Certified Forensic Entomologist, discusses the use and importance of insect collection at crime scenes and from deceased animals, how to submit them, and the informatio...
May 21, 2024•14 min•Ep. 47
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. Shoe prints and tire tracks can help place individuals at crime scenes. To learn more about this we interviewed Katherine Beck from the Alachua County Sheriff's Office. We would also like to...
May 21, 2024•4 min•Ep. 48
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. This episode is the first interview of the conference, and we have Amber Wallyn, Animal Cruelty Investigator in Lake County, Florida. She will discuss best practices in an animal crimes inve...
May 21, 2024•5 min•Ep. 45
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. In this episode, Forensic Photographer Heidi Nichols from the Miami Dade County Medical Examiner's Department shares information on the use of pictures to document a crime scene and the evid...
May 21, 2024•9 min•Ep. 46
We are in person at the 2024 Animal Forensic Conference in Gainesville, Florida! Dr. G will be interviewing several of the speakers to give our audience a bit of the knowledge gained through the presentations. We will be releasing each interview individually to allow our listeners to find topics of interest. This episode is our introduction to the series, and joining us is Dr. Adam Stern. Learn about the purpose of the conference and what to expect from the next set of episodes. These talks are ...
May 20, 2024•8 min•Ep. 44
Vicki Deisner from Ohio Animal Advocates joins us to share with our listeners the Real Ohio Tours 2024 schedule and the advocacy efforts supported by these programs. From birds to foxes to farm animals, there is an opportunity to visit and learn about the places that care for these animals, how we can help support them, and the advocacy efforts occurring to change laws affecting their welfare. For information about Ohio Animal Advocates, visit www.ohioanimaladvocates.org or follow them on social...
May 17, 2024•24 min•Ep. 43
The Jefferson County Humane Society was established in Ohio back in 1915 by a group of women who wanted to help animals. For over 100 years, generations of women have worked hard to build a great shelter facility and a shelter clinic. Learn how and why on this in-person interview directly from the humane society. For information about the shelter, visit their website at https://jeffersoncountyhumanesociety.net/ Mentioned in this episode: Keep it Humane Podcast Network The Animal Welfare Junction...
Apr 25, 2024•29 min•Ep. 42
Warning: This episode discusses the details of a case of animal cruelty where the defendant was charged with felony animal cruelty. We are joined by Sandusky Chief Dog Warden Kelly Pocock, whose hard work and determination resulted in the arrest, prosecution, and conviction of a dog killer. Solving this case involved crime scene investigation, necropsy, blood spatter, interrogation, and interviews and is a case that should be an example to other officers facing similar cases. This case also incl...
Mar 04, 2024•1 hr 41 min•Ep. 41
We are back after a short break, and we couldn't have asked for a better guest to get us back on track. Dr. Adam Stern, professor of forensic pathology at the University of Florida, joins us to discuss poisonings and starvation in the veterinary forensic setting. This is an educational and informational episode and, while it is a difficult topic, there is nothing gory about our discussion. This topic is good for everyone, but in particular an excellent resource for veterinarians and humane agent...
Feb 16, 2024•50 min•Ep. 40
Everyone knows someone who says they work with animals because they hate people. Or maybe you are that someone. But what we must realize is that as animal welfare advocates we cannot separate the animals from their humans. The human-animal bond is a very important relationship, and to care for one we must acknowledge the other. Dr. Jonathan Gonzalez is a veterinarian practicing in the State of Texas and is very passionate about fostering the relationship between animals and humans and being part...
Jan 04, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 39
This episode contains topics that may be difficult to hear or that can be triggering to some listeners. Please take care of yourself and pause or stop if needed. This episode also has explicit language. Our guest K.D. Hearst, host of “Don’t F* up the Crime Scene”, joins us to discuss a case he worked on years ago in the state of Georgia involving sexual assault on a dog by two young kids. Authorities were called to the scene for a “dog bite” complaint and they did not expect to find what they di...
Dec 28, 2023•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 38
Episode 37: SpayFirst with founder Ruth Steinberger Shelter euthanasia is not the problem. Shelter overpopulation is not the problem. We are looking for a solution to animal welfare issues while overlooking the real problem. Pet overpopulation and lack of access to care is the cause of increased shelter intake and thus shelter euthanasia. Until we acknowledge that lack of affordable and accessible care is the cause of the problem, we will not be able to reach a solution, and more animals and peo...
Dec 21, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 37
In 2017, officers Daniel Ettinger and Salvador Aguirre were able to close a case that started in 2014. Marleen Puzak avoided investigation for years following complaints of animal neglect at her property. This episode breaks down the details of the case, a review on hoarding disorder, and the importance of mental health evaluations. Our guest Daniel Ettinger (co-host of the Animal Control Report) shares with us his experience on this case, how he was able to obtain a warrant, his findings, what ...
Dec 14, 2023•58 min•Ep. 36
There has been a lot of media attention to a "mystery" respiratory disease affecting dogs, and many pet owners and rescues are understandably concerned. But is it as mysterious or dangerous as it is being reported? To answer this question, we have invited Dr. Jeanette O'Quin, Associate Professor at The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. O'Quin has training and experience in public health, infectious disease management, and outbreak response and presents us with an educated...
Dec 03, 2023•25 min•Ep. 35
Homelessness is a serious crisis in the United States, with the most recent report by the Department of Housing and Urban Development dated December 2022 finding over 580,000 unhoused people on a single night in January of 2022 (hud.gov). It is a sad reality that pet ownership by housing-insecure individuals and families is a significant obstacle to sheltering and affordable housing. The lack of affordable co-sheltering facilities and pet-friendly affordable housing can be the factor that keeps ...
Nov 30, 2023•54 min•Ep. 34
The lack of financial access to veterinary care creates a ripple of negative effects. It poses challenges such as delayed or foregone medical treatment for pets, compromising their health and undermining the broader objectives of the One Health approach. This issue is exacerbated by credit inequality, where individuals with limited financial resources may struggle to afford veterinary services, potentially rupturing the human-animal bond due to economic euthanasia or owner surrenders. Surrenders...
Nov 16, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 33
