Rappaport To The Rescue

Matthew Bershadker was named President and CEO of the ASPCA® (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) in June 2013. A lifelong animal lover, he first joined the nation’s first animal welfare organization in 2001, serving most recently as senior vice president of the ASPCA Anti-Cruelty Group, the division responsible for programs that confront animal cruelty and suffering across the country.

While servicing as the ASPCA’s Senior Vice President of ACG, Mr. Bershadker launched the organization’s Field Investigations & Response team to provide skilled support during large-scale puppy mill seizures, dogfighting raids, animal hoarding cases and natural disasters. Mr. Bershadker also oversaw the development of the ASPCA’s Cruelty Intervention Advocacy program, an initiative to help protect companion animals in danger of potential abuse or neglect by addressing the root causes of animal cruelty and helping establish sustainable assistance.

Under Mr. Bershadker’s leadership, the ASPCA and the New York City Police Department established a groundbreaking collaboration to provide enhanced protection to New York City’s animals. Under the agreement, the NYPD leads in responding to all animal cruelty complaints in the five boroughs, while the ASPCA assists law enforcement officials with forensics work and by providing critical direct care support for animal cruelty victims. Since the ASPCA/NYPD partnership began in 2014, New York City animal cruelty arrests, as well as the number of victimized animals treated by the ASPCA, have tripled.

Also during Mr. Bershadker’s tenure, the ASPCA announced a multi-year, $25 million commitment to save the lives of animals in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area. Included in the multi-pronged effort is a fully-subsidized spay/neuter facility in South Los Angeles, operated by the ASPCA.

In 2015, Mr. Bershadker oversaw the ASPCA’s acquisition of Asheville, North Carolina-based Humane Alliance, the nation’s leading training and education organization focusing on high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter services.

Mr. Bershadker also envisioned and led the establishment of the ASPCA Behavioral Rehabilitation Center—the first-ever facility dedicated to providing behavioral rehabilitation to canine victims of cruelty and hoarding—which was unveiled at St. Hubert's Animal Welfare Center in Madison, New Jersey, in 2013. This facility moved to a permanent new home in North Carolina in 2018.

Before joining the ASPCA, Mr. Bershadker worked for organizations including Share Our Strength (SOS) and the Rape Abuse Incest National Network (RAINN).

A Board Member of the Gruber Family Foundation and Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, Mr. Bershadker received his Master of Business Administration degree from Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from Ohio University. 

Transcript:

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Announcer: This is Pet Life Radio.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Let's Talk Pets.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Rappaport to the Rescue, with award-winning animal advocate, Jill Rappaport.

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Jill Rappaport: Hi, I'm Jill Rappaport, and welcome to Rappaport to the Rescue.

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Jill Rappaport: And if my audio sounds a little different, that is because I'm literally on the streets looking for a dog that ran away.

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Jill Rappaport: It came across my Nextdoor app, and last seen right in my neighborhood, so I'm literally on foot with a treat in my hand and a bottle of water trying to find this beautiful dog.

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Jill Rappaport: I'm sure whoever has lost this angel, you hear dogs barking in the background as I'm walking by their homes, but whoever lost this little doll is really beside themselves.

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Jill Rappaport: So I'm doing what I can to see if I can locate him as soon as possible.

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Jill Rappaport: This also happens to be National Rescue Dog Day, and it is such a special holiday because we are highlighting and sharing awareness for all of the rescue dogs in need, and do they ever need help now?

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Jill Rappaport: This is really such a dire situation, and thank goodness for this holiday today, because again, it reminds people what they need to do, the dogs that are in serious jeopardy, waiting for homes and shelters across the country.

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Jill Rappaport: And with holidays like this, to take time to realize what's going on is really what will make a difference.

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Jill Rappaport: And I always tell people, if you can't adopt, and many can't, there are so many other things you can do.

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Jill Rappaport: You can foster, which is a temporary situation, although many people become foster fails and end up adopting the dog, but that is really what's needed the most right now.

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Jill Rappaport: You make the difference, because you've taken them from a really horrible situation and you're showing them what a beautiful life can be.

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Jill Rappaport: And therefore, they're more viable for adoption.

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Jill Rappaport: So fostering is just God's work.

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Jill Rappaport: And then, of course, you can volunteer your time at any of the local shelters or foster-based groups.

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Jill Rappaport: Everybody needs so much help right now.

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Jill Rappaport: And last, donations.

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Jill Rappaport: Money is needed, anything, even if it's a dollar.

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Jill Rappaport: If everyone just gave one dollar, it would literally change what's going on with rescue and adoption in this country.

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Jill Rappaport: So in honor of National Rescue Dog Day, we have a very special guest today, the president and CEO of the ASPCA, Matt Bershadker.

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Jill Rappaport: And we will talk all about these issues, what's going on in the world of rescue, and what he feels people need to do to make a difference.

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Jill Rappaport: Stay tuned.

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Jill Rappaport: Welcome back to Rappaport to the Rescue.

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Jill Rappaport: I'm Jill Rappaport.

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Jill Rappaport: My guest today is Matt Bershadker, who is a dear friend and also the head of the Aspca, the oldest animal welfare agency in the United States.

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Jill Rappaport: And Matt, you've done such an incredible job.

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Jill Rappaport: And these times are more trying than ever.

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Matt Bershadker: First of all, thank you, Jill.

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Matt Bershadker: It is a tough time for animals, and it's a tough time in our shelters.

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Jill Rappaport: I get notified, Matt, every single day for one of my shelter buddies, or somebody who's fostering, how dire the situation is.

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Jill Rappaport: We talked about this last year, it's even worse now.

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Matt Bershadker: It is and it isn't, right?

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Matt Bershadker: So there's conflicting data, and I think a few things are happening.

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Matt Bershadker: If you think back to before the pandemic, animal sheltering was rocking and rolling, right?

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Matt Bershadker: Shelters were able to focus on the root causes of animal homelessness, the root causes of suffering, lack of access to healthcare, behavior issues, things like that.

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Matt Bershadker: Then the pandemic hit and really shelter intake plummeted, and that was an artificial factor, right?

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Matt Bershadker: Because people were not out and about.

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Matt Bershadker: So now we're out of the pandemic.

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Matt Bershadker: And if we compare 2023 data to 2019 data, really the first regular year, not including the pandemic years, intake is actually down by 3%.

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Matt Bershadker: We had an additional 75,000 live outcomes, and euthanasia overall is down by 16% when you compare 2023 to 2019.

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Jill Rappaport: I'm in shock over those numbers, because not when I'm hearing people screaming and panicking over.

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Matt Bershadker: Well, yeah, and this is where the data is conflicting.

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Matt Bershadker: Dog euthanasia is slightly higher in 23 than it was in 19, right?

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Matt Bershadker: Slightly higher.

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Matt Bershadker: The other thing, which is the real issue that shelters across the country are facing, and we at the ASPCA and other organizations are trying to address, is length of stay.

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Matt Bershadker: Animals are staying in the shelter system much, much longer than they used to.

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Matt Bershadker: We're not entirely sure why, but there's a few things that we think are driving it.

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Matt Bershadker: One is that we know animal shelters are seeing more behavior issues and more severe behavior issues, and we know animal shelters are seeing more medical issues.

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Matt Bershadker: We also know that over 50% of animal shelters have no behavior resource at all, right?

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Matt Bershadker: So the real issue that we are grappling with is the length of stay in shelters.

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Matt Bershadker: There's also been some staffing changes in the pre and post pandemic world.

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Jill Rappaport: The vet situation is dire too.

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Jill Rappaport: What's going on?

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Jill Rappaport: That is terrible.

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Matt Bershadker: It's not only vets, it's also techs.

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Matt Bershadker: And you're right, Jill, this is a huge issue.

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Matt Bershadker: I don't want to use the word crisis because I want to de-escalate because I think there is some good news that we can focus on as a movement.

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Matt Bershadker: But the vet shortage is a very, very real issue.

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Matt Bershadker: Now, there are some new vet schools coming online.

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Matt Bershadker: Long Island University is introducing a vet school or has introduced a vet school.

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Matt Bershadker: A new one in Texas, a new one in Utah, a new one in Jersey.

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Matt Bershadker: Now, these are long-term solutions where they'll produce more veterinarians.

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Matt Bershadker: But when it comes to lack of access to medical care, the vet shortage, the tech shortage, we have a few levers that we can push.

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Matt Bershadker: One, of course, is more vets and attracting more vets to our movement.

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Matt Bershadker: We have a very powerful, exciting movement that when we get the opportunity to talk to veterinarians and talk to students about our movement, they want to be part of it.

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Matt Bershadker: What we have to do when it comes to vets is we have to get to them in their first and second year of vet school and introduce them to animal welfare and let them know that animal welfare is an attractive place for them to spend their career.

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Matt Bershadker: In fact, in many ways, it's more attractive than the private sector.

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Matt Bershadker: Just one level we have to push.

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Matt Bershadker: The other level we have to push, Jill, is we have to make sure that we are using our vet techs to their highest and best use, that we are letting them do the things that the various practice acts elect them do, and they are doing those things for animals across the country.

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Jill Rappaport: Well, the other thing I've noticed, Matt, and this is a complaint I get often, is the price of veterinary care.

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Jill Rappaport: You bring your dog to a vet now.

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Jill Rappaport: I went in for just my yearly checkup on my senior.

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Jill Rappaport: It was $1,000.

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Jill Rappaport: And for people considering taking in a rescue pet, especially if they're older or senior, which is what we're all hoping for, they can have more medical needs.

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Jill Rappaport: And when people know that these bills are as high as they are, it will scare a lot of people off, therefore even escalating the rescue and adaption crisis further.

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Matt Bershadker: Absolutely.

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Matt Bershadker: And that's why we have to push all of these levers, right?

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Matt Bershadker: If we're using techs to their highest and best use, maybe some of those treatments that we're paying veterinarians to do, we can have techs to do.

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Matt Bershadker: That will bring down the cost.

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Matt Bershadker: The other thing the Aspca is pushing and others are pushing as well is telemedicine.

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Matt Bershadker: What can be diagnosed and treated telephonically, reducing costs.

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Matt Bershadker: And the fourth lever that we can push, again, to make health care accessible and therefore more affordable is a paraprofessional.

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Matt Bershadker: Kind of that physician's assistant for veterinary medicine, somebody who's going to sit in between the tech and the veterinarian.

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Matt Bershadker: So at the Aspca and many of our friends in the space, we're pushing for all four levers and we're coordinating that push depending on jurisdiction.

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Matt Bershadker: So we can increase access to care and ultimately drive down the cost of care.

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Matt Bershadker: But right now what people are experiencing is really a classic supply and demand curve.

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Matt Bershadker: The supply is low, the demand is high, the cost goes up.

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Jill Rappaport: And how about all the amazing dogs you can find now in shelters during COVID?

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Jill Rappaport: You couldn't find an animal, which was a blessing because then the seniors, the pits, the special needs, which I know the Aspca is focused on now, they were getting adopted.

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Jill Rappaport: But meanwhile, the Aspca is once again leading the charge on a massive rescue movement.

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Jill Rappaport: Over 300 dogs, primarily in Florida, mostly Great Danes.

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Matt Bershadker: That's a few different cruelty cases coming together that we did.

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Matt Bershadker: One with our partner, Artibaha Humane Society in Artibaha, Mississippi, then down in Florida.

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Matt Bershadker: That was a unlicensed breeder gone awry.

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Matt Bershadker: And then we had a pretty large case here in New York City as well.

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Matt Bershadker: So these are rescues gone awry.

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Matt Bershadker: These are breeders gone awry.

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Matt Bershadker: And these are straight up cruelty cases.

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Matt Bershadker: In fact, Jill, I want to share something with you.

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Matt Bershadker: Nina and I, my family, we just adopted our third dog from the Aspca.

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Matt Bershadker: And she, she's nine years old.

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Matt Bershadker: She has three legs and about five teeth.

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Matt Bershadker: And she's a great little girl.

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Matt Bershadker: And like you, I'm a big dog person.

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Matt Bershadker: I always thought I was.

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Matt Bershadker: Tarzan's 90 pounds, Lonky's 80 pounds.

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Matt Bershadker: And now Whiskey, our newest, she's only nine pounds.

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Matt Bershadker: So she's a bit of a senior, you know, she has three legs, but you would never know.

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Matt Bershadker: So you're right.

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Matt Bershadker: There are amazing dogs all over these shelters, all over the country.

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Matt Bershadker: The other thing we need to push Jill is we need to push foster.

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Matt Bershadker: And that's how we started with Whiskey, by the way.

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Matt Bershadker: And I quickly learned from my nine-year-old that this foster was going to be a failure if she had anything to do with it.

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Jill Rappaport: You won't believe this, Matt.

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Jill Rappaport: I was a foster success because I had fostered three dogs in the last couple of years.

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Jill Rappaport: In fact, the last one, the most adorable Cavapoo, you couldn't go near her.

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Jill Rappaport: I fostered her for six weeks before she finally let my put my hand out there to even accept it because she was so badly abused.

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Jill Rappaport: And she is now living a life of Riley, literally with a very beloved public figure.

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Jill Rappaport: And the way she lives is the way you only hope and dream every rescue animal will end up living like.

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Matt Bershadker: That's amazing.

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Jill Rappaport: I am very proud that I was a foster success because I've now taken those dogs and put them in the right homes.

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Jill Rappaport: Because you know, Matt, we always say, it's not about a home, it's about the right home.

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Matt Bershadker: Absolutely.

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Matt Bershadker: And we definitely had some concerns our dogs just because they're so much bigger than whiskey, but it all worked out.

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Matt Bershadker: But I think, you know, you being a foster success and on your show, talking about the need to foster, there's a way for people to really help this kind of bottleneck in the shelter system by fostering.

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Matt Bershadker: You know, you do a lot of really good things.

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Matt Bershadker: One, you help that dog adjust, like your experience, right?

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Matt Bershadker: That makes that dog a difficult adoption.

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Matt Bershadker: So they can't go right from the shelter to a home.

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Matt Bershadker: And certainly someone who's looking to adopt is, how long are they going to put up with something like that?

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Matt Bershadker: They want that return.

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Matt Bershadker: They want that bond.

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Matt Bershadker: Fostering is a huge way to help animals transition from the abuse and trauma that they've likely endured to a home.

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Matt Bershadker: It's a very important way to reduce the strain on early overtax shelters and get that animal out of the system.

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Matt Bershadker: Let the shelters focus on the animals that need to be there.

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Matt Bershadker: So, yeah, good for you for being a foster success.

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Matt Bershadker: We sadly were not that.

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Matt Bershadker: I was looking at you.

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Jill Rappaport: Yeah, it was perfect, Matt.

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Jill Rappaport: And how many people would be open to a nine-year-old tripod?

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Matt Bershadker: Well, she's pretty awesome.

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Matt Bershadker: I have to say so myself.

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Matt Bershadker: But I think we had to pull over 20 of her teeth.

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Matt Bershadker: It was in such bad shape.

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Jill Rappaport: But that's amazing what you did.

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Jill Rappaport: And such a great lesson for your children and for people to see.

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Jill Rappaport: And you've been at the helm for many years.

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Jill Rappaport: And before you were the top dog, no pun intended, you worked at the A.

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Jill Rappaport: So you have really seen all the initiatives, all the hard work the A is doing.

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Jill Rappaport: And it's probably for you a really challenging, and I would imagine somewhat frightening time on some levels.

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Matt Bershadker: It's a frustrating time.

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Matt Bershadker: It's definitely a frustrating time, I think for the movement, because we're seeing these animals languish in shelters.

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Matt Bershadker: We're seeing these animals decompensate in shelters, coming into the shelter adoptable.

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Matt Bershadker: And as a result of the lack of the behavioral enrichment that they need, developing behavior issues that make them more difficult adoptions, that's extremely frustrating and very, very hard.

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Matt Bershadker: Very, very hard for the people in the movement.

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Matt Bershadker: It's extremely hard for the people who are caring for these animals day in and day out.

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Matt Bershadker: But I do think as our country continues to take steps back to normalcy, as we pump out more veterinarians, as we continue to utilize vet techs, as we attract more people to our movement, I'm going to share a stat with you, we will get our way out of this.

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Matt Bershadker: We will find our way back to where we were headed in 2018 and 2019.

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Jill Rappaport: So you're optimistic.

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Matt Bershadker: I am optimistic because we've been here before.

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Matt Bershadker: We did some market research and we found that 50% of Americans believe that animal welfare is either very important or extremely important.

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Matt Bershadker: I don't have the data, but 20 years ago, 23 years ago when I joined this movement, that was not the case.

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Matt Bershadker: The other thing that makes me optimistic is everybody loves dogs and cats.

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Matt Bershadker: No matter where you sit on the political spectrum, that's right, dogs and cats might be, we joke, the only thing that this country still agrees on.

00:13:48.786 --> 00:13:49.846
Jill Rappaport: That is so true.

00:13:50.006 --> 00:13:58.366
Matt Bershadker: You see Republicans like Rick Scott advancing animal welfare legislation, and you see Democrats like Cory Booker advancing animal welfare legislation.

00:13:58.846 --> 00:14:04.526
Matt Bershadker: That's something that I take a lot of pride in and something that I think is a very, very powerful piece of our movement.

00:14:04.646 --> 00:14:11.066
Matt Bershadker: What we say at the ASPCA is if you love animals, there's a space for you at the ASPCA, regardless of where you sit on the political spectrum.

00:14:11.226 --> 00:14:16.166
Matt Bershadker: And I think that is a real, that power of inclusion is something that we need to lean into as a movement.

00:14:16.366 --> 00:14:17.286
Jill Rappaport: Well, exactly.

00:14:17.306 --> 00:14:25.146
Jill Rappaport: And when you think about it, our animals could be the really one and only true peacekeepers in the world because they are the only things we all agree on.

00:14:25.286 --> 00:14:31.566
Matt Bershadker: I mean, Bob Derry was advancing animal welfare legislation as a Republican out of Kansas in the 1950s.

00:14:31.706 --> 00:14:33.206
Matt Bershadker: So yes, it is.

00:14:33.366 --> 00:14:41.546
Matt Bershadker: When I think about how much Americans love their pets, when I think about how we're situated as a movement, as a cause, there's broad support.

00:14:41.686 --> 00:14:51.886
Matt Bershadker: When you look at the financial growth that the entire movement has enjoyed over the last 20 years, 10, 20 years, Americans love their pets, and we will get through this moment in time.

00:14:52.066 --> 00:14:55.686
Matt Bershadker: We need more access to care, pushing the four levers I articulated.

00:14:55.886 --> 00:14:58.806
Matt Bershadker: We need people to go and foster the way you did, Jill.

00:14:58.886 --> 00:15:00.666
Matt Bershadker: Go to their local shelter and foster.

00:15:00.946 --> 00:15:10.186
Matt Bershadker: Take an animal out of the cage, alleviate some strain on that shelter, help that animal transition to a life in a home so that adoption will last and stick once that animal is adopted.

00:15:10.406 --> 00:15:15.586
Matt Bershadker: That's probably the biggest thing that your listeners can do to help us through this movement, is to go foster.

00:15:15.886 --> 00:15:19.526
Jill Rappaport: Oh, Matt, great messages and always a pleasure to talk to you.

00:15:19.526 --> 00:15:21.186
Jill Rappaport: I can't thank you enough for your time.

00:15:21.206 --> 00:15:22.306
Jill Rappaport: I know how busy you are.

00:15:22.766 --> 00:15:24.566
Jill Rappaport: And everybody, you heard him.

00:15:24.586 --> 00:15:26.026
Jill Rappaport: You heard what you need to do.

00:15:26.346 --> 00:15:29.126
Jill Rappaport: We are their voice without us helping them.

00:15:29.146 --> 00:15:30.606
Jill Rappaport: They can't help themselves.

00:15:30.606 --> 00:15:33.766
Jill Rappaport: So please do your part to help an animal in need.

00:15:33.786 --> 00:15:37.006
Jill Rappaport: And thank you all for listening to Rappaport to the Rescue.

00:15:37.106 --> 00:15:39.106
Jill Rappaport: On National Rescue Dog Day.

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