Stephen Knight is the founder of Dogs Matter, a nonprofit that provides foster care placement and supportive services for the pets of addicts who are seeking treatment or entering recovery. Stephen’s compassion and care for both people and pets is apparent in this episode, where he discusses his own experience with addiction and recovery and the role pets play in helping people heal.
Find Human Animal Support Services Online:
Stephen Knight is the founder of Dogs Matter, a nonprofit that provides foster care placement and supportive services for the pets of addicts who are seeking treatment or entering recovery. Stephen’s compassion and care for both people and pets is apparent in this episode, where he discusses his own experience with addiction and recovery and the role pets play in helping people heal.
Find Human Animal Support Services Online:
Welcome to another episode of People, Pets, and Purpose, our interview series about the human-animal bond and what really matters. I'm Diaz Dixon, the Maddie's Advisor for External Affairs and Partnerships for the Human Animal Support Service Project. Today is a really, really, really powerful one. I'm hyped. For those of you guys who know my background, you'll know why I'm hyped. And you guys hear me say this all the time, but we're fortunate to have a guest today who is going to knock your socks off because he has knocked my socks off with compassion, drive, insight, innovation, and really a true care for people and the pets that they love. That describes today's guest, Stephen Knight, and then some, there's a little extra to go along with that, because he's the founder of a nonprofit called Dogs Matter. That particular organization provides foster care for placement of supportive services for the pets of people who are experiencing addiction, and they're also seeking treatment or looking to enter recovery. Many of these people who might not have been able to find treatment, or they might not have been able to find treatment without having the knowledge or the comfort of their pets being cared for, or that their pets eventually returned back to them when they were ready. And this is a tremendous service, it literally changes lives. Stephen knows the importance, how important Dogs Matter is as an organization, because he has experience with addiction himself, and recovery, and really understands the roles that pets play in helping people to heal. So Stephen, it is a total, total honor to have you on the show today. Thank you for being here.
Stephen Knight:I appreciate that great intro, Diaz. I'm just excited and looking forward to really sharing our mission and my story.
Diaz Dixon:Well, that's what's great. You know, you're here to share your story. And we've got listeners leaning in waiting to hear about it. Why don't you tell us a little bit more, because you founded Dogs Matter out of your own personal story and experience in taking in a dog named Jade. Can you tell us about that story?
Stephen Knight:Sure, absolutely. So well, to back up just a little bit. You know, I'm a recovering addict. And 12 years ago, I got a knock on my door. And I was living in sober living. And I was battling addiction of crystal meth for 15 years, and it took away everything. And it also took away relationships, you know, the career that I had. So, I was very lonely in the first year of recovery, you're extremely, can be extremely isolating, lonely, emotional, and you're just trying to figure things out. And I was really struggling and I got a knock on the door one evening, and a friend of mine had relapsed. And she had Jade in her arms and said, "I have nowhere to place my dog, I've got to go back in treatment, will you give me a ride down to the shelter?" And I was like, well, wait, hold on, you know, I'm not going to take the dog to the shelter. And I, you know, that moment though, when I looked at Jade in the eyes, there was an automatic, like, bond. Those automatic, almost like, oh my gosh, this is, this is what I need. This is, this is kind of the comfort that I've been looking for. And so anyway, I ended up taking Jade, and she literally saved my life. Like I said, I was struggling and she gave me purpose. And she gave me responsibility to wake up every morning and to see these eyes, look at your eyes and have to like say, let me out, I gotta go pee. Or, you know, I gotta, you know, we need to walk and do all these things. It literally got me to the point where I had some structure, responsibility. And you know, and then I started thinking, how many times does this happen? How many times does somebody have to make that decision of having a dog and having to decide whether to go back to treatment and give up your dog, you know, or don't go to treatment and keep your dog and then eventually you're going to get worse and get sicker. And eventually you'll lose your dog anyway. So, I got the idea. And I really, you know, I have a background with social, you know, nonprofits and social services. I hadn't in, you know, 15 years, had anything to do with any kind of working job. So, I was really kind of hesitant at first but through my passion and drive and just, I just knew there's that moment of trying to know this is what I'm supposed to be doing. I started a nonprofit, called it Dogs Matter. And our first year, put it together really small. I think we had like an $800 budget for the whole year. And we were able to place a few, a few dogs, and my goal was simply at first for, as, as you know, being in recovery, it's important to be of service and help others.
Diaz Dixon:Right.
Stephen Knight:My part was like, okay, I'm going to help and serve a few dogs a year, I'll foster a few dogs a year, then to get a couple of friends to foster. And that was my intention at first. And then I didn't realize how big the need was. And so the first year we did about 15 dogs, and I was happy and surprised. And then the need became bigger and bigger. And, you know, the calls and the applications came in, and I was like, wow, this is, there's a huge need. So anyway, so that was 2015. And now, in 2023, we have done over 1000 dogs and their clients. Yeah, that when you get served, yeah. And, and in the thing that, you know, is that there's so many more out there that we can be working with. And that's kind of what my goal is, is to really have a conversation with people that can help and be able to create more programs, like Dogs Matter and realize the importance that a dog can have with the recovery of not just you know, addiction, but trauma, PTSD, and all the things that combined, the mental health world in. So I, you know, there's a, there's a lot of solution here having a dog be a part of recovery.
Diaz Dixon:Absolutely, absolutely. More than just the addiction piece. I agree with you on that, mental health overall. And when you're looking at those numbers that you're touching on, you're not only helping those particular people in need at that moment, there's a good chance you're breaking a cycle, a long cycle of mental health issues and addiction. That's pretty cool. Well, is, is Jade still with you today?
Stephen Knight:Jade, yep, she's right over there, taking a little nap.
Diaz Dixon:That's awesome!
Stephen Knight:Yeah, yeah, she's, she's turning 16 this year.
Diaz Dixon:Wow!
Stephen Knight:And I had her when she was, she was three, you know, when I when I first got sober. And yeah, she's been for the past 12 years, she's been by my side. She's my, my ride or die. You know, I take her just about everywhere. I take her to conferences, when I'm on, you know, talking about Dogs Matter. She's with me. And she is, one of the reasons why she's with me, because she's my stress releaser. You know, so that's like, you know, it can be very stressful to share about your personal life and to be able to do interviews like these. And when I have her in my lap, and just hold her, I calm down, you know?
Diaz Dixon:Yeah, I tell you, there's just something about the presence when on is like, right up next to us. And, and they've seen us at our best and at our worst, and they're there to support us. That's amazing. And she's old enough to have her own driver's license so.
Stephen Knight:I know right! She should be driving me around.
Diaz Dixon:That is awesome. Do you stay in contact with her, her former owner?
Stephen Knight:You know, it's interesting, because the owner ended up moving back to California. And then, years later, she saw, we were on The Kelly Clarkson Show, and she saw us on The Kelly Clarkson Show and saw Jade and she got a hold of me. And she was just like, so it wasn't like, you know, it was, it was an interesting phone call. And she was so happy. At first I'm like, thinking, I hope she doesn't want her dog back! Right? She's like, Oh, I'm healthy now. So it was a great conversation. She was really happy for Jade and myself. And you know, I said, you know, because of your story, and because of, you know, I say because of one act of kindness, a thousand people were helped. You know what I mean? Not for Jade. She was like, kind of like the little, but she was a little diva, though.
Diaz Dixon:Yeah, that is amazing. And you went on The Kelly Clarkson Show! You, you and Jade! Was, was there stage fright for either one of you? She was, huh?
Stephen Knight:But no, there again, it's like, you know, having, having her, it was you know, it was extremely comforting. And, and I was just so excited to be able to get a chance to share what we do to a national audience and in that, you know, that changed the trajectory of our program because, you know, a, they gave us a van, which is awesome, they gave us some money, which is great. But what really happened is that, you know, the nation found out about us and everybody just was like, can you help me, can we do this, you know that, and, and I have helped some people set up some similar programs. And so there's little things that are happening, but very, very very, very few programs are out there to help, help people with temporary fostering you know. That we have that right fostering, and people don't know what temporary fostering is because in the world, when I found out entering the rescue world of animals is that there's very little temporary fostering. You either have your pet, and if you've, if you surrender it, you'll never see that pet again because, you know, a, they don't know the story. They just feel like, you know, you're surrendering a pet. So there's no like coming back and getting that pet, and I thought well, man, that's, there's got to be something in between, give that person a chance to get healthy again, and, and be able to give them a chance to get the dog back.
Diaz Dixon:Yeah, getting that stability. You know, it's important giving the people time to breathe and, and get their feet underneath them. So, you're talking about this, this fostering model, what, what type of supportive services do you have? What's available? What does that look like?
Stephen Knight:Okay, so, we have, we have a couple of programs where, the first one is the actual, being able to foster your dog, which entails them completing an application, where they will tell us the situation, we need to verify that they're going to treatment and you know, and kind of vet everything and to see how we can help the person and they give us a lot of information about the dog. And then the next step is that they would actually temporarily surrender the dog to us. So we have ownership of that dog, let's say for anywhere from usually we have is 30, sometimes 60, 90 days, can be longer to get a sober living, but we usually do 30 to 90 days. And at the end of that time period, they you know, when in the contract, the dog, you know, goes back to them. If no, there's, there's some ifs there, you know, when somebody surrenders their dog, and they give it to us, and they sign a contract, they're obligated to be able to stay in treatment and get healthy. So they do-
Diaz Dixon:Very good.
Stephen Knight:Yeah, they do know that we're not just here to take your dog, and then whatever happens to you, whatever happens to you. They, they're, in the contract says you, you will complete treatment and or stay in touch with us, you know, like sometimes maybe their insurance, something good happens. So that's not their fault. But if they, if they decide to leave treatment and go get high, or you know, and then want their dog back, that doesn't happen, you know?
Diaz Dixon:Right. Right. That's good. So there's a responsibility piece. And I would also assume that you need custody of the dog because if medical care is needed, you need to have the authority to be able to justify or authorize it.
Stephen Knight:Absolutely, yeah, we, it becomes ours, you know, and I think that the, you know, when I say this about like, you know, the they gotta do this to get their dog back out of the, you know, the 1000 dogs that we've done, probably ten dogs total, we've had to really do that. So, shows you instead, that that barrier, that biggest barrier they had became their, their biggest motivator. Because what will happen is that in, you know, you have some experience in the field, is that there's always that two week, three week period, where people start getting a little I call squirrely and when late, and they're like, oh, this is enough, or, it becomes too much, they're having to deal with everything, and a lot of people will want to leave. And so what happens is that, they give us a call and the counselor, also a therapist, and we kind of talk, you know, talk to the counselor, and we'll talk to the client. And you know, they'll know, it's like, you know, you really need to stay there. And then what we'll do is we'll send a video and some pictures of the dog of how happy and healthy the dog is, is being and they look at that. And they're just like, oh, my God, you know.
Diaz Dixon:It's motivating.
Stephen Knight:Yeah, yeah. So the success rate, the success rate, will continue to go, not only will they finish that treatment, but having a dog your first year in sobriety and recovery gives you a much higher chance of staying sober the first year than, and than what the national average is, which is anywhere from 30 to 50%. And that's being very generous of people staying sober.
Diaz Dixon:That is being generous.
Stephen Knight:Yeah, yeah, yeah, with with having, in our program, we're getting the data, because we're doing a few years where it's more 70 to 75% of our clients will stay sober.
Diaz Dixon:Wow, that's amazing. And for you folks out there listening, that is, those are phenomenal numbers. So that's, that's huge. Well, Stephen, is there, what's the eligibility criteria at the very beginning when they're coming in?
Stephen Knight:It's just the ability to like, find, making sure that you're going into treatment, what your plan of action is, and of course, making sure the dog is a dog that can foster, doesn't have any, like history of biting or, you know, being too aggressive. We have you know, there's, we have even worked with some really difficult dogs, and we just have to board them for a little while and keep them separate, you know. So we'll go we'll go far beyond the criteria is you want to, you want to get healthy, you know, the criteria is you want to change, you're ready to, you're ready to step into the world of healing, and dealing with your addiction and dealing with life. And and you know, you got a place to go, we'll verify it. And that's, that's pretty much it.
Diaz Dixon:Yeah, yeah. That's amazing. That's such great work. Are there any people or animals that you've worked with that just pop out, any stories that you could tell us about that, that really come to the front of your mind?
Stephen Knight:Well, I yeah, I mean, one of them is the, there's, there's so many of them. You know, I think that the one that does send out a lot is we had a client six years ago that was here in Texas and she couldn't stay sober more than six months and she had, children were taken away. And she was just like really struggling, the only thing she had left were her two Boxers. She had nowhere to place them and she got a hold of us. And literally these dogs were, she left, they did an intervention, she left to go to California, these dogs were left at her boyfriend's, drug dealer, meth lab, pretty much trailer, and the dogs were in the back tied up. And the father actually went in there and rescued the dogs and took them to me, so they didn't know where they're at. And, and we got the dogs and we fostered them. And Camille stayed in treatment, she was struggling for a while. And, you know, we talked to her and anyway, she, we ended up like, getting the dogs, you know, instead of coming back here, to our old people, places and things, you know, back where she was, you know, coming to get the dogs, we got the dogs to get to California, and she started a whole new life. And now she's like, I think seven years sober. And one of the dogs did pass, and but she still has the other one, and a new one. And so that I mean, that's just one story. I mean, there's, I know, there's people that have been living literally, just recently living out of their car, and he had two small little dogs. And he, you know, he just couldn't get sober. And he was trying to find a place for the dogs. And he called me up and he was suicidal. And he was like this, I can't do this anymore. So I literally drove and met him at a boarding place. And we took the two dogs and I was able to get him into the rehab that afternoon to get help. And he he just called me yesterday and he's got almost 60 days clean.
Diaz Dixon:Oh, that's great!
Stephen Knight:And he's so grateful, he'll call me every other night, how are my dogs? How are my dogs, you know, I want to get my dogs back. And I'll send them pics and he's, he's, you know, as a changed man. He came from literally giving up on life and you know, wanting to cash it in, to like, he's so excited now, motivated, and he's talking about how he's going to have a career and get a job and get the dogs back. So.
Diaz Dixon:That is so cool. And you know, and here you are in position to help give and restore hope. And then you know, he gets that momentum. 60 great days clean is no easy feat. What what do you think would happen to most of these people, Stephen, and pets, if, if Dogs Matter wasn't there to support them?
Stephen Knight:I would say honestly, 80% of the dogs would end up in the shelter. And I would say after that, you know, the euthanasia rate and you know, overcrowding in shelters, and these dogs would be euthanized, I'm sure, you know. And you know and that's, because I mean there's no, there's nowhere to place the dog. I mean, you know the fact that that you know the more we get really into our addiction, we lose our relationships. So there's, we're the only option, it's us or the shelter. And the shelter's overcrowding. So, my goal is to be able to be that middleman to be, wait hold on instead of going to the shelter, let's, you know, let's temporary foster this dog and save another space for the shelter for another dog.
Diaz Dixon:Yeah, that is great. You know, it's it's a matter of life and death and I know you have talked in the past about how pets don't just give us love and affection, they also heal us. I'd love to hear more about your thoughts behind that
Stephen Knight:Especially when we're in recovery, or when we suffer from trauma, the the healing part of everything is is you know it is long term, but having a dog being able to look in the eyes and have that is to me it's spiritual you know there's there's a bond in that and the opposite of addict, addiction and a lot of part of healing is connection and connecting to healthy people, healthy relationships, right? And about, to gain you know part of trauma healing is to regain trust, right, and you can get the building a trusting relationship with a dog can help individuals with trust issues. It can be able to really have the first healthy relationship and know what emotional support is and unconditional love and not being judged, you know, of anything. It's also a stress reduction, you know, there's there's having a dog and petting it and being, and just holding it releases these endorphins that are, reduces stress, and to a point of like really calming down. And when you're calm and your, your life is more like that you're able to deal and you know and go into the trauma and talk about it and process it and let go of it and when it's over with you you're not going home alone. You're going home to hold that dog and cry maybe and to be able to see feel and to hold that dog and to be a part of it really does keep people not just moving but thriving, I think.
Diaz Dixon:Yeah, yeah. And that's a big part. I think that's why so many of us are struggling these days is because we are just kind of, you know, living and working our way along and unnecessary thriving. I love what you talk about too. And you're talking about the trauma and the part of the healing of working your way through it, rather than just going around it. And on the other side of that is forget this loving pet that is loving us unconditionally. That's some beautiful stuff. There's a really beautiful stuff do a lot of the people that you've worked with, do they stay in touch with you afterwards? Yeah.
Stephen Knight:So So what's really great is a lot of them definitely stay, and then Sony will end up fostering not giving back. And that's such a I mean, that's, I mean, there's kind of the full circle of like, coming into needing our services, and then playing it forward and being able to foster or volunteer, you know, or, you know, yeah, so and they're everybody's so grateful. And they're, and they're honest about their, you know, sharing their story with us. And, you know, we do reunion videos, if you follow us on Instagram, and Facebook. Our union videos are just so inspiring. And they love to be able to show that and they're so supportive. So yeah, they definitely keep in touch and they're so grateful.
Diaz Dixon:That's awesome. That is awesome. I can imagine that's probably the greatest thing about it. And the people, what are some of the what are some of the largest challenges that you have, Stephen?
Stephen Knight:Well, the number one largest challenge is foster families. Okay. And I think that's the whole rescue community. You know, we're we are, we're a rescue program. And I think that if we had the foster families to be able to, you know, take more dogs, that would be, I think the other challenge too, is, you know, having some of these rehabs and treatment centers and several living, not allowed dogs, you know, some capacity to be there. And I think that there needs to be more of a conversation and a plan of action to see how we can provide more of the dog being there physically, but then also being part of the treatment. I just, I just went to a conference in San Antonio, this past weekend to talk about the Texas Addiction Professionals is a statewide conference and I got for the first time present the How to formalize having a dog be part of the treatment plan and the assessment in the debt discharge plan, the aftercare program, and it really was quite powerful. And a lot of the rehabs and therapists and admissions, we're like, going, Okay, we're going to change part of how we, you know, how we do admissions, we're gonna ask the questions, do you have a dog, instead of waiting for them to get, you know, is the dog safe. And then as your treatment plan, as you know, if you had a child you want to put in, do you want to become a better mother and you want to become a better parent and all those type things, you want to be a better, you know, owner, a better caregiver to your dog, and that's part of your treatment and part of your, you know, the ability to develop those skills too.
Diaz Dixon:Absolutely, you know, that's a wonderful thing that you do in there, because you're opening up the door, open up the eyes and perspectives to Human Services, which don't typically think about companionship with pets. And that's even at the early stages, when you're doing an evaluation and asking questions or in an interview, it's important to find out do you have a pet to lean into that so great work there. It's good to hear that you had a lot of social service programs that were very interested in addiction programs that were leaning in.
Stephen Knight:Absolutely. I'm gonna go I'm definitely gonna be going back next year to continue having that conversation. We even said you can start like maybe some of these places as you know, they have land on their silly build a kennel, a nice kennel old daycare, little playground, you know, like a little place for the dogs to be in stay in. And so we came up some ideas and recruit fosters from alumni groups, you know, the rehab, would they always have alumni groups that come back every year, and, you know, recruit some people to be fostered and 12 step meetings announced, you have a bulletin board and posted this person needs is going to treatment and they need a foster. And there's so many things that that can be done. That, you know, that really can allow us to have more fosters and serve more people.
Diaz Dixon:Awesome. creating and building ambassadors.
Stephen Knight:Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Diaz Dixon:Good stuff. How do most people find out about Dogs Matter?
Stephen Knight:Usually, it's a lot of times it's through the rehabs, that you know some of the people that the previous rehabs that we have worked with in a lot of people will just Google temporary fostering and we pop up first, because very few of them out there. But now it's you know, we kind of got the reputation of like, Oh, if your dog needs You know, dog needs fostering call dogs matter, but it really is, but we have a website, you can go to his dogs Vander to.org, that, you know, we'll talk about our services, and they can find out more through that. And, yeah, so it's that we're helping a lot to kind of segue a little bit into what we're hoping to happen very soon. Okay, let's hear about that. Okay, the future plans is in, and part of it is, is that so, you know, my, my whole thing is that I'm more the human person on a therapist. I've worked with backgrounds of, you know, nonprofits for 20 years, worked with the homeless mental illness of it, I didn't really know that much about the dark part of it. So my goal was always that I wanted to find a, an organization to be able to help me with the dogs, and then I would do more the human. And that would give me the ability to really focus more on what I do best at. So we just are completing a merger with Dallas Pets Alive. Oh, great. Yeah, this is all news. Just as just happened in the last couple of weeks. We've been working on it for two years. And about because we're saying, why don't we do? Why don't I do what I do best. And then they can do what we do best when they take care of the dog. And we'll take care of more of the human. And so we're, we're in the process of really becoming a branch of the Dallas Pets Alive! nonprofit. And our goal is to become a model program and have other rescues actually open up a space for the human part of it. And next year, we're actually literally looking for a facility that's going to be walk in and it's going to be two sided, it's going to be you walk in this one side is going to be for your animal, and one side is going to be for the person. So when you come in, and you have your issue and your problem, whether it's addiction or domestic violence, or homelessness, and you need a place where your dog, you're going to come into a place on the human side, we're going to have case managers and therapists and people to help guide you recovery coaches to help, you know, to assess us like a community, I wouldn't call it a you know, rescue place and more like a community center. And then the other side would be an actual place for the dog to go, it's a kennel, there's going to be, you know, places like to get medical they can do, we can do the grooming there. So literally you can go it's like a one stop center to work on both the animal and the person with the goal to be able to get both healthy and reunite.
Diaz Dixon:A one stop shop. That is really, really, really cool. And so needed in Dallas, what a great place to, to be able to launch because it's such a huge population such a large need, whether you're talking about homelessness or substance use mental health. I mean, that's, that's a that's a great place to start and a ton of resources of individuals that could dive in and corporations that can help out. Yeah, what, what's the timeline on when you would like to be up and running?
Stephen Knight:In 2024, we'd like to find a facility a space and we're looking we've been looking at we're looking right now. And, you know, so we're hoping, you know, sometime, you know, next year, you know, early on, but that's definitely our goal is to be able to, to have that facility and to you know, because right now, one of the challenges is that, okay, I have somebody that is literally got a bed waiting for them in a rehab, right? And, you know, right now it's just like, and they they feel application going, I'm waiting, I can go tomorrow. And right now I'd be like I you know, I don't have any work to do, right now for the dogs to go to. Now, we might have to board them to boarding, you know, expensive that can be so we really can't afford to board them, even with a rate that some of our partners will give us a good rate is still we can't you know, we can't do that. So having a facility, they can literally come and drop off the dog into the nakeds. We can keep the dog until we find a foster home. Because what will happen is that goal, I'll just wait then until you find a foster family. And then what happens is they get worse. And then you know, in specially I mean, one of the things as you know, is that the crisis of the fentanyl epidemic is killing people left and right. And yeah, every every day somebody continues to use fentanyl is playing Russian roulette. And, you know, so one thing that our priority is, you know, in the second you want to get some help, will will be there and to be able to have that place to go and then you know, and then right then and even if they don't have a place to go yet, if they come into the facility we'll have we'll have referrals and people that can talk to you to get them into a bed.
Diaz Dixon:Love it. And well it's interesting because I didn't know you were looking at Dallas, as you're doing all this. A little birdie told me that you were looking at expanding into Austin.
Stephen Knight:Well, we're definitely looking to, we have some we have some places in Austin and we've been working with Austin Pets Alive on on some of the, you know, some of the dogs down there. But yeah, we we want to be able to expand in we do kind of currently serve the whole state. But Austin is really growing the need, and they're so dog friendly, which also creates a large dog population, which also creates a huge need. And right now we probably have as many applications coming in from Austin, as we do Dallas, but what we're also doing is that we're going to be providing transportation and you can get the dog up here, you know, we'll we'll take you can be worth anywhere in the state, and we'll try to help you. But yeah, I would love to be able to expand and be able to, you know, help as many others or help create something just like Dogs Matter in other places.
Diaz Dixon:That's phenomenal. You know, there was a, there used to be a program called Nexus in Texas, which is a substance use treatment facility.
Stephen Knight:It's still there.
Diaz Dixon:It's still there. Okay, that was back in 2004. I took an early trip to go look at what they were doing, because they were one of the top programs in the country. And I actually borrowed and stole a lot of their philosophies and strategies to build step two in Reno, Nevada. So it's, it's, it's ripe and ready to bring in all these additional components that you bring in. And I'm glad to hear that nexus is still there.
Stephen Knight:Yeah, yeah. Yeah. And that's, I mean, that's my goal, too, is that like, you know, when, especially when I have more time and be able to focus on really working with the rehabs and working with the facilities to be able to create more opportunities for the dog to be part of the process and part of the, of the, the treatment? And yeah, and really looking at saving more lives.
Diaz Dixon:Yeah. Awesome. Well, Stephen, what have you learned? Most, you know, in this last decade, I mean, you've been doing this for almost a decade. Now, since you founded Dog Matters, what have been the biggest lessons for you?
Stephen Knight:I think the number one lesson is that it's never too late to be able to really heal, change and be able to start a new life, I got sober at 51 years old. And, you know, and I was on the verge of just like, it's too late, you know, I'm gonna dynamic and, you know, and I learned that people deserve second chances to be able to change and be able to do that I got a second chance. And, and I also learned that with passion, and drive and action, you can really do anything, you know, and absolutely, coming from a place of like, living I was literally living in my car 12 years ago, what I call like, passive suicide, which I didn't care, I lived or died. And to go from there to rehab to hope to build a life that I get to do everyday I get to wake up and help somebody in their dog. I mean, come on. That's, you know, that's pretty nice life and I get, you know, in the, in the recognition and the ability to share this mission and be able to show my passion and how personal it is for me to help somebody else is just like, I've learned that that that's for me, it's the the human experience, you're placed here for I think we're spiritual beings having a human experience. And I found my human experience is, it's what I've learned, it's never too late.
Diaz Dixon:To me, this is exactly what hope looks like, you know, dogs matter. This is hope. The and you can hear it expressed in your voice and in your stories. Doing this work every day. Is hope a good word to use?
Stephen Knight:Absolutely. I mean, it's, I mean, you have that moment where you feel like you've got hope in your life again, for coming in from hopelessness to hope is is absolutely what I feel as the backbone in the core of what we can provide.
Diaz Dixon:I love it. And I'm sure all those listeners, this is something that we can lean in on. Because there are often opportunities, sometimes we feel like we want to do more we want to give back, this could be a great way you know, fostering is something that gives hope to not only the the pets that are involved the companion animals as well as the people who are in tough situations. And I got to ask you, though, this is my favorite question that we ask of all the guests. Can you tell me about even more detailed? Do you have any other stories about the special animals in your life? Is there more than just Jade in the picture?
Stephen Knight:Oh, yeah, I have three dogs total that I, two I would call foster fails. You know, one is Piper and her story is her owner didn't make it. She, she was, she got sober for a little while. And we got her dog back and then she kind of relapsed again and I was able to to get Piper and and I told her I said, you know, Piper always be safe in place with me. And then she ended up like overdosing and to be able to make sure that Piper has a place in my home, because because she was one of our first clients. So it was a very special client, she did really well for a while and, and I and I and Piper was about, I think six months old when we first when we first Foster's and so I was doing most of the fostering. So Piper, Piper was meet with me from six months old. And then she went back a little while for her owner, and then ended up like, I got Piper back and she's like, right, like now like, you know, living the best life laying on my couch, chewing on a bone. And, you know, and that that's a dog that I know, that would not not have made it in would have been in the shelter, you know, right? I have. My other one is lady who, whose honor was the husband was very abusive, and, or the boyfriend and you know, she was late, it was kind of caught up in the middle of their relationship and domestic violence and, and was abused herself. This dog was. And so the owner ended up both of them going to prison. And, and I came in and I before she left, and she called me so I'll get lady out. And so these are two dogs that couldn't go back to the owner. And but what I could provide them is the best possible life and they you know, they continue to I look, you know, every day I look at that, and I say I saved I saved that dog, you know, and obviously we can't always save the client. But we have never ever had to send the dog to the shelter we've never ever had to give up on the dog will always always have a place for the dog.
Diaz Dixon:What a huge win. What a huge win. You guys, you're hearing this Stephen Knight, a true hero doing phenomenal work. Stephen, how do we find you?
Stephen Knight:Okay, that's good question. Go to our website, dogsmattertoo.org. And there we have an application to foster. If you're interested in fostering if you need our services, we have an application on our website to be able to complete our services if you know somebody struggling. And when you say really quick about what's special about our fostering compared to like, other rescues is that ours is temporary, you're not you don't you're not going to be with the dog and have to find that dog another home and go through all the process and the events and everything, although that's great. But for us, it's short term and and you are helping you become part of that person's story of the understory, and you're helping them. And so to know that it's temporary, and you know where the dog is going back to that to their rider dying to that that person they're most bonded to. So you know, a lot of people get really attached to the dog, and they have no idea where it's gonna go, when it's going to get adopted, you know exactly where the dogs gonna go. And you're gonna know that we stay with that dog and that person for the least 12 months after the reunion. Oh, that's huge. So we make sure everybody is healthy. So anyway, you can go to our website and foster knowing that it's only temporary fostering and learn more about us.
Diaz Dixon:Alright, you guys out there listening, make sure you go check the website out, look at the support they need. This is an opportunity for you to get in. Maybe you didn't want to foster in a different way that was a long term capacity. This is a great way to get involved. And I want to just really, really Thanks, Stephen, for coming on the show today. You know, this is this is a time where we need to hear these uplifting stories and the wonderful things that are going on in the communities because we know that we certainly need more, more love being spread. So Stephen, thank you for coming on the show.
Stephen Knight:Appreciate you guys having me. I enjoyed talking to you.
Diaz Dixon:Well, it's been a total blessing. And so for those of you out there, thank you for listening in on another episode of People, Pets, and Purpose, where we focus on that human-animal bond, really heavily on the need for more human kindness and pet kindness because it benefits all of us. Until next time, be well, lead with love. We'll see you soon.