Pets, People, & Public Health | Indiana Century S1E11

Special: In today's episode, I discuss the animals my family adopted and what they mean to us!

Animal welfare isn't separate from human welfare. It's the same thing.

Stray dogs spread rabies. Feral cats spread disease. Overcrowded shelters become breeding grounds for infection. When we protect animals, we protect people too. This is called One Health, and it's the foundation for everything in this episode.

In Episode 11, we talk about the Pet Product Stewardship Fee. One percent on non-essential pet items. The fancy toys, the boutique treats, the stuff you don't really need but buy anyway. That one percent funds low-cost spay and neuter, veterinary care for families who can't afford it, and the Animal Stewardship Corps.

We cover real Indiana examples. In February 2026, an Indianapolis shelter was at 104% capacity. The director said they were "at a breaking point." In 2025, Indiana lost 8.6 million birds to avian flu. That's an agricultural disaster and a public health warning. And across the state, vet deserts leave communities with no access to spay and neuter services.

The Animal Stewardship Corps is part of the ICC's Resilience Corps track. Corps members provide mobile clinics, shelter support, and emergency response. They go into vet deserts, bringing care to parking lots and fairgrounds. They help families who can't afford veterinary care. They reduce stray populations before they become a crisis.

Featured book: The Bond by Wayne Pacelle. The deep, ancient connection between people and animals. And the responsibility that comes with it.

This episode also includes personal stories about the rescued cats and dogs who inspired this work.

IndianaCentury.org

Transcript

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Welcome to the Indiana Century Podcast, hosted by Corey Easterday. Episode 11, Pets, People, and Public Health. Part 1, The 1%. Do you have pets? I want you to think about the last time you bought something for your pet. Maybe a fancy toy, a boutique treat, a bed that costs more than your own pillow, a leash made of recycled something or other. You didn't think twice about it. You love your pet. You want them to have nice things. Now think about the last time you saw a stray dog in your neighborhood, or a cat that looked like it hadn't eaten in days, or a shelter that was overcrowded and underfunded. You probably felt something. Maybe you wished you could help. Maybe you already do. But the problem often feels too big for one person. Here's the thing about animal welfare in Indiana. It's not just about animals. It's about people. It's about public health, community connection, and the kind of society that we want to live in. Stray animals spread diseases. They get hit by cars, they cost taxpayers money in animal control, shelter operations, and emergency services. And the people who care for them, the shelter workers, the rescuers, the volunteers, are often burned out, underpaid, and overwhelmed. Today, in episode 11, we talk about a simple solution. A 1% fee on non-essential pet products. The fancy toys, the boutique treats, the stuff you don't really need, but you buy anyway because you love your pets. That 1% funds low-cost spay and neuter, veterinary care for families who can't afford it, and a new kind of community service core focused on animal welfare. But before we get into the policy, I want to tell you about some of the animals who made me think about this in the first place. Part 2. I have spent a lot of time on this podcast talking about big things: reactors, rail lines, constitutional amendments, but the truth is, I started thinking about animal welfare because of the rescues that are now a part of my family. Around 2007, we adopted a cat from the local shelter when I was stationed in Hampton Roads, Virginia. We named her Miri. When we brought her home, she almost immediately got on my lap and basically never got off. She lived a long, happy life with us until she passed away at the age of 18 in 2024. She had kidney issues and fluid building up around her heart. We couldn't afford the expensive surgeries that might have extended her life, so we had to make the difficult decision. She was a beloved part of our family for decades, and we really miss her. Her favorite thing was what we called party time. Every day we would give our cats party mix and they'd line up waiting for it. Next, I want to talk about prison greyhounds. They are a group that have been operating in the Indianapolis area since 2012. They partnered with the Putnam Correctional Facility to allow inmates who are in good behavior to help rehabilitate retired racing Greyhounds. Since Greyhound racing has become illegal in the U.S., there aren't enough retired racers to maintain the program, and the prison portion was halted in 2021. But the nonprofit partnered with other groups to continue caring for greyhounds and other similar dogs to this day. In 2013, we adopted a retired racer named Lolita Bambam. I've always been a fan of the X Men, so I named her Jean Grey or Jean Greyhound. Greyhounds are sweet but peculiar dogs. Many people think they run all the time, but that isn't true. Jean would sprint around our backyard for about a minute a day, and that was enough for her. The rest of the time she spent on the couch cuddling with us or our cats. Greyhounds are notorious for stomach issues, and Jean was no exception. Her stomach stopped working around the age of eleven, and we sadly had to say goodbye. She was a great dog, and I hope she's having fun, running laps in doggy heaven. My wife, whose family is allergic to cats and dogs, never had pets growing up. In twenty seventeen, she decided to adopt her first pet, a calico rescue from the Hamilton County shelter. We named her Rogue. She was tiny and had a respiratory infection. She did not stay tiny. She is now our biggest cat. We joke that she would be a perfectly happy only cat. She will sit on our laps or cuddle in bed, but only if no other humans or animals are watching. As soon as someone else sees her, she will jump down and hide. She's very private with her affection. In twenty nineteen, my daughter and I were in a local pet store. There was a lone, sweet, quiet Torty sitting in the cage there. My daughter talked us into adopting Muse, who we later renamed to Storm. She might be the weirdest cat I have ever owned. She was best friends with Jean, and still to this day is mortal enemies with Rogue. She growls, huffs, and snorts, even when she's happy or playing with one of the other cats. We think that she was neglected as a kitten and doesn't really know how to interact with other cats in the usual manner. Whenever I throw a toy mouse, she jumps in the air and catches it. We told ourselves that three cats was our max. Then, one day in January of 2024, a little dilute torty kitten showed up at our door. She just walked up with the delivery guy as if we had ordered her online. People joke about the cat distribution system, but it might be real. This was right at the end of Miri's life, and the universe seemed to send another cat our way. She, like our other Torty Storm, is quite small. She loves chasing Storm around but is scared of Rogue's massive frame. After Miri passed, we were at our cat limit of three again. However, in January of 2026, I found out someone was keeping an adult cat in their garage. In the dead of winter, no heating, no company. We ended up adopting this tuxedo cat, Lita, and welcomed her home. She is still adjusting to life with us and our other cats. It's going well, but you can tell how skittish she is after being isolated in a garage for half a year. She reminds us why it's important to care for our pets like they're our family, even if it's a little inconvenient. Anyway, those are the critters who made me think about this part of the plan. They are reminders that the line between animal welfare and human welfare is thinner than we think. If you've ever taken an astray, you know exactly what I mean. Even if you haven't, you probably know someone who has. And we all know how important taking care of our furry friends truly is. Part three. The One Health Framework. Here's what veterinarians and public health experts have known for decades. Animal health and human health are connected. It's called One Health. The idea is simple. The health of people, animals, and the environment are all linked. You can't fix one without thinking about the others. Disease prevention starts with animal welfare. Stray dogs spread rabies, feral cats spread toxoplasmosis. Overcrowded shelters become breeding grounds for respiratory infections. When we reduce stray populations through spay and neuter, we reduce disease transmission to humans and animals alike. When we vaccinate pets, we protect the people who live with them. Here's a real Indiana example. In january twenty twenty six, avian influenza hit two commercial duck flocks in Lagrange County. That's not just bad for ducks. In twenty twenty five alone, Indiana lost sixty seven commercial poultry flocks. That's more than eight point six million birds. Eight point six million. The Ohio and Indiana region accounted for nearly half of the US flocks lost to avian flu last year. That is an agricultural disaster. It's also a public health warning. When animal disease spreads, human disease follows. The same systems that failed to contain bird flu, underfunded monitoring, limited veterinary access, gaps in prevention are the same systems that fail to contain rabies, leptospirosis, and other diseases that jump from animals to people. Animal cruelty is linked to human violence. Study after study shows that people who abuse animals are more likely to also abuse people. Domestic violence victims often stay in dangerous situations because they won't leave their pets behind. When we protect animals, we protect people too. Pets improve human health. People with pets have lower blood pressure, they recover from illness faster, they're less lonely. For seniors living alone, a dog or cat can be the difference between isolation and connection. For kids, growing up with pets builds empathy and responsibility. The One Health Framework is the foundation for everything we're talking about today. The Animal Stewardship Corps, the pet product stewardship fee, the low cost clinics. It's all connected because our health is connected. Part four. Broken systems. Let me walk you through the current state of animal welfare in Indiana. And morning, it's not very pretty. The first issue we're gonna cover is overcrowded shelters. Just a few weeks ago, Indianapolis Animal Care Services announced they were at 104% capacity for dogs. Every kennel is full. More animals arrive every day. The director said, quote, we are at a breaking point. Every full kennel means there is one less dog we can help, end quote. Without immediate relief, staff may be forced to make difficult decisions. That is not a failure of compassion, it is a failure of funding. And it's not just Indianapolis. Shelters across the state are overcrowded and underfunded. Many are forced to euthanize healthy animals because there's simply no space for them. Next is lack of access to veterinary care. For families struggling to make ends meet, a $200 vet bill is impossible. So their pet doesn't get vaccinated, doesn't get spayed or neutered, doesn't get treated when it's sick. That's bad for the animal, bad for the family, and bad for public health. Sherry Storms runs Pet Friendly Services of Indiana. She also chairs the National Veterinary Shortage Task Force. Her assessment is blunt. We have a crisis of access. People want to spay and neuter their pets. They just can't afford it or can't find a vet. Post-pandemic, the veterinary shortage has reached crisis levels. There are vet deserts across Indiana. Communities with no vet at all or vets so backed up that appointments are months away. Next, we'll touch on voucher programs and how they aren't enough. Some counties have tried voucher programs to help low-income families afford spay and neuter, but vet costs have risen so much that a voucher only covers a fraction of the bill. A family might get a $50 voucher for a $200 procedure. That helps, but in reality it's just a band-aid, and families that are struggling still won't be able to afford these necessary procedures. Next, we'll talk about burnout among shelter workers. The people who do this work are heroes. They show up every day to care for animals that have been abandoned, abused, or neglected. They do it for low pay, little recognition. Many burn out and leave. The turnover is constant. There seems to be no connection between all of these systems throughout our states. There is a complete disconnect. Animal control operates separately from public health. Shelters operate separately from social services. Domestic violence shelters don't always have space for pets. Everyone is doing their best, but no one is coordinating across the state. We also need to talk about the cost to taxpayers. Animal control, shelter operations, emergency services for animal-related incidents. All adds up to a lot of money. Millions of dollars every year. Money that could be spent on prevention instead is spent on crisis response. The problem isn't the people don't care about animals. Hoosiers love their animals. We're a state of dog lovers, cat lovers, farm families who care for livestock like their family. The problem is that the systems are broken. And broken systems need structural solutions. Part five. Here's the solution. A 1% fee on non-essential pet products. What does that include? The fancy toys, boutique treats, designer beds, Halloween costumes for dogs, the stuff you don't actually need, but you buy because you love your pet and it makes you and them happy. So what is excluded from this 1%? All of the essential stuff food, medicine, leashes and collars, litter, crate, food bowl, water bowl, anything required for basic care. And how much is this fee? Just 1%. That's one penny on every dollar. If you spend fifty dollars on a fancy toy, the fee is fifty cents. If you spend twenty dollars on boutique treats, the fee is twenty cents. It's negligible. You won't even notice it. So what does this fund? Three things. First, low-cost spay and neuter programs across the state. Second, veterinary care for families who can't afford it. Third, the Animal Stewardship Corps. Sherry Storms and her team at Pet Friendly Services have shown what works. Mobile units that travel to underserved communities. High volume wet labs that train vets in surgical skills. Voucher systems that actually cover the full cost of care. The 1% fee makes these things sustainable. No more begging for grants, no more hoping the legislature finds spare change, no more hoping enough people just donate enough money to Pet Smart or whatever pet store you go to. This is dedicated, permanent funding for the work that needs to be done. Why one percent? Because it's enough to make a difference and small enough that no one will fight it. Pet owners love their animals. They're willing to pay a tiny amount to help other animals, and the industry won't oppose a fee this small because it doesn't threaten their bottom line. Now we need to talk about the lock. Like the host community fee, the pet product stewardship fee should be locked by constitutional amendment. The revenue goes to animal welfare. It can't be rated for other purposes. It belongs to the animals and to the people who care for them. Part six The Animal Stewardship Corps. The 1% fee we just talked about funds the Animal Stewardship Corps. Think of it as the ICC for animal welfare. What do they do? The Corps provides low-cost span neuter clinics, they run vaccination drives, they support shelters with staffing and resources, help families in crisis care for their pets, they respond to animal-related emergencies, they drive mobile units into vet deserts, bringing care to the communities that have none. Who would join the Animal Stewardship Corps? The same pipeline as the ICC. Young people who need a path. Veterans who want to continue serving. Displaced workers who need new skills. People who love animals and want to make a difference. Future vets who need hands-on experience. Shelter workers who want to do more but need the support. Where would these people work? In every county across the state. The core is distributed across the state with hubs at regional health centers and shelters. So not just in the big cities like Indianapolis. This is specifically designed so that they're in rural communities where veterinary care is hardest to access. They're in vet deserts bringing mobile clinics to parking lots and fairgrounds, and they're serving Hoosiers all across the state. So how would these people be trained? The Resilience Corps track within the ICC includes animal welfare training, basic veterinary skills, shelter operations, disease prevention, community outreach. They work alongside licensed veterinarians and experienced shelter staff. This has a multiplier effect. One core member can spay or neuter dozens of animals a week. That's dozens of litters that won't be born, dozens of strays that won't need shelter space, dozens of families who won't face the heartbreak of unwanted litters. The impact scales. And when the shelters aren't overwhelmed, they can focus on adoptions, foster programs, and the kind of care that makes communities proud of the animal welfare systems. Part 7. The Bond. This week's featured book is The Bond Our Kinship with Animals, Our Call to Defend Them by Wayne Passell. In countless fascinating ways, our relationship with animals is an essential part of the human experience. Now, one of the world's leading Champions of animal welfare offers a dramatic examination of our age-old bond to all creatures. Wayne Passell explores the many ways animals contribute to our happiness and well-being, and he reveals scientists' newfound understanding of their remarkable emotional and cognitive capabilities. Passell also takes on animal cruelty in its many varieties, as well as stubborn opponents of animal protection, from multinational agribusiness corporations to the National Rifle Association, and even our own government. An instant classic, the Bond reminds us that animals are at the center of our lives, not just a backdrop, and how we treat them is one of the great themes of the human story. Wayne Passell is president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, the nation's largest animal protection organization. Passell was the president of the Humane Society of the United States for more than a decade. He spent his life thinking about the relationship between humans and animals. The book is about what Passell calls the bond, that deep, ancient connection between people and animals. It's not sentimental, it's biological, psychological, and social. We evolved alongside animals. We depend on them for food, work, and companionship. They depend on us for care. Passell argues that the bond comes with responsibility. We can't just love our own pets and ignore the rest. The bond extends to all animals, not just the ones who live in our homes. That means we have a collective obligation to care for the animals who depend on us. The book also makes the public health case. Passell traces the history of rabies, bird flu, and other zoonotic diseases. He shows that animal welfare isn't separate from human welfare. It's the same thing. When we protect animals, we protect ourselves. The avian flu outbreak in Indiana, 8.6 million birds lost, is exactly the kind of crisis Pasell warns about. It didn't have to be this bad. With better monitoring, better veterinary access, better prevention, we could have caught it earlier. The bond is the philosophical foundation for the animal stewardship core. It's the argument that caring for animals isn't a luxury. It is a responsibility. And it's a responsibility that builds stronger, healthier, more connected communities. Part eight. The Animal Stewardship Corps doesn't stand alone. It connects to every pillar of the Indiana Century Project. Pillar one, Energy. The Corps uses electric vehicles for mobile clinics. They're powered by our reactors, Clean Energy for Clean Care. Pillar two, connectivity. The Corps uses the fiber network to coordinate across counties. We could have telehealth for animals, remote consultations with veterinarians, and real-time shelter capacity tracking. Pillar three is agriculture. The Corps works with farmers on livestock welfare. They provide low-cost care for working animals. They help prevent disease transmission between livestock and wildlife. The avian flu outbreak in LaGrange County, those were farm animals. The same system that protects pets protects the livestock that feed Indiana. Pillar four is health and compassion. This is the direct connection. Animal health is human health. The core reduces disease transmission, supports domestic violence survivors with pet-safe housing, and provides the human connection that comes from caring for something together. Pillar five is the funding flywheel. The 1% fee is a revenue stream. It's small, but it's dedicated. It can't be rated. It belongs to the animals and the people who care for them. The Animal Stewardship Corps is the heart of the Indiana Century Project. Not because it's the biggest or most expensive, because it's the most human. It's about connection, care, and community. Part 9. Objections and responses. Although I always find it amusing when someone argues against taking care of the animals in our life, whether it's our own pets or wildlife, but let me walk you through some objections. Objection one, this is a tax on pet owners. 1% on non-essential items is not a tax. It's a simple fee. And it's voluntary. If you don't want to pay it, you don't have to buy the fancy toys. Your pet will be fine with a cardboard box. Objection two. Why should I pay for other people's pets? This one's simple. Because stray animals are everyone's problem. They spread disease, they cause car accidents, they attack our pets. They cost taxpayers money already. The fee prevents those costs before they even happen. Objection three. This is government overreach. This is government doing what government should do: protecting public health, supporting vulnerable populations, and building community. The 1% fee is tiny. The impact it would have on Indiana is huge. Objection four, what about people who can't afford veterinary care? That's exactly what this fee funds. Low-cost clinics, mobile units that go into vet deserts, vouchers that actually cover the full cost. The fee helps the people who need it the most. Objection five. Shouldn't this be private charity? We already have the evidence right now. Private charity isn't enough. Shelters are underfunded, veterinary care is out of reach for way too many families in Indiana. The problem is structural. It needs a structural solution. The Indianapolis shelter was at 104% capacity. That's not a charity failure, that's a systemic failure. Part 10. Conclusion and preview. Animal welfare is not separate from human welfare. It's the same thing. Stray animals spread disease. Animal cruelty predicts human violence. Pets improve our health and reduce our loneliness. The 1% fee on non-essential pet products funds low-cost spay and neuter, veterinary care for families who can't afford it, and the Animal Stewardship Corps. It's a tiny fee, it's voluntary, and it will work. The core is the heart of the Indiana Century Project. It's about connection, about caring for something together, about building community, one rescued animal at a time. I started thinking about this because of a little cat that showed up in my front door. They didn't have a plan, they didn't come with a policy platform. They just needed help. And helping them made me realize that we're all connected. The stray cat on your porch, the family who can't afford a vet bill, the kid who learns empathy from a dog, the senior who finds companionship in a parakeet. It's all the same bond. Next week, episode 12, Sovereignty's Defense System, the constitutional amendments that I've mentioned in the last few episodes, the revolving doorband, the transparency portal, how we protect what we build from the forces that will try to take it back. But before we get there, I want you to think about something. The next time you buy a fancy toy for your pet, what would it mean to add a few pennies to help astray? The next time you see a shelter that's overcrowded, what would it mean to have a core member show up to help? The next time you hear about a family who can't afford vet care, what would it mean to have a mobile clinic in their county? That's the choice. Ignore the bond or strengthen it. I'm Corey, this is the Indiana Century Podcast. And remember, sovereignty isn't given, it's built.