Susan Daffron, Host of 'Take Me Home'

Susan Daffron, host of online radio show "Take Me Home," is an animal rescue expert. She recently turned her years of experience adopting troubled pets and working with animals into a professional organization: the National Association of Pet Rescue Professionals. We spoke to her about her show and the rescue business.

How did you come to start the National Association of Pet Rescue Professionals?
In this economy, a lot of groups are struggling with a lot more animals coming in. There are people getting rid of animals because of foreclosure, and not being able to afford to feed them. The animals end up being the victim. At the same time, donations are down, so [groups] have to be a lot more creative with fundraising. We try to provide the tools to help these rescues run more effectively.

A lot of people want to do something, so they start a rescue, but they're not really business people. I thought it could be really good to have a place for the small rescue groups to get together. We are putting a voice to the shared experiences, because it doesn't matter if you're rescuing beetles, or you're rescuing Samoyeds, or you're rescuing border collies, you're dealing with a lot of the same issues and frustrations on a day-to-day basis.


How did you get started with your radio show, "Take Me Home?"
There was a link that said they were looking for show hosts -- they actually had this show set up. I actually devised the format of the show based on the placeholder on the Web site saying it was going to talk about adoption, but they didn't say how. One thing that always struck me when I was working at animal shelters is that every animal has a story. Every week we feature just one animal that's available for adoption so we can really focus in on what that animal is like, what their personality is like, how they ended up in a rescue, and what their perfect home would be.

What's the difference between adopting a pet from an animal rescue as opposed to a pet store?
Pet stores almost always get their animals from puppy mills, which are horribly inhumane breeding factories. It's not good for the animals and it's not good for the people that buy the animals because they frequently have genetic problems and live in these grotesque conditions. The obvious reason to adopt an animal from a shelter is that you're saving a life. This is an animal that's getting a second chance and you feel good about doing that.

A lot of the times pet adoption involves falling in love with the pet in person, or seeing a picture. Are there any challenges with the radio show, as far as getting people to have that connection with the pet?
Well that's kind of what I'm trying to draw out in the interviews, is to give a feel for them as a unique individual and more than just a picture on a Web site. Because a lot of people use sites like PetFinder, and like you say, they kind of fall in love with the picture, but an animal is a lot more than a picture.