Furball Confidential

TimTam's Mom (aka Podcasting Guru Julie Shapiro)

In the worlds of audio and podcasting, Julie Shapiro is a bit of a thing. She was co-founder and artistic director of the vaunted Third Coast Audio Festival. She was executive producer of the podcast Ear Hustle, which won critical acclaim for taking listeners behind prison walls and humanizing the inmate experience. She’s held creative leadership positions in several big audio houses. And she is co-founder of a super cool audio art project called Audio Flux, which asks contributors to create three-minute audio pieces and has taken inspiration from - among other themes - pets. It turns out pets have always been a part of Julie’s life and she just added TimTam, a year-old rescue pup, to the family. She talks about the “happy chaos” that now reigns with the pup’s arrival and how he has made her listen differently; about Thurston, the dog who came before TimTam and set such a high bar; and about the story behind “Fluxy,” the feline face of Audio Flux. Plus, Julie takes us behind the scenes of the Audio Flux "circuit" called Pet Sounds and you’ll hear one that so poignantly captures the role of a pet in our lives. (Bring a Kleenex) Julie also shares the theme and prompts for the upcoming circuit of Audio Flux so if you fancy yourself a storyteller - or just want to contribute to a cool art project - make sure to listen to the end. Submissions are open now. For more information on the latest Audio Flux circuit, go to www.audioflux.org or @audiofluxing on InstagramListen to the rest of the Pet Sounds Audio Flux circuit hereJulie talks about artist Ben Lenovitz’s pet paintings, which inspired the Pet Sounds circuit. You can find him and his work hereMagnus the Maine Coon, the Fluxwork we played in this episode, was produced by Jasmyn Morris, who can be found hereMagnus the Maine Coon was produced by Jasmyn Morris Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Letter to My Dog

A bunch of you have asked me about my own relationship with Clutch, beyond what is peppered throughout the conversations we've been having on Furball Confidential. I have obviously been thinking a lot about what she means to me as we put this podcast together. I've been collecting my thoughts and decided to write them down in a letter to her - and share it with you all here. It's actually a beautiful exercise. I would encourage you all to do it, for pets past or present. And if you would like to share, we'd love to hear from you at hello@furballconfidential.com. Meanwhile, here's my letter, to Clutch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Zuzu's Mom (aka Journalist Anna Maria Tremonti)

To a lot of people, Anna Maria Tremonti is known as a hardnose journalist unafraid to ask the tough questions. A former foreign correspondent for CBC News and longtime host of The Current on CBC Radio, Henry Kissinger famously once hung up on her because he didn’t like the question she asked. But to see another side of Anna Maria, look no further than “her puppy” Zuzu - her now 4-year-old golden retriever who happens to have Anna Maria wrapped around her little paw. “I have a whole little language for Zuzu,” Anna Maria says. “I say all sorts of crazy little things to her, which make no sense.” We get a beautiful window into Zuzu’s world with Anna Maria in this episode - broken rules, stolen items, manipulation, special little languages and all. Listen to the end to hear why this episode is a particularly fitting one to cap off Furball Confidential’s first season.You can listen to Welcome to Paradise, Anna Maria’s poignant memoir of intimate partner violence mentioned in the conversation, here. And you can follow what she is up to on Instagram or check out her website at annamariatremonti.com***Furball Confidential is created and hosted by Jen MorozTalia Schlanger is our producerTalia also co-created our theme music with David Travers-Smith, with Brian Kobayakawa on bassReza Dahya does the video and sound design and editing Dani Stover does our social mediaOur show artwork is by Adrian ForrowMarina Hanna does our audience developmentFollow us on Instagram or drop us an email and let us know what you think of the show at jen@furballconfidential.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trixie, Anna and Elsa's Dad (aka Author Dean Koontz)

As a writer, how do you know when the work day is done? For Dean Koontz, it’s when a golden retriever throws your hand off the keyboard at exactly 5pm. A self-described “workaholic” who has written more than 100 books, Dean says adopting his first dog Trixie transformed his schedule and his life. Dean opens up about Trixie’s mystical side, what it’s like to care for a “perfect soul” and the jealous rage he felt when her debut book (co-written with Dean) outsold his own first novel. And he talks about coping with the immense grief of losing Trixie and how he and his wife Gerda knew they were ready to love another dog.Dean and Gerda adopted all three of their golden retrievers through Canine Companions for Independence, which trains service dogs for adults, children and veterans with disabilities at no cost to the client. When a dog has a “career change” (ie. doesn’t make it through training or can’t work as a service dog for whatever reason), it goes up for adoption to the general public. Or, say, to a world famous author who’s about to get a whole lot more exercise walking.You can keep up with Dean and Elsa on Instagram here and on Facebook hereAnd you can find all his books on his website here***Furball Confidential is created and hosted by Jen MorozTalia Schlanger is our producerTalia also co-created our theme music with David Travers-Smith, with Brian Kobayakawa on bassReza Dahya does the video and sound design and editing Dani Stover does our social mediaOur show artwork is by Adrian Forrow Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Leia & Archer's Dad (aka “Siberian Derpskies” Content Creator Jonathan Brinksman)

They’re belligerent. They talk back. They scheme. And if you’re a husky person like Jonathan Brinksman, that’s all part of the furry appeal. Jonathan grew up with two huskies, and is now proud husky dad and “crazy dog mom” to Archer and Leia, known to their millions of social media fans as Siberian Derpskies. In this super fun conversation, we get into the good, the bad and the hilarious when it comes to living with huskies, and why Jonathan is so drawn to the breed when others might yell “run!”Jonathan traces his own long history with pets, which started when he was a kid and his “animals were a safe space” from bullies. (“Don’t worry,” Jonathan says, “it all worked out”). His connection runs deep: “My animals have never been just animals to me. They are the part of me I wish it was all the time.” Plus, Jonathan weighs in on cloned dogs – and let the record show that we taped this episode way before Tom Brady went public with his own.We asked Jonathan what pet-related cause he wanted to shine a light on, and he said All Joy 4 Paws, a rescue in southern California that specializes in huskies and other northern breeds. Huskies, as Jonathan says, are a lot of work - and a lot of owners can’t handle their energy levels. All Joy 4 Paws “is a really cool, very small rescue, very small operation, but they do the really hard work”Follow Jonathan, Leia and Archer on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube - all @siberianderpskies Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.