Gregory Castle was multi-talented & well-liked by all, but the Castle dynasty at Best Friends has been a disaster for dogs, cats, pit bull victims, spay/neuter funding, and reaching realistic no-kill goals KANAB, Utah––Best Friends Animal Society cofounder and former chief executive Gregory Castle, 83, on May 17, 2025 died suddenly from an embolism. “Born […]
“Peak dog” means no homes left––especially not for “behavior dogs”
“Peak dog” also means “Fix the problem before it gets worse.” LOS ANGELES, AUSTIN, SAN ANTONIO––City of San Antonio Animal Care Services did not mention “peak dog,” pit bulls, nor even spay/neuter in a September 1, 2022 bulletin lamenting that “Just this week, 26 dogs have been humanely euthanized due to our shelter’s capacity restraints.” […]
19 dead puppies & $12,000 in fines, but shelter director says he’d do it again?
301 code violations & losing newly transported pups to parvovirus wasn’t bad enough? CAMDEN, Delaware––That the First State Animal Center & SPCA in Camden, Delaware recently lost 19 puppies to parvovirus is no great shock to veterans of animal care and rescue: sometimes bloody diarrhea happens among stressed puppies brought or transported to shelters, no […]
Los Angeles Animal Services chief Brenda Barnette to retire in May 2021
Took L.A. to “no kill” at cost of soaring pit bull attacks LOS ANGELES, California––Brenda Barnette, the third-longest-serving general manager of Los Angeles Animal Services since World War II, has announced her retirement, effective in mid-May 2021. The City of Los Angeles has officially not yet begun what is expected to become a nationwide […]
Pushing bully behavior: the ASPCA, Best Friends, & HSUS in Springfield
An open letter from Beth Clifton to: Matthew Bershadker, president, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; Julie Castle, president, Best Friends Animal Society; Kitty Block, president, Humane Society of the United States Dear Matthew, Julie, & Kitty: Thank you in advance for taking the time to read this letter. My name is Beth Clifton. […]
New Best Friends & HSUS execs flunk economic logic that dogs understand
Response to “rescuers” buying from “puppy mills” was swift, furious, & tone-deaf WASHINGTON D.C.––Response from the U.S. humane community to Washington Post freelance contributor Kim Kavin’s April 11, 2018 exposé “Dog rescuers, flush with donations, buy animals from the breeders they scorn” was swift, furious, and tone-deaf to the message screaming out of Kavin’s revelation that at […]