Our Hen House: Vegan & Animal Rights Movement | Stories from the Frontlines of Animal Liberation

Everyone who lives with an animal would think it rather obvious that they dream, but believe it or not, this is not an accepted fact in the scientific community. This week, we speak with David Peña-Guzmán about his book When Animals Dream: The Hidden World of Animal Consciousness. ABOUT OUR GUEST David M. Peña-Guzmán is an associate professor of humanities at SF State and co-host of the podcast Overthink. He specializes in animal studies, the history and philosophy of science, theories of consciousness, and 20th century French philosophy. He is the author of When Animals Dream: The Hidden World of Animal Consciousness, and co-author of Chimpanzee Rights: The Philosophers’ Brief. Overthink Podcast website David Peña-Guzmán on X (formerly Twitter) When Animals Dream: The Hidden World of Animal Consciousness book RESOURCES Eating for the climate: exploring sustainability and food choices Scarlet Spark’s Leadership Skill Sparks Scarlet Spark’s FREE Leadership Skills Workshops Scarlet Spark’s Leadership Tools Scarlet Spark website INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview. _____________________________________________ Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review! Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series. Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter). The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Horseracing’s popularity has declined over the years, so how is this industry still alive? This week we are joined by Patrick Battuello of Horseracing Wrongs, who sheds light on the brutality and corruption that is the horseracing industry. ABOUT OUR GUEST Patrick Battuello has been writing on animal rights issues since 2009, when he launched the Animal Rights blog for the Albany Times Union, one of the first of its kind in the nation. His work from this period appeared in a high-school textbook, “The Case for Animal Rights.” Patrick launched Horseracing Wrongs in 2013, and incorporated as a non-profit in 2017. Patrick has had racing op-eds published in The Washington Post, The Baltimore Sun, MSNBC, and Katie Couric Media, among many others. He has appeared on CNN and ESPN multiple times, and in 2019, was featured on a groundbreaking segment of HBO’s “Real Sports.” Patrick has also testified before the New York State Senate. RESOURCES Should Wildlife Advocates Help Set Hunting Rules In Vermont? Exes and Ohs Substack Scarlet Spark workshops Horseracing Wrongs website Horseracing Wrongs on Facebook Horseracing Wrongs on X (formerly Twitter) Horseracing Wrongs on Youtube Horseracing Wrongs on Instagram INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview. _____________________________________________ Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review! Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series. Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter). The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Have you ever thought, “Animals are suffering, I have to DO something!!! But what?” Kimberly Carroll of Animal Justice Academy joins us to discuss the amazing, free, online program designed to help people who care about animals turn themselves into people who are doing something about it. ABOUT OUR GUEST Kimberly Carroll is a coach for changemakers, campaigns strategist with Animal Justice, director of Animal Justice Academy, and a director with the Toronto Vegetarian Food Bank.  With over 13 years as a coach and 18 years as an activist, Kimberly works with mission-driven leaders, social entrepreneurs, and activists on the inner shifts, high-performance habits, and strategies to make them unstoppable. She’s helped empower thousands of activists and counseled those in high-stress positions like undercover investigators. Kimberly Carroll – Coach for Changemakers Kimberly Carroll on Facebook Kimberly Carroll on Instagram Kimberly Carroll on Youtube RESOURCES Ridglan Farms beagle ‘rescue’ case dismissed Why the Ridglan Prosecution Fell Apart The vivisection industry faced a greater threat than our rescue: a growing movement for animal rights. Sign-up for Animal Justice Academy (FREE) Animal Justice website Toronto Vegetarian Food Bank SIGN-UP (free) FOR THE CHANGEMAKER SESSIONS- every second Wednesday at 7pm ET Kimberly’s FREE VIDEO MINI-COURSE – Power Tools for Changemakers KIMBERLY’S FREE MEDITATIONS Handling the Pain of Being an Animal Advocate Creating Healthy Boundaries and Expansive Habits for Animal Advocates Conflict and Bridge-Building Tools for Animal Advocates Tools for Better Focus, Motivation, and Productivity for Animal Advocates INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview. _____________________________________________ Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review! Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series. Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter). The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

The work of activists brought the use of ventilation shutdown as a “depopulation” method during avian flu and COVID slowdowns to light, but what is the status of this cruel method of killing? Dr. Crystal Heath joins us once again to discuss the use of heat stroke in factory farms and the campaigns to combat this cruelty. ABOUT OUR GUEST Dr. Crystal Heath is a graduate of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and currently works as a shelter veterinarian for several shelters and non-profits throughout Northern California. She won a Jefferson Award for her volunteer work providing medical services to animals in Fiji. Dr. Heath became involved in the Animal Rights movement just three years ago while volunteering for the Fur Ban campaign (AB-44) in California and just recently worked on the campaign to get the City of Berkeley to set a goal of shifting its food purchases to 100% plant-based. She is on the founding committee of Veterinarians Against Ventilation Shutdown and founder of Our Honor, an organization committed to supporting animal professionals who want to speak their conscience, work to create more ethical systems and foster connections between like-minded professionals to create real systemic changes. She owns Vet Harmony, a veterinary practice committed to providing access to care and public education. RESOURCES These 15 Vegan Costco Products Will Have You Signing Up for a Membership ASAP Veterinarians Against Ventilation Shutdown website Our Honor website Vet Harmony website Dr Crystal Heath on Facebook Dr Crystal Heath on X (formerly Twitter) Dr Crystal Heath on Instagram Opinion: Avian influenza outbreak exposes the betrayal of our values Videos give closer look at Miami Seaquarium conditions as vets join call to shut it down FEDERAL PROBES, SICK ANIMALS, AND FED-UP VETS: THE MIAMI SEAQUARIUM IS ON THE BRINK OF COLLAPSE Miami Seaquarium faces eviction, but what about the animals? Taxpayers have spent more than $1 billion dollars to support corporate interests during the highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview. _____________________________________________ Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review! Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series. Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter). The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Every once in a while, someone comes up with a brand new idea for getting people to try and love delicious vegan food. Nil Zacharias joins us to talk about how he is making his brilliant idea a reality with Plantega, a ready-to-launch vegan menu that has been adopted by bodegas across New York City and is getting ready to take over the world. ABOUT OUR GUEST Nil Zacharias is an entrepreneur, author, and strategic advisor with a passion for food systems change. He is the Founder and CEO of Plantega, a company that’s on a mission to make plant-based food easier to access everywhere. He also hosts the Eat For The Planet Podcast and co-authored the Eat For the Planet books. Nil has previously co-founded a number of startups and continues to advise several organizations in the climate solutions space. Nil Zacharias on X (formerly Twitter) Nil Zacharius on LinkedIn RESOURCES Plantega on Instagram Random Word Generator Scarlet Spark Workshops INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview. _____________________________________________ Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review! Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series. Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter). The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

When animals are neglected or abused, whose responsibility is it to respond? Kendra Coulter, author of Defending Animals, joins us to discuss her book’s deep dive into the patchwork of governmental and non-profit organizations that make up animal response teams. ABOUT OUR GUEST Kendra Coulter is a Professor in Management and Organizational Studies at Huron University College at Western University and a Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics. Dr. Coulter is an award-winning author of influential scholarly and trade books, and her fiction debut, The Tortoise’s Tale, has been purchased by Simon & Schuster for publication in 2025. Her latest book, Defending Animals: Finding Hope on the Front Lines of Animal Protection, was acquired by The MIT Press after a multi-publisher auction. Dr. Jane Goodall calls it “a powerful call to action.” RESOURCES New York Mourns Flaco, an Owl Who Inspired as He Made the City His Own Animals at a New Jersey Petting Zoo Find Their Happily Ever After Christspiracy website Whether or not to have kids amid the climate crisis How the future of rainfall will affect our communities Defending Animals book Dr Kendra Coulter on X (formerly Twitter) Dr Kendra Coulter on Instagram INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview. _____________________________________________ Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review! Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series. Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter). The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

What do animal rights and veganism have to do with hip hop? So much more than you might think! Keith Tucker of Hip Hop is Green joins us this week to discuss the organization’s extraordinary work spreading the word in the hip hop community. ABOUT OUR GUEST Keith Tucker founded the nonprofit Hip Hop is Green, the first hip hop organization to provide BIPOC families plant-based meals nationwide. A unique visionary and social entrepreneur for over 30 years, he has worked with hundreds of businesses, youth groups, community organizations, and icons in the entertainment industry as an ambassador for the culture of hip hop. In 2017, Keith was nominated for Michelle Obama’s Partnership for a Healthier America “Catalyst for Change” award. He now focuses his nonprofit on fighting climate change and promoting holistic wellness in low-income communities across America with the global power of hip hop culture. RESOURCES Steven Wise, Coral Springs animal advocate of international renown, dies at 73 ‘A Damn Good Brain’: Pigeons Possess Problem-Solving Skills ‘Similar To AI’ Scarlet Spark workshops Hip Hop is Green website Hip Hop is Green on Instagram Hip Hop is Green on Facebook Hip Hop is Green on X (formerly Twitter) INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview. _____________________________________________ Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review! Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series. Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter). The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Jessika Ava, CEO and founder of Thrive Philanthropy, discusses funding grassroots food justice initiatives and promoting global plant-based eating. She highlights the importance of empowering diverse leadership and supporting grassroots organizations, especially in the Global South. The conversation delves into the complexities of philanthropy in addressing animal welfare legislation, cultural sensitivities, and the environmental impacts of veganism. With over 150 advocates supported across Africa, Jessika's mission aims to dismantle accessibility barriers and ensure equitable funding for transformative projects.

Katie Cantrell and Ilana Braverman, co-founders of Greener by Default, discuss making plant-based choices the norm in foodservice. They share how their initiative has successfully implemented plant-based options in institutions like hospitals and universities, sparking a cultural shift. The challenges of maintaining vegan principles in social settings add humor and depth. They also critique the meat industry and advocate for community engagement, emphasizing inclusivity in fostering sustainable food choices.

Molly Elwood joins us to discuss how Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat has brilliantly channeled repulsion into activism that gets people thinking about who they might have on their plate. ABOUT OUR GUEST Molly Elwood is a writer, copywriter, storyteller, and creative strategist. Between creative agencies and in-house creative teams, she has spent more than ten years writing and humanizing for her clients. She is also the creator of Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat, a satirical, comprehensive, and wickedly effective social media phenomenon. What began as a grassroots movement designed to provoke a conversation about how we treat animals is now creating meaningful and tangible social change. Molly Elwood on X (formerly Twitter) Molly Elwood on Instagram RESOURCES WXXI Environmental Connections: The power of electrification to address climate change WXXI Environmental Connections: Environmental responsibility in the food sector Xoiiku on X (formerly Twitter) The power of positivity Special Feature: Oatly and Industry Figures Fight Back Against Widespread Anti Vegan Disinformation Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat website Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat on Instagram Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat on Facebook Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat on X (formerly Twitter) Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat on Youtube Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat on TikTok INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview. _____________________________________________ Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today. Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review! Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series. Follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter). The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is sponsored in part by The Culture & Animals Foundation, which sponsors artists, scholars, and activists in our collective efforts to understand our fellow species more deeply and to further their rights. CAF provides annual grants, an arts prize, a lecture series, and a fellowship. Visit cultureandanimals.org for more information. The Culture & Animals Foundation: Think. Create. Explore. Celebrate.  __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.