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Newsweek
4 days ago
- General
- Newsweek
Rescue Dog Returned, Becomes Terminally Ill — Foster Carer Knows What To Do
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A rescue dog was left facing the bleakest of futures after being returned to the shelter and subsequently diagnosed with terminal cancer. Then something truly remarkable happened. When Macchiato the 75-pound pit bull terrier mix first came to Best Friends Animal Society in New York City in November 2024, she was in bad shape, emaciated and beaten up, roaming the streets as a stray. It was clear to everyone at Best Friends that Macchiato would benefit from a foster stay, and they knew exactly who to ask. Mo Hussain is a seasoned volunteer and foster with the national animal welfare organization. He also has a track record for helping pit-bull terriers find loving homes. "I've been told by Leah Cohn, foster manager at Best Friends in Soho, that she sees certain dogs and thinks to herself, 'That's a Mo dog,'" Hussain told Newsweek. "I suspect that I have become a reliable foster for larger dogs, perhaps breeds that have misconceptions like Staffordshire and pit-bull terriers. Macchiato was probably my fourth foster that year. They have all found homes, and it's such a great feeling." A foster carer can make a huge difference to a shelter dog. A 2018 study published in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science found just 15 minutes of one-on-one petting was enough to boost the well-being of a shelter dog. A foster stay serves as an extension of that idea, giving shelter dogs a chance to decompress, grow used to a domestic setting, and, in time, let their true personality emerge. Hussain saw that personality emerge early on with Macchiato. "I was completely impressed with how mild-mannered, elegant and ladylike she was," he said. "Macchiato had an unofficial nickname after a few days in my house. I started calling her Lady. She was emaciated and a bit battered, but carried herself with an Audrey Hepburn-like grace." Mo Hussain and Macchiato stop for a photo while out walking together in the streets. Mo Hussain and Macchiato stop for a photo while out walking together in the streets. Mo Hussain/Best Friends Animal Society Hussain got the sense Macchiato was "appreciative" of being in a home. "She would willingly go in her crate without being asked to and sit with her legs crossed," he said. "Her eyes are also very soft, and clearly she has a warm soul." Macchiato's size and breed sometimes made Hussain feel "self-conscious" when out and about in New York. However, he instead found himself being stopped by people taken by her eyes and how she seemed "so demure and clearly a gentle, loving creature." Hussain can still recall the conflicting emotions he had when he informed Macchiato had been adopted. "I was overcome with a bittersweet sadness that she was adopted so quickly and my time with her was brief. But I was obviously happy that such a sweet dog would have her permanent home," he said. Macchiato spent six months with her new family, but sadly it did not last. She was returned, with her adopters citing a busy work schedule as the chief reason for her return. There would be more heartbreaking news to come. Soon after her return, Best Friends staff noticed a mass on Macchiato's neck. A biopsy revealed devastating news: Macchiato had aggressive, inoperable cancer that had already spread to multiple lymph nodes. Despite the diagnosis, everyone at Best Friends felt Macchiato still had more life to live—and they were determined to make every day as special for her as she was to them. That was when Hussain stepped back in. "When I learned that she was back at Best Friends and in need of help, I was doubly sad for her. How could such a sweet dog be 'returned?'" he said. "Then, in the next breath, I heard that she was terminally ill and that the team would hate to have her spend any more time in the shelter than absolutely necessary, so I didn't hesitate to jump into service," he said. Hussain agreed to provide "fospice" care for Macchiato. "Part of me was just happy to have an opportunity to see her again," he said. "Another part of me was happy to help her have more comfort and dignity in her life, even if only briefly." It has been five weeks since Hussain agreed to take Macchiato home and she is living her best-possible life. She still enjoys daily walks in the park, playtime with her canine friends, and countless cozy moments with her foster dad. Together, they are making memories to last a lifetime. "She has higher energy days and lower energy days. It's always nice to see a gleam in her eye and a tail emphatically and excessively wagging. Some days, she lays around a bit more," Hussain said. "However, when we get her into off-leash hours at Fort Greene Park in the mornings, she comes to life, chasing a ball and running around with other dogs. But it takes a bit out of her, and she needs to rest up." From left: Macchiato plays with Mo Hussain; and relaxes in a park. From left: Macchiato plays with Mo Hussain; and relaxes in a park. Mo Hussain/Best Friends Animal Society Hussain said he hopes Macchiato's story encourages others to foster and also provide care to those dogs entering the final stages of their lives. "Sharing some time and space with a dog and providing palliative care can be deeply rewarding," he said. "I'd like to think that my dog, who went to doggy heaven 15 years ago, is looking down on me with approving eyes and is proud of what I am doing. "I hope people take away that fostering is a great way to help shelter pets and I hope that, by them reading this, I can inspire more people to foster."
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Hannah Berner and Paige DeSorbo: TIME100 Creators 2025
Few things beat laughing with your best friend. Hannah Berner and Paige DeSorbo know that better than most. In 2020, a year after first appearing together on Bravo's third season of Summer House, the duo took to Instagram Live to provide a little respite during COVID-19. They didn't have a strategy—they just wanted to spread some joy in a world that seemed to need it. Years later, the multi-hyphenates—Berner, 33, is a comedian with a Netflix special; DeSorbo, 32, is a reality television star and entrepreneur with a new loungewear line—have transformed their catch-up sessions into a hugely popular podcast, Giggly Squad, where nothing is off limits and nothing is all that serious. The best friends chat about everything from pop culture to cats to first kisses. 'There wasn't a business plan; there still isn't a business plan,' Berner tells TIME. 'But when two people earnestly love what they're doing and are passionate about it, everything comes together.' And it certainly has: with more than 44 million downloads, Giggly Squad is one of Apple's top-ranked podcasts. Their online fandom has translated to offline success, too: this year, Berner and DeSorbo became New York Times best-selling authors with How to Giggle: A Guide to Taking Life Less Seriously and completed a massive national tour. Data and insights powered by #paid Write to Annabel Gutterman at
Miami Herald
25-06-2025
- General
- Miami Herald
Senior dog went missing on own Missouri property. He was found — 200 miles away
When a senior dog failed to come home after his daily routine of walking the property in Missouri, his owner was worried. It was normal when Lisa Wood's three dogs, Ruben, Manny and Captain, would spend the day exploring her family's property in West Plains, only when the dogs returned this May evening, the trio was down one. The 13-year-old Captain. 'Lisa started searching for Captain and posting on local Facebook groups to find out if he'd been spotted,' a June 25 news release from Best Friends Animal Society detailed about the night Captain went missing. 'Due to Captain's arthritis, Lisa knew he couldn't get far on his own, so she was shocked to get a call that Sunday from a shelter in Bentonville, AR — more than 200 miles from her home in Missouri.' Turns out, Captain was mistaken for a lost dog by a traveler and picked him up. 'Captain had been brought into the shelter by a woman who had been traveling in Missouri and thought she had found a lost dog. Luckily, Captain was microchipped years before, so the shelter was able to scan his microchip and connect with Lisa quickly,' the release said. Wood wasn't able to make the full five-hour drive to pick up Captain, so she looked to Best Friends Animal Society, an animal welfare organization, to help her out. 'When Best Friends got the call, they quickly jumped into action. That same day, Dani Rakestraw, Specialist, Training and Behavior at Best Friends jumped in the van and drove Captain to Branson, MO —halfway between Bentonville and West Plains — to reunite with Lisa,' the release described. Then came the happy reunion. 'Captain is an absolute joy,' Wood said. 'We've had him since he was just a few months old, and he's just the smartest dog. He's really part of the family — he loves my kids, and he even helps me teach and train the other dogs.' West Plains is about a 205-mile drive southwest from St. Louis.
Irish Examiner
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Book review: Touching tale of finding love in later life
'I'd like to know what it's like to wake up beside you,' June tells Ray in Best Friends. 'Like waking up next to a boulder,' is Ray's characteristically deadpan assessment of what she can expect. The exchange captures the wry, offbeat sensibility that embroiders Andrew Meehan's novel. Trilling with understatement and crafted in a deceptively simple style, Best Friends takes unlikely romantic material — two outsiders in their 70s — and fashions a tender story about risk, fate, and second chances. If the novel's unsentimental depiction of love in later life echoes Elizabeth Strout, its short form (189 pages) and succinctness is redolent of Claire Keegan. A janitor at a public tennis court, Ray has been a lollipop man, a Samaritan ('not a very good one'), and recently realised he likes talking to people. His portfolio of conversation topics includes church roofs, the Holy Roman Empires, low blood pressure, the afterlife, and astroturf. June is a cleaner and possesses 'a fine big forehead you could write a shopping list on'. Apart from her beehives, June feels she has little to show for a life franked by thwarted ambitions. In spare but vivid prose, Meehan evokes June's visceral sense of being forgotten ('she's yesterday's eyeliner today') and how this festers resentment ('she's too old for people breathing while they eat'). Both live in affluent Glasthule but their financial precariousness marks them as outsiders. This is amplified by their shared feeling of social estrangement. Loneliness is one of the book's primary colours. June was married three times but her days are dominated by 'crying out for company' and the shame this induces. Wounded by love, June protects herself by not asking much of others. Meanwhile, Ray has never had a romantic relationship. Even though he falls in love six times a day, 'the love part of love' eludes him. The pain of their isolation is the unspecified 'something' from which both are running. Their tentative, fledgling relationship offers both protagonists a belated chance at redemption. When he is five minutes late for an appointment with June, Ray views it as time with her that's been stolen from him, and he's excited by the 'glamorous folds' of her stomach. Before they met, June had almost extinguished the part of herself that was susceptible to hope ('it was like avoiding sugar'). Seeing Ray's ease with his vulnerability, June starts to accept hers. Reassessing her previous exasperation about others' shortcomings, June embraces Ray's flaws and comes to a new understanding: 'When you fall in love with someone, you fall in love with yourself too.' Meehan is the author of three previous novels, including The Mystery of Love (2021) — a reimagining of Oscar and Constance Wilde's doomed marriage, from her perspective. That Best Friends pulses with a deft storyteller's intuition of structure and is embossed with a cinematic eye for detail isn't surprising — Dublin-born Meehan teaches creative writing at a Glasgow university and previously developed scripts at the Irish Film Board. The novel has been optioned and he's already working on the screenplay. Best Friends is splattered with astute observations and imaginative prose: A breeze carrying smoke from a barbecue resembles 'dry ice from a Duran Duran video'. Running through the novel like a watermark and mirroring its whimsical tone is Meehan's wordplay. 'June,' we're told at the start, 'needs June to be little less and little more.' This acrobatic exuberance reaches its climax when, after a traumatic experience, the couple glimpse their future together. 'They are the for in forever, the never that's not in forever, the ever in the never that's not in forever.' Read More Book review: Another beautifully crafted love story from Andrew Meehan
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Co-founder and former CEO of Best Friends Animal Society passes away
KANAB, Utah () — One of the co-founders of Best Friends Animal Society, headquartered and founded in Kanab, Utah, passed away last weekend. He is remembered for his compassion for animals and diligent work while building up the sanctuary. Gregory Castle was one of 26 co-founders and the former CEO of Best Friends Animal Society. The sanctuary was established in Kanab, Utah, in 1984. He passed away on Saturday, May 17, 2025, from natural causes at the age of 83. According to Best Friends' website, 'In 1984, group of friends with about 200 rescued dogs and cats, a few bunnies and birds, and a couple of burros landed in a remote canyon in Utah's high desert and took the first steps on the path of what would become the nationwide no-kill movement for homeless pets.' 'Bone' Appétit: Here are the Salt Lake County restaurants with dog-friendly patios in 2025 Castle was one of these friends and worked diligently to turn the remote area of Angel Canyon in Kanab into a sanctuary for animals of all kinds. According to Best Friends, Castle installed the original water lines and electricity at the sanctuary — which spans more than 3000 acres — using only DIY books. 'Gregory embodied the ethics of compassion and service. He devoted his entire adult life to helping animals and to making the world a better place. Losing Gregory is devastating, but his legacy of kindness and his commitment to the animals will live on through the work of Best Friends Animal Society,' Francis Battista, Best Friends board president and another co-founder, is quoted in a release. While he spent the last 41 years of his life in Utah, Castle was actually born and raised in England. His father was a civil engineer for the British army during World War II. Castle graduated from Cambridge University in 1942 with degrees in philosophy and psychology. 'Shy, but inquisitive': Hogle Zoo welcomes new sand cat named 'Cleo' His wife founded No More Homeless Pets Utah with Castle in 2000. This eventually turned into the nonprofit No-Kill Utah. Best Friends describes it as a 'statewide coalition of animal welfare organizations, veterinarians and animal lovers collaborating to deliver low-cost spay/neuter services, proactive shelter adoptions and public awareness campaigns to put Utah on the path to no-kill.' He is survived by his wife Julie; his daughter Carragh Maloney; his granddaughter Zoe Glover, his brother Christopher Castle; sisters Jan Castle and Susan Duys, cats Ellie and Maggie, and dogs Sunny and Marley. His legacy will live on through a large and dedicated national community of animal lovers working to save the lives of homeless pets. He will be deeply missed. Best Friends Animal Society on the passing of Gregory Castle Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
