Last year, I had the supreme honor of featuring Hallmark’s own resident pet expert, Larissa Wohl, in her first interview on my site. I was delighted to have had the pleasure of meeting her earlier this year on a set visit to Home & Family, and now she’s back for yet another remarkable interview today! And just between you and me, this dedicated, dynamic woman elevated this interview far beyond what I imagined it would be! I mean, I knew it was going to be good, but…well, judge for yourself, my dear readers!

Larissa Wohl Credit: ©2019 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: David Starbuck/Alexx Henry Studios, LLC.

RH: Larissa, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me today. I know it’s a busy time of year. 

LW: Ruth, thank you so much for reaching out. My pleasure.

Earlier this month was a very special time for you on the Hallmark Channel.

Yes, with the Hero Dog Awards.

I know you had a big hand in that as you do with all the special animal programming that Hallmark offers. Now, with the Hero Dog Awards, that show was recorded earlier this month, isn’t that right?

Yes, we recorded the show a few weekends ago. It was such a wonderful show. It was a fun-filled, red carpet gala for hero dogs and their handlers. It was just a wonderful night. After all, it’s all about the dogs. The show is full of happiness and tears and love and inspiration.

I’m glad I was able to DVR it since it’s been such a busy time of year. But I noticed another program after the Hero Dog Awards that I wasn’t familiar with. 

Yes, it was a country music concert that I was involved with. It’s so exciting! After the American Humane Hero Dog Awards, Hallmark featured a program called The Love Of Dogs Benefit Concert. It is an hour-long country music special. It has amazing music from Easton Corbin, Hunter Hayes, and Lee Brice…all of which are wonderful country musicians. They all took part in this fantastic night, and I got to host the entire thing. Which for me was a dream come true because not only do I love animals, but I love country music! It also helps raise money for The Pedigree Foundation. The Pedigree Foundation is a non-profit where shelters across the country can apply for grants for life-saving, creative programs. Pedigree is the one who makes their dreams come true by granting this money to them for these programs so that they can hopefully save more animals. So basically, the whole idea behind the concert was to raise money for their grants. I hope we’re successful because the more money there is to help shelters in need, obviously, the more that can be done.

I thought I remembered seeing you post something about a concert at one point, but it’s been so busy with all my traveling around that I think I missed some updates. 

I can see how it would be confusing since both events are on the same night. Some people might have been confused and thought that the concert was part of the Hero Dog Awards. These events originally premiered back-to-back, but they are two different, amazing dog events. And let me tell you…both events were FUN!

(Oct. 9, 2019 – Source: Getty Images North America)

I can imagine! Where was the concert filmed?

It was filmed in Nashville. It was filmed at the Country Music Hall of Fame Theater.

I think that is so exciting, Larissa! 

Thank you, Ruth.

And lately, it seems like we’ve been seeing you everywhere, Larissa. We see you on Home & Family, where you always do such a fantastic job. You’re always full of energy every time you do your segments. I think you’re the perfect fit, and you work tirelessly to try to get all these animals adopted. And I tell you that seeing you in person this summer firsthand and getting to witness the stuff behind the scenes was such a joy. I’m so glad I got to come to set. 

Yeah, it was fun having you there.

You know, that was my first ever set visit for any show or film. 

You’ll have to come back!

Credit: © 2019 Crown Media Unite d States, LLC | Photo: Kim Nunneley / Alexx Henry Studios, LLC.

Oh, I definitely want to come back. So in addition to Home & Family, we also see you on the preview specials. I don’t know who came up with the idea for you to be on all the preview specials, but I think it is wonderful. 

Thank you, Ruth. I love doing them and it’s so fun because it’s also another way to interact with the Hallmark Channel stars and get to know them a little bit more. It gives them a chance to join the bandwagon of the Adoption Ever After initiative. A lot of them have animals or know about adopting and they love dogs. But when you’re there on set talking to them and they get to play with these cute little puppies that are up for adoption, you see everybody kind of go, “Oh, okay. Maybe next time I’m gonna get an adoptable dog.” It’s neat and such a fun way to keep introducing the concept of pet adoption to a bigger and bigger audience.

Now, I love seeing the puppies and the kittens, but I probably love it even more when you feature the senior dogs that people don’t always think about adopting. Senior dogs are still often overlooked because people might think, “I don’t want to get a senior dog because I’m not gonna have them very long.” 

In Nashville

I love my senior dogs. I don’t have any currently, but I did have a foster that was a senior. To be honest, give me a room of puppies and a room of senior dogs, and I will go to the room with the senior dogs. They have my heart. They are just so beautiful, and their souls are so wonderful. All they want is a love and a laugh and food and water. They’re so easy in that regard. And they also have the hardest time because you’re right. When a family wants to get a dog or even a single person wants to get a dog, they usually pick out an animal that they’re gonna be with for a long time. They’re thinking about an animal they can raise or train, and so lots of times, they get turned off by the senior animals. I understand that. I’m not judging them at all. But the senior dogs have kind of gotten the short end of the stick. They really are such wonderful animals, and if you can talk yourself into looking at them another way…instead of it being about you and you saying, “I want a dog I can have eighteen years.” If you can turn it around and think of them and say, “I want to give the dog the best eight months of its life.” That’s when it all makes sense. It does bring so much joy to you and the dog. Maybe people will adopt a puppy the first time around and later on will realize how wonderful senior dogs are.

You know, when I was in LA recently, I got to visit with Barbara Niven and her dogs. She has senior dogs, and they are just so sweet. 

I can imagine how amazing that experience was! I’d love to go visit Barbara and her dogs some time!

Crossword Mysteries Preview Special

Larissa, I think it would be like a zoo or a playground for you. Fingers crossed it happens some time! I think you and she have similar ideas and personalities in the way you go about promoting dog awareness. It would be a natural fit. I think you’d be two peas in a pod!

I know! We need to team up and rule the world!

Absolutely! I think you’d have people cheering for that. I’m all for that! You got my vote. 

Thank you, Ruth! Larissa and Barbara, 2020! {laughs}

with Candace Cameron Bure

Hey, let’s go for it! {laughs} I know I appreciate–and I’m sure the viewers appreciate–everything you do! I’m always reading about how much the viewers love you, and I love the fact that Hallmark continues to give you that platform. I also love that this network is proactive about doing this because not every network does stuff like that. So many networks are all about profits. And I’m not saying that Hallmark is not going to be profitable. I mean, of course, they are. 

Oh, yes, I agree. But they put Adoption Ever After at the forefront. Mind you, we care about people too, and we always want to help people. But nobody puts the rescue pet in such an amazing spotlight like Hallmark does. The fact that this is not something that they just said, “All right, we’ll give it a week and then be done.” No, instead they’re like, “This is us. We’re in it for the long haul. We are going to grow, and we are going to prove that people want to help make a difference.” They’ve stuck with it, and I owe everything to them because I have my little voice and I have tried to do things on my own. And I’ll continue to do things on my own whenever need be. But the fact that they helped me grow my voice and helped on a bigger level is something I can’t put into words. My gratitude goes to all of them every single day because I do feel the gears slowly chipping away every day at the misconceptions about rescue animals. And I can only hope that we will keep that movement growing. We still meet so many people around the country that are uneducated about the reality of pet adoption and rescue. It’s not that they’re mean or doing anything right or wrong. They just don’t know. It always surprises me when I meet people like that, but it also makes me realize how important the work we’re doing is.

I agree with you. Larissa. Now we need to get you in one of these Hallmark movies. 

I know! I would love to have that happen! That’s another great thing they are doing with these animals in the movies. They are using rescue animals for the animals in the movie. I say–sign me up! I’ll be the dog trainer. I’ll be the girl that falls in love. I’ll be the foster mom. I’ve done it all. Just put me in any role!

I figure that they’ve been putting you in enough preview specials…I’m hoping one day someone says, “Hey, let’s put her in one of the movies!” I figure they put my pals, the Bubbly Sesh, in a movie, so now I’m thinking it’s your turn, Larissa. 

Yeah, okay! I’m gonna make some phone calls. {laughs}

{laughs} I just think it would be so fun to see you in your element. So many times, these movies feature rescue dogs and rescue dog stories. It makes perfect sense to me. 

Well, maybe this will put a little birdie in someone’s ear.

As to the two specials you mentioned, I know they have already aired on the Hallmark Channel, but if you go to the Hallmark Channel website and look for “Hallmark Channel Everywhere,” those shows are available to view online until some time in February. So don’t despair if you missed them.

Oh, that’s so good to know, Ruth. Thank you!

Also, there are the preview specials that already aired but are also available via the website and some are even streaming on Hallmark Movies Now. So don’t worry if you missed them. You can still see them. So with all these specials and Home & Family every day, is there anything else coming up that you can mention?

Well, I’m thinking maybe I can find some time to sleep! {laughs}

{laughing} There you go!

With the Bubbly Sesh

But I’m not sure if that will happen. The American Rescue Dog Show is casting now. I know that will happen sometime in January, but I do not have any information about whether I’m definitely in it or what my role would be. But regardless, it’s amazing and it’s all about rescue dogs. So everyone should spend some time watching that when it airs next year.

As for this year in general, I would love to visit more shelters and be able to be in the field a bit more. I feel that doing that is so educational for me to be on the ground visiting the shelters and seeing how they work inside and out and what their needs are. And it’s also a way to spread the word to the viewers about what the rescue world is seeing right now and give the viewers a look into what the culture is like up close and personal. That’s something I would like to get to do a little more this year, but we’ll see what happens.

These shelters are all so fun. They all need work, and some need a lot of work done on a grand scale. But I think that’s what the viewers need to be able to see and to be able to grasp this issue. It’s a large-scale issue that can only be grasped if more people join in the fight. I would just like to be able to show people more about that in addition to everything else.

Yes, that sounds great. And I know with the holidays coming, you’re always good about saying not to give animals as gifts. 

It’s true. I mean, the holidays are such a great time of year to adopt, and there are a lot of adoptions during the holidays, which is great, and I’m so thankful. However, I do try to remind people not to ever give an animal as a gift or as a surprise. I mean, if the time is right and you’re all on the same page, then it may be the perfect time to get a new family pet.

Credit: © 2019 Crown Media United States, LLC | Photo: Keith Castillo/ Alexx Henry Studios, LLC.

Exactly! I know you have shared those stories that are just heartbreaking about animals that may have been given as a gift over the holidays. They go to someone’s home, and in less than a week, they’re back at a shelter! 

Absolutely! Adopting a pet is a big responsibility. Even when I first got a dog, I remember daydreaming about how great life would be. And then I got a dog, and within a week, I was like, “Oh my goodness!!” I was so overwhelmed. It takes work, responsibility, patience, time, money…it is all of those things, and it’s so wonderful. But it should be a decision that is definitely well thought out ahead of time.

Credit: © 2019 Crown Media United States, LLC | Photo: Keith Castillo/ Alexx Henry Studios, LLC.

Exactly! And there’s always the option of fostering. I know you’re big on that too. If you’re not able to adopt, you can foster an animal for a period of time. 

I don’t think there are enough benefits ever talked about when it comes to fostering. It’s so helpful for the animal in terms of getting adopted. People want to adopt an animal, and then they find out that this animal has been living in a home for three months, and that means we know a lot about this dog. But if this dog came in three months ago and has been sitting in a kennel and it barks a lot because it hardly ever gets out, we really don’t know anything about it. Thinking of yourself on the other side of that, you’re gonna want to go for the animal that people know about so there aren’t so many surprises. So fostering is amazing for these rescue pets. And then in terms of you, it teaches you so much. It teaches you patience, love, if you’re ready for a full-time pet in your home. And it teaches you a little bit about the rescue world. I think fostering is a very good thing. I understand some have a hard time with it. They bring a dog into their home and fall in love with it, and then they have to give it up. And if you have kids, that can be a harder situation. In that case, the family might wait a couple more years before agreeing to foster a pet. But in general, at least in my opinion, it’s so good for everybody.

I would agree. I haven’t had the opportunity to foster an animal. In my situation, we have two goats, a dog, and seven cats. We have feral cats that we tamed and got either spayed or neutered. So for now, fostering is not an option for our family.  

Thank you so much for doing that. That sounds like how my mom was. She was always taking in the stray and feral cats.

Larissa, I am so glad we got to chat today. I’m pleased we have these pet specials to watch if we haven’t already seen them.  And we can always watch you on Home & Family, which is just amazing. So thank you.

And thank you, Ruth, for taking the time to reach out. I really appreciate your support. And the support of all the viewers of the Hallmark Channel. I hope everyone can find a way to help every pet find their forever home.

As Larissa and I chatted a little over a week ago, my heart was brimming with joy, admiration, and respect as she began to authentically share her heart and her vision. When a person like Larissa is provided with a platform to articulate unashamedly about a cause that kindles her soul and spirit, there is nothing quite like being in the “audience” for such a presentation. While you, my readers, were not able to be there physically to hear her eloquently expound upon the Adoption Ever After initiative, I am hopeful that I captured Larissa’s quintessence within the words I’m honored to place here. Larissa is one of those exemplary people whose boundless energy, flourishing drive, and infinitely compassionate heart are consistently on display in such an organic manner every time she snuggles a dog, cuddles a cat, or expresses a story that touches us profoundly within our being. She is a steadfast advocate for every animal on this planet, and whenever her face appears on my TV screen, I smile from ear-to-ear.

I urge everyone who reads this post to make a point to visit Larissa’s links below and consider following her wherever possible. Similarly, I hope that whenever feasible, you will tune into Home & Family, the preview specials, the dog shows, or any time Larissa may be advocating for the pets who have no voice. No matter your view on pet adoption and rescue animals, I believe we all can work together to end the stigma surrounding these amazing creatures who are often in unfortunate situations through no fault of their own. I am appreciative for Larissa’s positive, vibrant presence in my life as she is the very representation of what kindness and compassion is in this dog-eat-dog world of ours, and I hope that everyone benefits from her illustrations of sincere humility and genuine selfless love as we witness her interactions with people and animals every single day. Additionally, my gratitude extends to Hallmark for putting me in contact with such a lovely soul, and I look forward to her perpetual updates that remind us that rescue pet adoption is driving down the numbers of pet abuse and animal shelter overcrowding. While she’s far too humble to rest on the laurels of her success, be sure to let Larissa know today just how much she is loved and adored by our tremendous Hallmark family worldwide!

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