Lauren Ash On Working With The Best Friends Animal Society, The Status Of “Superstore” & More

The Best Friends Animal Society is a leading national animal welfare organization dedicated to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters. In addition to running life-saving programs in partnership with more than 3,100 animal welfare groups across the country, Best Friends has lifesaving centers in New York City, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Salt Lake City, and operates the nation’s largest no-kill sanctuary for companion animals. Founded in 1984, Best Friends is a pioneer in the no-kill movement and has helped reduce the number of animals killed in shelters nationwide from an estimated 17 million per year to around 625,000; that means there are still more than 1,700 dogs and cats killed every day in shelters, just because they don’t have safe places to call home.

Due to COVID-19, the Best Friends Animal Society’s annual Strut Your Mutt fundraising dog walk — like many events — has gone virtual. Strut Your Mutt Day will take place on October 24, 2020, with participants walking in their own communities instead of designated event cities to raise funds for Best Friends or another animal welfare organization of their choice. In 2019, Strut Your Mutt raised $2.7 million, with 10,000+ people and 7,000+ dogs participating. 2020’s fundraising goal is $2 million.

Actress Lauren Ash is the 2020 spokesperson for Strut Your Mutt Day. A devoted dog and cat “mom” and pet adoption advocate, Ash is best known for her portrayal of the hilariously blunt Dina on NBC’s Superstore and her podcast about oversharing Giving It Up For Less. But in real life Ash — who you have also seen on Another Period and heard on She-Ra & The Princesses Of Power— is equally outspoken about the causes she is passionate about, including animal welfare. She has participated in Strut Your Mutt for years and was twice the top individual fundraiser for the event in Los Angeles.

On August 26, 2020, I had the pleasure of speaking with Lauren Ash via Zoom, as embedded below. We talked about the Best Friends Animal Society, Superstore, her comedic rooms and plenty more. More on Ash can be found online via www.instagram.com/laurenelizabethash, while the Best Friends Animal Society can be visited directly via www.bestfriends.org.

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Tags: Another Period, Best Friends Animal Society, covid-19, Dogs, Lauren Ash, NBC, Strut Your Mutt Day, Superstore

About the Author

Darren Paltrowitz Darren Paltrowitz is a New York resident with over 20 years of entertainment industry experience. He began working around the music business as a teenager, interning for the manager of his then-favorite band Superdrag. Since then, he has worked with a wide array of artists including OK Go, They Might Be Giants, Mike Viola, Tracy Bonham, Loudness, Rachael Yamagata, and Amanda Palmer. Darren's writing has appeared in dozens of outlets including the New York Daily News, Inquisitr, The Daily Meal, The Hype Magazine, All Music Guide, Guitar World, TheStreet.com, Businessweek, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, and the Jewish Journal. Beyond being "Editor At Large" for The Hype Magazine, Darren is also the host of weekly "Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz" series, which airs on dozens on television and digital networks. He has also co-authored 2 published books, 2018's "Pocket Change: Your Happy Money" (Book Web Publishing) and 2019's "Good Advice From Professional Wrestling" (6623 Press), and co-hosts the world's only known podcast about David Lee Roth, "The DLR Cast."