Speaker 1: It's Maria's MutS and Stuff. What a great idea on iHeartRadio.
Speaker 2: Welcome to Maria's Mutts and Stuff.
Speaker 3: And with me is Nicole Navarro who has Positive Beginnings.
Speaker 2: So Nicole, thanks for taking some time out.
Speaker 3: Let's talk about positive beginnings and exactly what it is.
Speaker 1: Sure, So Positive Beginnings is a five oh one c
Speaker 1: three nonprofit fox Thankstuary and we are located in Key Largo, Florida.
Speaker 1: So all seven foxes that I have here were rescued
Speaker 1: from the fur trade. A lot of people don't realize
Speaker 1: that fur farming is still alive well and legal, yeah
Speaker 1: here in the United States. Unfortunately, you know, it's still
Speaker 1: a practice that I feel should not be practice in
Speaker 1: the United State, especially in the United States right here
Speaker 1: we are. Yeah, so all seven foxes I have were
Speaker 1: deemed undesirable or unprofitable by the fur farmer. So basically
Speaker 1: what that means is their fur wasn't good enough. Some
Speaker 1: of the foxes I have or missing tail, which is something, yeah,
Speaker 1: something that unfortunately happens. You know, these mothers are forced
Speaker 1: to give birth in these insanely cruel and disgusting conditions,
Speaker 1: and you know, they start to harm their young out
Speaker 1: of stress over grooming. So a lot of the animals
Speaker 1: I have here, you know, don't have tails. And while
Speaker 1: it's adorable in a sense, you know, it's a stark
Speaker 1: reminder of the cruelty that takes place sure on these
Speaker 1: fur farms.
Speaker 3: Sure, I mean, I'm just I'm fascinated by you and
Speaker 3: your group, your organization because I never realized that that
Speaker 3: such a thing existed.
Speaker 2: But it makes so much sense.
Speaker 3: And how now, how do you how are you aware
Speaker 3: of the foxes that need to be rescued?
Speaker 2: Do the farms get in touch with you?
Speaker 3: Or you get notified from people who are like on
Speaker 3: the inside, Like how does that work?
Speaker 1: So there are a few organizations throughout the United States
Speaker 1: who have developed working relationships with these fur farmers. Uh
Speaker 1: So at times throughout the year, these organizations will reach
Speaker 1: out and be like, hey, you know you've you've surrendered
Speaker 1: animals stuff before, you know, when you were otherwise just
Speaker 1: gonna murder them. Yeah, do you do you have any
Speaker 1: you know that fall into that category? Now? So there
Speaker 1: are other organizations that you know, can play nice with
Speaker 1: fur farmers to get them to legally surrender them. So
Speaker 1: none of these foxes were illegally taken. Right, No, no,
Speaker 1: of course, yeah, but I just I just have to
Speaker 1: make that clear because that does go on.
Speaker 3: Sure and right, so is it okay to say Rifley
Speaker 3: so but yeah, yeah, sure, No, I get it.
Speaker 1: I've never I've never got it. So I'm not going
Speaker 1: to get in trouble. No, You're not right, passionate people
Speaker 1: out there that you know, I think the general consensus is,
Speaker 1: you know, out of all the agricultural industries operating globally,
Speaker 1: fur farming is the one where people are generally like, ugh, yeah,
Speaker 1: why because it's just for fashion. You know, these animals
Speaker 1: are bred into existence just to be killed for luxury
Speaker 1: fashion exactly.
Speaker 3: And I mean, honestly, it's not like it was years
Speaker 3: and years and years ago where and I'm talking about
Speaker 3: hundreds of years ago where people were hunters in order
Speaker 3: to survive, and you know, they were living in the Arctic,
Speaker 3: so it was so cold and they needed fur to
Speaker 3: keep Like, that's not existent anymore. And now with so
Speaker 3: many synthetic and you know, there's fake fur.
Speaker 2: If you really want to.
Speaker 3: Look like you're you think that it looks fast to
Speaker 3: wear a fur coat, get a fake one, like you
Speaker 3: don't you know what I mean. You don't have to
Speaker 3: wear a dead animal on you. It's awful.
Speaker 1: So yeah, no it yeah, it's it is just not
Speaker 1: a good look.
Speaker 2: No it's not.
Speaker 3: No, it's not it's not a good look. So so
Speaker 3: how did this all start for you?
Speaker 1: So it's a it's an interesting story. I live in
Speaker 1: Key Largo, but back in twenty seventeen, I was living
Speaker 1: down in Key West. So Key Largo was the first
Speaker 1: first key here in the Florida Keys. Key West is
Speaker 1: the last key. So I was living down there during
Speaker 1: Hurricane Irma, which was a little bit alarming.
Speaker 2: Yes, I remember that, yes, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1: So during that time, I was actually working at the
Speaker 1: Hemmingway Home.
Speaker 2: Oh I love that place. Yes, I went there over
Speaker 2: this summer. I love it there.
Speaker 1: Yes, I loved working there. I loved living in Key West.
Speaker 1: It's just such a town all of its own.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: So I was working at the Hemmingway Home and I
Speaker 1: was one of the ten employees that stayed behind during
Speaker 1: Irma to care for the cats in the museum after
Speaker 1: we had rounded up all the cats. Yeah, it was intense,
Speaker 1: I'll tell you, it was intense.
Speaker 2: I'm sure that's scary.
Speaker 1: Y Yeah, yeah, yep, for sure. But after the storm
Speaker 1: had passed, I reached out to our local jail. So
Speaker 1: here's where the story gets fun. So down in Key
Speaker 1: West we have Demonroe County Sheriff's Office main detention center,
Speaker 1: so it's just a county jail, not a prison, but
Speaker 1: on the jail grounds sit a USDA certified zoo, so
Speaker 1: they have to classify it as a zoo because of
Speaker 1: the variety of animals that lived there, and the general
Speaker 1: public is allowed to visit twice a month. So after IRMA,
Speaker 1: they had evacuated all the inmates, so the woman that
Speaker 1: runs the farm had stayed behind to take care of
Speaker 1: all the animals. Actually, she moved all the animals up
Speaker 1: into the jail, so yeah, to protect them from the storm. Okay,
Speaker 1: So I reached out to her to see if she
Speaker 1: needed help and she said yes. So typically they don't
Speaker 1: allow volunteers in a jail for obvious reasons, but since
Speaker 1: the inmates were gone, I went and helped her clean up,
Speaker 1: get everything back in order, and her and I just
Speaker 1: became like the fastest friends ever.
Speaker 2: Nice.
Speaker 1: So, in twenty eighteen, I had moved back to Key Largo.
Speaker 1: I want to be a little closer to the mainland
Speaker 1: in case of another natural disaster.
Speaker 2: Sure, but I would.
Speaker 1: Still go down there at least once a week to
Speaker 1: hang out with the animals. And twenty eighteen, two foxes
Speaker 1: were surrendered to Herky and I had never had up
Speaker 1: close personal experience with foxes before. You know, I grew
Speaker 1: up on a large horse farm in western Pennsylvania, so
Speaker 1: you see fox, but you know, you don't interact with
Speaker 1: the fox sure, So it was just really fascinating to
Speaker 1: me to be so close to these little forest puppies
Speaker 1: who during during that time, you know, they were you know,
Speaker 1: they were scared, they were confused, they had just been
Speaker 1: relocated from the private home they were living in. Now
Speaker 1: they're in this brand new place. And honestly, at that
Speaker 1: time in my life, I was kind of at a
Speaker 1: crossroads too, like what am I going to do with
Speaker 1: the rest of my life?
Speaker 2: Right?
Speaker 1: So, uh, the universe I think, you know, placed us
Speaker 1: both in a position where we could help each other.
Speaker 1: You know, those animals got used to me coming to
Speaker 1: see them every week. We formed a really special bond,
Speaker 1: and then you know, one day I was like, I, well,
Speaker 1: you know, I want to help more. I want to
Speaker 1: help more of these animals. So I just dug and
Speaker 1: started doing research, started reaching out to these other facilities
Speaker 1: that had foxes, that had these fur farm connections, you know,
Speaker 1: did the research on the licenses I would need, the
Speaker 1: insurance that I need, the permits I need. And in
Speaker 1: twenty twenty, right when COVID hit, I got the call
Speaker 1: asking if I was ready to start helping to take
Speaker 1: in for farm animals. Wow. So yeah, yeah, you know
Speaker 1: it's cool, Yeah, very cool, very cool. You know, it's
Speaker 1: like right place, right time. You know, you don't understand
Speaker 1: why things are happening as they're happening, but looking back
Speaker 1: you're like, oh, this all made sense. You know, everything
Speaker 1: worked out exactly the way it was supposed to. So
Speaker 1: in twenty twenty I took in four fur farm survivors
Speaker 1: as I call them. Twenty twenty one I took in two,
Speaker 1: twenty twenty two I took in one, twenty twenty three
Speaker 1: I took in one. So right now there's seven. I
Speaker 1: know the numbers I rattled off at up to eight. Unfortunately,
Speaker 1: one of my females passed away last year suddenly and unexpected.
Speaker 1: I'm sorry, which again, yeah, you know it's it's very
Speaker 1: sad because likely as a direct result of poor genetics
Speaker 1: from bad breeding and in breeding that shakes on these
Speaker 1: fur farms. You know, they don't care about health. They
Speaker 1: care about coat quality, fur quality, so and they're you know,
Speaker 1: they're afforded no veterinary care. It's just it's all about looks.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean, yeah, yeah, I mean fur farms kind
Speaker 3: of sound exactly like puppy mills exactly, right.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, very few make it out alive from the
Speaker 1: right exactly.
Speaker 2: That's the main difference.
Speaker 3: It's fascinating. Do you have a very fascinating story. And
Speaker 3: I mean, obviously you're probably at this point now an
Speaker 3: expert on foxes as well, Like, what's what is something
Speaker 3: that you can share with my listeners about foxes that
Speaker 3: maybe most people don't know. But since you're so close
Speaker 3: and knowledgeable about them, is there anything that you know
Speaker 3: we wouldn't really know unless you hung out with a
Speaker 3: bunch of foxes.
Speaker 1: Yeah. So I only claim to be an expert on
Speaker 1: the experiences that I've had with my own I'm very
Speaker 1: careful to use the word expert, But as far as
Speaker 1: my personal experiences these animals, you know, I see online.
Speaker 1: A lot of people are like, oh, they are a
Speaker 1: combinations of cat and dog. I'm like, no, they're actually
Speaker 1: a wild animal, right, yeah, they're They're neither. They're their
Speaker 1: own individual species. You know, they're red fox, you know,
Speaker 1: not not a dog nor a cat. You know. They
Speaker 1: they can possess quality, of course, but at the at
Speaker 1: the end of the day, they are their own unique
Speaker 1: Uh yeah, they're their own unique beings, that's for sure.
Speaker 1: And you know, they all have their own very individual personalities,
Speaker 1: which is hysterical because not one of my foxes are
Speaker 1: the same personality wise. You know, I say, it's like
Speaker 1: a soap opera. You have the drama king, we have
Speaker 1: the diva. We have a bad boy, you know, we
Speaker 1: have the paranoid one that you know, thinks the sky
Speaker 1: is falling at all times. We have the wise old man.
Speaker 1: So it's just very comical. And I would say to
Speaker 1: anyone listening that's ever seen a cute baby fox online,
Speaker 1: they do not make good pets.
Speaker 3: Yes, I was just gonna yes, I was just gonna
Speaker 3: ask you about that, Like, obviously they don't make good pets,
Speaker 3: and you know because so many times, well that's why
Speaker 3: kids jump into at zoos or wherever were they like
Speaker 3: wild animals and they think, oh, it's adorable.
Speaker 2: No, it's a wild animal. You're not supposed touch it. No,
Speaker 2: you know, so yes, yeah.
Speaker 1: Say you know, although I share my life with them,
Speaker 1: and I say that very intentionally. You know, I share
Speaker 1: my life with them. They you know, they dictate a
Speaker 1: lot of what goes on around here. You know, live
Speaker 1: in my house, they have outdoor enclosed I don't think
Speaker 1: of them as pets. I respect them for exactly what
Speaker 1: they are, which is, at the end of the day,
Speaker 1: wild animals. So a lot of people, you know, the
Speaker 1: exotic pet trade is big in the United States as well,
Speaker 1: and there are a lot of people that breed foxes
Speaker 1: in their backyard and then just sell them to anyone
Speaker 1: for five six hundred bucks. You know, you don't get
Speaker 1: a manual. Yeah, but you know, foxes reach sexual maturity
Speaker 1: between six and eight months of age. So when the
Speaker 1: cute little yeah, when the cute little baby goes away
Speaker 1: and they start acting like a fox, yeah, a lot
Speaker 1: of people are like, well, time to get rid of it.
Speaker 1: But you know, it's it's not as simple as dropping
Speaker 1: off your unwanted dog at the shelter, which is a
Speaker 1: whole other subject, but you know, it's it's just it's
Speaker 1: just a big problem, you know, exotic pet ownerships in
Speaker 1: the United States.
Speaker 3: Which we've seen in so many, so many Netflix documentaries
Speaker 3: at this time.
Speaker 1: Oh my gosh. Yeah, the latest one, chimp Crazy. Yes,
Speaker 1: oh my gosh, I.
Speaker 3: Was exactly what I was thinking of as you were
Speaker 3: talking about it, that they are wild animals, and I
Speaker 3: was just thinking about chimp crazy, where you're like, oh
Speaker 3: my god, she's crazy, you.
Speaker 1: Know, yeah, yeah, it's yeah, it can become a problem. Sure, no,
Speaker 1: I got well, and you know, in some cases, you know,
Speaker 1: for these larger exotics, it can become a deadly problem.
Speaker 1: Oh sure, end of the day, like yeah, yeah, yes, yes,
Speaker 1: another one.
Speaker 3: But so I was looking at your website, Positive Beginnings
Speaker 3: dot org, and I see that the public can come
Speaker 3: and take a tour, which I think is really cool.
Speaker 1: Yeah. So it's something that I held off on doing
Speaker 1: for a long time until I made sure, you know,
Speaker 1: they were totally comfortable. I was totally comfortable, and yeah,
Speaker 1: it's I only do it once a week on Saturdays,
Speaker 1: you know, maximum of four people, no teeny tiny children,
Speaker 1: right of course, and it's it's just it's all on
Speaker 1: the foxes terms, you know. I share each fox's individual
Speaker 1: stories on how they came to be here. I share information,
Speaker 1: you know about the fur trade because again a lot
Speaker 1: of people don't realize it. And then we go into
Speaker 1: the foxes enclosures, and if the foxes choose to interact,
Speaker 1: you know, great, and if they don't, no one is
Speaker 1: forced to do anything here. You know, I don't place
Speaker 1: expectations on these animals, but I would say, nine times
Speaker 1: out of ten, I do have a select few foxes
Speaker 1: that love attention.
Speaker 2: That's sweet. That's sweet.
Speaker 3: And for someone who's listening right now, say they can't
Speaker 3: come visit you, I would assume you survive on donations.
Speaker 1: Correct, Yeah, yeah, we rely heavily on donations from the
Speaker 1: general public. You know, their their food is expensive. I
Speaker 1: feed them a species appropriate diet. No kibb, no no
Speaker 1: kibble is being handed out here. In their veterinary care,
Speaker 1: even though they are canine very biologically similar to a dog,
Speaker 1: there are still very distinct differences. So their vet care
Speaker 1: is expensive as well. So yeah, we always, you know,
Speaker 1: appreciate the support, whether it be monetary. We do have
Speaker 1: an Amazon wish list, so people can send gifts to
Speaker 1: the Foxes.
Speaker 2: That's great.
Speaker 1: A lot of people like doing that. And you know,
Speaker 1: we're extremely involved in the community now, which is you know,
Speaker 1: something that's sort of beautifully morphed into what it is.
Speaker 1: We host the Florida Key's Children's Shelter here. We share
Speaker 1: the stories of the Foxes overcoming their own hardships and
Speaker 1: it really resonates with a lot of the kids that
Speaker 1: are going through their own personal challenges. So yeah, we've
Speaker 1: really integrated quite magically into the community here, and the
Speaker 1: community has literally just wrapped their arms around us since
Speaker 1: day one.
Speaker 2: So that's wonderful.
Speaker 1: Yeah, truly our own little oz down here.
Speaker 2: No, it definitely is. It definitely is.
Speaker 3: But that's wonderful that the community has embraced you and
Speaker 3: and rightfully.
Speaker 1: So yeah, it's really amazing. We have great relationships with
Speaker 1: local law enforcement, the local schools, you know, everyone is
Speaker 1: everyone has turned into fox fans over the last time.
Speaker 2: Oh it's very sweet. No, it's very sweet.
Speaker 3: I find you so unique and what you do so unique.
Speaker 3: I think it's really cool. I mean it's really yeah,
Speaker 3: it's very very cool. So where do you see where
Speaker 3: do you see yourself like over the next you've been
Speaker 3: around for five years doing this in the next five years,
Speaker 3: obviously the ultimate wish would be that you know, fur
Speaker 3: farms go away and close, right, That was like, yeah,
Speaker 3: ultimate ultimate wish and dream, but other like, But for you,
Speaker 3: where do you see yourself like continuing this, enlarging it,
Speaker 3: getting more people, getting the word out.
Speaker 2: What do you see in the future.
Speaker 1: I mean, I'd love to be able to expand, to
Speaker 1: be able to help more people, like with the trauma
Speaker 1: informed care aspect of it. But something else I would
Speaker 1: love to really work on and have local legislators, even
Speaker 1: at the state level, taken interest in implementing a ban
Speaker 1: on the sale of new for throughout the state of Florida. Sure,
Speaker 1: a lot of other a lot of other cities across
Speaker 1: the country have done it. California became the first state
Speaker 1: to do it in twenty nineteen. So I think, you know,
Speaker 1: getting to the point where legislation is being passed, uh
Speaker 1: huh to sort of stamp this out at the at
Speaker 1: the level where if you can't sell it, the demand
Speaker 1: will start to decrease.
Speaker 2: Of course, of course, yeah, I know that makes sense.
Speaker 2: That's great.
Speaker 3: Well, thank you so much, Nicole for explaining and talking
Speaker 3: about Positive Beginnings, and for listeners who want to learn
Speaker 3: more about it, you can go to positive beginnings dot
Speaker 3: org and it's p A W S I T i
Speaker 3: v E beginnings dot org. So, Nicole Navarro, thank you
Speaker 3: so much for taking the time out, Thanks.
Speaker 2: For all you do.
Speaker 3: And I hope that you know the ultimate wish that
Speaker 3: we both have about fur farms closing forever. I hope
Speaker 3: we see that in our lifetime. So so thank you.
Speaker 1: I think it's a great possibility. And next time you're
Speaker 1: in the Florida Keys, you'll have to come visit us.
Speaker 2: Oh I promise, I will. I love it, I will.
Speaker 2: Thank you so much.
Speaker 1: Thank you,