Have you ever wondered how your fellow animal well-being professionals manage their days and take care of themselves? In our new blog series, we’ll be chatting with a member of our field regularly about these topics and sharing it with you. Whether your role looks similar or completely different, we hope you discover something useful and inspiring to carry into your own work and life. helpful and inspiring, and apply it in your own life. 

This month, we spoke with Daisy Navin, the Foster Programs Manager at LifeLine Animal Project. She was hired as their Foster Dog Coordinator in 2021 and became the Foster Programs Manager in 2023. 

In speaking with her, we learned about a brilliant (and free!) way to help dogs and your coworkers, received a book recommendation, some salient advice and much more. 

Grab a dog and go outside
A wonderful tip Daisy shared with us is when she has an unofficial meeting with someone, she takes a dog along – everyone wins. Both people and the dog get fresh air, you get to know more about the dog and the dogs’ proximity can bring positivity to the discussion. One time she selected a co-workers favorite dog to go with them on a walking meeting. The meeting went well, and Daisy truly believes it was all a result of their favorite dog being with them, “tensions were kept low,” she said. 

Simple, no nonsense advice
Have you sometimes blown something out of proportion? Or overthink things? Daisy shared that whenever she has an issue, she keeps her boss’s first question to her top of mind, which is, “have you talked to them yet?” Such advice is straightforward and can probably save you a lot of misunderstandings. 

The power of community
Speaking about a book she read recently, “Poets Square: A Memoir in Thirty Cats” by Courtney Gustafson, about a woman who found herself taking care of 30 community cats after never having any involvement in animal well-being. Daisy’s takeaway is that, “there are everyday people out there who organically get involved in our community. They see the good in it, help our community and make amazing change.”

Advice to her younger self
“Slow down,” she says. She describes herself as being very ambitious, eager to see success, and wanting to work faster than the animal welfare world allows. “I  have learned things will come with time, advocate for yourself but it’s okay to let stuff unfold,” she shared.

Knowing when to let go
“There is so much in general in working with animals and people that can be out of our control,” Daisy said. While not religious herself, she says the Serenity prayer (credited to theologian Reinhold Niebuhr) often helps her. “Do what you can, stand up for what you can do, but also know when to stop.”

Grant me the serenity 
To accept the things I cannot change
The courage to change the things I can
And the wisdom to know the difference

Favorite pet name
Next time you get to name a litter of kittens or puppies, take inspiration from the time Daisy named four brown puppies after the shapes of McDonalds Chicken McNuggets: Bell, Bone, Boot and Ball.

Thanks for sharing, Daisy!