ABOUT MY ANIMAL CHAPLAINCY

A chaplain is a spiritual care provider trained or ordained to serve in secular institutions rather than a specific congregation. Chaplains are commonly found in hospitals, disaster zones, and military settings, offering emotional, spiritual, and psychosocial support to people of all faiths or no faith.

Animal chaplains are part of a growing field dedicated to supporting both animals and humans through ritual, ceremony, and practices of spiritual companionship. This work often centers grief, ethical distress, and the human–animal bond.

After over a decade witnessing and working with animal shelters and rescues around the world, I felt the urgent need to tend to my own grief and burn out, as well as to show up in this community with better tools to support others. I wrote a brief essay about my decision to become an animal chaplain, and why I think spiritual care is essential in the animal welfare world.

I was ordained as an animal chaplain in 2024 through the Compassion Consortium, after completing a rigorous 9-month training program.

Since then, I have facilitated a monthly support group for volunteers with Los Angeles County Animal Care Centers (DACC), as well as memorial ceremonies for animals who have been euthanized in shelter care, and grief ceremonies for those experiencing animal loss across many contexts, including pets, shelter animals, wildlife, and farm animals.

As both an artist and animal chaplain, I have a passion for creating artistic and spiritual spaces for emotional release. Using my sacred ceramics, I invite people to voyage through a moment of music, tender words, holy weeping, and participatory ritual.

I also love creating sacred objects and spiritual tools for animals and their people. You’ll find those in my online shop (ceramics, dog talismans, oracle decks).