Ep. 317: Kathy Stevens - Founder of Catskill Animal Sanctuary on Retirement and a Legacy of Love
PLANTSTRONG Podcast
Rip Esselstyn
4.8 • 2.3K Ratings
🗓️ 4 September 2025
⏱️ 58 minutes
🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS
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Summary
This week on the PLANTSTRONG Podcast, Rip sits down with the legendary Kathy Stevens, founder of Catskill Animal Sanctuary, as she prepares to step away after more than 20 years of rescuing animals and inspiring people to live with compassion.
Since 2001, Kathy has been leading with love—creating a safe haven for thousands of animals and cultivating a culture that welcomes everyone, no matter where they are on their journey. In this heartfelt conversation, she reflects on her legacy, the lessons learned from her four-legged teachers, and the future of Catskill Animal Sanctuary.
You’ll hear:
- Kathy’s journey from teacher to animal sanctuary founder
- Lessons in empathy from Catskill’s rescued residents
- Why “leading with love” beats judgment every time
- The challenges of passing the torch to a new leader
- Her vision for the future of sanctuaries in a changing world
Kathy’s warmth, wisdom, and dedication shine through in every story—including one unforgettable tale about Rambo the ram, who forever changed her outlook on life.
Learn more or support the Catskill mission at casanctuary.org
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I'm Ray Besselston, and you're listening to the Plan Strong podcast. For over 20 years, |
| 0:08.2 | Kathy Stevens has rescued animals, inspired people, and she has built one of the most beloved |
| 0:15.6 | sanctuaries in the world. As she steps away from her role at Catskill Animal Sanctuary, she's sharing the story |
| 0:24.5 | of how it all began and the lessons that she'll be carrying forward. This is a conversation about |
| 0:30.3 | compassion, courage, and leading with love. That's coming up right after these words from Plan Strong. |
| 0:41.4 | If summer has you feeling a little off track and out of sorts, too many vacations, too many |
| 0:49.3 | just this once meals, the Plan Strong Plan is you're done for you. |
| 0:55.5 | Reset without restriction. |
| 0:57.0 | For one full week, we're going to help you take all the guesswork out of eating well. |
| 1:02.9 | You're going to enjoy large, satisfying meals that are loaded with fiber made from real whole |
| 1:08.8 | plants. |
| 1:10.0 | There's not going to be any counting, no starving, |
| 1:12.3 | no skimping on flavor. Participants are seeing incredible results, up to seven pounds lost in seven |
| 1:19.4 | days, smoother digestion, better sleep, and more energy than they have felt in years. |
| 1:26.6 | This isn't a diet. It's a jumpstart to feeling your best, |
| 1:30.4 | and it works because it is sustainable. What will you experience? Well, there's only one way for you to find out. |
| 1:39.1 | Grab a Plan Strong plan. The link's going to be in our show notes, |
| 1:44.5 | or you can check out the meal bundle at plantstrong.com, |
| 1:49.7 | and then get ready to thrive. |
| 1:54.1 | This week, I am honored to sit down with someone who's been leading with love for over two decades. |
| 2:02.2 | Her name is Kathy Stevens, and she is the founder of Catskill Animal Sanctuary. |
| 2:09.3 | In 2001, Kathy walked away from the classroom and ran straight towards the vision, |
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