In 2018, Shira Scott Astrof — actress-turned-animal-advocate — started her nonprofit The Animal Rescue Mission (ARM). She’d already spent 10 years working with other dog rescues. Since the coronavirus shutdown in Los Angeles, she’s been busier than ever.
Astrof, who lives in Hollywood, knew she and her volunteers — all 14 of them, including friends, former dog foster parents and colleagues from other rescues — needed to step up during this time.
“When this started happening I was thinking, what’s another thing I can do to help people?” Astrof told the Journal. So on April 2, she launched The ARM COVID-19 Animal Support Program, an emergency response plan that offers support to pet owners who may have been affected by the coronavirus.
“People find [animals] on the street, and many times they see animals being abused and neglected,” Astrof said. “And then, by word of mouth, they [are referred to us].”
The economic impact of the virus has made it difficult for people to afford their pets as well, Astrof added. “We’ve had a lot of people who can’t financially support themselves and sadly, dogs are the first to go.”
ARM will send funds to people in need so that they can provide for their pets. And if pets need to be removed from homes because of COVID-19, Astrof ensures they are taken care of for as long as necessary. She told the story of one person who was diagnosed with the virus and who was expected to be in the hospital for a month and a half, so ARM took the person’s cat into its care.
ARM also delivers pet food to seniors’ doorsteps, takes dogs to the vet, and reassures clients that if they were to fall ill, ARM will assist them. “For most people, it’s a support thing,” she said. “They’ll ask, ‘Are you there if I need you?’ ”
“I’ve been saying the only good thing to come out of all of this chaos is that so many dogs have been adopted and pulled from the shelters.” — Shira Scott Astrof
While ARM volunteers will visit cats or other small animals twice a day to provide food and care, they’ll also pick up dogs and take them to Capital K9, a ranch in Sherman Oaks where the dogs are bathed, assessed, trained and rehabilitated before being sent home with an appropriate foster parent. Astrof has celebrity friends who have been fostering animals, including actresses Sophia Bush and Riley Keough and singer-songwriter Lisa Marie Presley.
Since the start of the shutdown, Astrof said she’s seen an uptick in the number of dogs being fostered — as well as abandoned. “We found two huskies downtown,” she said. “The girl had nonstop seizures and they were both bitten by fleas. The girl did not make it but the boy just got adopted.”
Astrof has a positive attitude, despite seeing some heartbreaking situations. “I’ve been saying the only good thing to come out of all of this chaos is that so many dogs have been adopted and pulled from the shelters,” she said. “In that regard, it’s been amazing, but on the flipside, shelters have closed their doors, so normally [pets] that would have been relinquished there are being tied to poles and left on the street.”
What drives Astrof to rescue these animals is her dedication to tikkun olam, she said. While growing up, she learned from her parents, who volunteer for their synagogue, Congregation Beth-El of Massapequa Park, N.Y. “We were always doing clothing drives and walkathons and all sorts of charity work in our community, so it’s been a nonstop theme in my life,” she said.
Although it’s been a challenge to pick up abandoned animals and provide for everyone in need, Astrof knows this is her mission during this time. “I can’t imagine not doing something to help people and animals,” she said. “I’m always looking for ways to make the world better. I really wouldn’t know another way.”
