Ashland, Oregon (September 30, 2025) – These can be challenging times for many in the Rogue Valley, especially those with four paws.
“Oh, for Pets Sake! Our Animal Welfare Crisis” is a free public program set for 4 to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025, in the Gresham Room at Ashland Library, 410 Siskiyou Blvd. Part of the “Big Ideas” program series, it is presented by the American Association of University Women (AAUW) Ashland Branch and Jackson County Library Services.
Speakers include Estrella Cervantes, Southern Oregon Humane Society operations manager; Laurie Cuddy, Rogue Valley Street Dogs board president; and Megan Ayars, Friends of the Animals (FOTAS) operations manager. The speakers will address the rise in pet abandonment, curbing unplanned pregnancies, disease prevention, ensuring access to affordable veterinary care, encouraging shelter adoptions, keeping pets with their people and much more.
With 10+ years of experience at SoHumane, Cervantes has dedicated her career to improving the lives of shelter animals through compassionate care, community engagement, and progressive lifesaving strategies. In 2019, she earned a Maddie’s Fund Certification in the Feline Lifesaving Master Class, deepening her expertise in feline care and shelter programming. She is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Family and Animal Services, continuing to expand her knowledge and skills in animal welfare and nonprofit work.
A lifelong animal lover, Cuddy also serves as co-lead of the Rogue Valley Team of The Street Dog Coalition. She is deeply passionate about the intersection of animal welfare and human justice and believes that looking beyond traditional rescue models is key to making meaningful progress in addressing pet overpopulation and reducing suffering. Cuddy lives on a small farm in Talent, where she shares her home with a menagerie of mostly special-needs animals.
Ayars started in the animal welfare industry at the Greenhill Humane Society and worked at several Eugene-area veterinarian practices as a vet tech before moving to Portland, where she worked as a field representative for IDEXX Laboratories, inside sales representative for VetSource, and technology sales specialist for Patterson Companies. To FOTAS, Ayars brought a love of all animals, and she ensures the organization’s mission, values and goals are incorporated into daily operations.