Rescue Me
[From the September 2005 issue of New York Dog Magazine]
Survivor couple Jenna and Ethan meet the ultimate survivors - New York’s rescue dogs.
Jenna Morasca likes survivors especially the canine kind. After winning both Survivor: Amazon and Survivor: All Star [sic] she’s continuing her life-long goal of helping animals in need. She campaigns for PETA, volunteers her time and money to no-kill shelters, and adopts all of her dogs. But her biggest challenge may be mending the broken heart of her boyfriend, Survivor: Africa winner Ethan Zhon [sic], who is fond of Jenna’s mixed breed Rocky, but realizes that in the competition for Jenna’s heart, he comes in a distant second.
How many dogs do you have?
Jenna: I have one dog, Rocky - he’s almost two. He’s a shel¬ter dog. All the dogs I’ve had have been shelter dogs. He’s a Lab/Shepherd/Great Dane mix of some sort. He’s awesome; he’s my best friend. He sleeps on all the beds and he eats human food and he doesn’t know he’s a dog. He always has to lie on your lap and tries to hug you when you come in.
Which shelter did you get him from?
J: I got him from the Humane Society in Pittsburgh.
Why did you choose Rocky?
J: We wanted a puppy. And my mom really likes boy dogs. Shelters hardly ever have puppies - as soon as they get them they [are adopted] because everyone wants puppies. But there were two puppies there. One was a girl and one was a boy. There was another couple that was waiting to pick him up and take him, but we kind of bullied them out of the way. They took the girl and we took the boy.
Does he live with you?
J: He lives with me in my house in Pittsburgh. And he has a nanny that watches him because when we took him to a dog kennel once - which is so against my wishes - he barked the whole entire time. For two days.
You stay back and forth between Pittsburgh and New York right?
J: Yeah, I’m mostly in New York. All I really have time to do is go back and see my family and the dogs. I love my dogs - I get excited. [I tell Ethan] “I miss Rocky.” And he is like, “What?! What about me?”
Ethan, how do you feel about Jenna and Rocky’s relationship?
Well sometimes it seems like Jenna is more in love with Rocky than me. She talks to him like he’s human, which I find strange. She talks to every animal like they’re human. Which is OK, but it’s just not my thing. I need some response. I need a confirmation that they understand what I say.
Sounds like there may a little competition going on between you and Rocky.
E: Yes, a little competition … but no, Rocky is cute. I have appreciation for dogs. I’ve never had close contact with dogs but I’ve known Jenna for two years, and Rocky is great. I take him for walks; he goes jogging with me in Pittsburgh. I take him to go out to the bathroom, buy him rawhide bones. I like the doggie treats and the doggie inventions. If I were a dog, I’d want that.
Do you find that she pays more attention to Rocky than you?
E: Yeah if we are walking down the street in a very intense conversation and a dog walks by its like I’m not even there. But I like Rocky. I want to start a puppy rental business in Central Park for single guys. How brilliant would that be? Take shelter puppies that need some loving and cuddling all the time and rent them to single guys in Central Park for four hours at a time for 100 bucks. Make money for the shelter. The guys get a date and the dogs are happy for a day. It’s really a win-win situation for everyone.
What kind of dog food do you feed Rocky?
J: I feed him Nutro because its not tested on animals. He likes it. Large breed [food] though - I’m all about the large breed.
So you’ve always had a larger dog?
J: Yeah, I’ve always had and been around bigger dogs. I don’t know why. I like big dogs. Most people think girls like small dogs. I like my big burly boy dog. I like that Rocky is a big boy and a bruiser. He has a big bark. No bite.
How long have you had dogs?
J: I’ve had dogs my whole life. My parents had a Great Dane before I was born and then we had Rascal who was also a shelter dog. And now we have Rocky.
E: When I was younger my mom had a Wire Haired Terrier. I didn’t really bond with it that much - I was young. By the time I was old he would creep around the house [because he's so old]. Other than that I haven’t owned a dog but I’ve become friendly with Rocky.
What animal adoption and rescue or charities are you involved with?
J: Ethan and I have done two ads for PETA. We were actually the only couple to ever do an ad for them. And then I work with Animal Friends, a shelter in Pittsburgh. They are Pittsburgh’s no-kill shelter. I do work for the Humane Society, and appearances for shelters everywhere. I’ve campaigned for animals before I had money from Survivor and now I do even more. I’m really, really excited that I can do all this.
E: We did the fur campaign for PETA. But I don’t like to do that anymore.
Why?
E: It’s a long story. Granted, they’re about shock value, but they made some pretty strong claims that I don’t agree with. I’m heavy into the HIV/AIDS epidemic. And they put an aids ribbon with a lighter underneath it, lighting it on fire saying even if testing on animals found a cure for AIDS they wouldn’t agree with it. And they had a picture of dogs behind bars and a picture of holocaust victims behind bars asking if there was a difference. Personally I think they are different.
You think their campaigns are over the top?
E: They are over the top and that’s their shtick, which is okay, but for me it’s gone too far.
So you donate your own money as well as volunteer?
J: I definitely give donations and I give my time. I do as much as I can because this is all I’ve known - I’ve loved animals since I was little. I know no other way other than animals are my children and I don’t understand people who don’t think that way.
What do you think about the no-kill movement (organizations including The New York Dog Magazine are campaigning to end euthanasia in dog shelters) and its success so far?
J: I think that it can work. But we just need people to be aware and they need adequate space for the dogs that they have. It’s hard but I think it can happen. I’d much rather adopt from a shelter that makes a conscious effort to not euthanize than one that doesn’t care.
Why do you think adopting a dog is better than going through a breeder?
J: I almost feel like adoption dogs are somewhat thankful and I just personally feel better knowing that I could have saved a dogs life. I mean there are some really wonderful breeds of dogs that I would love to have but I can’t bring myself to do it. You get such a mix whenever you get a shelter dog - its always good, its never bad. I like when people ask, “What kind of dog is that?” And I’m like: “Beats me! Shepard/Lab/Great Dane - that’s all I know.” When you get a mixed breed, you get a mixed personality. Their temperament is good, and I like having a dog that doesn’t look like other dogs.
What you are working on now?
J: Right now I’m doing Survivor Live every Friday. We interview the person cast off of Survivor. I have my own business called Model Challenge USA (modelchallengeusa.com), which just started. It’s a nation-wide model search. And I’m doing a lot of things for Animal Friends and different shelters. Ethan and I have TV shows that are interested in us hosting. It’s been really busy; we’ve been really lucky. You won’t see us on Surreal Life anytime soon.
E: I have this charity called Grassroots[sic] Soccer. I used a lot of money from winning Survivor to start it. We take professional soccer players in Africa, train them about HIV and AIDS and send them into schools to teach kids about AIDS prevention. I mean these soccer players are like their gods, heroes, and their role models. So you could imagine the effect when they walk into a classroom to deliver this message. We’re trying to change the behavior and help them lead a healthy lifestyle. We started in Zimbabwe and now we are in eight other countries in Africa. And we started a US program where last year we hit 50,000 high school students with our curriculum.
So what do you think about all the hype around the survivor couples and reality series couples?
J: I think its funny because its almost like you have a better chance of finding someone to date on Survivor now than you do on The Bachelor. You get all these reality people together and they are like, “We have this in common: You were on reality TV, I was on reality TV, so we should make out.” [Ethan and I] have a lot of other things in common. We always say that Survivor is just another thing on our resume. You have to be able to sustain a relationship once you are off the show.
E: It’s weird that people want to know about our relationship. I’d say I am the more private one; I could go without it. But on the flip side, for what I do, it helps me get my toot in the door to do with my charity work.
How long have you guys been together?
J: Two years, in June. Feels like a hundred in dog years.
Did you have a crush on him when you watched Survivor: Africa?
J: No, I thought he was kind of boring. But not anymore! There is this really cool saying: If my boyfriend only looked at me the way my dog does everyday. You can do anything and dogs have unconditional love all the time. And I swear when I’m feeling upset Rocky’s like, “What’s the matter?” It’s like they know. They’re just always there more than anybody else. They’re like family.
To adopt a dog, go to thenydog.com/leadthewayhtm.