By Olivia Craighead, a news writer for The Cut who covers pop culture and celebrity. Previously, she wrote about pop culture and entertainment at Gawker.
Until this past weekend, Katherine Heigl had not made a major public appearance since the 2024 Emmys, where she and her Grey’s Anatomy cast members reunited onstage. So what was the thing that got Heigl back out in public and ready to be photographed in a step-and-repeat again? A dog-charity fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago, of course.
Heigl stepped out on Sunday at the Wine, Women & Shoes Benefiting Big Dog Ranch Rescue event (let’s think of a better name, ladies), which was held at President Donald Trump’s members-only club in Florida. In some ways, this makes sense — since taking a step back from Hollywood, Heigl has moved to Utah and devoted much of her time to the well-being of dogs. She owns a dog-food company, proceeds of which go to fund a nonprofit that finds homes for dogs previously living in kill shelters.
Noble work for sure, but how does that get her to Mar-a-Lago, where she rubbed shoulders with Trump’s inner circle? Heigl was photographed with Jeanine Pirro, the former Fox News host Trump appointed to be the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia. Lara Trump was also at the event and has supported Big Dog Ranch Rescue for years. The feeling is mutual — in 2021, HuffPost reported the organization had spent more than $2 million at Trump properties over the years.
Speaking to the Palm Beach Post, Heigl explained that Big Dog Ranch Rescue’s mission to “solve the pet-overpopulation issue” aligns with what she and her mother, Nancy, do at their nonprofit. “Our biggest goal right now really is to diminish the number of unwanted litters coming into this country, which is what is overcrowding our shelters,” she said. That’s great, but surely there must be organizations without MAGA ties that have the same aims?
Heigl, apparently, doesn’t think the political affiliations of a rescue group should matter here. “Animals don’t vote,” she said in a statement to Just Jared after her appearance made headlines. “The only room they don’t like is the euthanasia room at a shelter. They are completely at the mercy of us, and they have no voice of their own. This event was about animal advocacy — something that has always been deeply personal to me. Anyone who knows me knows that protecting animals is one of my greatest passions.”
The actress added that “as a society,” we should all be able to come together “to protect the voiceless and the innocent.” “This should not be a polarizing issue,” Heigl continued, noting that the event raised $5 million.
In Just Jared’s Instagram comments, Heigl went back and forth with fans who were disappointed with her trip to Mar-a-Lago. One person said her outfit “screamed Republican,” to which Heigl responded, “You seem … really meaningful in today’s society. Just keep screaming your virtue signaling bullshit while doing nothing that really matters. Good on you!” In response to someone cracking a joke about how her Grey’s character got cheated on, Heigl wrote, “does this make you smile? Making a dumb joke when animals in this country are suffering and I’m doing everything and anything I can to stop their suffering? Let me ask … do you do anything that really matters?”
Unfortunately, it’s looking like this dustup could be Heigl’s Republican origin story. Next thing we know she’ll be hosting a dog-adoption event on the White House lawn — which would of course be totally apolitical because dogs don’t vote.
