Miranda Lambert Talks Passion for MuttNation and Life with Her New Husband

Only “Extra” Special Correspondent Alecia Davis was with Miranda Lambert today as she kicked off CMA Fest with her annual MuttNation March.

Miranda opened up about the cause, and also about her life with new husband Brendan McLoughlin.

Lambert's new husband Brendan was there to support her as well. She said of her man, “He's a great guy and, bless his heart, he didn't have any dogs or any animals at all when he came into this relationship, so he inherited a whole barn full… Marching with us today, he knows how important that is to me. He lives with a crazy dog lady.”

Alecia commented that Brendan told her he gained 13 dogs and gave Miranda a stepson. Miranda laughed, saying, “I was like 'Hey, I got the dogs, you got the kid, we can mix and mingle.'”

The couple loves being with their dogs and Brendan's son. “My stepson is amazing,” Miranda said. “I'm loving that whole phase, and I've raised a million dogs, so I feel like I've got that part of my womanly/motherly thing is full, so this is a whole new journey. It's great.”

She is also loving their life in New York and Nashville. “We have the best of both worlds," she said. "We spend time in New York, we get to see our adorable nugget, then we get to come back to the farm and have the quiet life. I'm enjoying the balance.”

Gearing up for her CMA Fest performance this weekend, she said, “Pistol Annies are going to be there, too. We had a new record come out last year, so we're gonna do some of the music off of that and do a brand-new one.”

The singer said she was thrilled with the turnout for the event. “Having all those people march and walk for the cause," she said, "I want to grow it and build it and just make it even bigger.”

MuttNation is celebrating 10 years! Miranda shared, “Me and my mom started it like this tiny little mom-and-pop foundation. Ten years later, we've adopted thousands of dogs and raised four million dollars.”

She explained that their mission is to “raise awareness for shelters... You will find your forever best friend there and also educate people on spay-and-neuter… There are so many homeless dogs, we don't need to make more.”

How can people help? “Go to your local shelter and volunteer your time… Walk a few dogs, get them out. Giving them human contact helps their chances of getting adopted.”