On The Road with Mac and Molly - Pets & Animals on Pet Life Radio (PetLifeRadio.com)

In this final episode in the series, Donna recalls savored moments from nine years of life with her sibling pair of Old English Sheepdogs. In the first segment, we walk with her through the love-at-first-sight day of Mac and Molly’s adoption to M&M’s abysmal performances in puppy kindergarten. We hear about the dogs’ tug-of-warring with and trashing of furniture, toys and monogrammed dog beds at Gene and Donna’s country home in Chester County, Pennsylvania. Then we’re on to the adjustments to downsized, full-time living in an RV and some of the adventures and misadventures the quartet had while traveling through 30 states. Donna also recounts the dangers against which M&M had to be protected; Mac’s unexpected way of exhibiting sympathy when she was under extraordinary stress; and the daily challenges faced when walking 200 pounds plus of dog. In the second segment of the program, Donna chats with the veterinarian who diagnosed the cancer that was to take Mac’s life. Dr. John Morton, of the Golden Gate Animal Clinic (Naples, Florida), shares the signs, symptoms and range of treatments for Osteosarcoma, the most common canine cancer that accounts for 85% of all malignancies originating in the skeleton. The show concludes with the heartbreaking final walk that Gene, Donna and Molly took with Mac.

Gary 'Montana' Robert is a multi-award-winning stuntman and stunt coordinator who has worked on more than 700 TV shows and films from CHiPs and The Dukes of Hazzard to Forrest Gump, Platoon, Underworld, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, and Fast and Furious.

Mark Twain wisely noted that: "twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." In this episode, Donna will share some of what it can be like to answer the call of, what John Steinbeck referred to as, 'the call of bumdom.' More than four years ago, she and her husband, Gene, decided to throw off the bowlines, to sail away from the safe harbor, to explore, to follow their dreams, to discover. Answering the call of bumdom has launched them into a journey that has taken them to wild places and into wild company, a journey that has also made them 'Rubber Hobos,' workers at odd jobs in odd places.

Regarded as one of the rarest birds in the world, the California Condor is the largest land bird in North America with a wingspan of up to 9 ½ feet and a weight of up to 23 pounds. At one point, only 22 of these magnificent creatures remained in the world. Now, through Herculean efforts in reintroduction, there are more than 400 and more than 70 of these are flying over southern Utah and northern Arizona.The Mexican Spotted Owl is also an endangered bird with little more than 2,000 remaining in the United States. This 16-19 inch tall, under two-pound creature, with a wingspan of 42-45 inches is also found in Grand Canyon and is also the subject of study and recovery efforts. In this episode of On the Road and Mac and Molly, we hear fromJanice Stroud-Settles, a wildlife biologist at Grand Canyon National Park, about these fascinating birds and the efforts that have been spent and are being expended in bringing them back from the brink of extinction.

There is no such thing as a typical day for a wildlife biologist especially for one whose 'office' is Grand Canyon National Park. A day’s agenda might find you discouraging a bobcat kitten from 'entertaining' hikers along Bright Angel Trail OR studying Mexican Spotted Owls deep in the Canyon OR helping native fish species reach recovery in the waters of the Colorado River OR leading volunteers in conducting a count of the elk population on the South Rim. In this episode of On the Road with Mac and Molly, we'll hear from Grand Canyon wildlife biologist Janice Stroud-Settles about how she entered this highly-competitive field, the challenges she faces each days and the joys that have been hers that a career that kept her in the wild. Janice Stroud Settles is a wildlife biologist at Grand Canyon National Park.

Two-thirds of Americans and Europeans won’t ever live where they can see the Milky Way- their own galaxy, their own solar system- because two-thirds no longer experience real night- that is, real darkness- and nearly every person in the world lives in areas considered polluted by light. In this episode of On the Road with Mac and Molly, we hear from Paul Bogard, author of The End of Night: Searching for Natural Darkness in an Age of Artificial Light. In his book and in this program, we travel with Paul around the globe to find night where it lives . . . showing exactly what we’ve lost, what we have left, and what we might hope to regain.

The Adventures of Salt and Soap at Grand Canyon is the true story of two puppies who wandered into the Canyon and maneuvered their way into some great escapades--multiple rim-to-river hikes, a white-water rafting trip, and even a helicopter ride-all while ultimately snuggling their ways into park rangers’ hearts. The author of this charming book for children, interpretive ranger Lori Rome, adopted this pair of adventurers after meeting them at the bottom of the Canyon at Phantom Ranch, the historic oasis on the north side of the Colorado River that’s tucked in right next to Bright Angel Creek. She took Salt and Soap in as "lost and found items" but, with Lori, the intrepid duo found a home. And home for all of them is now Capitol Reef National Park in south-central Utah where they’ve been joined by a third dog (another stray, Mo, whose proper name is Morri, after the Morrison rock formation near where he was found). In this episode, Donna chats with Lori about Salt, Soap and their buddy Morris. Lori gives us entrée to her life as a ranger in parks from Alaska to Florida, shares stories about pets and wildlife in the parks, and details her exciting work with mountain lions at Capitol Reef.

Four kittens. A crumbling English cottage. One touching tale of life in the British countryside. In Paw Prints at Owl Cottage, the sequel by Denis O’Connor to Paw Prints in the Moonlight, the author tenderly and humorously charts the ups and downs of days shared with feline companions. In his first book, then bachelor Denis detailed his life with his much-loved hybrid Maine Coon cat, Toby Jug. In this episode, Donna chats with beloved best-selling author Denis O’Connor about Toby Jug; Carlos, the out-of-control commando; Luis, the regal and aloof little prince; and Max, the melancholic that eventually lived up to his full name, Maxamillion (the one in a million cat).

In this episode, Donna chats with Kathryn Bertok, Curator of Animals at Carolina Tiger Rescue. The 55-acre Pittsboro, North Carolina facility has more than 70 animals in its care including tigers, binturongs, lions, cougars, bobcats, caracals, kinkajous, ocelots and servals. The organization is working toward the day when wildcats are not owned by individuals as pets; wildcats are not used for entertainment purposes; no trade exists for wildcats or their parts; and all wildcats prosper in sustainable, native habitats.

Donna chats with Rebecca Cagle, life coach and author of Grieving the Loss of Your Pet and Grieving the Loss of Your Horse. In this program, they discuss grieving the loss of a pet through trauma or illness; through natural causes - old age; through euthanasia; through loss in the event of theft or a pet’s wandering away or when a pet has to be given away or sold.

In this episode of On the Road with Mac and Molly, Donna chats with Karen Johnson, Director of the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center and longtime friend of the Schulz family. We hear about the Peanuts Gang, its creator and the museum. And then we center, most especially, on all things Snoopy from his doghouse decor (a pool table, Wyeths and a Van Gogh . . . ); to his impersonations (from a moose and a pelican to Mickey Mouse); his moments at the typewriter ("It was a dark and stormy night"); his alter-egos (who doesn’t love his WWI flying ace and his battles with the Red Baron?); his "band of brothers" (siblings Spike, Marbles, Olaf, Andy and Belle); and his connection with aviation (from NASA to the U.S. Air Force).

In this week's episode, the focus is on the Pawsitive Partners Prison Program, which is operated under the umbrella of Monty's Home, a North Carolina-based organization that was inspired into being by the love and generous spirit of Monty, a dearly loved therapy dog and canine star who brought sunshine into the lives of many. After Monty succumbed to cancer, his human companion, Barb Raab, created an organization in his memory and today, through Monty's Home, sunshine continues to be shed on dogs and human beings through efforts like the Pawsitive Partners Prison Program. We learn how dogs are selected from kill shelters to undergo training in preparation for adoption into permanent homes. We hear how, after passing through a 19-test evaluation, each new "class" of dogs moves into the Pender Correctional Institution in Burgaw where they are trained by specially-screened inmates over a period of eight weeks. Upon graduation, the dogs go home to their adoptive families. Pawsitive Partners is credited with not only saving the lives of canines but saving the lives of humans as well.

After ministering to those shaken by the bombings along the route of the Boston Marathon, specially trained therapy dogs have been deployed to help those struggling to recover from the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas. Donna speaks with Tim Hetzner, who is leading the team in West, Texas and who was also on the team deployed to Boston. Tim shares stories from the ministry in these cities and recounts how the dogs have been able to break through to help people move toward healing.

In this episode, Donna adds a third installment to her occasional series on Threats to Pets. In earlier episodes, we heard from veterinary toxicologist Sharon Gwaltney-Brant and San Antonio veterinarian Rae Dishinger about dangers associated with external and internal parasites; infectious diseases; insects, wildlife; plants; and toxins. Donna's guest today is Bill Converse, founder of Air Restore, Inc. and inventor of the Critter Zone Air Purifier. Bill's invention was recently awarded a first place among new products at the Super Zoo National Show for Pet Retailers held in Las Vegas.

In this episode, The Wild Life: Surprise Encounters, Donna, author of the forthcoming book, Rubber Hobos, shares stories from some of her adventures with wild animals. She takes you from a watering hole and savanna in Zimbabwe to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, from the pine flatwoods and forested wetlands of Florida to the middle of Death Valley. In this program are stories about warthogs and wildebeest, a band of beggin' burros, white-tailed deer at the post office, and prairie dogs with the bubonic plague.