Welcome to On the Road with Mac & Molly

Donna Hailson on Pet Life Radio


Some years back, my husband Gene and I (with our, then a toddler, Brooke in tow) took – what turned out to be – a glorious two month motor trip across Canada and Alaska – starting in Quebec and winding up in British Columbia. I still smile as I think of Gene shaving in our motor home’s rear view mirror on a cool morning by a pristine lake in Yukon Territory. I still cherish the extraordinary kindness of a farmer in Saskatchewan who rescued us from a ditch when our vehicle slid down an embankment. I still fill up with awe as I recall the staggering beauty of the Canadian Rockies. I still feel the excitement of the chuck wagon races at the Calgary Stampede, still ooh at the kick of the kitsch in Dawson’s Creek, still savor the aroma of Montreal’s culinary delights, still cherish my familial connections to Nova Scotia, still marvel at the enduring culture and artistry of the Tlingit, still delight in the metropolitan flair of Ottawa, Canada’s capitol city.

Two years prior to this journey, Gene and I made our way -- in a Chevy Blazer -- across the United States stopping to applaud the precise timing of Old Faithful at Yellowstone, to laugh at the delightful antics of the black-tailed prairie dogs near Devil’s Tower in Wyoming, to estimate the miles to the next grain silo on the Great Plains, to marvel at all the wares (a jackalope?) on offer at Wall Drug . . . another wonderful adventure!

Now we’re on the road again but -- this time, full-time – in a truck with a 37-foot fifth wheel RV in tow and our sibling pair of five-year-old Old English Sheepdogs, Mac and Molly, along for the ride. With no specific itinerary, I’m reporting from North America’s well-traveled thoroughfares and lightly-traveled lanes, seeking out fascinating places and events, creative artists, unusual hobbyists, hard workers, odd jobbers, cutting-edge technology, intriguing animals, and family-friendly, dog-friendly pleasures. In these podcasts, listeners will find the light-hearted and the serious, entertainment, information, insights, passion, a fresh eye . . . all depending on the subject matter for each particular show. So come along as we head off . . . On the Road with Mac and Molly!

Episode 36 - A Walk with Mac and Molly

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.


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Episode 35 - The Stuntman and the Service Wolf: Gary Montana Robert and Sage

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.

In this episode, we’ll hear from Gary “Montana” Robert about life in stunt work and life with his dearly loved service wolf, Sage.


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Episode 34 - Answering the Call of Bumdom

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, 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.

This episode centers on what inspired them to get on the road, how they fared through some misadventures in South Dakota, and what you can expect to hear in future episodes as Donna takes a different tack, turning her boat’s head into and through the wind.


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Episode 33 - Back from the Brink: Saving the California Condor and the Mexican Spotted Owl

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 from Janice 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.


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Episode 32 - A Life in the Wild

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 day and the joys that have been hers in a career that has kept her in the wild.


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Episode 31 - The End of Night?

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.

We hear how the loss of night is not only a loss of beauty above us. Exposure to artificial light at night has been cited as a factor in health concerns in humans ranging from poor sleep to cancer. Light pollution is also threatening the health of the world’s ecosystems as everything from the reproductive cycles to the migration patterns of nocturnal animals is adversely affected by artificial light at night. But there is hope. Light pollution is one kind of pollution we can readily fix. And Paul’s panoramic tour of the night, from its brightest spots to the darkest skies we have left gives us every reason to flip the switch—tonight. 


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Episode 30 - The Adventures of Salt, Soap and Lori Rome

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.


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Episode 29 - Paw Prints at Owl Cottage

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).


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Episode 28 - Carolina Tiger Rescue: Saving Wild Cats and Calling for Laws ‘With Teeth’ in the Regulation of the Exotic Pet Trade

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.


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Episode 27 - Grieving the Loss of Your Pet: How to Survive Your Journey

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.


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Episode 26 - All Things Snoopy

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).


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Episode 25 - The Pawsitive Partners Prison Program

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.


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Episode 24 - Comfort Dogs Bring Peace and Healing to the Grieving in Boston and Texas

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. The dogs and their handlers are members of the Lutheran Church Charities K-9 Parish Comfort Dog team that is headquartered just outside of Chicago.

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.


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Episode 23 - Allergies and the CritterZone

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.


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Episode 22 - The Wild Life: Surprise Encounters in the Natural World

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.


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Episode 21 - On the Road with Best Friends

Of the 56,000 animals that came into city shelters in Los Angeles last year, 17,000 were killed. A newly-formed coalition, led by the Best Friends Animal Society wants to reduce that number – within the next five years - to zero.

In this episode, Donna chats with Francis Battista, one of the founders of the Best Friends Animal Society. This highly regarded animal welfare organization is known around the world for its no-kill programs and partnerships that all work toward the day when there will be “No More Homeless Pets”®. Best Friends was launched in the early 1980s with a sanctuary at Angel Canyon in Kanab, Utah. Today, that sanctuary encompasses 33,000 acres and, on any given day, some 1700 companion animals call the place home. The great majority of these will eventually be placed in “forever homes.


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Episode 20 - Hand in Paw: HIP Healing & Art-Making

In this episode Donna visits with Kitty Terry, Executive Director of the internationally-known, Birmingham, Alabama-based animal-assisted therapy organization, Hand in Paw. HIP, founded in 1996, provides professionally trained animal-assisted therapy teams to help people heal physically and emotionally. These 120+ teams (which are made up entirely of volunteers) address abuse, disabilities, illiteracy, and chronic and terminal illness, through more than 50,000 visits a year in more than 50 facilities in the state of Alabama.


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Episode 19 - Fur in My Paint: Art-making Animals from Rhinos to Rottweilers

In the second episode of a multi-part series on animals and art-making, Donna visits with Tifane Grayce, author of Fur in My Paint. Pictured and profiled in this full-color, hardcover, high-gloss coffee table book is the work of art-making creatures from scorpions to beaded lizards, from macaws to elephants, from rhinos to gorillas, from sea lions to white tigers. Donna explores with Tifane how the Fur in My Paint project came to fruition. The two also explore questions related to animal creativity and aesthetic sensibilities. From Tifane, we learn about some of the animal parks and conservation centers across the country that are offering art in the "curricula” for their charges. We hear how animals are trained in art and how human/animal relationships have been enhanced or changed through these interactions. 


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Episode 18 - With Flipper and Brush: The Oregon Coast Aquarium's Sea Lion Artists

In this episode, Donna launches into a new series on animals and art-making. Her first chat is with Ken Lytwyn, Curator of Marine Mammals at the Oregon Coast Aquarium Their focus: Lea, Max and Quill, the facility’s resident sea lion artists that paint on canvases using their flippers and mouth-held brushes. Ken describes each one's temperaments and talents and details what made these sea lions good candidates for art-making. We hear how they were trained and how they are rewarded for their efforts and we consider what we can know or, perhaps at best, surmise about sea lions from their art-making. Ken also addresses these questions: Do sea lions attach any meaning to their artwork? Do they appreciate beauty? Do they have fun when they engage in these activities? How do sea lions learn and can we relate their learning processes to the ways in which human beings learn? Could a sea lion teach another sea lion to paint?


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Episode 17 - Mystery Making in the National Parks

In this episode Donna visits with Nevada Barr, New York Times Bestselling Author of the Anna Pigeon mystery series. 

The Rope, Nevada's 17th book featuring the crime-solving park ranger, Anna, has just been released. The New York Times has called the Pigeon series, "Thrilling!" USA Today has deemed Nevada's books, "Extraordinary!" And the Boston Globe raves: “Nevada Barr is one of the best!”

Each book in the series is set in one of the National Parks. The first of the 17, The Track of the Cat, was released in 1993 and was honored with both the Agatha and Anthony awards for best first mystery. Nevada's latest is a prequel set in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area that surrounds Lake Powell and lower Cataract Canyon in Utah and Arizona. In this book, we’re provided with the previously untold story of Anna’s first foray into the wild and the case that helped shape her into the ranger she became.


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Episode 16 - Passion and Compassion with Catherine Powers

In this episode, Donna visits with Catherine Powers, Animal Control Officer for Curry County on the southern coast of Oregon. From a heart filled with passion and compassion, Catherine tells us how she was drawn into this work. We hear about the wide range of responsibilities that rest on the shoulders of animal control officers. Catherine’s duties include responding to emergency calls; rescuing the endangered; attending to dog licensing; providing health-building food, clean shelter and loving care for abandoned animals; seeking safe and permanent homes for the same; overseeing volunteers and much more. Each day brings its own special challenges.

Catherine shares some of the heartbreaks and triumphs that come with the territory and she shares her vision for the ideal animal shelter. The show concludes with a discussion about the unique way Catherine has found to help fund her animal rescue efforts: providing daycare and overnight boarding for dogs who already have pet parents.


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Episode 15 - Jerry's Jet Boats on the Rugged Rogue River

In this episode, Donna visits Gold Beach, Oregon to take a 104-mile jet boat trip on the rugged Rogue River. She learns that the company serving up the adventure -- Jerry’s Rogue Jets -- now Oregon’s only mail boat outfit, has come a long way since the days of pike poles and sails. Jerry’s shallow-draft, jet-propelled vessels can carry 38 to 65 passengers and are able to navigate in depths of as little as eight inches of water. From Nic McNair, who owns the company with his brother Scott, mother Cherie, and father Bill, we learn how jet boats operate over the recreational, scenic and wilderness sections of the Rogue. We hear about some of the boatmen who have grown up alongside these waters and we marvel at the wildlife (from black bears to bald eagles to playful otters) that can be seen along the banks and in the river. Donna shares from her own experience of the “Wilderness Whitewater Adventure” that takes folks up to Blossom Bar Rapid, which is as far as is navigable by jet boat. The show ends with a note about Jerry’s mascot – the border collie Rogue and other “river dogs.”


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Episode 14 - Wolf Hollow – A Howling Success

In this episode of ON THE ROAD WITH MAC AND MOLLY, Donna speaks with Joni Soffron who, with her husband Paul, founded the North American Wolf Foundation and Wolf Hollow with the mission of preserving the wolf in the wild through education and exposure. We’ll hear from Joni about life at Wolf Hollow where visitors can meet the resident wolves – at close hand -- and observe how a wolf pack functions. Wolves are social creatures and their pack dynamics are fascinating, in many ways paralleling that of a human family. Wolves are devoted to their young and five new puppies have recently been added to the Wolf Hollow mix. We’ll hear how the pups are settling in, how wolves are faring in the wild, and how we can help support these magnificent creatures.


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Episode 13 - Perfectly Goode: Pet Life and Wildlife Artist Debbie Goode

In this episode of On the Road with Mac and Molly, Donna chats with artist and full-time RVer Debra Goode. The two discuss what it’s like spending all your days on the road, what inspires the artwork, and what makes a good subject for an artistic rendering. Debbie explains why her focus is on pets and wildlife and details how she sees and how she conveys what she sees to her canvases. All that and more on the next On the Road with Mac and Molly. 


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Episode 12 - Threats to Pets Part 2

Donna visits with San Antonio, Texas Veterinarian Dr. Rae Dishinger, of the Alamo Dog and Cat Hospital, who shares some of the “Threats to Pets” specific to the American Southwest. As Donna and her husband Gene have been moving about the country with Mac and Molly, they have had to be on guard against potential perils all along the way. In the West, they’ve been on the look out for rattlers and copperheads, coyotes and bobcats, feral hogs and even birds of prey. On occasion, they’ve been too late to keep Mac from rolling in burro poop and to keep Molly from eating cow pies. Donna chats with Rae about these concerns and asks what toxic plants may be encountered in the Southwest. Rae also offers advice on dealing with climatic changes when traveling with pets and shares the story of how her own beloved dog succumbed to the bite of a rattler.


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Episode 11 - Threats to Pets

Donna launches into a multi-part series entitled, “Threats to Pets.” As she and her husband have been traveling about the country with their two Old English Sheepdogs Mac and Molly, they have encountered potential perils all along the way. Speaking just of wildlife: in Louisiana, they were warned to take care walking near a lake because the denizens therein – the alligators – had developed a special appreciation for “dog.” In Colorado, the concerns were over bears and mountain lions. In South Dakota: prairie dogs carrying the bubonic plague. In Texas: rattlesnakes.

Featured in the opening episode will be veterinary toxicology consultant Dr. Sharon Gwaltney-Brant, former Vice President of the ASPCA’s Poison Control Center who will identify some of the toxins and poisons commonly found in and around our homes and at stops on the road. She’ll offer suggestions on what to pack for our pets when we take them traveling with us and what we ought to be certain to keep away from our pets (in the way of medicines and more).


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Episode 10 - Hank the Cowdog

In this episode, Donna chats with John Erickson, author of the Hank the Cowdog series of humorous mystery books for children. More than 7.5 million copies of Erickson’s books have been sold since 1983. His 57th volume – The Disappearance of Drover -- was just released as was the audio version of the book. (Hank holds the title for the "Longest-Running Children's Audiobook Series".) John speaks to us from his home in Perryton, Texas where, at the time of the interview, he was teaching a class on writing to a group of homeschooled junior high and high school students who’d been raised on Hank the Cowdog stories. Also on the show will be Phil and Amy Kruse, owners of the Circle View Ranch in Interior, South Dakota who share how they were inspired by John’s books to name their own border collie “Hank the Cowdog.”


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Episode 9 - Doggy Suites and Kitty Condos: Pet Vacations in Orlando

In this episode we'll be visiting Orlando, Florida and searching out some of what's on offer for pet accommodations. With the exception of service dogs, pets are not permitted in the area’s major theme parks so, if you're planning to bring your dog, cat, or pocket pet on vacation with you, they'll need a place to romp, revel and rest while you're doing the same at one of the area’s people-pleasing playgrounds.

Best Friends Pet Care opened a facility recently at Walt Disney World and the center's managers Jennifer Kratzer and Amanda Burris will tell us about the amenities of and activities at this Disney-themed pet palace. In this episode, I'll also fill you in on some options for pet care at or near SeaWorld and Universal Studios. And I'll tell you what hotel has a VIP (Very Important Pets) program of pampering that includes toys and treats and special room service selections. 

We’ll wrap it all up with info on our favorite off-leash dog parks and another on-leash -- but still delightful park – that pets and their pet parents might enjoy while visiting Orlando.


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Episode 8 - Sparky and the Fire Museum

This year marks the 60th birthday of Sparky the Fire Dog, the cartoon Dalmatian mascot of the National Fire Protection Association. Celebrations have been and will be held this year at sites all around the country.

In the first half of our program, we’ll hear about some of these events and we’ll learn more about Sparky.  Filling us in on Sparky’s life and the work of the organization he represents will be Massachusetts-based Lorraine Carli, Vice President of Communications for the NFPA. 

In the second half of the program, we’ll visit the city of Beaumont, site of the Fire Museum of Texas. In the plaza adjacent to the museum sits the largest working fire hydrant in the country (and perhaps in the world). From Carol Gary, the museum’s Executive Director, we’ll hear how that multi-story fire hydrant came to sit where it does.


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Episode 7 - Forever Florida

In this episode, we’ll visit St. Cloud’s 4,700-acre eco-ranch and wildlife conservation area Forever Florida, home of Florida EcoSafaris, where – in two and half hours and via seven ziplines and nine towers -- we’ll be ziplining and sky-bridging over Pine Flatwoods and forested wetlands. This site boasts nine distinct Florida eco-systems and is home to alligators, black bears, nearly two hundred species of birds, and the endangered Florida panther.

Joining us in this episode will be Florida EcoSafari’s Matt Duda, whose background in marketing, tourism, ecotourism, and conservation makes him just the right person to introduce us to the history of the property, the flora and fauna one finds here, and the adventures (along with ziplining, horseback, safaris and rawhide round-ups) in which one can engage here. From him, we’ll also learn about the efforts being made to preserve the natural beauty and natural ecological balance at Forever Florida.


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Episode 6 - Dog Mountain

In this episode, we visit Dog Mountain in St. Johnsbury, Vermont where internationally-known artist and author Stephen Huneck built what has become one of the most unique tourist destinations in New England: the Dog Chapel. We tour the chapel, romp with Mac and Molly on the hillside, take a peak at what’s on offer in Huneck’s adjacent art gallery, and wrap it all up in an interview with Huneck’s widow Gwen.


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Episode 5 - Getting on the Road with Canine Companions

In this episode, host Donna Hailson reviews the initial challenges faced by those who decide to take their dogs with them when they move from living in an attached-to-the-land home to living nomadically, in a not-attached-to-the-land home. Donna offers a look at self-service dog washes and considers ten reasons your professional pet grooming costs more than your own haircut. In this episode as well: helps on staving off dog motion sickness and advice on what you'll need from your veterinarian before you hit the road. Also: what should be included in a dog first aid kit, what you’ll need at border crossings between the United States and Canada and what resources online and in print are especially helpful in locating dog parks and dog-friendly campgrounds


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Episode 4 - Life in the North Country

In this episode, Donna will be sharing three stories of life in the North Country – the North Country that encompassesthe uppermost reaches of upstate New York. She’ll greet the Canadian Pacific Railways Holiday Train and look at the transformation taking place in the border village of Rouses Point. Then she'll wrap up with The Dirty Life, the story of the two love affairs that interrupted the trajectory of a young woman’s life: one love affair with farming and the other with a complicated and exasperating force of nature, the first generation farmer who would become her husband.


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Episode 3 - The Auction

In this episode, host Donna Hailson describes some of what went into the auctioning of her home in Pennsylvania and how she, her husband and their Old English Sheepdogs Mac and Molly have been adjusting to their initial days as nomads. Donna shares what it's like to bring your home and much of what you've collected -- over a lifetime -- before bidders. She and Gene followed this path so they could head out "On the Road with Mac and Molly."


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Episode 2 - Itches and Inspirations

In this episode, the focus is on some of the itches and inspirations -- from wanderlust to Steinbeck's Travels with Charley to Mr. Toad and his caravan -- that moved Gene and Donna to auction their home and a good bit of its contents so they could head out on the open road with their sibling pair of four-year-old Old English Sheepdogs. The show concludes with an introduction to the range of options -- from motorized to towable RVs -- available to those who are eager to chase ever-changing horizons.


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Episode 1 - Introduction

Welcome to On The Road with Mac and Molly! Listeners may expect the light-hearted and the serious, entertainment, information, insights, passion, a fresh eye . . . all depending on the subject matter for each particular show. So come along as we head off . . . On the Road with Mac and Molly!


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