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On The Road with Mac & Molly on Pet Life RadioDonna Hailson, host of On The Road with Mac and Molly  on Pet Life Radio

Donna Hailson

On The Road with Mac and Molly


Thirty years ago – in the second year of our marriage -- my husband Gene and I (with our 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’ve auctioned our home and most the contents and are making the final preparations to hit the road again but -- this time – in a truck with a 38-foot fifth wheel trailer and with Mac and Molly, our sibling pair of four-year-old Old English Sheepdogs, along for the ride. With no specific itinerary, we'll travel about the United States and Canada reporting from the well-traveled thoroughfares and lightly-traveled lanes on the joys and challenges of sharing the open road with two-hundred-plus-pounds of dog. We’ll give you a heads up on what's dog-friendly along the way and we'll seek out the usual and the unusual, the celebrated and the hidden. We’ll report on fascinating places and events, intriguing trends, creative artists, unusual hobbyists, hard workers, odd jobbers, cutting-edge technology and old-time pleasures. 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!

 



EPISODE INFO

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).

Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.

Also, check out the On The Road with Mac & Molly BLOG!


EPISODE INFO

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.”

Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.

Also, check out the On The Road with Mac & Molly BLOG!


EPISODE INFO

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.


Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.

Also, check out the On The Road with Mac & Molly BLOG!


EPISODE INFO

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.


Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.

Also, check out the On The Road with Mac & Molly BLOG!


EPISODE INFO

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.


Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.

Also, check out the On The Road with Mac & Molly BLOG!


EPISODE INFO

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.

Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.

Also, check out the On The Road with Mac & Molly BLOG!


EPISODE INFO

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.

Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.

Also, check out the On The Road with Mac & Molly BLOG!


EPISODE INFO

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.

Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.


EPISODE INFO

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."

Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.


EPISODE INFO

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.

Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.


EPISODE INFO

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!

Questions or Comments? Send them to: donna@petliferadio.com.










































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