Mark Cushing, Esq.

Kathryn interviews Author Mark Cushing, Esq. The pet population in the U.S. has almost doubled since 1998. Nearly 70% of the country now owns a pet who sleeps in a better bed than we do. Wall Street is pumping beaucoup bucks into pet businesses. Entire stores are devoted to pet gourmet organic delicacies, and mobile pet salons, pet spas, pet psychics and pet masseuses are all on the rise. Mark Cushing, founder and CEO of Animal Policy Group, explains how and why pets exploded in popularity over the last 20 years and the economic, media, legal, political and social dramas springing from this cultural transformation. He's been featured on CNBC, The Washington Post, New York Magazine, Sirius XM Radio and more..Kathryn also interviews Author Rachel Michelberg. Rachel Michelberg got the call that her husband David's plane had crashed while she was watching an evening TV show with her 7 year old daughter. Though he and the pilot survived, David suffered a traumatic brain injury that left him irrational, seizure-prone and unable to manage his bodily functions.Before the crash, Rachel and David's marriage had been in trouble, but she wanted to do the honorable thing and take care of him. Realizing she couldn't dedicate her life to caring for a man whom she no longer loved, Michelberg shares her personal journey battling the moral conflicts and societal expectations involved in caregiving for a disabled or cognitively impaired family member. She is the winner of the 2021 Next Generation Indie Book Award in Memoir, Personal Struggle/Health Issues.