Best-selling author, Maria Goodavage stops in for a heart-warming visit with Marcie and Whistle about her new book, Top Dog: The Story of Marine Hero Lucca. Maria describes military dogs as canines who 'save lives by day and souls by night.'  In Top Dog, she masterfully tells the story of heroic Marine dog, Lucca and her handlers. Maria weaves a rich tapestry of details that explain why Lucca embodies the best qualities in a military dog – intelligence, passion, dedication, bravery and more. Listen in as Maria tells you about Lucca’s story, her 400 missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, and what made her such an extraordinary military dog!

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

New York Times bestselling author Maria Goodavage is a former reporter for USA Today and the San Francisco Chronicle. Her book Soldier Dogs: The Untold Story of America’s Canine Heroes (2012 Dutton/Penguin) brought military dogs into the spotlight internationally.

She has given talks on military dogs at dozens of venues, including the New York Stock Exchange, and has spoken about military dogs on hundreds of radio and TV shows, including “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.” Her Facebook page on military dogs has more than 150,000 fans.

Goodavage has had a longstanding passion for the dogs of war, which started when her father – also a book author – would tell her about the stray pups (and wayward monkey) he took in while overseas in World War II and the military dogs who helped save lives – and sometime soldiers’ sanity.

She lives in San Francisco with her husband, daughter, and dog, Jake, an affable yellow lab.