It's an amazing line-up for anyone who cares about cat health on CatHobbyist.com this weekend! As part of our 12th annual chat month:

Friday, February 19:

Dr. Marion Nestle
9 PM Eastern Time in the Auditorium
Dr. Marion Nestle is one of the leading voices in the movement to reform how we deal with food and nutrition in this country. She is the Paulette Goddard professor of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University and a visiting professor in the College of Agriculture's nutritional sciences division at Cornell University. She branched out into covering pet food issues with her book about the 2007 pet food recall, "Pet Food Politics."

Dr. Nestle recently visited the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine, and will be joining us to talk about her impressions of the agency, whether safe food -- for us or our pets! -- is possible, and about her forthcoming book about feeding pets in America.

Interviewing Dr. Nestle will be Christie Keith, who has a few stories of her own to tell about the FDA and pet health and safety. Dr. Nestle will be joining us via streaming audio, and you'll be able to comment and ask questions in our text-based chat room.

Saturday, February 20:

The Shelter Pet Project
9 PM Eastern Time in the Auditorium
Last fall, the Ad Council launched the first animal welfare campaign of its more than 60 year history, the Shelter Pet Project. Based on new information developed during the one-year period leading up to the three-year, multi-media campaign, the Shelter Pet Project uses humor and a positive approach to get its message across.

Find out how the Shelter Pet Project came to be, the research behind its television, radio and print public service ads, how it is designed to end the killing of healthy and treatable dogs and cats in the nation's shelters, and why that's not a fantasy but a very achievable goal. Joining us will be representatives from the sponsors of the campaign: Ad Council campaign manager Cece Wedel; Maddie's Fund president Rich Avanzino, and Betsy McFarland, senior director, companion animals at the Humane Society of the United States. Moderating the discussion will be Christie Keith.

Bring your questions and comments about the Shelter Pet Project, as you'll be able to share them in our chat room while listening to the streaming audio interview!

Sunday, February 21:

Dr. Patty Khuly
8 PM Eastern Time in the Auditorium
We're going to be talking with Miami veterinarian and USA Today columnist Dr. Patty Khuly about genetic diseases in dogs and cats.

Dr. Khuly is an honors graduate of Wellesley College, the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine and, inexplicably, the Wharton School of Business.

Her blog, Dolittler, has won accolades from the veterinary community as one of the "Ten Best Blogs in Pet Health" (Fox News, 2007), while Dr. Khuly has been voted one of the "25 People to Watch in 2008" by Pet Product News.

Dr. Khuly will be speaking with Christie Keith via streaming audio," and you'll be able to comment and ask questions in the text-based chat room. Join us in the Auditorium!

Vicki Thayer, DVM, DABVP (Feline) of the Winn Feline Foundation on Feline Chronic Renal Failure
9 PM Eastern Time in Cat Care Central
One of the most-requested chat topics from the cat-owning users of our site, Chronic Renal Failure is alarmingly common in cats. No one has been more on the forefront of research into diseases affecting cats, including CRF, than Winn Feline Foundation. We're honored to welcome Vicki Thayer, DVM, DABVP (Feline), president of the foundation, to discuss this condition, including the latest research into its causes, diagnosis, treatment and possible prevention.

Dr. Thayer will be speaking with award-winning pet author Darlene Arden via streaming audio, and you'll be able to comment and ask questions in the text-based chat room.

To join the chats: Registered users of PetHobbyist.com log in here. If you're not registered, log in as a guest here and select "Auditorium" from the drop down menu! --

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