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Tenth Annual DogHobbyist.com Chat Month
February 1-28, 2008

For the last ten years, PetHobbyist.com has been presenting an annual online symposium about living with, keeping, raising, breeding, rescuing, and caring for animals. In celebration of this anniversary, we've extended Chat Week into Chat Month. Starting on Friday, February 1, at 9 PM Eastern, guests throughout the month will include:

Friday, February 1

Nathan Winograd
Author of "Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation and the No Kill Revolution in America"
Friday, February 1, at 9 PM Eastern, in the Auditorium
Nathan Winograd's 2007 book "Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation and the No Kill Revolution in America" set off a firestorm of controversy -- and inspired an army of animal lovers across the country, calling for serious reform of the American shelter system and an end to the use of killing as a tool of animal population control.
Get more information and sign up for a free email reminder here!

Saturday, February 9

Ken Foster, author of "The Dogs Who Found Me"
His Accidental Life in Rescue
Saturday, February 9, at 10 PM Eastern, in the Dog Den
Ken Foster's two best selling books, “The Dogs Who Found Me” and “Dogs I Have Met” have moved the hearts of many. It also showed to people that something the animals we rescue will take time to rescue us. Starting in his rescue life with Brando leading the way, Ken shares his experiences from basically the twin towers to Katrina in his first book. His second book shows the impact of rescue on others as well as bring his life current for his fans. Join Ken for some more wonderful rescue tails.

Sunday, February 10

Karen Delise
Author of "The Pit Bull Placebo"
Sunday, February 10, at 9 PM Eastern, in the Dog Den
Karen Delise is a licensed Veterinary Technician with a degree in Veterinary Science Technology. Her book is based on over 15 years of investigative work into dog-bite related human fatalities and severe dog attacks. Specific details about the events and circumstances that have contributed to cases of extreme canine aggression have been obtained through research and interviews with hundreds of Animal Control Officers, Law Enforcement Officials, Medical Examiners, Public Health Officials, Veterinarians, Epidemiologists and Shelter Workers. Karen Delise is also the founder and lead researcher for the National Canine Research Council. (www.nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com)

Saturday, February 16

Kathy Diamond Davis
Therapy Work with Your Dog
Saturday, February 16, at 3 PM Eastern, in the Dog Den
Kathy Diamond Davis is the author of "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Help Others" and "The Canine Behavior Series" at VeterinaryPartner.com. Kathy is also a contributor to magazines such as Off Lead. She contributes her expertise to our site by answering member's questions in the Dog Training/Obedience Forum. Kathy will be discussing therapy dogs, and how to select, raise, train, and work with dogs who visit nursing homes and other facilities.

James Walsh
Carting and You
Saturday, February 16, at 9 PM Eastern, in the Dog Den
The use of dogs as draft animals has a long history. Newfoundlands hauled fishing nets in to shore for their owners, Swiss Mountain Dogs and Rottweilers hauled carts containing farm produce to market for their owners, and numerous large breeds have been used over the centuries to haul firewood home. It surprises many people to learn how many varieties of working dogs were bred specifically for draft work. Australia's Jim Walsh is the inventor of a small cart widely used in carting with "mini horses and big dogs." Come find out the benefits of health and enjoyment for you and your dog from getting involved in this sport!

Friday, February 22

Amy Shojai
Dog and Cat Behavior
Friday, February 22, at 10 PM Eastern, in the Auditorium
Amy D. Shojai, CABC is a certified animal behavior consultant and nationally known authority on pet care and behavior. She began her career as a veterinary technician and is the award-winning author of 22 nonfiction pet books and more than 1000 published articles and columns. In addition to a weekly "PETiQuette" newspaper column, her work also appears online with Purina's CatChow.com and "Tidy Cat" web site, she hosts a forum at ivillage.com and she is the newsletter pet care columnist for Sergeant's Pet Care Company, the pet behavior columnist for HomeAgain.com, and feature writer for PetsBest.com. “I've been an equal-opportunity pet lover since birth. All kinds of furred, feathered, finned and fanged beasts have shared my life, but I must admit that dogs and cats top my list. I'm very grateful for my success as a pet writer, but feel even more fortunate that I truly love my work. Bottom line, I get paid to talk and write about dogs and cats -- wow!”

Saturday, February 23

Liz Palika
Living Through Puppyhood
Saturday, February 23, at 9 PM Eastern, in the Dog Den
Liz Palika has been writing professionally since 1985 when she was first published in DOG FANCY magazine. Since then she has written more than fifty books and more than 1,000 magazine articles and columns. Her books include THE KISS GUIDE TO RAISING A PUPPY which is becoming a favorite with new puppy owners. ALL DOGS NEED SOME TRAINING was listed by PET LIFE MAGAZINE as one of the ten best training books available to dog owners.She has been published in DOG FANCY, DOG WORLD, CATS, CAT FANCY, AKC GAZETTE, and other pet publications, as well as NEWSWEEK, THE SATURDAY EVENING POST and WOMEN FIRST. Working in Vista, California ( San Diego County), Liz trains over a thousand dogs and their families a year, and has put obedience titles on over 20 dogs of her own, from Doberman Pinschers to Papillons, in addition to her beloved Australian Shepherds. She also founded the Love On A Leash therapy dog program, which reaches out to patients of hospitals and residents of retirement centers.

Sunday, February 24

Dr. Jeff Werber -- Lassie's TV Vet!
Microchips and Your Pet
Sunday, February 24, at 9 PM Eastern, in the Auditorium
From Dr. Jeff: "Like most little kids, all I wanted to be when I grew up was a veterinarian. According to my folks, that's all I ever talked about. Growing up in a household with dogs, this wasn't such an unusual dream. The unusual part about it was that I followed this dream into adulthood. With me, I think becoming a veterinarian was more of a calling than a mere childhood dream. Now, over 20 years out of school and practicing, I'm still in heaven! As many of you know, over the years my career has branched out into many different directions--all revolving around veterinary medicine and my love of our animal friends." Dr. Werber is Lassie's veterinarian, and has also cared for the pets of stars including Ben Affleck, Julia Roberts, and Mandy Moore. He is also a spokesperson for Home Again pet microchips.

Friday, February 29

Chris Walkowicz
Preparing Your Dog for the Show Ring
Friday, February 29, at 9 PM Eastern, in the Dog Den
Chris and her husband Ed are members of the Bearded Collie Club of America, Chicagoland Bearded Collie Club and the German Shepherd Dog Club of the Quad Cities. Chris is also an AKC Judge and Vice President of the Dog Writers Association of America. Although they no longer breed dogs, they still are deeply involved with them. Surrounded by her Beardies (and, shhhh! Figaro, the cat), Chris shares her advice based on experience in the dog world since 1965. Her award-winning books, articles and columns are aimed at helping other dog lovers and those searching for a companion or show dog. Chris is one of those lucky people who have made a career out of something they love: writing about dogs and judging all breeds in the Herding and Working Groups, several Sporting breeds, Misc., Best In Show and Junior Showmanship. She is here tonight to explain how to handle your dog in the ring.

Date and Time TBA

Thom Somes, the Pet Safety Guy™
Pet CPR, First Aid & Care
Date and time TBA, in the Auditorium
"Preventable accidents are the leading cause of death and disability among pre-senior dogs and cats," says Thom Somes of PetTech.net. Join us as he discusses training that can save the lives of thousands of pets in emergency situations each year, and how to avoid preventable incidents from happening in the first place. Thom will also be letting our chatters know about the "Million Petizen Rally," where one million dollars is being raised for four pet charities.

Darlene Arden
Author of "Small Dogs, Big Hearts"
Date and time TBA, in the Dog Den
One of our most entertaining and popular chat guests, Darlene Arden is an internationally recognized authority on small dogs and their care, as well as on general health and welfare issues regarding all canines. She will be discussing the special issues of training and caring for dogs under 20 pounds, and her forthcoming book Small Dogs, Big Hearts: A Guide to Caring for Your Small-Breed Dog. Darlene is also the author of the critically acclaimed Angell Memorial Animal Hospital Book of Wellness and Preventive Care for Dogs and The Irrepressible Toy Dog.

Sharon Sakson
The Healing Power of Dogs
Date and time TBA, in the Dog Den
Did you know that dogs are better at detecting ovarian, lung, bladder, prostate or skin cancer than any currently known medical device, better than x-rays, laboratory blood work, MRIs, biopsies, sputum technology, CAT scans, PET scans, fiber optic scopes, mammograms, pap smears or second opinions? Or that dogs can sense an oncoming epileptic seizure or hypoglycemic episode and warn their human friend before they take place? Find out more about the amazing abilities of dogs to help and heal the humans with whom they share their lives at this special chat with the author of "Paws and Effect: The Healing Power of Dogs."

How to Attend

These events will be held in the chat rooms that will be linked from this page. To access the chats:

If you are a registered user of our site, simply follow the direct link to the chat as given above, and log in with your username and password. (Forgot them? Click here!)

If you are not already a registered user of the site, registration is not required - simply go to chat.pethobbyist.com and use the "Guest" log-in option, then select the scheduled chat room for your event.

There is nothing to download or install, but the system does require you to have java enabled in your browser settings. We strongly suggest you access the room before the chat, so you have time to address any difficulties you might have. You might want to drop by one of our regular weekly chats as a test run. If you have trouble, please visit our Chat Help Area.