Dear Urbanhounders,

Joining us today as guest editor is Dr. Nick Trout, a surgeon at Angell Animal Medical Center in Boston and author of the new book Tell Me Where It Hurts: A Day of Humor, Healing and Hope in My Life as an Animal Surgeon. Beginning today on our message boards, Dr. Trout will host a chat, answering your questions.

In twenty-first century veterinary medicine, 'state-of-the-art'™ is rapidly becoming 'standard of care'. MRI and CT scans, cataract surgery and radiation therapy are considered routine. But dogs living longer, healthier lives can force owners to consider two unthinkable, mutually dependent questions - how much is my dog worth to me, and how far should I go to save his life? How can we imagine a financial boundary when it comes to our best friend?

When I read surveys that claim 73 percent of owners would go into debt to allow treatment for their animal, I realize I have an awesome responsibility to both human and animal when it comes to their tough medical, financial and emotional choices.

I try to be objective, but invariably I will be asked "What would you do if this were your dog?" Most of the time there is more than one right decision. Helping each owner to weigh those decisions is the art in the science of what I do.

Sometimes the fear of losing our dogs can cloud our perspective. As far as we can tell, dogs are trapped in the now, unable to understand the notion of enduring difficult treatment in exchange for 'extended life.' We must consider whether the benefits of treatment will truly justify what we put our dogs through and avoid that fair-weather friend we call denial.

Join me on urbanhound.com, starting today and through Wednesday May 28, for conversation about the health of our dogs. Together, let's make fifteen the new eleven!

With best wishes to you and your hounds,

Dr. Nick Trout

Downtown Adoption Events
Saturday, May 24
Humane Society of NY at Whisker's Holistic Petcare, 235 E. 9th St., Manhattan, 11 AM to 4 PM
Bideawee at Whole Foods, 95 East Houston St., Manhattan, noon to 4 PM
If you are looking to adopt a new pet, Memorial Day Weekend is an excellent time to do so, because you will have an extra day at home to help everybody get settled in. Luckily there are two adoption events in roughly the same vicinity on Saturday, so you can check them both out.

Friends of Animal Care and Control Fundraiser
Wednesday, May 28, 6:30 PM to 11 PM
Townhouse of Dr. Howard Bellin and Ms. Kandis Koustenis, 105 E. 73rd St., Manhattan
Glenn Close, Bernadette Peters, and Alec Baldwin are the guests of honor at this event with food, drink, jazz piano, a canine fashion show, and a silent auction, all to benefit the city shelter. Cost is $200. Please purchase tickets in advance here.

Stray From the Heart Spring Fling
Wednesday, May 28, 7 PM to 11 PM
Astor House, 130 E. 80th St., Manhattan
Music and dancing with Roberta Flack and other luminaries to benefit this local canine rescue group. Tickets can be purchased here.

Dog Behavior and Safety Lecture
Thursday, May 29, 7:30 PM
YM & YWHA, 54 Nagel Ave., Manhattan
The Fort Tryon Dog Owners Group organized this free lecture with dog behavior expert Jo Anne Basinger. The hope is that more knowledge will lead to a better and safer time in the run.

First Aid for Pets
Saturday, May 31, 9:30 AM - 1:30 PM
Bideawee Learning Center, 410 E. 38th St., 3rd Fl., Manhattan
Learn how to care for your dog in an emergency at this workshop which includes CPR training. Cost is $85. Register at manhattanlearning@bideawee.org or 212-532-4986.

For Our Friends: Luncheon/Auction
Saturday, May 31, noon to 4 PM
Monahan's, 214-17 41st Ave., Bayside
This annual event benefits a Queens-based rescue group. Cost is $50.

Sir William's Dog Run Coffee Bark
Sunday, June 1, 10 AM to noon
Sir William's Dog Run, Fort Tryon Park, Manhattan
The Fort Tryon Dog Owner's Group invites everyone to this gathering at their beautiful run. To help out with maintenance of the run, stick around after the event.

Tellington Touch Workshop
Sunday, June 1, 10:30 AM to 2:30 PM
Animal Haven Soho, 251 Centre St., Manhattan
Mindful Tails offers training in this massage technique for reducing stress and changing behavior in pets. Cost is $65. Please register here.

Therapy Dog Day
Sunday, June 1, noon to 6 PM (rain or shine)
Tompkins Square Park, Seventh St. at Avenue A, Manhattan
A festival to celebrate the human-canine teams of The Good Dog Foundation. Come along to enjoy an agility course and clinic and other events, and to learn about volunteering. Please rsvp to info@thegooddogfoundation.org or 718-788-2988.

Pets and Elder Team Support Paws and Party
Thursday, June 5, 6:30 PM to 9 PM
Village Pour House, 64 Third Ave., Manhattan
Volunteers for the Jewish Association for Services for the Aged help to take care of seniors' pets, and this happy hour will benefit that program. Cost is $15. Bring pet food to donate to enter the raffle. Please rsvp to Brett Lowitz at volunteer@jasa.org or 212-273-5275.

Pet Loss Support Group
Friday, June 6, 7 PM to 8 PM (and the third Thursday and first Friday of each month)
Bideawee, 410 E. 38th St., Manhattan
A gathering for those who are mourning a pet. Social workers who specialize in pet bereavement will be in attendance. The meetings are free and children are welcome. More information at the Bideawee website.

FIDO Coffee Bark
Saturday, June 7, 7 AM to 9 AM
Prospect Park, Brooklyn
As all Prospect Park dog people know, if it's the first Saturday of the month it must be time for Coffee Bark! Held in rain or in shine, in the park's Long Meadow, behind the Picnic House (enter at Prospect Park West and 4th Street, then go left around Picnic House), Coffee Bark includes muffins for humans and dog biscuits for hounds. This long-standing social is sponsored by Brooklyn's FIDO, officially known as the Fellowship In the Interest of Dog Owners.

St. Nick's Dog Park Coffee Bark
Saturday, June 7, 9 AM to 11 PM
Mid-park between the 135th St. staircase and 136th St., Manhattan
Coffee and other refreshments are served at this gathering which happens on the first Saturday of every month in St. Nicholas Park. For more information or if you'd like to volunteer, write dogpark@stnicholaspark.org.

2008 Bed-Stuy Pet-Stuy Talent & Fashion Show
Saturday, June 7, 2 PM to 5 PM
Fulton Park, Fulton St. btwn. Lewis and Stuyvesant Aves., Brooklyn
Twenty Brooklyn pets will compete for most creative and original outfit and talent. To enter, pick up a form before the event at the entrance gate at Stuyvesant and Chauncey. More information from Madeline Smith at sistezdoinit@yahoo.com or 888-710-0903.

Mayor's Alliance Pet Adoption Festival
Sunday, June 8, noon to 4 PM (rain or shine)
Washington Square Park, MacDougal St. and Washington Sq. S., Manhattan
Hosted by Washington Square Park Dog Run, this event features adoptable dogs and puppies plus, cats, kittens, and rabbits. There will also be low-cost microchipping ($25, includes insertion and registration) for dogs and cats. For more information, contact the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals at info@animalalliancenyc.org or 212-252-2350.

Lobbying for Animals Seminar
Monday, June 9, 6:30 PM
NYU Law School, Vanderbilt Hall Greenberg Lounge, 40 Washington Sq. S., Manhattan
The Humane Society of the United States hosts this free workshop on how to be an effective citizen advocate for animals. Please register here.

Playwrights for Pets: In the Rainbow
Monday, June 9, 7:30 PM
Baruch Performing Arts Center, 55 Lexington Ave., Manhattan
An evening of gay-themed plays for adults by emerging playwrights to benefit Animal Haven. Requested donation is $10. For reservations and more information, call 718-768-4213, or email sue@playwrightsforpets.com.

Doga Classes
Wednesday, June 11, 7 PM to 7:45 PM (also June 25)
Bideawee, 410 E. 38th St., Manhattan
This is a partner yoga class for you and your hound. (We'll skip the downward-facing dog jokes.) Cost is $18 per class, package deals are available. More information and how to register here.

K-9 Korral Dog Day Afternoon Pawrade
Saturday, June 14, 11 AM
Forest Park's George Seuffert Bandshell parking lot, Forest Park Drive just off Woodhaven Blvd., Queens
A parade to the K-9 Korral dog run in celebration of its official opening (and of Flag Day). More info from the Korral's site.

Puppies Behind Bars Dog Tags Benefit
Thursday, June 19, 6:30 PM to 9 PM
The Americas Society, 680 Park Ave., Manhattan
Puppies Behind Bars teaches prison inmates to raise and train service dogs. This is a fundraiser for a new program that provides assistance dogs free of charge to vets returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. (See Hound News below.) Learn more and download an invitation here.

Take Your Dog to Work Day
Friday, June 20
This is the tenth year of this national event, created by Pet Sitters International to encourage enthusiasm for pets. For help on setting up a Take Your Pet To Work Day at your company, visit the Pet Sitters' website.

It's My Bark Day
Saturday, June 21, noon to 4 PM
Rockaway Freeway Dog Park, Rockaway Freeway btwn. Beach 81st and Beach 83rd Sts., Queens
Not to be confused with It's My Park Day, this festival organized by the Allied Rockaway Foundation for Animal Recreation and Fitness (ARF-ARF) will feature music, raffles, contests, plus low-cost microchipping courtesy of the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals and low-cost spaying and neutering at the ASPCA mobile unit.

Hartsdale Pet Cemetery War Dog Memorial Celebration
Sunday, June 22, 1 PM
75 North Central Park Ave., Hartsdale, New York
This annual event honors dogs who have been of service to humanity, including military canines, search and rescue dogs, police and fire dogs, and assistance dogs. If you attend the ceremony, be sure to walk through this historic pet cemetery, the oldest in the nation, where you'll find the burial spots of the pets of celebrities including Diana Ross and Mariah Carey. Hartsdale, about 25 miles north of midtown, can be reached by car or Metro-North. Directions are here.


If there's an event you'd like us to mention in the next NewsHound, please email us.

An Overdue Honor for Laika the Space Dog. Soviet mutt Laika was the first living creature to orbit the earth, back in 1957. Unfortunately the 13-pound former stray did not survive the voyage. Her heroic sacrifice is finally being commemorated with a statue, near Moscow's Military Medicine Institute.

Canine CSI. The ASPCA helped to collect the evidence that led to Michael Vick's conviction on dog fighting charges. Now the group has developed a permanent Mobile Animal Crime Scene Investigation Unit. The vehicle is equipped with a surgical suite, a digital microscope and x-ray machine, anesthesia/oxygen machine, soil sampler, GPS unit, crime scene tape, and blood spatter photo scales.

Service Dogs for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Sufferers. Serving in Iraq or Afghanistan takes a psychological toll -- a recent study by the RAND Corporation found that as many as 300,000 vets suffer from major depression or PTSD. Now, thanks to a new program from Puppies Behind Bars, some of them will get aid from companion canines. Therapy dogs help by providing companionship and structure to a vet's life, along with practical support like reminders to take medication.

Roadside Service and a Discount on Dog Meds, Too. Among the benefits bestowed on members of Automobile Association of America is a discount on medications for the whole family, including pets, at participating pharmacies. As long as the drug is not covered by your insurance, it qualifies for the AAA discount. The amount of the savings varies regionally (in Northern California, for instance it's 15% off brand name drugs and up to 35% off generics, while in New York, it's a straight 20% across the board), so check in with your local club to get specifics.

What's On. Missed out in January because you were watching the Giants beat the Patriots? Animal Planet is re-airing Puppy Bowl IV this month. Or are you behind on your Groomer Has It episodes? You can catch up online. Same goes for The Dog Whisperer, if you're so inclined.