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SFDOG has quarterly membership meetings open to all members and those interested in joining. Meetings feature guest speakers on topics of interest to dog owners/guardians.

SFDOG GENERAL MEETING
THEME: Haven for Homeless Critters in Kabul, Afghanistan with Pamela Constable
WHEN: Wed., Oct. 18th @ 7-9PM
WHERE: Trocadero in Stern Grove, 19th Avenue @ Sloat Blvd, San Francisco.
NOTE: Suggested donation: $10. Open to members and non-members alike. Bring a friend and introduce them to SFDOG. Service dogs only, please.

Pamela & Bandi For the past two years, Pamela Constable, a foreign correspondent for the Washington Post in Afghanistan, has helped stray dogs and cats in Kabul find shelter, veterinary care and happy adoptive homes through a project she founded called Tigger House. She will discuss her work helping strays in a city and country torn by war, isolation, and cultural taboos about animals.

Ms. Constable was assigned to Kabul after the fall of the Taliban in early 2002, when the city and the society were in ruins after years of civil war and isolation. The streets were full of strays, and she began sheltering them in her office, treating them for minor ailments and seeking more serious veterinary help from US military units. In 2004, she found an old house in the city and converted it into a small private shelter and clinic.

Tigger House now has an all-Afghan staff of seven, including a part-time vet, and facilities to shelter up to 15 dogs and 25 cats. It offers vaccines and vet care, at no charge in most cases, for any cat or dog. It arranges for neutering and spaying, and works to find loving homes for each animal. The project also works quietly to help foster a culture of animal care and compassion in a country where most people are too poor to have pets and many are raised to believe that all animals are unclean, especially dogs, and should not be kept in the home.

Abba's Mom Wash"Our philosophy is to help one animal at a time, and approach one person at a time, because otherwise we would become overwhelmed by the enormity of what we cannot do," said Ms. Constable.

Ms. Constable is also the founder and president of The Afghan Stray Animal League, a tax-exempt non-profit public charity which she operates out of her home in Virginia. The organization exists solely to support the Kabul project.

"Haven for Homeless Strays in Kabul" is open to members and non-members alike. Suggested donation $10.

Please leave your dogs at home for this lecture, to minimize potential disruptions of the talk.

To get to the Trocadero Clubhouse at Stern Grove:

  • Turn into the unmarked driveway into Stern Grove from Sloat Blvd immediately after crossing 19th Ave. This is the same entrance used for the summer music concerts (a banner for those concerts hung high above the unmarked driveway).
  • Follow the driveway down through the trees to the parking lot at the bottom.
  • The Trocadero Clubhouse is just uphill from the parking lot.

    Stern Grove is reachable from the following MUNI routes:

  • 28 (on 19th Ave) and 23 (on Sloat)
    Walk down the unmarked driveway at the corner of 19th Ave and Sloat Blvd to the Trocadero Clubhouse.

    Recent General Meeting Topics Have Included:

    AAVA"Holistic Medicine For Pets" with Dr. Anne Reed, DVM. Dr. Reed spoke about Complementary Veterinary Medcine (CAM) and how to integrate holisitc medicine with western medicine.

    Holiday DogSFDOG's 2005 Holiday Party topic was "You Ought to Be in Pictures" with Stephanie Taunton, Owner, Bow Wow Productions. Attendees learned how dogs get to "act" in movies or on TV, how to teach their dogs to do fancy tricks, and had their questions answered about "movie star" animals.

    Disaster Dog and Little GirlDisaster Preparedness for Pets - Tracy Pore (SF/SPCA) helped meeting participants prepare disaster kits for dogs. Judy Choy (SF Animal Care and Control) discussed what San Francisco can do to help dog owners during a disaster as well as current policy in San Francisco regarding pets during a disater.

    Snarling DogTown Hall Forum on Aggression in Dogs. SFDOG hosted a town hall forum on aggression in dogs in June 2005. A panel of experts (including Donna Reynolds, Trish King, Sgt. Bill Herndon, Kelley Filson, Mara Weiss, Melissa Bain) discussed what we as individuals, a community, and a city can and should do to address the problems caused by aggressive dogs.

    Dr. StewartEmergency Medical Care for Your Dog - Drs. Alan Stewart, Gerardo Belandria, and Jennifer Welser, from the San Francisco Veterinary Specialists, talked about dealing with trauma, poisoning, and eye injuries.

    CARDA LogoK-9 Search and Rescue - Frances Roelfsema, from the California Rescue Dog Association (CARDA), described her experiences as a search-and-rescue dog handler, and the training she and her dog do to prepare them for the work.

    Bark LogoDogs in Pictures and Words - Mark Ulriksen, nationally recognized artist, discussed his inspirations when illustrating a new children's book ("The Dog Show") and his dog-oriented covers for the New Yorker and the Bark magazines. Claudia Kawacynska and Cameron Woo, co-founders of the Bark magazine, talked about creating a successful dog publication.

    Sophia ThinkingPositive Approaches to Barking - Dr. Sophia Yin, veterinarian and dog behaviorist and San Francisco Chronicle columnist, spoke about her research on barking and positive things you can do to stop problem barking.

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