Christine Zink, D.V.M., Ph.D. has been a dog lover all her life. She got her first dog, an Irish Wolfhound, the day she graduated from Ontario Veterinary College with her DVM. From an initial interest in obedience, mainly as a survival tactic, she gradually became fascinated with all aspects of canine performance. She currently shares her home with two Golden Retrieversand two Maine Coon cats. Dr. Zink has put over 50 titles in obedience, agility, hunting and conformation on dogs of several different breeds from the Sporting, Working, and Hound groups.

While competing in performance events throughout Canada and the United States, Chris recognized a significant information gap. Owners and trainers wanted to know moreabout how canine structure and medical or physical contisiotns affect their dogs' performance, and how to keep their canine teammates healthy and injury-free. Yet little information was available. She therefore wrote Peak Performance: Coaching the Canine Athlete, a comprehensive guide to the dog as an athlete. Her second book, Jumping from A to A: Teach Your Dog to Soar, coauthored with Julie Daniels, has become the gold standard for jump training. Her third book, A Complete Idiot's Guide to Raising a Healthy Dog will be out in the fall of 1999.

Dr. Zink presents Coaching the Canine Athlete (R) seminars worldwide and regularly writes for dog magazines. She is also a consultant on canine sports medicine, evaluating canine structure and locomotion and designing individualized conditioning programs for active dogs.

In her other life, Chris is a veterinary pathologist and an Associate Professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, with over 80 scientific publications. There, she teaches Pathology to medical and veterinary students and does AIDS research.

Website: www.caninesports.com