Chat away about those critters and the positions they sleep in that just make our backs hurt looking at them.

If this isn't appropriate, then please move / remove it as your feel necessary.

Considering, among other things:

• Lack of participation in both posting pictures and voting
  
• *Timeliness of ending the HOTM and calling for the new HOTM

Is HOTM going to be an ongoing feature of IAHT for the coming year??

Personally, I much enjoy the topics and pictures but not being a 'picture person' I seldom take part. Others who are more 'photocentric' have been 'disqualified' by the rules put into play over the past year which were well intended but appear to have backfired.

If it is intended to remain a part of the IAHT package - and it should, I think - since its intention is to provide pictures for the calendar sold to produce money to donate to a rescue - what can we do to improve participation? Can we remove the monthly topic, can we remove the 'monthly repeat' limit, can we allow new members to take part? or what other options can we consider.

*This was not intended to be a 'low blow' I well realize that we want three pictures per month and the entry can't be called till we have them... sometimes that seems to be difficult to reach.

I welcome all ideas from anyone willing to give them. There has frankly been a decline in pictures posted to the forum in general but yes, if participation doesn't rise HOTM will end. It is hard to close a poll timely if we can't fill the spots (and keep them filled). As we have not held firmly to the rules the last several months (and frankly I don't think the majority really reads them anyway or we would get new topic suggestions more timely to put up) I don't feel that they have made much difference in participation, at least of late. It was a great idea. It has served a beautiful purpose in years past by producing a calendar whose proceeds helped a many husky.

If there is a rule that has personally put you off from posting please let us know. What has been implemented in the past was because of prior issues raised. If no one says anything it's not always easy for us to know if everyone complains behind closed doors but not to us. Just complain nicely. We don't want HOTM to go away but there's only so much we can do.



If someone has any other idea to replace HOTM or make it better, sound them. If you don't say something, we don't know.

I like looking at the photos and think it is a great cause.

Have not participated because:
-my dog is half husky ( not purebred)
- when we are out in beautiful nature, I.e. running on a trail, I don’t like to carry my phone/camera
- so I mostly have blurry pictures of Rumo walking down a sidewalk, or he is napping In the house, ha ha. Not very inspiring!

I think the topics are fun!

I like the topics. For me, its a pain in the butt to post pictures. FB so much easier - click a button, takes me to my photos, click the photo. Done.

Frequently - though I like the topics, I just don't have a photo that fits For instance - Ami and Z'ev sleep either curled up in husky curl in winter or stretched out long in summer. Nothing contortionist about it.

Also - though I love the calendar, I want one to hang on the fridge on "my side" next to the sink, its my message center. The calendar is so heavy that the magnets I use can't hold it and it slides down - even though I use super magnets piled on each other. And there really isn't another shred of wall space in our house (we're old, we've accumulated )

So - I hope HOTM continues, hate to see it die.

Dang, so far the "issues" with entering HOTM are so fixable! I'm really happy it's being discussed!

@Shepsky 13 (and anyone else thinking this) your husky doesn't have to be purebred. We enjoy seeing ALL members dogs. There have also been many Husky mixes in hotm's, entering, placing and winning, so PLEASE don't let that stop you from entering.

@amymeme (and anyone else experiencing this problem) if you have a pic you'd like to enter, and it's really too much of an issue (and I totally understand that...for quite awhile, I just COULD NOT post a pic from my iPad, now, that I finally figured how to, I prefer it, LOLOL) either post something in the chat threads for HOTM and anyone of us can post the pic for you, or maybe even take you through a step by step on how to do it yourself...as I mentioned, my iPad was a royal P I T A when it came to posting pics, I truly thought it wasn't compatible to this site, but once I figured it out, OMG is it easy, I even use this site to post my pics BEFORE posting to FB (and Instagram) but please speak up, we are all here to help each other when we can and are able to help.

With the calendar...I know you have yourself a nice refridgerator, but, can you find a really pretty decorative "hook" that would look nice even if it was affixed to the side of your fridge?I have found a quality two sided tape works well, I use the kind they use on automobiles for emblems and trims, it withstands the hot and cold temperatures the best.

Maybe this subject needs its own thread so future members can read it

Honorary contorted husky...she fell asleep in motion

Jimmy, its not that I can't do it, just a pain in the butt. Most of my pics on phone, finding the one I want, uploading to servimg, getting the link...

Yeah, Amy, I didn't mean to imply you couldn't do it, I even had it typed out in my response but got rid of it to keep it shorter and to make my post more general to everyone having an issue posting instead of specifically you. The only difference I have noticed personally between FB and this site is hitting the "insert all" button after it uploads instead of just showing up in the box on it's own. Everyone uses different devices and different methods of posting , sometimes those methods work, but aren't necessarily the easiest...example...i could post a pic from my iPad but it was a pain in the butt, using a method i *thought* applied to using an iPad instead of a Windows based laptop, once I figured out the laptop method applied to my iPad as well, I tried it and it was easy as pie so anyways, I just wanted to throw out there that there is help here, if needed. I'm so glad you entered!

In my mind with the current topic of contortion any dog that sleeps or lays on their back would qualify. Not that many animals sleep belly up. Any twisted shapes or even spots they choose to lay or cram themselves in that may be less than ideal would qualify. HOTM chat is for asking questions so if anyone ever wonders if their picture qualifies for entry feel free to put it here and folks will more than likely tell you to go for it. Mixes, pures, rescues, pups from breeders, in standard, out of standard. They all count and we want to see them.

Just a couple of comments regarding topics for HOTM:

Would someone put up a list of the past topics and, if possible, the activity generated.  We've tried to avoid duplication of HOTM topics but HOTM was begun in July 2010 so with 96 different topics (12 topics per year for 8 years) that have been used, it seems as if a duplication of topics is necessary.  Possibly selecting from some that have been used with good effect might help participation.

On a similar note, when no topic has been brought up by, arbitrarily, the 7th of a month can we go with a "topicless" topic - Amy, Renee, Ronin to mention just a few have often posted some excellent pictures of our dogs just being dogs.

With our current lack of participation (both in HOTM and forum wide) can we remove the restrictions of previous winner and new members.  Granted, having the same pup appear month after month seems to be self defeating but isn't that better than having to try to dredge up pictures.  New members may not understand the purpose behind HOTM being twofold: first posting pictures of our pups doing the things that make our Huskies unique (at least to us) and more importantly, at least in my mind, being used in the calendars that we sell (why only?) on the forum with the proceeds being donated to a charity.

In the past the charity has been the choice of <someone> after a request for suggestions.  How about getting some more member participation by making a poll of those suggestions and letting the membership decide where the funds go?

Since activity on the forum hs been slipping can we send a quarterly / semi-annual newsletter via email to all members reminding them that we're still here?  Topics could include HOTM winners, new members and their pups, rainbow bridge remembrances, member activities and common problems / FAQ's to list just a few possibilities.  (( Forumotion has the ability to send newsletters so we can, do we want to? ))

As I write this we have 2 members and 50 guests on line, and almost 6000 members and seemingly pathetic participation,  How can we convert those guests to members and our members into active members.  I'm honestly at a complete loss for suggestions on this ...

@Twister your previous message seems to suggest that I might be abusing HOTM chat with this discussion, if so, please feel free to remove or just move my comments. (( You specifically said that  "HOTM chat is for asking questions so if anyone ever wonders if their picture qualifies for entry feel free to put it here ..." )) possibly extracting these message into "Suggestions" might be more appropriate??

I was gearing my comment more toward Amy feeling that she didn't really have a picture appropriate for this topic. As the discussion progresses I may pull it out and make it its own thing. Right now though it is still a HOTM chat about HOTM, even if it isn't specific to the November HOTM.

I have the list of past topics. I will dig it up. I do not have participation counts per topic. That would take more time than I have right now, but can be done. I do remember way back in the day when I first started and there was way more participation even then we had issues getting participants when the topic involved dressing the dogs up. Few dogs would sit for that and many of us didn't have anything to put on them.

The site is already sending out some kind of newsletter. I see it go through once a month or so. Though it's basically just a site summary of top posts and topics and such. Most probably get sucked to people's spam folder.

TwisterII wrote:

The site is already sending out some kind of newsletter. I see it go through once a month or so. Though it's basically just a site summary of top posts and topics and such. Most probably get sucked to people's spam folder.

Okay, my first response - which I lost - was to ask you to check on this distribution since I've never seen one. Then I checked my profile and, I'm guessing here, the default appears to NOT send the newsletter unless the member changes their profile to allow it. If that's true then most people will never see one ... yes???

aljones wrote:

Just a couple of comments regarding topics for HOTM:

Would someone put up a list of the past topics and, if possible, the activity generated.  We've tried to avoid duplication of HOTM topics but HOTM was begun in July 2010 so with 96 different topics (12 topics per year for 8 years) that have been used, it seems as if a duplication of topics is necessary.  Possibly selecting from some that have been used with good effect might help participation.

In the past the charity has been the choice of <someone> after a request for suggestions.  How about getting some more member participation by making a poll of those suggestions and letting the membership decide where the funds go?

#1-I have a copy of the list, not updated, but i do refer to it when members are trying to pick a topic and i help them with coming up with one that will work.

#2- the Rescues for the donation are suggested if you buy a calendar. if you buy more then one the rescue gets that many votes. i truly put all the names in a box and pull one out. i never pick one by choose. that is the draw to buying a calendar. i do not think a poll is the way to go.

i do hope we hit the 25 needed to place the order this year.....

Al, I think the newsletter business was reset for most several months ago during some website updates. I never used to get them, had them turned off, but have started to get them, just in my spam. I have had others notice they have started to get them when they didn't used to. You were actually getting them too and then you turned them off like most probably will if theirs got reset.

https://www.itsahuskything.com/t17695-newsletters

What can I say, Jenn ... oops!!!