Yellowknife (Dec 19/03) - On most talk shows, the guest doesn't urinate on the host, but that's just one of the hazards faced by veterinarian Dr. Tom Pisz tonight as he shoots the 60th episode of Take Me, I'm Yours.

The show airs twice a week on Yellowknife's community television station, Cable 20.

Dr. Pisz has already hoisted one of Yellowknife's fattest cats, and later will try to calm an extremely rambunctious husky cross.

The urinating culprit was Sylvester, a big black and white cat who was a little nervous at being on camera. Pisz handed him off to a volunteer and regarded the two damp patches on his scrubs with sang froid.

"He didn't get any on me," sang Pisz's co-host, veterinary assistant Ashlee Shermet.

There's not much room to manoeuvre in the waiting room at Great Slave Animal Hospital.

Between the co-hosts, the cameraman, the producer, the hospital receptionist, and the volunteers ferrying cats and dogs in and out, one excited dog careening about is enough to send people reaching to keep equipment steady. It's bare-bones TV, but even that takes organization to pull off.

When Pisz suggests to producer Robin Weber that the show be updated more than once a month, Weber can't help but laugh. Once a month is all she can handle.

"I've got to get the volunteers, I've got to get my camera guy, we've got to haul the cats up... It's a pain in the ass," she said, smiling.

Weber is vice-president of both the SPCA and the Community Television Society.

Take Me, I'm Yours airs after TV Bingo on Tuesday and Thursday nights. Weber used to play the tape herself after the live bingo broadcast, just so she could be sure it would make it onto the air.

"We're not supposed to do that, but we were already going live. I wanted to make sure it got on because these animals need to be highlighted. That's why I do it."

Weber has been a volunteer with the Community Television Society for more than 10 years, and has seen a few changes.

She remembers the talk show Life in the 'Knife fondly. The show had a studio furnished with a really old couch and "cheesy" furniture.

"It was fun," she said. "We had a Vietnamese pot bellied pig on one night. We had local celebrities. Back then it was easier to get people to come out and do stuff like that.

"Now that we have a lot more choices on television, people are less likely to want to be involved in community television."

Once upon a time the community station had a studio provided by NorthwesTel Cable, and a van with a mobile TV unit. "We don't have a van anymore," said Weber.

The Community TV Society also has to rent studio space. Weber said that means the society is short on cash these days.

Mike Dittrich, NorthwesTel Cable's general manager of the community station, said changes in technology made the studio prohibitively expensive and that the technology in the mobile van was obsolete.

"It had 10-pound cameras," said Dittrich. "Massive things."

With newer-model handicams and computer software, people can easily make television anywhere, he said. The Community Television Society's money comes from TV Bingo, aired live every Tuesday and Thursday.

"We do have some funding available," said Weber. "If someone wanted to film something, we'll help out as much as we can."

An example would be the WAMP documentary Baghdad or Bust. Community TV helped fund the project, and in return the documentary will air on the station. The film went on to win the documentary prize at the recent Whistler Film Festival.

But ultimately, the decisions on what makes it to air are made by NorthwesTel.

"Our criteria is that it's not offensive," said Dittrich. "We welcome content from anyone and anybody."

Cable 20 has a web cam, weather, advertising and a banner across the bottom. The programming runs in one quarter of the screen.

"With Take Me I'm Yours, usually the names of the animals come up and a phone number to call," said Weber. "Can you imagine how big the kittens are when you're looking at a little TV?"

Adventures aplenty

Weber has had some adventures volunteering in community television.

"I filmed the Queen when she was here," she said. "First Air did a charter one time to go and see the polar bears in Churchill. That was fun. We did fun stuff like that all the time."

But Weber says the station isn't what it used to be.

"We're in a flux. Now it's pretty quiet. I'm getting tired of fighting with people about playing stuff," said Weber.

"Hopefully they're going to get better about playing stuff back, but even then it's just a quarter screen."