PET PROJECT Animal lovers share activities and stories through Web site

Dog owner and Web site creator launches social network based on animal attraction.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Rob Yau noticed that when he walked his dog, Hershey, near his home in the San Francisco Bay area, he made new friends easily. "People would approach us," he says.
So three months ago he launched www.datemypet.com , a social network of animal lovers who bond with each other over their pets.
Maybe Tinker, your Pomeranian, needs a playmate or you want to vent about the antics of Jess, the Siamese cat. Perhaps you long to find a soul mate who understands the attention you give to your menagerie. Or you're wondering why Sam, the cocker spaniel, hates the current boyfriend.
Sign up on this Web site and find an e-mail correspondent to hear your angst or a neighbor to share your lab's morning run.
Expanded on idea
At first, Yau, a software consultant, had in mind a dating service, but he expanded the mission when he started to hear from married people who wanted to be a part of pet talk. Now members can arrange play dates, participate in a chat room, e-mail stories across the country or look for love.
The most unusual pet so far was a cockroach allegedly adopted by a New York man.
"He heard from all these women," Yau says. But most pets are more traditional, mostly cats and dogs but including some horses.
The site has attracted members across the country, and interest is on the rise in Europe and Asia. It has sponsored fund-raisers for ASPCA and other animal-related charities. So far membership is free. Yau says he is considering a more elite level that would carry a fee.