Fido to fly in comfort: next to owner  FL  Travel becomes pet-friendly 'The sky is now the limit for people who love their pets. Beginning early next year, a new pet-friendly airline will be flying into Vancouver International Airport... Dogs, cats, rodents, reptiles and fish are all fine... ' . Florida-based airline, Companion Air, plans to allow all pets in passenger areas, provided they are crated: dogs, cats, reptiles, rodents and fish... [Vancouver Sun]

Shelter mutt pays off big time for adoptee owners A rejected shelter dog, Melmo, gave her new owners the best gift of all: 'freedom from fear.' Somehow 'Melmo taught her herself to alert Linda [her owner] when she is about to have a grand mal seizure. Without Melmo, Linda would have a restrictive, unsafe life'... [Oakridge Online]

Puppy mills: cheap suppliers prove costly for owners 'Puppy mills' produce huge quantities of dogs for pet shops to sell. Puppy mill breeders typically mistreat dogs by raising them in unsafe, unsanitary and crowded conditions. Buyer beware: 'The dogs may have been raised under such crowded conditions that they are impossible to house-train and have serious health problems...' These health problems sometimes cost owners thousands of dollars to treat; for example, surgeons charge over $3,000 per hip to correct severe hip dysplasia... [London Free Press]

Poodle barks up a storm to save senior Canada A dog, out for a walk with his owner and a friend, spotted a wrecked car down a 15 foot embankment and ran down to it. The men walked around the car and decided to continue their walk. However, Nelson, the poodle, had discovered a man trapped inside the car and kept barking until they decided to look inside the car once more.  'If it wasn't for Nelson, we would have walked away, because we couldn't see anyone at first,' Gordon said... [Calgary Sun]