Behold, The 10 Most Pet-Friendly Cities

Rent.com — which fans of the Broadway musical will be devastated to learn is devoted to home-finding and not the play — has named the 10 most pet-friendly cities in a press release.

The cities:

1. New York City’s Central Park is simply pet heaven, with its winding trails and fenced-in dog parks. If asphalt is more appealing, walk your pet along the Brooklyn Bridge. New York is also one of the few cities where pet daycares can be found in nearly every neighborhood!

2. Chicago provides canine cruises across the famed Navy Pier, as well as pet-welcoming patio restaurants throughout the city. Chicago is also home to an assortment of pet resorts and boarding kennels.

3. Boston invites pets to tour the harbor by boat, as long as their pet owners come along! Walk your dog along the Freedom Trail to explore the many historical sites that this city has to offer. Leashed dogs and felines are even welcome on the subway.

4. Houston is home to a variety of pet-friendly hotels and restaurants that span throughout the city. Barnaby’s Café is a local favorite, where wait staff provide a cardboard dog bowl to keep your pooch hydrated morning, noon and night.

5. San Francisco boasts plenty of pet-friendly dining in addition to off-leash beaches and outdoor areas. Pets are even welcome to ride in the cable cars or walk alongside their owners across the Golden Gate Bridge!

6. Austin offers the Zilker Botanical Gardens and Congress Street Bats as top-rated pooch attractions, in addition to outdoor cafes and off-leash parks.

7. Washington, D.C. and suburb Alexandria, Va., offer a selection of pet-friendly restaurants in addition to an array of outdoor parks.

8. Portland, Ore., is home to the famously pet-friendly Lucky Labrador restaurant chain, in addition to the well-known Rose Gardens and Saturday Outdoor Market. Several pet boutiques have recently emerged in the city, including Portland Pooch and Cat’s Meow.

9. Charleston offers tours throughout the historic city, including day tours to Boone Hall and Magnolia Plantations, as well as nightly ghost tours. All pets welcome.

10. Ann Arbor invites pets for outdoor fun from dog-friendly canoeing, farms and gardens such as the Nichols Arboretum, a 123-acre botanical garden at the University of Michigan.

Poor Chicago, always the second city, never the first. By the way, if your city does not appear on this list and you have a pet, you clearly don’t love it enough.

(Photo: dooleymtv)

California Governor Brown signs wildlife-friendly SB 1221 and pet-friendly SB 1229 into law

California Governor Brown signs wildlife-friendly SB 1221 and pet-friendly SB 1229 into law

September 28, 2012 – By Francis Battista – ( 6 Comments )

It’s been a good few days for the animals in Sacramento, California, this week. Governor Jerry Brown has signed two important pieces of animal-friendly legislation, which Best Friends supports, into law. Many thanks to our members and friends in the Golden State who responded to our Action Alerts on these bills and helped to move them through the various stages of the legislative process.

The first, Senate Bill 1221, which ends the routine practice of using packs of dogs to hunt big game, was introduced by State Senator Ted Lieu.

Hounding, as the practice of chasing game with radio-collared dogs is known, has been used in California primarily to hunt bears and bobcats. It is a cruel activity that employs the dogs’ natural chase instincts to terrify and exhaust the target animal who finally seeks escape by climbing a tree. The barking dogs surround the tree, and the hunter just follows the sound of the dogs or the collar-radio signal transmission to the location of the tree and takes an easy kill shot from below.

Not only is hounding unconscionably cruel to wildlife, the dogs are themselves victims. Many are injured through encounters with predators, and some literally run themselves to death from exhaustion and dehydration. Others become lost, and almost all of them end up in shelters or otherwise disposed of when their useful hunting life of just a few years is over. Likewise, many dogs from backyard breeders and mills who don’t make the cut as hunters land in the pound as hard-to-adopt-out young adults with few social skills, obsessive barking behavior, and a predilection to take off in pursuit of any interesting scent that wafts by.

On another front, Senate Bill 1229, introduced by State Senator Fran Pavley, makes it illegal for a landlord to require that cats be declawed or dogs be debarked as a condition of renter tenancy. Both declawing and debarking involve painful surgical mutilation of the animal that inhibits natural behavior and causes numerous undesirable side effects that often result in the declawed or debarked animal being surrendered to a shelter.

SB 1221 and SB 1229 are wins for the animals, wild and domestic, so cheers for Senators Lieu and Pavley, Governor Brown, and the many individuals and organizations who advocated for their passage and worked hard to see them become law. And, of course, cheers to you for making your voice heard in Sacramento.

Francis Battista

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Tags: animal welfare, Best Friends Animal Society, Best Friends blog, Francis Battista, Legislation

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  Jean
  
  
  
  

  
  

  This wonderful news. Thank you to the Senators, and to Governor Brown.

  
  

  
  
  
  


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  Anonymous
  
  
  
  

  
  

  More good news. Thanks.

  
  

  
  
  
  


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  Dr. Cartel
  
  
  
  

  
  

  Dear Francis,
  Nice work. Is Utah in your “sights” as the next “big game?”
  Best Wishes, Dr. Cartel

  
  

  
  
  
  


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  wigopa
  
  
  
  

  
  

  I am not sure that you got your facts right about SB 1221 as a hounds woman I have hunted for sometime now, and California does not allow radio collars or as you call it packs of dogs. GPS was already not a option when this was put on the table, as well as you could only use one dog per bear tag, which means it is one dog per bear or 4 dogs per people in a group. As for it being cruel researchers such as National Geographic, Animal Planet and others who track life cycles and such of large predators use this tactic in the states with the only exception being big game predators of Africa. I find your excitement about this upsetting. The bill also states that any “hound” which could be your Lab, Golden, or any other type of dog could end up being shot, while you are out hiking, camping or anything else in the woods and a bear or bobcat gets to close and they decide to chase it. The game warden has the right to shoot on site and you will be notified in 72 hours with a payment that must be made to the state of $ 40,000. You tell me who is going to loose. In the bill it also says that the government officials can use hounds to do the same thing this forbids. So why the two way street? Re-read the bill it applies to all dogs and people.

  
  

  
  
  
  


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  bob nelson
  
  
  
  

  
  

  The deer herds in california are at a all time low and that is from the top predator the mountain lion. Now the two more predators are on the list. Without hounds your chances of getting a bear or bobcat are very slim. Now all wildlife populations are in jeapordy due to political morons that know nothing about wildlife management. Look on you tube shark finning Ted lieu supports this. You talk about cruel they cut the fins off and throw the shark overboard to die a slow death.

  
  

  
  
  
  


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  http://twitter.com/fallcoon Jerry Faulk
  
  
  
  

  
  

  I love how people who live in the urban ares are telling the rural people how the can live. With all the problems California has this is what our lawmakers want to hang their hat on .Pretty sad.

  
  

  
  
  
  

pet-friendly restaurants « DogFriendly.com"s Dog News

Good news for Arlington dog owners: the city’s health department now lets restaurants apply for a variance to allow dogs in outdoor dining areas.

This comes just months after the public health department reminded restaurants that non-service animals weren’t allowed in any dining areas, ARLnow points out. At the time, Arlington County Department of Human Services spokesman Kurt Larrick said that “[t]he presence of animals would create a risk of people getting sick due to fecal contamination.”

The policy reversal comes as D.C. gears up for warmer weather and outdoor dining season. For more on the story click here.

DogFriendly.com’s Guide To Pet-Friendly Restaurants

DogFriendly.com’s Guide to Arlington, Alexandria and Northern Virginia

Atlanta offers many pet-friendly outings

Planning a family outing is half the fun, but often the thought of leaving our four-legged friends behind can put a damper on the whole process. Fido’s hangdog expression as you close the door behind you is enough to turn the car around. Fortunately, there are many pet-friendly events scheduled throughout metro Atlanta this summer – from cocktails to baseball – so bring Rover right over.

Before leashing up and heading out, however, there are some basic pet etiquette rules and safety advice to follow. According to Dr. Shannon Ewing, DMV of Collier Animal Hospital, to ensure a good time is had by all, your pet should play well with others prior to subjecting him to large crowds, children or potentially aggressive animals.

“There are two good ways to socialize your pet; a visit to a doggie daycare facility or a puppy training class,” Ewing told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Your dog will acclimate to social situations better assuring a more relaxing outing for all. By participating in a class with your pet, there’s no question who’s the boss and he’ll listen to your commands in public.”

Ewing also stressed the importance of keeping a fresh water supply on hand at all times; never leave your dog in a hot car and avoid jogging with your pet after 10 a.m.

Here are a rundown of area events where fur is all the rage:

Dog Days of Summer Dog Walk

Great Harvest Bread Co. and Atlanta Pet Rescue host the second annual Dog Days of Summer dog walk in Smyrna. All two and four-legged friends are invited to meet at the bakery and enjoy a leisurely stroll to nearby Taylor-Brawner Park, less than half a mile away. Dog trainer Amber Burckhalter from Atlanta’s K-9 Coach will greet participants at the park and dole out doggie advice. Back at the bakery, both human and canine treats are available as well as live music and giveaways. Two dollars from every loaf of bread sold at the event will benefit Atlanta Pet Rescue.

8 a.m. August 7. Free. Great Harvest Bread Co., 3246 Atlanta Road, Smyrna, 30080. 770-431-9743, http://www.atlantapetrescue.org .

Atlanta Unleashed

Meetup [sic] group Atlanta Unleashed invites all dog owners to Canton’s Canine Ranch for a day of leash-free fun and frolic. The ranch boasts an 11-acre doggie playground complete with swimming holes, docks, fields for fetching and Frisbee as well as indoor facilities. Ranch staff is available for those requiring special assistance. The area is completely secure and leashes are not required. Agility, diving, lure coursing and sheep herding demonstrations are scheduled for 10 a.m. Swimsuits are encouraged as humans are allowed in the pool with their dog for the event. Pack a picnic lunch suitable for pets and people.

8 a.m. to 1 p.m. August 7. $ 20/30 per family, The Canine Ranch, 165 Doug Smith Lane, Canton, 30114. 678.493-8040, http://www.thecanineranch.com .

Mutts and Martinis

Put the yap back in happy hour by taking FiFi over to W Hotel Midtown to mix and mingle with other fluffy friends. Enjoy specially priced cocktails, giveaways and raffles in the hotel’s tony lobby lounge. Remember, dogs are great conversation starters; let the ice-breaking begin!

6 p.m. – 9 p.m. August 11. Free. The Living Room, W Hotel Midtown, 188 14th Street, N.E., Atlanta, 30361. 404-892-6000, http://www.atlantapetrescue.org .

Piedmont Dog Park Grand Opening

Midtown dog owners rejoice. Piedmont Park officially opens its enlarged dog park with a grand opening celebration. The facility now includes a three-acre dog run and separate spaces for large and small dogs. New trails and landscaping were installed along with benches and restrooms for those requiring more than a tree. The park is located at the Park Drive Bridge. General admission of $ 5 gets you and your pooch a sneak peak access to refreshments and a take-home doggie bag. $ 10 guarantees a special caricature souvenir of your pet. Big spenders can plunk down $ 50, which immortalizes Fido with a unique commemorative bone-shaped plaque inscribed with his name.

6 p.m. — 8 p.m. August 12. $ 5 to $ 50. Piedmont Park, 10th Street and Piedmont Road, Atlanta, 30309. 404-875-7275, www.piedmontpark.org .

Park in the Bark

All dogs are MVPs (most valuable pets) for a day at Turner Field. This is a unique opportunity to take in America’s pastime with your best friend by your side. Coca-Cola Sky Field is transformed into a doggie’s delight, complete with on-site veterinary services in case your friend over-indulges or overheats, doggie pools, water misters and plenty of watering holes since seating is not shaded. Fans must pre-register at http://www.braves.com/bark and proof of certain vaccinations is required. Walk-up tickets are not available. The game starts at 1:35 p.m. but the festivities begin as early as 11 a.m.

1:35 p.m., August 29. $ 25 includes one “human ticket” and one “dog ticket.” Additional “human tickets” $ 12. Turner Field, 755 Hank Aaron Drive, Atlanta, 30315, 404-522-7630, www.braves.com/bark .

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