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dogs
dogs
Before You Get A Pet, Determine How Much Money It Will Steal From You
By Phil Villarreal on February 1, 2012 11:15 AM
123 Comments
When you're looking for a pet, you're probably thinking with your heart rather than running a cost-benefit analysis. But animal sidekicks come with a plethora of hidden challenges, including financial demands that you'll need to make sure you can handle. More »
This Receipt-Handling Dog Is Adorable, But Is It Icky?
By Chris Morran on January 31, 2012 1:15 PM
106 Comments
By now, there's a chance you are one of the million or so people who have already watched the viral-buzzworthy-internetty-whatever YouTube clip of the dog that apparently works at a veterinarian, where it takes a printout from the printer, takes it to the assistant, who staples a receipt to the page, and then brings the whole thing to the customer. More »
City May Issue Fines If Your Dog Barks For Longer Than 10 Minutes
By Chris Morran on January 24, 2012 11:15 AM
167 Comments
Barking dogs can be an annoyance. Ask anyone who has ever lived next to a chatty canine. But at what point does that annoyance cross the line and become a nuisance worthy of being issued a fine. For the folks in Fort Worth, TX, that threshold is ten minutes. More »
(ashi)
Chipotle Understands When Your Dog Eats Your Gift Card
By Laura Northrup on January 11, 2012 9:31 AM
34 Comments
John's greyhound has no patience. If the dog had waited just a little while, the Chipotle gift card in a paper sleeve that his fiancée left on the kitchen table would have been magically transformed into food. But dogs don't think that way, and this dog really, really likes to chew up paper. And so the $50 gift card was destroyed. More »
(opacity)
Baggage Handler Fired For Helping Sick Dog Can Have Her Job Back
By Chris Morran on December 7, 2011 8:45 AM
68 Comments
Last week, a baggage handler at the Reno-Tahoe International Airport made headlines when she said she was fired for refusing to stow a visibly ailing dog onto a plane. As sometimes happens when these stories get pushed into the spotlight, the handler has now been offered her old gig back. More »
Baggage Handler: I Was Fired For Helping Sick Dog
By Chris Morran on December 5, 2011 2:30 PM
112 Comments
Usually when you see a Consumerist headline that involves a baggage handler and a pet, it means the furry friend is lost or dead. But here's one that's more uplifting... except for the fact that the handler says she was fired for doing a good deed. More »
Illness In Dogs Traced To Chinese Chicken Jerky
By Laura Northrup on December 1, 2011 11:30 AM
79 Comments
The first thing that I do when looking at a bag of pet treats is turn it over and look for the country of origin. I'm not alone—and not paranoid, as it turns out. A few weeks ago, the Food and Drug Administration reminded American pet owners about unexplained and sometimes fatal illnesses related to chicken jerky treats imported from China. The FDA and its counterparts around the world have been warning consumers to be alert about jerky-related illnesses since 2007. More »
Why Is There A Dog Sitting At The Table At Outback Steakhouse?
By Laura Northrup on November 10, 2011 10:30 AM
343 Comments
If they knew what an Outback Steakhouse was, most dogs would want to visit there as often as possible. But non-service dogs aren't allowed inside. Reader Erik and his wife recently attempted to dine at Outback, but the presence of another customer's large, poorly behaved ostensible service dog drove them out of the restaurant. More »
Purina Goes After Desirable Doggy Demographic With Sounds Only Your Pet Can Hear
By Chris Morran on October 4, 2011 12:15 PM
67 Comments
While fast food advertisers have taken a lot of heat in recent years for packaging and marketing that is targeted heavily toward children, the evil ad geniuses of the world have found another demographic on which it can focus its marketing laser — your furry friends. More »
Dog Group Says Dog Theft Is Up 32 Percent This Year
By Phil Villarreal on August 17, 2011 11:15 AM
65 Comments
According to the American Kennel Club, dognappers are on a rampage this year, making off with nearly a third more canines than they did at this point in 2010. More »
Farmers Insurance 'Totals' Dog After Car Accident
By Laura Northrup on August 17, 2011 9:00 AM
129 Comments
Sasha, a 9-year-old Lab mix in Colorado, was hit by a minivan while walking her human last week. She survived the accident with damage to her liver, lungs, and diaphragm that may require surgery. While her person clearly considers her a family member, the law and the driver's insurance company see things differently. Injuries to dogs are property damage, and the company "totaled" out the dog. They did not haul her off to a dog junkyard to be used for parts. More »
Chihuahua Emasculates Armed Robbers
By Ben Popken on July 19, 2011 1:00 PM
60 Comments
When you're evaluating which pooch is worth the most bounce per ounce, consider the mighty chihuahua. Often itself the brunt of humiliation by being tied up in pink ribbons and carried around in tiny backpacks by humans who consider it fashionable, the chihuahua is actually a fierce and loyal companion capable of fending off attackers many times its size. Witness the ferocity and devotion of the chihuahua in this video showing one running off two masked thieves robbing a smoke shop. They may have a shotgun but he's got moxie! More »
Warning: Do Not Buy A Pet While You Are Drunk
By Laura Northrup on July 14, 2011 9:00 AM
74 Comments
Oh, it happens far more often than any of us are willing to admit. You go out one evening and have a few drinks too many, and the next thing you know, you wake up to find a strange beagle in your bed, wagging its tail, and a credit card receipt from a pet store. Dog? What dog? You never wanted a dog...at least, not when you're sober. This scenario is enough of an actual problem for some Manhattan pet stores located near bars and clubs that they will turn away customers who have clearly been drinking. More »
Your Dog May Not Be Welcome On Summer Flights
By Laura Northrup on July 13, 2011 9:30 AM
41 Comments
You might have read that you can take your pet on a Continental Airlines flight, but that's no guarantee that your buddy will actually be allowed on the plane. That can depend on weather, but mostly depends on how full the flight is. You're shelling out extra money to travel with a creature you consider a family member, but to the airline, your pet is furry cargo that can be left behind. If you stubbornly insist on traveling together, you're stuck with the flight change fees. That's what happened to Steve when he tried to fly with his dogs down to his new home in Ecuador. His advice: Don't fly with pets during the summer. At all. More »
Keep Your Dogs Away From Gum With Xylitol So Their Organs Don't Bleed
By Ben Popken on July 6, 2011 2:00 PM
61 Comments
Icebreakers gum may be a great way to "break the ice," but you wouldn't want to use them to help your dog freshen his breath. Many pet owners aren't aware that the artificial sweetener inside it and many other products, Xylitol, can be acutely toxic to dogs if the canines eat it. KCBS has the tragic story of one corgi who suffered acute liver failure after he got into a bag of Icebreakers. More »
6 Ways To Tame The Costs Of Having A Pet
By Chris Morran on July 5, 2011 12:27 PM
232 Comments
As nice as it is to have a furry, feathered or fishy companion around the house, between food, medicine, the vet and other expenses, it can sometimes add up to a lot of red ink in your checkbook. More »
Aldo Sends Free Pair Of Shoes After Dog Eats One
By Ben Popken on June 6, 2011 1:00 PM
29 Comments
Reader Dan was hoping Aldo would sell him just one shoe after his roommate's dog ate one, but they ended up sending him a whole new pair for free. Regular customer service told Dan that they don't sell shoes in singles but after sending his note to the folks at the top of Aldo, his story starting making the rounds internally and they shined down on him with rays of benevolence. More »
(Evelyn)
Delta Offers Refund, Explanation For Dog Cargo Confusion
By Laura Northrup on May 27, 2011 8:00 AM
40 Comments
This is Scruffy the dog. Last week his human, Evelyn, wrote to us about her problems with Delta shipping Scruffy as cargo instead of baggage, not letting her know where he was, and charging an extra $391 at the airport to fly 50-pound Scruffy from New York to Los Angeles. In her letter to Delta, Evelyn said that she would be informing everyone she knows not to use Delta, since it is "most certainly neither a safe nor convenient carrier for pets." Now, at least, Delta has explained to Evelyn what went wrong, and she'll be receiving a refund for the full $591 in dog-shipping fees. It doesn't sound like Evelyn and Scruffy are in a hurry to fly Delta again soon, though. More »
(Evelyn)
Delta Charges Extra $391 To Fly Your Dog, Then Misplaces Him
By Laura Northrup on May 19, 2011 9:00 AM
94 Comments
Evelyn's father booked a ticket for her and her dog to fly from New York to Los Angeles on Delta Airlines. Being a regular Consumerist reader, she was nervous about trusting Delta with her beloved pet, but notes that "[she] thought the horror stories must be rare enough that we should take the trip." Delta staff told her that her dog, who weighs about 50 pounds, needed to fly as cargo at a cost of $591, instead of the quoted $200. The ostensible reason was severe weather on the ground in Los Angeles. What this extra $391 got Evelyn was a missing pet for an hour, then an upset and dehydrated dog. More »
(mphoenix)
Create An Emergency Kit For Your Pet
By Laura Northrup on May 4, 2011 10:45 AM
61 Comments
If you had to leave your home on short notice due to a natural disaster or other emergency, would you have a bag of emergency supplies ready to go? While adults and older children can handle packing their own bags in a hurry, members of your family who don't have opposable thumbs can't. More »
