www.TheWillaWoman.com

ST. LOUIS (AP) - Cujo was a frisky 7-year-old when he sneaked out of his owners' south St. Louis yard in July 2000. Now, thinner and grayer and with a tale that would be fascinating if only he could tell it, the golden retriever is back with the Barczewski family. "It's a miracle," Noreen Barczewski, 41, said at Friday's reunion. "We found him!" Six years and a side trip to Columbia can do a lot to a dog, but it was unmistakably Cujo. There was the heart-shaped patch of white on his forehead, the white fur on his toes, his manner of greeting people by rubbing against them cat-style. Cujo's homecoming was orchestrated by Dirk's Fund, a golden retriever rescue group that has found homes for more than 900 dogs in the past decade. After slipping away from home, Cujo somehow ended up 120 miles in Columbia in the home of an elderly woman. When the woman entered a nursing home, the dog was sent to the Central Missouri Humane Society in Columbia. Bob Til...

I thought it was a good time to repost this list. Here are some resources regarding Service Dog access, the American's with Disabilities Act (ADA), and different sdog organizations and newsgroups. Vests and Patches: www.SitStay.com Assistance Dogs International, Inc Legal Rights of Guide Dogs, Hearing Dogs, and Service Dog Canine Companions Delta Society Service Dog Frequently Asked Questions Service Animals and Service Dogs on Air Carriers COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT SERVICE ANIMALS IN PLACES OF BUSINESS International Association of Assistance Dog Partners (IAADP) Assistance Dog Institute (ADI) Service Dog Trainers and Training Programs (National) Access rights Service Dog Email List : This is a list for people who raise, train and own service dogs.

DALLAS (AP) - After some growling, the Dallas City Council in a split vote has decided to allow dogs to join their owners on the outdoor patios of restaurants. Eateries may now apply for a local variance to state laws that prohibit animals on restaurant premises, according to the measure, which passed 8-5 on Wednesday. "Animals are their children. I can't blame anyone" for wanting to dine with their pets, Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Elba Garcia said. "You have a choice. You don't have to be there. The standards are clear in this ordinance. More than anything, it's an option for our businesses here." But opponents said the city was opening the door to many problems. "I love dogs. I don't know if they belong in restaurants," council member Mitchell Rasansky said. "We don't have the staff to check this. We don't know if the restaurants are going to clean up every 30 minutes. I don't want to go to a restaurant and see a dog going to t...

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - If dog-loving lawmakers prevail, Fido could soon be sidling up to bar stools around Washington state under a measure that would allow well-behaved, leashed canines to join their human companions as they down their favorite microbrews. The measure was introduced by Sen. Ken Jacobsen, a Seattle Democrat who got the idea at the Fish Tale Brewpub, formerly known as the Fish Bowl, in downtown Olympia. "I was sitting at the Fish Bowl looking at all the dogs outside sitting in the cold and the rain, while all the owners were warm inside," said Jacobsen, who doesn't own a dog. "There's all sorts of places you can bring animals now. You can take dogs into hotels. My God, some people are carrying dogs in their purses. Why can't we have them in the bars?" The bill would allow bars and restaurants with liquor licenses to welcome dogs, as long as they accompany their owners and remain leashed. Establishments wouldn't be required to allow dog...

DOG'S DIARY 7 am - Oh boy! A walk! My favorite! 8 am - Oh boy! Dog food! My favorite! 9 am - Oh boy! The kids! My favorite! Noon - Oh boy! The yard! My favorite! 2 pm - Oh boy! A car ride! My favorite! 3 pm - Oh boy! The kids! My favorite! 4 pm - Oh boy! Playing ball! My favorite! 6 pm - Oh boy! Welcome home Mum! My favorite! 7 pm - Oh boy! Welcome home Dad! My favorite! 8 pm - Oh boy! Dog food! My favorite! 9 pm - Oh boy! Tummy rubs on the couch! My favorite! 11pm - Oh boy! Sleeping in my people's bed! My favorite! CAT'S DIARY Day 483 of my captivity... My captors continued to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while I am forced to eat dry cereal. The only thing that keeps me going is the hope of escape, and the mild satisfaction that I get from clawing their furniture. Tomorrow I will eat another houseplant. Today my attempt to kill my captors by weaving around their feet while they were walking almost succeeded - must try t...

... except for one hotel, which I'll talk about later. This past holiday, we decided to make the big trip (3 days driving!) back to the northeast. With our new SUV and my mattress in the back, I rode in complete comfort. Even with all our stuff, we were able to fit both doggies (Willie and Frankie) in the back with me. Here's a few of our experiences: For the first day of the trip, Frankie was a bit stressed. He developed stress-related diarrhea (luckily no accidents!), and had a hard time settling down. But by day two, he was much better. We did find that Frankie wouldn't eat much in the hotel rooms. Not sure why, but he's not big on eating anyway. If there's a distraction, he's not interested in his food. Willie, on the other hand, would eat if the world was ending. Oy . We did have to stop more for doggie outings, which take longer than human "outings", mainly because you want to walk them a bit and let them stretch out. As far as hotel exp...

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) - After a long day hunting, there's nothing like wrapping your paw around a cold bottle of beer. So Terrie Berenden, a pet shop owner in the southern Dutch town of Zelhem, created a beer for her Weimaraners made from beef extract and malt. "Once a year we go to Austria to hunt with our dogs, and at the end of the day we sit on the verandah and drink a beer. So we thought, my dog also has earned it," she said. Berenden consigned a local brewery to make and bottle the nonalcoholic beer, branded as Kwispelbier. It was introduced to the market last week and advertised it as "a beer for your best friend." "Kwispel" is the Dutch word for wagging a tail. The beer is fit for human consumption, Berenden said. But at euro1.65 ($2.14) a bottle, it's about four times more expensive than a Heineken.

Surgeon Uses Dog in Sales Demonstration CLEVELAND (AP) - A neurosurgeon used a dog with an induced brain aneurysm to demonstrate a medical device to salespeople, a hospital said Thursday. The dog was anesthetized during the demonstration and euthanized afterward, according to a statement released by the Cleveland Clinic, a renowned academic medical center. The hospital uses animals for medical research but this demonstration was unauthorized, a hospital statement said. The clinic has reported the incident to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which regulates animal testing. "As an academic medical center, Cleveland Clinic does not allow procedures with animals for the sole purpose of sales training," the statement said The surgeon, who was not immediately identified, was presenting a device used to treat aneurysms Wednesday to a group of people who sell it, the statement read. It was not clear Thursday whether the aneurysm was induced in the dog solely for the sales demonstr...

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Officials at Minneapolis-St. Paul International airport are proposing stiffer penalties - including suspension of an airport taxi license - to Muslim cab drivers who refuse service to passengers toting alcohol or service dogs. Officials on Wednesday asked the Metropolitan Airport Commission for permission to hold public hearings on a proposal that would suspend the airport licenses of cab drivers who refuse service for reasons other than safety concerns. The penalties would also apply to drivers who refuse a fare because a trip is too short. Drivers would have their airport licenses suspended 30 days for the first offense and revoked for two years after the second offense, according to the proposal. "Our expectation is that if you're going to be driving a taxi at the airport, you need to provide service to anybody who wants it," commission spokesman Patrick Hogan said. The commission is expected to vote Jan. 16 on the request for public hearings. Airpor...

SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) - Austin ricochets around the Ritz-Carlton hotel room, bouncing from bed to chair and leaping high to lick the face of his personal masseuse. He's an energetic 4-year-old pug, so there is a lot of wriggling as his "privileged pup" pet massage begins. But soon his eyelids droop and his tiny muscles relax under the soothing touch of Darlene Davison, the Ritz-Carlton Sarasota's spa director. "OK, sweetheart, OK. There you go," coos Davison, creator of the luxury hotel chain's latest indulgence - the $130 dog massage. Figure in the hotel's 20-pound weight limit and the additional $125 nonrefundable pet fee and the "privileged pup" plan comes out to a minimum of $12.75 a pound. And that's the basic package. For another $220, the Ritz throws in gourmet dog biscuits, an in-room pet massage, a choice of nail buffing or nail polish, a souvenir photo, a brisk walk over Sarasota's scenic Ringling Bridge and a gourmet meal o...