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COMPANY PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DOGFRIENDLY.COM RELEASES ITS 2008 REPORT CARD ON U.S.
PET TRAVEL
In DogFriendly.com's 2nd annual grades,
Pet-friendly hotels and lodging get the highest marks,
Airlines need to improve pet services and Intercity
Trains and Buses fail the pet traveling public.
POLLOCK PINES, California -- May 15, 2008 --
DogFriendly.com (http://www.dogfriendly.com),
a leading publisher of dog travel guide books and web guides,
today announced it's 2008 grades for the pet travel
industry. This is the second year that DogFriendly.com
has graded lodging, campgrounds,
airlines, trains, buses, parks, beaches, restaurants,
stores, attractions and pet sitters for their service to
travelers with pets. The highest marks
were earned by hotels and off-leash dog parks. Areas
that fail to serve the growing dog travel
community were nationwide buses, trains and airlines.
Here are the grades with last year's grades in ( ):
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Lodging: A- (A) |
Pet-friendly accommodations offer dog owners
good variety. Pet fees are increasing. |
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Campgrounds: B-(B-) |
Most campgrounds allow dogs, but there are
often restrictions. New Jersey and Connecticut
don't allow dogs in State Park Campgrounds. |
|
Airlines: C- (C-) |
Very small dogs can ride in the cabin, but most
dogs have to go in cargo. D- for most dogs; B for
the smallest ones. |
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Nationwide Trains/Buses: F (F) |
No dogs are allowed. Meanwhile, the public
subsidizes these businesses when people with pets
would gladly pay to ride and fuel use is increased
by the additional drivers with pets. In Europe,
leashed dogs are allowed on trains. |
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Local Transit: C (C-) |
Small dogs allowed on many city public transit
systems; Large dogs allowed on a few. In most
cities it is possible but tricky to get cab
service. |
|
Parks: B- (B-) |
Limited access for dogs, especially in National
Parks, but still many dog-friendly parks. Some
parks are showing signs of easing some
restrictions. |
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Off-Leash Parks: B (B+) |
There are 800+ off-leash parks and most are
open to visiting dogs; some require local
permits and fees making it difficult for travelers
to use them. |
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Beaches: B- (C+) |
There appears to be an increase in dog-friendly
beaches, however, most beaches don't allow dogs. But most
areas have at least one dog-friendly beach. |
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Restaurants: B- (C+) |
Most of the time it is not difficult to find a
place to eat outside with your dog. Indoor
restaurants cannot allow dogs. Recently, there is
movement by cities to be more pet-friendly on
patios and to issue more variances. |
|
Shopping: B (B-) |
You can usually find somewhere to shop with
your pet. More of the new high end open-air
shopping centers are catering to dog owners. |
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Attractions: B- (B-) |
Some outdoor attractions allow dogs; most
indoor ones do not. There are many dog-friendly
boat, horse and carriage and walking tours. |
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Pet Sitters: B- (C+) |
The industry is excellent for dog-sitting pets
while you are out of town. There are more services
for traveling dogs than last year, including day
care and kennel options and pet-sitting in hotels. |
See http://www.dogfriendly.com/grades
for more information on these categories.
DogFriendly.com, providing dog travel information since
1998, offers a free website and publishes
paperback books including DogFriendly.com's East
Coast Dog Travel Guide, DogFriendly.com's California and
the West Dog Travel Guide and DogFriendly.com's Lodging
Guide for Travelers with Dogs. DogFriendly.com also has
a mobile web site for accessing it's travel guides by
cell phone.
Press Contact:
Len Kain
DogFriendly.com, Inc.
1-877-475-2275
email@dogfriendly.com
http://www.dogfriendly.com
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