From the DENR:

RALEIGH – The state’s rule on the presence of animals at food service establishments, as enforced by the Division of Environmental Health and its agents on the local level, has been revised to allow food service establishment owners to permit cats and dogs in outdoor dining areas as long as conditions to protect public health are met.

“I am pleased that this rule has been clarified to promote consistency across the state with regard to the presence of dogs and cats in outdoor dining areas,” said Larry Michael, head of the Food Protection Branch in the Division of Environmental Health. “This amendment allows food service operators to decide whether or not to allow dogs and cats in outdoor dining areas – and if they do, there are public health provisions in place to help safeguard the food.”

The rule was adopted by the Commission for Public Health and approved by the Rules Review Commission on Aug. 19. It becomes effective Sept. 1.

Cats and dogs are allowed outdoors as long as they are physically restrained, do not pass through any indoor areas of a food service establishment, and do not come into contact with food, food service items or food preparers. An establishment’s owner can decide whether or not to allow cats and dogs at their establishment’s outdoor areas.

All other live animals – with a few exceptions, such as patrol dogs and service animals – are not allowed on a food service establishment’s premises.

Previously, the rule indicated that if animals, with the exception of patrol dogs and service animals, were present in indoor or outdoor dining areas during a food service establishment’s inspection, the establishment could receive up to a two-point deduction from its inspection rating.

Stakeholders, including health department staff, food service representatives and concerned citizens, provided input for revising this rule.

Talk, Inc. a marketing communications agency in Wilmington, NC, has launched its first annual “Top Dog” Hardest Working Dog Contest as part of its month-long celebration of Take Your Dog to Work Day (TYDTWD) on Friday, June 25^th. The contest celebrates dogs who work tirelessly and faithfully to keep their loved ones happy and stress free each and every day.

Talk encourages all dog owners – both those who take their canine companions to work and those who don’t – to nominate their pup for “Top Dog” in Greater Wilmington. To enter, participants are asked to email a photo of their dog to topdog@talkinc.com with a brief explanation of why their furry friend deserves the hardest working dog honors. The contest is restricted to residents of New Hanover, Pender and Brunswick counties.

Entries will be posted on Talk’s blog www.talkinc.com/blog on Monday, June 14 and visitors can vote for their favorite “top dog” once a day through Monday, June 21. The winning dog will be announced on Friday, June 25 – National Take Your Dog to Work Day — and presented with a Top Dog certificate and a gift basket full of goodies for both dog and dog owner. The winner will also be featured on Talk’s blog and Facebook page.

Debbie Elliott, president of Talk, brings her dog Camden to the Talk offices every day and has been doing so since 2003. Camden’s official title is “News Hound” and her unofficial duties include office greeter, muse, stress reliever and cheerleader.

“Having Camden in the office is a real joy, both for me and the entire staff,” said Elliott. “We adopted Camden from a shelter in 2003 and she is living proof that shelter dogs often make the very best pets. She is a great ambassador and makes the work day more fun and relaxing. This year, we decided to honor other dogs like Camden who work hard each and every day to keep their families and co-workers happy.”

Small dogs are lucky. They can ride inside the cabins of planes, they are accepted within many shops and businesses, and they can stay at more hotels than dogs which may weigh only a little more. Sure, they take up less room - but are they better behaved?

Some of the most popular breeds in America don’t have the luxury of going on vacation with the rest of the family because they are deemed “too big”. The majority of hotels that do allow dogs often have weight restrictions - in many cases only dogs less than 25 pounds are allowed. The reasoning behind this doesn’t seem to be based on anything except the perception that smaller dogs are less messy or threatening… but tell that to an angry Chihuahua!

The people behind GoPetFriendly.com (Amy and Rod Burkert) and AndASmallDog.com (Leila Coe) have joined forces to help persuade hotels to lift their weight restrictions. They have started a grassroots campaign centered around the website www.GiveBigDogsABreak.com and an online petition to gain support for their cause, with hopes of getting enough signatures to make a difference.

“Once we have several hundred signatures, we will start circulating the petition around to corporate offices of hotels. However, our first real goal is to get 1,000 signatures” said Leila Coe, a travel agent who specializes in pet travel. She runs her own pet travel website www.AndASmallDog.com, which focuses on pet travel tips and information, as well as reviews of pet-friendly hotels and destinations based on her own experience with traveling with her small dog. “My dog is 17 lbs. so he’s too big for under-the-seat travel in planes but we can usually find places to stay with him because he is small. But I know a lot of people who automatically board their pets when going away, as it is so hard to find hotels that allow larger pets - which is just unfair.”

The Burkerts travel extensively with their two large dogs, “Buster,” a 70-pound German Shepherd and “Ty,” a 40-pound Shar-pei, doing research and writing a blog for their website. “Our whole life revolves around helping people find pet friendly accommodations and fun places to go with their pets, but our own dogs are not welcome in many hotels. We want to make it easier for people traveling with large dogs to find hotels so their dogs get to go on the family vacation, too!” said Amy Burkert.

Join the cause at www.GiveBigDogsABreak.com.  Follow @GoPetFriendly and @AndASmallDog on Twitter to receive campaign updates and find out other ways to help. There is also a Give Big Dogs A Break Facebook cause.

World’s First Sustainable System Converts Pet Poop Into Useful Soil

Solution to Reduce Greenhouse Gases, Stop Groundwater Contamination, End Landfill Pollution
When former medical doctor turned-researcher, Lawrence Green, CEO of Bokashicycle www.bokashicycle.com began creating simple sustainable solutions to recycling organic matter, he discovered a new application — pet poop. The BokashiPetCycle Fermenting System is the world’s only fermenting system available to safely and rapidly convert pet waste into nutrients that can feed ornamental plants, stop ground water pollution and eliminate greenhouse gases. Dr. Green, the inventor, will introduce this revolutionary pet waste system at EPIC: Western Canada’s largest sustainable consumer trade show and eco-market place, May 28-30, 2010, booth EM02, Vancouver Convention Center, Vancouver, BC.

The proprietary BokashiPetCycle system uses a process of pickling pet poop with microbes in a specialized container that excludes oxygen. The process eliminates the risk of toxoplasmosis, E. coli, salmonella and other parasites from seeping into municipal water supplies. It also diverts pet waste from landfills where increased amounts end up in plastic bags resulting in increased methane gas.

“Putting pet waste into plastic bags is not good for the environment,” Dr. Green explains. “The BokashiPetCycle fermenting process uses a natural organic accelerant, and when sealed for 7 days, eliminates toxic substances naturally.”

The Bokashi culture mix is comprised of wheat bran, molasses and microorganisms that when added to pet poop causes the material to ferment into a product that can be used to restore soil nutrients.

The BokashiPetCycle, food waste systems and culture mix are available at retail stores including Vancouver Island’s Dig This; Buckerfield stores; British Columbia’s Arts Nursery; Bylands; Britefield; and Portland’s Everybody’s Garden Store, and online at www.bokashicycle.com . The BokashiPetCycle retails for $130-$150. For more information on retail opportunities or to purchase, please call toll free at 1-800-714-2130.