Students at The Academy of Dog Grooming Arts (Arlington Heights, Ill.) donated tip money to purchase a bullet- and stab-resistant vest for Elvis, a 2-year-old German shepherd and member of the Palatine Police Department. The donation was coordinated by the nonprofit Illinois Vest-a-Dog. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Andrew Darmohraj, senior vice president of the American Pet Products Association (Greenwich, Conn.), was named chairman of the board of directors for the New York Society of Association Executives. The group serves the profession of association and not-for-profit management. [November 2009 PET AGE]

AnimalScan L.L.C. (Easton, Pa.) acquired Iams Pet Imaging L.L.C. from P&G Pet Care and ProScan Imaging, both headquartered in Cincinnati. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium commissioned Aquascape Inc. (St. Charles, Ill.) to build a 3,000-gallon, 80-foot waterfall and stream that replicates a watershed. The stream can be replenished with rainwater that runs off the terrace into a series of 50-gallon rain barrels. [November 2009 PET AGE]

The Barkley Pet Hotel & Day Spa (Orange Village, Ohio) is developing a reality TV show based on its staff, clients and pet guests. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Camp Bow Wow (Boulder, Colo.) opened its 100th Doggy Day and Overnight Camp in August in Lafayette, La. The company has more than 200 franchises in 38 states and one in Canada. [November 2009 PET AGE]

CASCO Group (Cerritos, Calif.) demonstrated and then donated 30 8-gallon biOrb Intelligent Aquariums to teachers who took part in the Boeing Teacher Institute at the Long Beach (Calif.) Aquarium of the Pacific. The program helps teachers bring marine science into classrooms, from kindergarten to high school. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Vancouver entrepreneur Dan Urbani purchased 20 of the best-performing stores from Canadian Petcetera Ltd. Partnership (Richmond, British Columbia), which went bankrupt in June, and planned to reopen the stores under the New Petcetera Retail Ltd. name as early as September. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Central Garden & Pet Co. (Walnut Creek, Calif.) appointed Jeffrey A. Blade as its chief financial officer. Also, Sherry Perley was named vice president of human resources. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Chloe Standard Inc. (Mountain View, Calif.) launched the online microchip database ChecktheChip.com to help recover lost pets. The company is compiling registered microchip numbers from participating companies—minus owner information—to streamline the process of matching a pet’s chip number with the correct database. [November 2009 PET AGE]

D&D Commodities Ltd. (Stephen, Minn.) signed Wolverton Inc. (Lansing, Mich.) to distribute its Wild Delight premium outdoor pet foods. [November 2009 PET AGE]

D&D Commodities Ltd. (Stephen, Minn.) named Paul Stefanic as director of sales for national accounts. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Del Monte Foods (Pittsburgh) reported net sales of $813.7 million for the 2010 first quarter, up 12 percent from $726.2 million for the year-earlier period. Pet products net sales were $412.3 million, up 20.3 percent from $342.7 million for the year-earlier period. [November 2009 PET AGE]

C. Cookie Driscoll, owner of C. Cookie Driscoll Inc. and Whodathunkit Farm in Fairfield, Pa., was named chairman of SMC Business Councils in September. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Exclusively Pet Inc. (Milwaukee) launched Exclusivelypet.com to market Exclusively Dog cookies and Bark Avenue treats, made with natural and kosher ingredients. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Michael F. Giove was named chief operating officer of Fins, Furs and Feathers Inc. (Anaheim, Calif.), parent company of MarineDepot.com (Garden Grove, Calif.), Petstore.com (Emeryville, Calif.), and Bayside Aquarium Supply (Orange, Calif.). [November 2009 PET AGE]

Halo Purely for Pets (Tampa, Fla.) is an official sponsor of Freekibble.com’s Twitter page, and promised to donate one Halo Spot Stew meal to each Freekibble and Halo follower, up to 200,000 meals. Freekibble.com was started by 13-year-old Mimi Ausland to help feed hungry animals at her local Bend, Ore., animal shelter. Later this year, Halo also will help Freekibble.com launch an iPhone game application that will result in additional donations to animal shelters. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Academy Award winner Hilary Swank is the 2009 Ambassador for the Iams Home 4 the Holidays Pet Adoption Campaign, sponsored by P&G Pet Care (Cincinnati). [November 2009 PET AGE]

Katie’s Bumpers (Golden, Colo.) signed distribution agreements with Northpoint Trading Co. Inc. (Fife, Wash.); New England Wholesale Pet Foods (Pelham, N.H.); Zeus and Co. (Chicago); Triton Animal Supplies (Edmonton, Alberta); PET NET (Buffalo, N.Y.); and CAM Pet Supply (Albuquerque, N.M.). The company also inked deals with distributors in England, France, Holland and Sweden. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Patty the “pet matchmaker” at Kennelwood Pet Resorts (St. Louis) is approaching her 1,000th match between families and pets, based on the breed’s temperament, health issues and personality. The milestone match will receive a $250 Kennelwood gift certificate. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Longtime bird and cat breeder Kathleen Szabo is retiring and closing down her Loxahatchee, Fla., businesses Luv Them Birds Inc. and Nothing But Spots. [November 2009 PET AGE]

The Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition, a division of Mars Inc. (McLean, Va.), donated more than $2 million to create a human-animal interaction program at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, a division of the National Institutes of Health. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Marshall Pet Products (Wolcott, N.Y.) is celebrating 70 years in the ferret business. The company began as Marshall Farms in 1939 to raise ferrets for rodent control on farms. In 1993, the company became Marshall Pet Products to meet an increasing demand for high-quality ferret products. The anniversary celebration will include a “Merits of Ferrets” contest and a “ferrets keep you young” senior citizen’s discount program. For information, visit www.marshallpet.com. [November 2009 PET AGE]

According to a member survey by the National Association of Professional Pet Sitters (Mount Laurel, N.J.), 76 percent of online certification program participants have been a professional pet sitter for one to three years, and 47 percent are college graduates. [November 2009 PET AGE]

National Dog Groomers Association of America Inc. (Clark, Pa.) will host Colorado GroomFest June 4-6, 2010, at the Crowne Plaza in Denver. Dr. Michael Fleck, touted as the world’s only licensed veterinarian and esthetician, will start the event with an all-day skin and coat care seminar. Grooming contests begin Friday with the Governor Insurance Career Start Competition and continue Saturday and Sunday. For information, call 724-962-2711 or e-mail ndga@nationaldoggroomers.com. [November 2009 PET AGE]

The National Dog Show by Nestle Purina PetCare Co. (St. Louis, Mo.) and the annual Kennel Club of Philadelphia dog show will be held Nov. 14-15 in Philadelphia, continuing a tradition that started in 1879. NBC will televise the show on Nov. 26 during a two-hour special immediately following the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. [November 2009 PET AGE]

North American Pet Products (Corona, Calif.) acquired Cat Care Co., formerly Riteway Products, of Laguna Niguel, Calif. Financial terms were not disclosed. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Capstar, an oral flea-control product from Novartis Animal Health U.S. Inc. (Greensboro, N.C.), wants boarding facilities to tell them “The Biggest Little Thing” that sets their business apart from the competition. Enter the contest at www.thebiggestlittlething.com by Oct. 31. Ten winners will receive $200 and appear in Pet Product News (Mission Viejo, Calif.). [November 2009 PET AGE]

Canine, feline and equine Cosequin products by Nutramax Laboratories Inc. (Edgewood, Md.) passed a voluntary ConsumerLab.com review of pet joint health supplements. The tests rated the accuracy of labeled amounts of key active ingredients. [November 2009 PET AGE]

A 3-year-old German shepherd named Lucy garnered more than 31,000 votes and beat out 7,000 pets to win the “Show Us Your Pet’s Healthy Smile” contest, sponsored by The Greenies Co., a division of Nutro Products Inc. (Franklin, Tenn.). [November 2009 PET AGE]

Dr. Cathy Johnson-Delaney, a Washington-based veterinarian specializing in avian and exotic animal medicine, received the 2009 Oxbow Exotic Mammal Health Award sponsored by Oxbow Animal Health (Murdock, Neb.). [November 2009 PET AGE]

Pet Valu Inc. and its Pet Valu Canada Inc. subsidiary (Markham, Ontario) were acquired by Roark Capital Group (Atlanta) following board approval, given at a special shareholder meeting held Aug. 25. Court approval was granted the following day. Pet Valu is now a private company.
Canada’s leading small-format specialty retailer and wholesale distributor of pet food and pet-related supplies, Pet Valu has 295 corporate and franchised stores in Ontario and Manitoba, and 61 stores in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia.
In connection with the closing of the transaction, Geoffrey Holt, Pet Valu's founder, is retiring as the company’s chief executive officer. Taking over is Tom McNeely, a Canadian resident with extensive experience in franchising, specialty retail and distribution. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Pet-Aire, which makes air purification units to provide allergy relief for pets, changed its name to PetAirapy L.L.C. (Saint Charles, Ill.). [November 2009 PET AGE]

Pethealth Inc. (Oakville, Ontario) reported net revenues of $8.66 million for the 2009 second quarter, up 52 percent from the year-earlier period. The increase was due in part to the launch of Petandgo.com, which made the company a popular Internet destination for adoptable pet searches. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Pethealth Inc. (Oakville, Ontario) signed an agreement to provide PetSmart Charities (Phoenix) with access to aggregated animal shelter data, plus technical and IT support to analyze trends in animal welfare throughout the United States. [November 2009 PET AGE]

PetSmart Charities (Phoenix) sent its Emergency Relief Waggin’ vehicle, stocked with $60,000 in animal supplies, to an animal rescue in Kaufman County, Texas, where more than 500 dogs and 15 cats were rescued from an alleged puppy mill. [November 2009 PET AGE]

PetSmart Inc. (Phoenix) reported net sales of $1.31 billion for the 2009 second quarter, up 5.4 percent from the year-earlier period. Comparable store sales grew 0.8 percent, on top of 4 percent in the year-earlier period. Pet services sales were $154.2 million, up 10.2 percent from the year-earlier period. [November 2009 PET AGE]

San Diego-based Pet-ETail now offers a $2.50 flat shipping rate, which coincides with the launch of www.pet-etail.com. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Sergeant’s Pet Care Products Inc. (Omaha, Neb.) paid $3.6 million for a production facility formerly owned by MGP Ingredients Inc. (Atchison, Kan.), plus equipment related to pet product packaging and production. Sergeant’s plans to expand production of its formulated pet treats. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Spectrum Brands Inc. (Atlanta), which exited bankruptcy protection Aug. 28, now is quoted under the ticker symbol “SPEB.” The company is distributing approximately 30 million shares of its new common stock to holders of allowed claims, with respect to its bonds and to the supplemental and sub-supplemental lenders of its debtor-in-possession financing on Aug. 31. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Stella & Chewy’s L.L.C. (Muskego, Wis.) added Supreme Pet Supplies L.L.C. (Houston, Texas) as a distributor. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Stella & Chewy’s L.L.C. (Muskego, Wis.) promoted five-year employee Doug Siegal to manager of sales operations and added several field sales managers: Catherine A. Ihnachak, New England; Gerry Stewart, mid-Atlantic; and Terri Orvella, Pacific Northwest. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Talk to Me Pet Products L.L.C. (Chesterfield, Mo.) hired MassMedia (Reno, Nev.) as its public relations agency. [November 2009 PET AGE]

TowerStar Pets L.L.C. (Malvern, Pa.) signed a distribution agreement with R.F.G. Distributing (Crystal, Minn.) to deliver Neater Feeders to pet supply retailers, veterinary hospitals, kennels and breeders in 10 states.
The company also is sponsoring a “World's Messiest Pet” Contest through Dec. 31. For information, visit www.neaterfeeder.com/v/worlds-messiest-pet.htm. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Tri-Tronics (Tucson, Ariz.) signed John Wick, a renowned breeder, trainer and author of Walk with Wick—The Tree Dog Encyclopedia, as a monthly online columnist. Wick has written hundreds of articles for major hound hunting magazines. He will continue to write his monthly column for American Cooner magazine. [November 2009 PET AGE]

TrueBlue Pet Products (Los Angeles) named CAM Pet Supply (Albuquerque, N.M.) as its distributor for the southwest. [November 2009 PET AGE]

The Twitter-based online community www.TwitPets.com was launched in August by Austin, Texas-based entrepreneur Kevin O'Brien, who also created MyPetMove.com and PetRelocation.com. The latter recently ranked No. 777 on the 2009 Inc. 5000, posting a three-year sales growth of 375 percent. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Unleashed Indoor Dog Parks (Dallas) opened a 50,000-square-foot indoor and outdoor off-leash play park that utilizes K9Grass from ForeverLawn Inc. (Albuquerque, N.M.). Half of the $10 million facility, located in Dallas, is dedicated to off-leash play, grooming, day care and boarding. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Wag’n Tails Grooming Conversions (Granger, Ind.) asked more than 1,300 professionals who own Wag’n Tails vans to groom adoptable dogs during October, dubbed “Adopt a Shelter Dog Month.” The Mobile Grooming for a Cause campaign included a five-day Caribbean vacation prize package for the owner who groomed the most shelter pets. [November 2009 PET AGE]

Dina Perry, founder of Wag’n Tails Mobile Conversions (Granger, Ind.), will hold a $199 mobile styling seminar Nov. 9-10 at the company’s corporate headquarters. The seminar is limited to 30 attendees. To register, call Jenny at 800-513-0304. The seminar fee will be refunded and a $300 travel expense reimbursement will be issued to any registrant who buys a new Wag’n Tails van or trailer within 90 days of the seminar. For more, visit www.wagntails.com/seminar. [November 2009 PET AGE]