All Pet Supplies (Springfield, Mo.) was named Retailer of the Year by WellPet (Tewksbury, Mass.) at a reception during H.H. Backer’s Pet Industry Christmas Trade Show and Educational Conference. [December 2009 PET AGE]

The American Animal Hospital Association (Lakewood, Colo.) created a free, Internet-based universal microchip database to help reunite pets and owners. For information, visit www.petmicrochiplookup.org. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Bravo Raw Diet (Vernon, Conn.) hopes to keep store registers ringing through the holidays with a seasonal buy-one, get-one promotion on six top-selling Bravo! Bonus Bites treats. The promotion, which launched Nov. 15, will run until the limited supply of special holiday merchandise sells out. However, customers can submit mail-in coupons for free product through March 31. For more information, visit www.bravorawdiet.com. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Most of the insurance claims filed by professional pet sitters in 2008 were associated with injuries that occurred when pets behaved like pets—being bitten by snakes during walks, tearing ligaments while playing or running, swallowing or ingesting objects, or tearing ligaments or breaking bones while getting in and out of vehicles, according to Business Insurers of the Carolinas (Chapel Hill, N.C.). The results, linked to information about Pet Sitters International (King, N.C.), were released to encourage pet owners to hire professional pet sitters who carry liability insurance. [December 2009 PET AGE]

CALIFORNIA—Limit on Intact Animals. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in October vetoed Assembly Bill 241. The bill would have prohibited any person or entity from owning or controlling more than 50 unsterilized adult dogs and cats for breeding or sale as pets. [December 2009 PET AGE]

CALIFORNIA—Swap Meets. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in October vetoed Assembly Bill 1122. The bill would have banned swap meets, flea markets and outdoor public sales. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Castor & Pollux Pet Works (Clackamas, Ore.) ranked 615 on the 2009 Inc. 5000, based on five-year sales growth of 445 percent. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Daisy Couture L.L.C. (Los Angeles) designed a chandelier Swarovski crystal collar and matching purse, wallet and leash to be auctioned off at the annual Lint Roller Party, an event hosted by Best Friends Animal Society (Kanab, Utah), to raise awareness for animals and help homeless pets. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Espree Animal Products Inc. (Grapevine, Texas) promoted Pam Anderson to director of operations, Josh Penn to warehouse manager and hired Susan Townsend as accounting manager. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Espree Animal Products Inc. (Grapevine, Texas) named Tammy Siert of The Velvet Touch (Hinsdale, Ill.), a member of GroomTeam USA, as its representative in sanctioned competitions, demonstrations, product consulting and testing. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Star Treats for Cats by Fish 4 Dogs, now available in the United States through Fish 4 Dogs North America L.L.C. (Kansas City, Mo.), was named Best New Product of 2009 by the Pet Product Retail Association (Birmingham, England). [December 2009 PET AGE]

ForeclosureDeals.com (Miami Beach, Fla.) features a list of U.S. animal shelters to promote pet adoption and help address the problem of “foreclosure pets.” [December 2009 PET AGE]

FunTime Birdy (Montville, N.J.) launched www.funtimebirdy.com to feature new products, customer photos, testimonials and contests. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Hosung NY Inc. (Brooklyn, N.Y.) partnered with The Jane Goodall Institute (Arlington, Va.) to create the nontoxic, all natural My Natural Jane Goodall Wild Animal Collection, which will be available this spring—just in time for Earth Day. [December 2009 PET AGE]

The Hunte Corp. (Goodman, Mo.), in conjunction with the American Kennel Club (New York), hosted a free health clinic for professional dog breeders Sept. 3-4.  Nearly 100 adult breeding dogs received comprehensive eye, heart and joint exams as well as grooming services during the clinic. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Kennelwood Pet Resorts (St. Louis) launched the lost-and-found pet service Mimi Alert Program on www.kennelwood.com. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Lil’ Pals Pet Photography (Memphis, Tenn.) recently added a scaled-down franchise option to its mobile pet portrait studios. Franchisees with the Lil’ Pals Jr. model take photographs inside pet businesses or in pop-up tents outside facilities, rather than in a mobile studio set in an RV or trailer. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Little Fanaticos (Putnam, Conn.) launched www.soccerdogjerseys.com. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Mars Petcare (Franklin, Tenn.) opened a sustainable pet food manufacturing facility in Fort Smith, Ark., the first in the world to receive gold certification in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design from the U.S. Green Building Council (Washington), according to the company. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Frank Horvath of Pet Kingdom USA (Las Vegas) was named Retailer of the Year by Marshall Pet Products (Wolcott, N.Y.). [December 2009 PET AGE]

My Good Dog (North Brookfield, Mass.) raised more than $36,000 in five months for “Dog Tags: Service Dogs For Those Who’ve Served Us.” The Vibram Pet Products designer and manufacturer donated $2 of every Chewy Shoe dog toy sale to the program, which provides service dogs to injured U.S. veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
The service dogs are trained by inmates in New York City-area correctional institutions as part of the Puppies Behind Bars initiative.
The Chewy Shoe was launched in May 2009 in partnership with online retailer FetchDog, by Fetch Enterprises L.L.C. (Portland, Maine). [December 2009 PET AGE]

The National Association of Professional Pet Sitters (Mount Laurel, N.J.) will hold its Annual Conference and Small Business Forum Jan. 22-24 at the Regal Sun Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla. Based on the conference theme of “Capture the Magic Within Your Pet Sitting Business,” speakers will cover topics like liability and bonding insurance for pet sitters, animal law issues, pet loss, social media applications, attracting new clients, enhancing professional style and guerrilla marketing strategies. For information, visit www.petsitters.org. [December 2009 PET AGE]

The National Association of Professional Pet Sitters (Mt. Laurel, N.J.) once again partnered with the Humane Society of the United States (Washington) to sponsor Presents 4 Pets, a program that encouraged people to support rescued animals by donating blankets, towels, bleach, toys and other supplies to their local animal shelters or rescue organizations. It ran the first week of November in conjunction with HSUS’ annual National Animal Shelter Appreciation Week. [December 2009 PET AGE]

OHIO—Breeding Kennel/Pet Store Warranty. Companion bills that would set licensing and insurance requirements for dog breeding kennels and establish warranty provisions for pet stores were heard in committee and awaited further action at press time. The Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (Washington) submitted testimony on House Bill 124 and Senate Bill 95, recommending a statewide task force be created to address the issues. [December 2009 PET AGE]

The Iams Home 4 the Holidays Pet Adoption Campaign, sponsored by P&G Pet Care (Cincinnati), runs through Jan. 4. For information, visit www.iamshome4theholidays.com. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Pet Factory Inc. (Mundelein, Ill.) won a 2009 Category Colonels Pet Supply award from PL Buyer, a private-label industry newsletter published by BNP Media (Deerfield, Ill.). [December 2009 PET AGE]

The Pet Shack, an aquarium and reptile specialty store, opened in Hilltown, Pa., in September. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Petcurean Pet Nutrition Inc. (Chilliwack, British Columbia) named Rick van Schagen general manager, Ryan Hinson as U.S. national sales manager and Heather Foseid as U.S. sales assistant.
The company also hired several retail business developers: Bill Schernekau, southeast United States; Jennifer McPherson, northeast United States; Todd Hutchens, western United States; Lee-Ann Jones, eastern Canada; and Cory Parsons, central Canada. [December 2009 PET AGE]

PetSuppliesElite.com, a division of Suarez Corp. Industries (North Canton, Ohio), offers free veterinary advice along with a selection of products, including the Drs. Pierce & Pierce animal health product line by veterinarians Stephanie Pierce and Stuart Pierce. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Planet Dog (Portland, Maine) signed Pet Food Experts (Cumberland, R.I.) to represent and distribute its products in New England, New York and New Jersey. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Sanofi-aventis Group (Paris) acquired Merial Ltd. (Duluth, Ga.) for $4 billion from Merck & Co. Inc. (Whitehouse Station, N.J.), according to published reports. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Snaggle Foot Dog Walks and Pet Care, formerly Waggin’ Tailz (Houston), opened a new franchise in Round Lake Beach, Ill., just outside Chicago. [December 2009 PET AGE]

T-Rex Products (Chula Vista, Calif.) signed Morty Brown Associates Inc. (Melville, N.Y.) as its northeast representative, and Storts & Perkins (Tampa, Fla.) as its south and southeast representative. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Wapiti Labs Inc. (Ham Lake, Minn.) signed Los Angeles-based Romac Export Management Services Inc. as its international distributor. [December 2009 PET AGE]

Wellness, part of WellPet (Tewksbury, Mass.), donated 52,000 dog snacks to Military Working Dog Team Support Association Inc. (Canton, Ga.) to honor dogs working with soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Also, the company’s charitable arm, The WellPet Foundation, donated 17 tons of dog food to the Dawgs N Texas animal shelter (Dalhart, Texas). [December 2009 PET AGE]

WISCONSIN—Dog Sales. Two bills introduced to regulate dog sales by setting forth licensing requirements and standards of care were heard in committee and awaited further action at press time. Assembly Bill 250 and Senate Bill 208 would require licensing of persons who sell 25 or more dogs in a year, persons who operate a dog breeding facility that sells 25 or more dogs a year and persons who operate an auction at which 50 or more dogs are sold or offered for sale in a year. [December 2009 PET AGE]