Higher prices of basic foodstuffs such as corn, soy and meat are affecting food supplies for both animals and people as the U.S. economy picks up steam.  Photo: Thinkstock

Pet food shortages leave owners on the hunt for kibble

Reading Time: 3 minutes Chicago | Reuters – Black short-haired kitty Astra, one of millions of pets acquired during the COVID-19 pandemic last year, had to go without salmon-flavored Whiskas treats that were sold out at stores in New Orleans this month. Loki, an Alaskan malamute dog in Ontario, Canada, did not have his usual Royal Canin kibble in […] Read more

File photo of goats on display at the Hanover Agricultural Fair in Grunthal, Man. in August 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

U.S. transport regulators reject ’emotional support animal’ status

Service dog status still protected; 'support' goats, turkeys, others up to airlines

Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington | Reuters — Only trained dogs qualify as service animals on U.S. airlines, as regulators rejected requests to extend legal protections to miniature horses, pigs, turkeys and other species, under final U.S. Transportation Department rules issued Wednesday. Airlines can still choose which other species to allow on board, but the rules issued on Wednesday […] Read more


A man walks with his pet dog as he talks to a vendor who sells dog meat at a market during the local dog meat festival at Yulin in China’s Guangxi Autonomous Region on June 21, 2018. (File photo: Reuters/Tyrone Siu)

China reclassifies dogs as pets, not livestock

New guidelines drafted in post-virus regulatory push

Reading Time: 2 minutes Shanghai | Reuters — China has drawn up new guidelines to reclassify dogs as pets rather than livestock, the agriculture ministry said, part of a response to the coronavirus outbreak that the Humane Society called a potential “game changer” in animal welfare. Though dog meat remains a delicacy in many regions, the ministry of agriculture […] Read more

File photo of goats on display at the Hanover Agricultural Fair in Grunthal, Man. in August 2019. (Dave Bedard photo)

No turkeys, pigs, goats: U.S. to let airlines limit service animals

Miniature horses still up for discussion

Reading Time: 2 minutes Washington | Reuters — The U.S. Transportation Department on Wednesday proposed giving airlines the power to bar emotional support animals from cabins and limit the definition of a service animal to a trained dog. The proposed new rules are aimed at preventing passengers from falsely claiming their pets are service animals aboard U.S. airline flights. […] Read more


Elanco Animal Health CEO Jeff Simmons speaks during an interview at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Sept. 20, 2018. (Photo: Reuters/Brendan McDermid)

Elanco to become No. 2 in animal health with Bayer deal

Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters — Elanco Animal Health agreed to buy Bayer’s veterinary drugs unit on Tuesday in a cash and stock deal valued at US$7.6 billion (C$10 billion), creating the second largest maker of medicines for livestock and pets and expanding Elanco’s reach online. The deal is the latest in the fast-growing animal health market, which has […] Read more