Hurricane Relief Efforts Continue
As President Bush added Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi to the list of federal disaster areas, tens of thousands of residents and business owners across the Southeast and Eastern Seaboard continued to dig themselves out of the mess left by four major hurricanes in six weeks.

Petco Launches Adoption Initiatives
Broadening their support of animal welfare and adoption efforts, Petco Animal Supplies Inc. (San Diego) and its charitable Petco Foundation recently launched an all-inclusive Think Adoption First initiative and signed a five-year, $1 million agreement to help the San Diego Humane Society and SPCA.

Iams' Microchip Solution
Backing a national coalition's efforts to help animal shelters and veterinarians reunite lost pets with their owners, The Iams Co. (Dayton, Ohio) said it will award contracts for at least 10,000 universal microchip scanners from each of up to three manufacturers.

California Ferret Fans Foiled Again
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in September quashed the hopes of California ferret owners when he failed to sign legislation that would have granted limited amnesty to the controversial creatures.

Proposed Limits Would Protect Coral Reefs
Federal legislation that would restrict the import, export and interstate transport of coral reef species was introduced in July but, at press time, had yet to receive a committee hearing.

California Rejects Bill Banning Sales of Intact Pets
A bill that would have made it a crime for California retailers to sell unsterilized cats and dogs is dead, but similar legislation likely will resurface, warned the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (Washington).

Ohio Strikes Down Dangerous Dog Law
The Supreme Court of Ohio in September ruled that a statute penalizing owners of dangerous dogs who fail to buy liability insurance and properly confine their animals was unconstitutional, according to the American Kennel Club (New York).

Wisconsin Stores Stop Turtle Sales
Because pet turtles sold in Wisconsin were linked to a rare form of salmonella in two children, officials from the state Department of Health and Family Services recently launched a campaign to remove the turtles from the market.

House Considers Animal-Use Terrorism Measure
Persons who intentionally damage an animal facility, or cause the loss of property, including animals, would face fines and as much as 10 years' imprisonment under provisions of a House resolution introduced in July.

Germans Plan Pet Conference
Leading retail and manufacturing executives will discuss strategies for the future of the German pet products market during the first Pet Conference, Nov. 9-10 at the Dorint Hotel in Wiesbaden, Germany.

PIDA Sets New Meeting Dates
The Pet Industry Distributors Association (Bel Air, Md.) will hold its 37th annual meeting and management conference Feb. 9-12 at the Marriott Harbor Beach Resort and Spa in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Organizers Expect Big Turnout for Zoomark 2005
More than 20,000 pet industry professionals from around the world are expected to attend Zoomark International, the 11th international exhibition of products for pets, to be held May 5-8 at BolognaFiere in Bologna, Italy.

More Than 30,000 Visitors Expected for Aquarama 2005
Aquarama, to be held May 26-29 at the Singapore Expo in Singapore, will take on new dimensions with exhibits devoted to water gardening and pet products.

SuperZoo to Welcome Consumers
In a move designed to expand marketing opportunities for exhibitors, the World Wide Pet Supply Association (Arcadia, Calif.) will invite consumers to attend the final day of its SuperZoo East trade show, Aug. 11-13, 2005, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.