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The
Dog Lover's Companion to California,
by Maria Goodavage
The
pithy commentaries are right on target in "The
Dog Lover's Companion" series. These eight doggy
guide books covering Boston, the San Francisco Bay Area,
California, Florida, New England, New York City, Seattle,
and Washington D.C., were written with the tail-wagging
participation of expert dog trippers including Joe Dog,
George, Inu, Maggie Dog, Emma, Quinn, Bill, Nisha, and
Chappy. What sets these excellent insider guide books
apart is that the rating system for the parks, restaurants,
and attractions included is based upon criteria important
to dogs-as interpreted, of course, by their human co-authors.
(Click
here for the Four-Paw Bio page.)
In
The
Dog Lover's Companion to California, Maria Goodavage
uses a single fire hydrant to identify those parks only
worth a quick pit stop. Four paw prints is the highest
rating-a quality place for dogs and their human companions.
Joe Dog also bestows accolades on certain restaurants
and inns that provide extra levels of dog-friendliness
with the "Golden Bone Awards." All of the
Golden Bone recipients provide dogs with some form of
a treat, ranging from dog biscuits to custom-ordered
cooked burgers. The guide is organized by county and
provides overview information as well as specific recommendations
for the best places to take a walk, stay overnight,
and eat delicious meals.
There
are plenty of maps, good directions, and tips for keeping
canine friends healthy and well while on the road. The
Dog Lover's Companion to California is nearly
900 pages long, and one can only be amazed at the stamina
and high standards of Joe Dog, the canine consultant
who visited and reviewed all the venues described. Marvin
the Road Dog has visited a number of the establishments
included in "The Dog Lover's Companion" series,
and he gives a definite "tail up" to the descriptions
and reviews.
Mark
1/03
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Fodor's
Road Guide USA : Where to Stay With Your Pet,
by Andrea Arden (Introduction) and Emmanuelle Morgan (Editor)
This
comprehensive guide book lists 5200 hotels and motels
in 48 states that advertise themselves as being "
pet-friendly." Concise listings provide contact
information, (phone, URL, address, etc.) together with
a brief description of the motel's amenities. It passes
the RTA test in that it includes one of our favorite
dog-friendly lodges,the Stanford
Inn on California's north coast.
What
sets Fodor's Road Guide USA apart from similar
motel/hotel handbooks is the seventeen articles featuring
some really wonderful discoveries for travelers with
four-legged companions, like San Francisco's "Beastro
by the Bay" that sells breed-specific merchandise
for just about every type of dog known. Other highlights
include Lilly the concierge dog who greets all pets
checking into the Monaco Hotel in Denver and a Boston
day spa for dogs that features charter bus service for
canine critters wishing to stop in for a treat or massage.
This
is a useful and well-organized guidebook--one that RoadTrip
America highly recommends.
Mark
5/02
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