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Photo Friday: Lunch, with Chloe, at Paris’s Le Pamphlet restaurant

I realize that this picture is blurry — we were trying to photograph Chloe without the wait staff and other diners noticing, so whenever the moment seemed right, my husband would throw his arm to the side and click the phone camera button blindly in Chloe’s general direction. Really, it’s a testament to his mad photography skillz that there’s a picture to share with you at all.

But look past the blurriness and notice that Chloe is inside a restaurant with us while we eat — and it was a very nice one, with excellent food and an elegant decor. It was such a pleasure to set out in the morning on a big walking expedition across Paris, knowing that at lunchtime we could simply bring Chloe in with us, eat, and continue on our way afterwards. No rushing back to the apartment to crate her during lunch, no anxious deployment of a stealth bag — what a delight!

Chloe (and my left arm) at Le Pamphlet, in the Upper Marais

I would love to see your dog travel photos — if you have a moment, would you visit Dog Jaunt’s Facebook page and let us all see what you and your pup have been up to?

Dulles International Airport’s indoor pet relief areas

Washington, D.C.’s Dulles International Airport (IAD) is the second airport I’ve been in with a pet relief area on the air side of security (Seattle’s Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is the other, but there’s really no comparison between the two spots). We arrived in Dulles on a flight from Seattle, and — as so often happens — the layover I’d counted on between our Seattle flight and our next flight to Paris had evaporated, leaving us too little time to take Chloe out to one of Dulles’ three outdoor locations. Happily, Dulles has two indoor pet relief areas, and although Chloe still recoils from pee pads (you’ll be hearing more about that soon), we figured that she might be desperate enough to set aside her usual objections to them.

We were expecting, you see, an indoor pet relief area like Seattle’s, which is simply a storage room with a concrete floor, a trash can, and a pile of pee pads. It was the first one we encountered, and I was so astonished and grateful to find it that I didn’t have any complaints. A dog, though, would have to be comfortable with pee pads, or with eliminating on concrete, to make use of it.

What we found, however, was completely different. We arrived at a D gate, so we went to the pet relief area across from Gate D1 (this location also works for C gates; if, instead, you arrive at an A or B gate, look for another indoor pet relief area between the concession area and Gate A-31). As you can see, it’s easy to find. Once you get inside (don’t be put off by the key pad — the doorknob turns, at least during the day), you find a small concrete vestibule, with a double bowl of water on a mat, and a gate leading to a fairly large, Astroturf-lined yard (with a faux fire hydrant in the middle).

It doesn’t photograph well, because it’s L-shaped, but there’s sufficient room for your dog to stretch her legs. Bags are provided for poop (and the turf was free of poop, so people seem to be cleaning up after their dogs), and — get this — once your dog has exited the yard, you press a button on the wall and the turf gets rinsed.

The system seems to work well. On our way to Paris, the room was a bit whiffy, but someone had turned the A/C off and it was a stifling 85º in there. Heck, after a few minutes in that kind of heat, I’m whiffy. We visited the same pet relief area when we returned through Dulles two weeks later, and when the room is a reasonable 70º or so, there’s no smell to speak of. Astroturf isn’t grass, but I suspect that more dogs are happy with Astroturf than they are with concrete and pee pads. I call the Dulles indoor pet relief areas a smash success, and hope that similar ones soon start appearing in other airports.

This post is part of an ongoing series of reviews of airport pet relief areas we’ve visited. To see others, visit Dog Jaunt’s handy guide to airport pet relief areas.

Chloe’s Clicks: This week’s best dog travel links

Just a few links to share with you this week, which is a good thing, because there’s hardly any week left! Slipping in under the wire are a couple of dog-friendly beaches: Gracie’s Bark posted some wonderful pictures of Gracie and her Golden Retriever friend Cali playing at Crane Beach, near Ipswich, MA on the South Coast; and Dugs ‘n’ Pubs highlighted a dog-friendly beach (and a nearby dog-friendly pub) in Gullane, Scotland (about a half hour east of Edinburgh, on the south coast of the Firth of Forth).

Dog-friendly offices: Here’s a post from BlogHer that does a fine job of laying out the arguments for and against businesses allowing employees to bring dogs to work with them.

My favorite link this week, though, is from It’s a Vegan Dog’s Life, which reported on dog-friendly yurts across the U.S. This is totally the kind of post I would have written if I’d thought of it first — I love yurts, those round, lattice-framed structures originally used as portable housing by the nomadic peoples of Central Asia. They’re gaining popularity in the U.S. as an alternative form of housing, and as vacation structures. What a delight to find that someone else has done the research for me. Thanks so much, Molly!

Photo Friday: Chloe and L’Écoute

This massive sculpture next to Paris’s St. Eustache church is beloved. We sat near it for a while, people-watching and eating pastries from a nearby boulangerie, and there was never a moment when people weren’t leaning on it, or climbing on it — or putting their dog on it. It’s by Henri de Miller, and it’s called “Écoute” (“Listen”).

I would love to see your dog travel photos — if you have a moment, would you visit Dog Jaunt’s Facebook page and let us all see what you and your pup have been up to?

Je ramasse: Dog poop in Paris

I finally thought of taking a picture of one of these Parisian scoop law signs on our way back from dinner last night (there was wine, yes, which explains the blurry). “I love my neighborhood,” it says, “[so therefore] I scoop.” Maybe it’s effective — who knows? There is a fair amount of unscooped poop, but most of it is in the streets or at the edges of the sidewalks. The thing that knocks me out is the little shovel — how elegant! How impractical!

Dog jaunt: Day trip to Chartres with a small dog

This past Sunday, we took a day trip to Chartres. I had heard for years (well, decades, but who’s counting?) how easy it is to get to, and how marvelous the cathedral is, but for some reason I’d never gone. And for some reason, this Sunday morning we decided to go.

Getting there and back by train

We took the metro to the Montparnasse-Bienvenüe station, then followed the signs for the Grandes Lignes trains (to be honest, we first followed the signs for the Ile-de-France trains, but that was the wrong thing to do). There are ticket machines you can use, and plenty of them, but we didn’t know if we could buy a ticket for the dog at those machines, and we were pressed for time, so we hurried up to the ticket counter, gibbered at the ticket seller, and received what turned out to be nearly the correct tickets (we had asked for First Class return tickets and came away with First Class out and Second Class back, but it ended up not being a problem, as you’ll see). Be sure to validate your ticket before you board your train! Look for the small machines labeled with a sign saying something like “Compostez votre billet,” and poke your ticket in the slot — a small line of text will be stamped across the end of your ticket.

First Class compartment on our TER train

We chose to buy First Class tickets because my husband has very long legs, but we would have been acceptably comfortable on the way to Chartres in Second Class seats, which were, at least on this particular TER train, not as close together as airplane seats and looked quite survivable. First Class was pleasant, however, and we had a table to spread our food, journals, etc. out on. On the way back from Chartres, the train was full to bursting, and we were very grateful for our First Class seats.

Chloe’s ticket cost €5.10 each way, because she weighs (about) 6 kg and she was traveling in a carrier. Here are the official rules (click on “Produits et prix”):

Pour transporter votre animal de compagnie, vous bénéficiez d’une réduction de 50% sur le prix plein tarif de votre billet seconde classe, même si vous voyagez en première classe.
Pour un chien de petite taille ou un autre animal domestique (de moins de 6 Kg) transporté dans un sac ou dans un panier (de moins de 45 x 30 x 25 cm), son billet vous coûtera 5€10.
Avant de vous installer, demandez aux autres voyageurs si votre animal familier ne les dérange pas : vous ne pouvez pas le leur imposer… Votre chien doit également porter une muselière (c’est obligatoire).

Your pet’s fee is 50% of the full price of a Second Class ticket, even if you are traveling in First Class.
The fee for a small dog or other pet (under 6 kg) carried in a bag or a basket (under 45 x 30 x 25 cm), is 5 € 10.
Before you seat yourself, ask nearby passengers if they are bothered by your pet, since you must not force its presence on them. Your dog must wear a muzzle (this is mandatory).

We were the first ones in our carriages, so we didn’t have to ask our neighbors if they were troubled by our dog’s presence. Chloe did not wear a muzzle, and the conductor did not seem perturbed (if you’re traveling with a big dog, you might want to have a muzzle on hand, in case you encounter a sterner conductor). She traveled in her new Milk & Pepper carrier (which I will be describing in more detail any day now, but you should know that it has two open ends); a cat, two rows behind us on the return trip, had a closed carrier but traveled outside of it in her owner’s lap (again, without any objection from the conductor).

Chloe on her way to Chartres

Visiting the cathedral

The cathedral was, in fact, completely glorious, and I say that even though the entire front — one of its most celebrated features — was swaddled in scaffolding. (Walter and I agreed that someone enterprising should start a website called isitcoveredwithscaffolding.fr, since important monuments are so often being restored.) We explored the interior with Chloe in her carrier on my shoulder, and no one expressed concern or disapproval. I did not make an effort to find out ahead of time whether she was allowed indoors (I could have called the diocese), and I did not ask for permission once I arrived, but I would certainly have left if asked. For her part, Chloe was silent the entire time she was inside.

When we left, we set Chloe on her own four legs and walked around the cathedral, admiring the carvings we could see (there were plenty, and they were impressive). Don’t miss the two gardens behind the cathedral, one with a view over the town (and of the outdoor labyrinth, a version of the one inside), and the other a very peaceful spot in front of the Musée des Beaux-Arts. The buildings facing the cathedral are lovely and, except for a somewhat generic shopping area just south of the cathedral, the central part of town is very appealing. We strolled, we had a coffee and a bottle of fizzy water in a shady spot next to the cathedral, and then we headed to the train station.

Chloe snoozes on the return trip

The last happy event of the day? We discovered that our return tickets were Second Class tickets just before the conductor reached us, and only two stops away from Paris. We explained our error and offered to pay the difference, but the conductor smiled as he looked at Chloe, sacked out in my arms, and told us not to fret.

Do you need federal trademark registration to protect your blog name?

Back in July, I filed an application with the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) to register DOG JAUNT as a trademark.  I just checked its status (“not yet assigned to an examining attorney,” and not a lot of hope that it’ll be assigned any time soon), and thought I’d write a quick post on why I made the effort and paid the money. Disclaimer: In a previous life, I was a trademark attorney, but I retired years ago and I do not provide legal advice. Please note that legal information is not the same as legal advice, which is the application of law to an individual’s specific circumstances. If you feel that you need advice, I urge you to consult a practicing lawyer.

What is a trademark?

A trademark is any word, phrase or symbol that uniquely identifies the goods or services of a seller. (The list of things that can function as a trademark is actually longer than that, but let’s not kill ourselves with details.) The point of trademark protection is to ensure that consumers can rapidly and confidently distinguish one company’s goods or services from those of another. When I gallop down the toothpaste aisle and grab my favorite brand, I want to show up at the cash register with CREST, not CRUST.

Can a blog name be a trademark?

Yes. You may think you’re just sharing pictures of the latest stop on your RTW trip, but from a trademark perspective you, as a blogger, are providing educational or entertainment services uniquely identified by your blog name.

Some bloggers also sell goods (one that comes to mind is Chris Guillebeau, who writes a blog called The Art of Non-Conformity and sells an electronic shelfful of guides and books). In fact, Dog Jaunt now sells goods — feel free to buy a fab Dog Jaunt-branded tee shirt, water bottle, or doggy tee.

What kind of trademark problems can you have with your blog name?

The very first thing you did as a blogger, I’ll bet, is buy a domain name (or choose one, if you started with Blogger or WordPress). The options are so limited for English words, particularly in the .com domain, that finding a domain name you like is a grim business. When you finally find one, you’re tempted to pour yourself a strong one and call it a day. It’s not safe, though, just to find a domain name that’s available. You need to check and see whether that domain name is someone else’s trademark, or confusingly similar to someone else’s trademark, before you can kick back. (For example, the term “dogjaunt” was still available on Blogger until about ten minutes ago, even though I’ve been posting at www.dogjaunt.com for a year and a half.) This post doesn’t address those issues. Take a look at this video (“Trademark Law and Your Domain Name”) for some more information about choosing a domain name for your blog.

Instead, this post touches on problems that may arise once you’ve been using your blog name. Here are the kinds of scenarios that drove me to seek federal registration: What if someone else in the U.S. starts a dog travel blog called Dog Jaunt? What if they call it Jaunty Dog? What if someone starts selling a line of pet carriers, or doggy water bottles, under the mark DOG JAUNT? What if they sell them under the mark JAUNTY DOG? What if someone offers related services, like, say, a pet travel planning and reservations site, under the mark DOG JAUNT, or a confusingly similar mark? And what if any of those things happens abroad?

How do I keep someone else from using my trademark?

Assuming that your use of your blog name doesn’t step on someone’s else’s toes, you start accruing what are called “common law rights” in your blog name when you start using it, and you can sue in court to enforce those rights. Another option, at the state level, is filing a state trademark application for your mark. The protection you get from these two sources is limited, however. A state trademark registration protects your mark only within that particular state. Common law rights in a trademark are limited to the geographic area in which a mark is used.

What you’ve got is a blog, which is available to anyone with a connection to the internet. Trademark protection that’s limited to a particular state isn’t going to be sufficient.

How about your rights under common law? Will it be assumed that because your blog can be accessed nationwide, your mark is being used nationwide? I’m not sure. I began writing Dog Jaunt in April 2009, and the Google Analytics report I just looked at tells me that since then, only 25 North Dakotans and only 28 South Dakotans have read any of my posts. Is that enough to prove use in those states, or could a North Dakotan start writing a blog called Dog Jaunt, covering dog travel in the Dakotas — and argue, when challenged, that the Dakotas are not part of the geographic area in which I use my mark? I don’t know the answer, and it’s my impression that the issue hasn’t yet been decided.

The most important benefits of federal trademark registration, from a blogger’s point of view, are (1) that a federally registered mark is protected nationwide, even if the owner’s actual use of the mark is more limited, (2) that federal registration allows a trademark owner to object to the use of her mark, or a confusingly similar mark, not only on the same goods or services she’s selling, but also on related goods or services, and (3) the ability to use your U.S. trademark registration as the basis for an international trademark application.

I thought about this last benefit in July, when a “leading internet solutions organization in Asia” sent me an e-mail telling me that a client had asked them to register the mark DOG JAUNT and several related domain names, and invited me to purchase those domain names instead. Sure enough, it was a scam, but it reminded me that I might well want to claim ownership of DOG JAUNT abroad.

Under a treaty signed by the U.S. and 78 other countries, you can use your U.S. trademark application as the basis for an “international registration” that gives you access to trademark protection in all of the member countries (PDF). The cost? If your application is only in one class, you’ll pay $100 to the USPTO and CHF 653 to WIPO. Is your focus more European? A Community trademark (CTM) registration will protect your mark in all 27 member states, but the filing fee will take your breath away (€900 online, €1050 paper). If you really only want coverage in a couple of countries, you might prefer to file trademark applications just in those countries; keep in mind, too, that some countries you may be interested in (e.g., Canada) are not included in either grouping.

What do I have to do to file a federal trademark application?

Start by reading, and watching, the materials provided by the USPTO. Take a look at Nolo Press’s trademark guide — the most recent edition was published this past August. Consider talking to an attorney. You can file your own application, and the USPTO’s site helps you through the process, but federal trademark applications are pricey and it would be a shame to waste that money on an application that ends up being rejected by the USPTO for avoidable reasons, or that yields a registration that gives you less protection than you deserve.

How pricey are federal trademark applications? Depending on which kind you file, they cost either $275 or $325 per class. Federally-registered trademarks are categorized into classes of goods and services, forty-five of them altogether, and blogs are regarded as a Class 41 “Education and entertainment” service. If you also sell goods, you may choose to file your application in one or more goods classes as well (if I had been selling Dog Jaunt-branded tees back in July, I might have included Class 25 clothing goods in my application).

Attorneys are also expensive, no doubt about it, but the more homework you do ahead of time, the shorter and more affordable your conversations with your lawyer will be. When you’re talking to candidate lawyers, don’t be shy about saying you have a limited budget. Good lawyers value their smaller clients, and will do what they can to reduce expenses for you — perhaps by offering you a streamlined packet of services, or by assigning your work to a senior associate rather than a partner.

Amazon link:
Trademark: Legal Care for Your Business & Product Name (Nolo Press 9th ed.)

Chloe’s Clicks: Dog travel links that we liked this week

Matching my cheerful mood here on a beautiful, perfect fall day in Paris, all of the dog travel links I have for you this week are fun and inspiring. Consider the following fall getaways for you and your pup:

Need more inspiration? The folks at ZooToo have five suggestions for dog-friendly fall outings, including visits to Miami, Vermont, Cape Cod and New York. If you’re heading to Disneyworld, you’ll want to read this guest post from Rori Paul on Take Paws about the new kennel at the Happiest Place on Earth — I think very highly of the kennel at Disneyland, and this one sounds even more fabulous.

And here’s a link that caught my eye for a bunch of reasons. Dog-Friendly Establishment asks “Should dogs be allowed to run free in cemeteries, or are graveyards no place for a dog park?” As you’ll see, the responses are mixed. Where do I come out? I love cemeteries, largely because I spent a great deal of my youth bicycling around rural Indiana and Ohio with my parents, and there’s nothing like a mown cemetery lawn and a warm, sun-baked gravestone for a comfortable lunch spot. I think people should spend more time in cemeteries — perhaps it would make us all less wigged-out about death and dying, and it would bring life and cheer to places that often seem so lonely. I would like it if cemeteries welcomed leashed dogs (I wouldn’t want the dogs to run free, for the safety of dogs and humans alike). I would not care, myself, if a dog pooped on my grave. I understand, however, that some people do mind — but why couldn’t cemeteries post signs requiring dog owners to clean up after their dogs, and withdraw the privilege when dog owners get slack? What do you think?

Photo Friday: Chloe rides on the Batobus

Back in September, I wrote a post about which river tour boat companies in Paris allowed dogs on board — most of the ones I listed were bateaux-mouches, but one was the Batobus, which is the river equivalent of the hop-on, hop-off buses you see, minus the commentary. On a drizzly afternoon this week, we stepped aboard our first Batobus boat (far smaller than the bateaux-mouches, but with a clear top providing excellent views of the riverbanks), and spent the next couple of hours chugging slowly from one stop to the next on a loop around central Paris. We hopped off at the Eiffel Tower to let Chloe stretch her legs in the Champs de Mars (packed — simply packed! — with pigeons), then hopped back on to return home to the Hôtel de Ville.

Chloe traveled in her new carrier, but the woman who sold us our tickets said that she could walk on, on her leash, if we preferred. It turns out that the carrier was a good choice, because Chloe fell asleep almost right away….

I would love to see your dog travel photos — if you have a moment, would you visit Dog Jaunt’s Facebook page and let us all see what you and your pup have been up to?

Life on the water: Cruising with a small dog (and a tortoise)

This is a guest post from Lindy O’Malley, who I met when she posted a picture of her husband kayaking with Max, their Papillon, on Dog Jaunt’s Facebook page. Earlier this year, she and her husband quit their jobs and began a new life of full-time cruising. She writes a delightful blog called Sea Mist Cruise, packed with pictures, about their travels. My apologies to Lindy: The post she sent looked beautiful — transferring it to WordPress altered her formatting for the worse, I’m afraid.

We are a family of four (two human, one tortoise and a Papillon) living full-time on our 42 foot power boat. Max the Papillon has lived on the boat since he was 10 weeks old and has proven to be the perfect “boat dog” for us.  He has never been sea sick or frightened by rough seas.  He has a regular doggie door to allow him access to the outdoor deck areas of the boat when he chooses.

His potty area is on the bow of the boat and consists of an elevated artificial turf that can be scooped and hosed down as needed.

We recently returned to the Puget Sound area following a three month, 1600 mile cruise in British Columbia. I am pleased to report that everywhere we docked or took the dinghy to shore in Canada we found dog friendly environments. Everywhere we went there were dog areas, biodegradable doggie bag dispensers, water bowls outside of most shops, shopkeepers with treats for visiting dogs and lots of friendly smiles.

Shawl Bay Marina in Simoom Sound even had a real turf yard on a floating barge called the K-9 Yacht Club.

Refuge Cove in central Desolation Sound has a designated pet path behind the general store for visiting boat dogs needing to stretch their legs.  Since trash disposal is a major concern on many of the smaller islands, rather than plastic dog bags, smaller marinas like Refuge Cove supply pet owners with a handy shovel and compost area for taking care of their dog’s waste.

Max enjoys watching porpoises playing in the bow wake of the boat while we are underway,  but Orcas seem to frighten him and he wants to be held when they are near the boat.  It could be the high pitched vocalizations that we hear them making.

Putting on a life jacket has always been part of the routine to prepare Max for leaving the boat by dinghy or kayak. He is a good swimmer but the water temperatures where we cruise are cold, 45 to 70 degrees.  If he gets excited and jumps in the water or were to fall in the life jacket has a handle which allows us to easily retrieve him from the water.

Kayaking usually involves stopping and exploring the shoreline. During these stops we are always vigilant about keeping Max close by for safety reasons.

Anywhere you boat in the Pacific North West you will be in the midst of hungry Bald Eagles and farther north, black bears.  We heard first hand of a small terrier being taken right off the dock by an Eagle in Port McNeill while its owners looked on in horror.