Something for mikey. by Fremdfirma

REAL WORLD EVENT DISCUSSIONS

Something for mikey.

POSTED BY: FREMDFIRMA
UPDATED: Friday, April 10, 2009 16:06
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Friday, April 10, 2009 3:29 PM

Honda unveils dog-friendly car
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090410/od_nm/us_dogs;_ylt=AqsKVQVAywaF3mW
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Fri Apr 10, 1:36 pm ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Dog-crazy Americans will soon be able to buy a pet-friendly car with a cushioned dog bed in the trunk, fitted with a built-in water bowl and fan and a ramp to help less agile dogs climb in.

With the help of a rescue dog named Sammy, Japanese car maker Honda Motor Co unveiled the pet friendly version of its Element utility vehicle at the New York Auto Show.

It features easy-wash seat covers, a fitted dog bed with restraints to keep Sammy safe in the event of a crash, and a paw logo on the side. Honda said the car would go on sale across the United States from the fall of this year.

Honda spokesman Sage Marie said it was designed with both safety and comfort in mind. "(It's) a car we think is of interest to many of today's dog-crazy consumers," he said.

Senior product planner James Jenkins said Americans spend $41 billion a year on their pets, a figure forecast to rise to $52 billion in two years, indicating a big market for the car.

"Pets have become more like family, more important to households than ever before," Jenkins said.

The current model of the Element starts at a little over $20,000 and Honda has yet to determine how much the pet friendly features will add on to the price tag, Jenkins said.

Sammy's owner, Heather Cammisa of the Humane Society of the United States, said she had borrowed the car for two weeks and found the ramp especially useful.

"Sammy actually needs a ramp. Before I adopted him he ended up at a shelter having been hit by a car and he needs that ramp," she said. "Otherwise I lift him to get into my car."

(Reporting by Claudia Parsons, Editing by Sandra Maler)

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Friday, April 10, 2009 3:37 PM

KWICKO

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)

Thank you for that, Frem! That made my day!

As you know, I've got a longtime love of Honda automobiles, and I do tend to spoil my dogs. Something like that might be right up my alley.

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

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Friday, April 10, 2009 3:46 PM

FREMDFIRMA

You're welcome, now all you need is a parakeet back there and you'll have a woofer and a tweeter.

-F

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Friday, April 10, 2009 4:06 PM

KWICKO

Bah-dum-DUM! (Rim-shot sound effect)

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