ITALY LEADS

By: Naila

ROME : An Italian dog owner who wanted paid time off to care for one of her dogs offered her bosses and simple explanation :

''They are my family''. And it worked.

In what a pet advocacy group called a groundbreaking  decision , the woman's employees changed its mind and gave the woman leave to care for her sick 12-year old English setter.

Pet advocacy groups say the achievement  could pave the way for similar claims in the future.

The woman, an employee at Sapienza University in Rome, who was identified in Italian news report only by her first name, Anna, lives alone and had to take time off work-

To take her dog to the veterinarian for surgery.

''I had asked for the  paid allowance, honestly explaining what I needed it for ...............to care for my sick dog,'' Anna told the Turin newspaper La Stampa.

''I later realized that they had counted those days as a holiday, and I got very angry as a matter of principle.''