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    Puppy Paradise

    Puppy paradise: Houston landmark is named to list of Top 50 Dog-Friendly Road Trip Destinations

    Elizabeth Rhodes
    Jun 6, 2015 | 12:30 pm
    Houston Arboretum and Nature Center
    The Houston Arboretum and Nature Center ranked No. 11 on a national list of the Top 50 Dog Friendly Road Trip Destinations.
    Get Out Here

    Summer is here and for thousands of Americans it means it's time hit the road and take adventures with your family, including your four-legged friends.

    More than 37 million people kicked off their summer with a Memorial Day trip of at least 50 miles, according to AAA's estimates, and 88 percent of them opted to travel by car rather than by plane. Seeing that so many Americans will be spending quality time on the road this summer, the Milk-Bone company created a list of the best destinations for the entire family, including your puppy pals.

    If you're looking for the most pooch-friendly state, four of the top 10 destinations on Milk-Bone's list are located in California.

    Milk-Bone cross-referenced online review sites with data on dog-friendly restaurants and hotels and compiled the a list of the top pup-approved parks and landmarks and assigned each spot a 'biscuit score' of up to 50 points.

    One Houston destination — the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center — came in at No. 11 on the list with a 'biscuit score' of 40. Five miles of trails wind across the Arboretum's 155-acre area that features forest, pond, wetland and meadow habitats, making it a great place to explore nature (note some trails are closed due to the heavy storms that swamped Houston but there is still plenty of roaming space). The reserve is open from 7 a.m. until dusk each day and admission is always free of charge.

    If you're looking for the most pooch-friendly state, four of the top 10 destinations on Milk-Bone's list are located in California, including the Original Dog Beach in San Diego at No. 1 and Golden Gate Park in San Francisco at No. 2.

    Top 50 Dog Friendly Road Trip Destinations

    ('Biscuit score' in parenthesis — final scores ranged from 20 to 50 biscuits.)

    No. 1: The Original Dog Beach - San Diego, California (50)
    No. 2: Golden Gate Park - San Francisco, California (49)
    No. 3: Fort Tryon Park - New York City, New York (48.5)
    No. 4: Runyon Canyon - Los Angeles, California (47)
    No. 5: Acadia National Park - Mt. Desert Island, Maine (46)
    No. 6: Pike Place Market - Seattle, Washington (45)
    No. 7: Carmel - Carmel-by-the-Sea, California (44.5)
    No. 8: The Biltmore Estate - Asheville, North Carolina (44)
    No. 9: Central Park - New York City, New York (43)
    No. 10: Cherry Creek Farmer's Market - Denver, Colorado (43)
    No. 11: Houston Arboretum & Nature Center - Houston, Texas (40)
    No. 12: The Trail System at the US National Whitewater Center - Charlotte, North Carolina (39)
    No. 13: Mammoth Mountain - Mammoth Lakes, California (38)
    No. 14: Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area - Atlanta, Georgia (37)
    No. 15: Gettysburg National Military Park - Gettysburg, Pennsylvania (37)
    No. 16: Yosemite - California (35)
    No. 17: Colonial Williamsburg - Williamsburg, Virginia (34)
    No. 18: Nashville - Tennessee (33)
    No. 19: Key West Aquarium - Key West, Florida (33)
    No. 20: The Cascades at Lake Mohegan - Fairfield, Connecticut (32)
    No. 21: Broad Ripple - Indianapolis, Indiana (31)
    No. 22: Mercury Canine Cruise - Chicago, Illinois (30)
    No. 23: National Mall - Washington, D.C. (29)
    No. 24: Arlington National Cemetery - Washington, D.C. (28)
    No. 25: Cuyahoga Valley National Park - Ohio (27)
    No. 26: Point Reyes National Seashore - Point Reyes Station, California (26)
    No. 27: Olympic National Park - Port Angeles, Washington (25)
    No. 28: Shenandoah National Park - Virginia (24)
    No. 29: Bow Wow Beach - Stow, Ohio (23)
    No. 30: Royal Gorge Bridge - Cañon City, Colorado (23)
    No. 31: Fantastic Caverns - Springfield, Missouri (23)
    No. 32: Mount Vernon - Mount Vernon, Virginia (23)
    No. 33: Old Charleston Ghost Tour - Charleston, South Carolina (22)
    No. 34: Crazy Horse Memorial - Crazy Horse, South Dakota (22)
    No. 35: Joshua Tree - Joshua Tree National Park, California (22)
    No. 36: Hot Springs National Park & Riverboat Tour - Hot Springs, Arkansas (22)
    No. 37: Mount Hollywood Trail - Los Angeles, California (21)
    No. 38: White Sands National Monument - Alamogordo, New Mexico (21)
    No. 39: Washington Crossing Historic Park - Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania (21)
    No. 40: Dog Beach at Key Biscayne - Key Biscayne, Florida (20)
    No. 41: Tombstone - Tombstone, Arizona (20)
    No. 42: Southwest City Dog Park - St. Louis, Missouri (20)
    No. 43: Good Hart - Good Hart, Michigan (20)
    No. 44: Dinosaur National Monument - Maybell, Utah (20)
    No. 45: Mammoth Cave National Park - Mammoth Cave, Kentucky (20)
    No. 46: Dallas Heritage Village - Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas (20)
    No. 47: Minute Man National Historic Park - Concord, Massachusetts (20)
    No. 48: Veterans Park Lagoon - Milwaukee, Wisconsin (20)
    No. 49: Paw Playground & Beach De Soto - St. Petersburg, Florida (20)
    No. 50: Penn Valley Dog Park (WWI Memorial) - Kansas City, Missouri (20)

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    Unhappy holidays

    Porch pirates swipe nearly $2B in packages from Texas homes this year

    John Egan
    Dec 17, 2025 | 9:30 am
    Porch Pirate Person in Glasses Steals Packages
    Getty Images
    The Grinch isn't the only one stealing Christmas these days.

    ’Tis the season for porch pirates. If past trends are an indicator, the Grinch will swipe close to $2 billion worth of packages delivered to Texas households this year, with many of those thefts happening ahead of the holiday season.

    An analysis of FBI and survey data by ecommerce marketing company Omnisend shows porch pirates stole more than $1.8 billion worth of packages from Texans’ porches last year. Porch pirates hit nearly one-third of the state’s households in 2024, according to the analysis.

    Omnisend’s analysis reveals these statistics about porch piracy in Texas:

    • 30.1 million residential package thefts in 2024.
    • An average household loss of $169 per year.
    • An annual average of 2.9 package thefts per household.

    “Most stolen items are cheap on their own, but add them up, and retailers and consumers are facing an enormous bill,” says Omnisend.

    Another data analysis, this one from The Action Network sports betting platform, unwraps different figures regarding porch piracy in Texas.

    The platform’s 2025 Porch Pirate Index ranks Texas as the state with the highest volume of residential thefts, based on 2023-24 FBI data.

    Researchers at The Action Network uncovered 26,293 reports of personal property thefts at Texas residences during that period. The network’s survey data indicates 5 percent of Texas residents had a package stolen in the three months before the pre-holiday survey.

    The Porch Pirate Index calculates a 25.8 percent risk of a Texas household being victimized by porch pirates, putting it in the No. 5 spot among states with the highest risk of porch piracy.

    The Action Network included online-search volume for terms like “package stolen” and “porch pirates.” Sustained spikes in these searches suggest that “people are actively looking for guidance after something has happened. Search trends serve as an early warning system, revealing emerging-risk areas well before annual crime statistics are released,” the network says.

    Tips to avoid being a victim
    So, how do you prevent porch pirates from snatching packages that end up on your porch? Omnisend, The Action Network and Amazon offer these eight tips:

    1. Closely monitor deliveries and quickly retrieve packages.
    2. Schedule deliveries for times when you’ll be home.
    3. Use delivery lockers or in-store pickup when possible.
    4. Ask delivery services to hide packages in out-of-sight spots outside your home.
    5. Install a visible doorbell camera or security camera.
    6. Coordinate deliveries with neighbors or building managers if you’ll be away from your home when packages are supposed to arrive.
    7. Request that delivery services hold your packages if you can’t be home when they’re scheduled to come.
    8. Illuminate the path to your doorstep and keep porch lights on.
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