Hotels for Animals

Happy Dogs

In order to run a hotel for dogs you do not need to have a veterinary education; however, passion and experience in working with animals is indispensable. There is an increasing demand for hotels intended for animals. Especially in short supply are buildings which do not resemble animal shelters. Therefore, it is not enough to offer coops or kennels and give them something to eat once a day. Modern hotels for animals should guarantee comfortable conditions and tender care for a whole day. That is what animal owners pay for. These kinds of hotels are especially popular during the summer and winter holidays. “In the vicinity of Warsaw there are around 60–100 places for animals which is not much for such a large urban area,” says Magdalena Pawlak from the U zoopsychologa Guest House for dogs.

“Interest in these hotels is also greater during Christmas and New Year’s Eve when Poles plan longer trips, as during Easter. It is also crowded before every long weekend,” says Irena Kalicka, owner of a Warsaw hotel for animals. Increasingly more Poles go on business trips and then there is a problem where to leave their dogs or cats. “Nevertheless, the summer months are most profitable. From the money earned during that time you can make a living for the whole year,” says Agnieszka Lewandowska, owner of a hotel for dogs in Łódź. In order to open a guest house for animals it is not necessary to have veterinary education although, as owners of the hotels stress, it is very useful when you apply for EU subsidies. “A degree gives you additional points on the application,” adds Agnieszka Lewandowska. Certainly, it is necessary to have some experience in working with animals because, as owner of the hotels emphasise, it is hard physical work 24 hours a day. “You have to know how to act with assertive Rottweilers and how to work with small Yorkshire Terriers,” says Agnieszka Lewandowska. She also adds that this work requires one to be very responsible.
Gazeta Prawna

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Obligatory Tests for HIV

Fighting HIV

“We are planning to widen the basic set of tests for pregnant women or those who are trying to have a child,” said Dr Stanisław Radowiecki from a team of specialists working on the prevention of ‘vertical’ HIV, i.e. that form of HIV which is passed from mother to child. During their first gynaecologist appointment, patients should be asked to take a HIV test. Yesterday, the National Aids Centre started a campaign whose  main slogan is: “Give your child a chance. Not AIDS”. Approximately 50% of people infected with HIV in Poland are not aware of the fact that they are sick, and 30% of them are women. Every year about 70-100 women in Poland that are diagnosed with HIV give birth to a child. “Nowadays only 10% of pregnant women take tests for HIV and only 3% of them claim that they have been informed about the necessity of taking such a test,” said Dr Tomasz Niemiec from the Polish Association of Gynaecologists. If a pregnant woman is aware of the fact that she has HIV her child has almost a 100% chance of not being infected with the virus during delivery but she must see a consultant to learn how to protect her child. Free and anonymous tests for HIV can be taken in 24 special clinics in Poland. More information can be found on: www.aids.gov.pl.
Gazeta Wyborcza

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Lost Credit Cards

Fantastic Plastic?

Banks are responsible for amounts that exceed Euro 150; however, customers are not liable for any transactions made by a thief after they have reported the theft of a credit card. The freezing of a credit card plays a key role because only after it is blocked by a bank, does the owner of a given credit card not bear any responsibility for transactions made by the thief. The credit card owner is accountable for stolen money which does not exceed Euro 150 until the card is frozen. This regulation was introduced by the Electronic Payment Instruments Act of 12th September 2002. If a perpetrator makes a transaction by means of the credit card for more than Euro 150, the surplus is covered by the bank and not the owner of the stolen card. “Unfortunately most credit card holders do not know about this Act and banks fail to mention it to their customers,” says Grzegorz Głowacki, chairman of the board in AllCards, operator of the Telephone Exchange of Lost Credit Cards (Centrala Kart Utraconych). By phoning +48 22 37 90 444 you can contact your bank in order to freeze a stolen or lost credit card. This phone number can be used for all credit cards. “Of course, every owner can directly call his or her bank, but the phone number of the bank is usually placed on the credit card,” adds Mr Głowacki. The Telephone Exchange of Lost Credit Cards also has its own website: www.zablokuj.pl, on which you will find lots of additional information, for instance, how to block a credit card issued by a supermarket or petrol station. This website will soon provide new services such as the freezing of lost mobile phones, ID cards and other valuable goods.
Rzeczpospolita

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Untrustworthy Polish Banks

New Ratings

The rating agency Moody’s may reduce its rating for the following eight Polish banks: PKO BP, Pekao SA, BRE Bank, BRE Bank Hipoteczny, BZ WBK, BGŻ, Lukas Bank and EFL. The agency has already made a decision concerning ING Bank Śląski and the long-term debt outlook for this institution was downgraded from stable to negative.  PKO BP, Pekao SA, BRE Bank, BRE Bank Hipoteczny, BZ WBK, BGŻ, Lukas Bank and EFL have all been placed on Moody’s blacklist. Two months ago Moody’s placed Bank Handlowy and Millennium on an observational list which resulted in the reduction of the ratings of their strategic investors. Getin Bank already has a negative rating. However, Bank BPH is on the other end of the scale because its rating may rise as a result of the fact that the bank may be merging with GE Money. This situation is a consequence of the financial crisis. According to analysts, the Polish economy has entered into an economic downturn; therefore, it is highly probable that many companies will declare insolvency, which means that bank losses will increase as a result of unpaid debt. In turn, increasing unemployment and a drop in prices of real estate will probably cause heavy losses in the wallets of retail customers. “It is expected that these losses will weaken the financial position of most Polish banks over the next two years,” writes Moody’s in its report. Where does the downgrade for PKO BP stem from? Moody’s explains that even though the bank has a dominant position on the retail market, the recent sudden increase of interest rates for mortgages given in foreign currencies remains a reason for concern.
Dziennik

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Wojewódzki the Showman

In Trouble Again

The Polish courts are fed up with Kuba Wojewódzki. The TVN celebrity has been accused of disgracing the Polish flag, yet he did not even bother to appear in court. The 45-year-old TV host was supposed to explain why the Polish flag was placed into dog faeces during his show. Unfortunately, Wojewódzki did not show up and therefore received a heavy fine. The scandal took place on the Kuba Wojewódzki Show, during which artist Marek Raczkowski and actor Krzysztof Stelmaszyk, at the host’s insistence, put the Polish flag into some dog faeces. Surprisingly enough, Wojewódzki did not want to do this himself. On 25 May the host did not appear in court where he was supposed to testify. Due to the fact that he did not submit any excuse, the court imposed a fine of PLN 500 on him. However, PLN 500 is not a great deal for a person earning more than PLN 100,000 a month, but it proves that even such celebrities as Kuba Wojewódzki should not cross the law.
Dziennik

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No School for Six-year-olds

No Education

According to Gazeta Wyborcza the authorities have not managed to convince parents of six-year-olds to send them to first grade. Reporters of Wyborcza have looked at how many six-year-olds will go to first grade in September in Poland’s major cities. With partial results varying from 0.4% in Gliwice to 14% in Gdynia, and with a national average of nearly 3%, the overall results are quite different from what the Ministry of National Education (MEN) had anticipated. In January, the Minister of National Education Katarzyna Hall expected that around 30% of six-year-olds will go to first grade.

Today she says: “I never thought that many parents will send their children to first grade at the beginning of the transitory period. I understand the fears that parents may have about the difference in the way their children will be treated in kindergarten and in school. After all, I am a mother myself”. At present parents prefer their chidlren to stay in kindergarten a year longer. They even prefer to send them to so-called “zero class” in schools, rather than to first grade.  “This shows us that parents have vetoed the change,” says Karolina Elbanowska, founder of the parents’ movement Ratujmaluchy.pl, which is against the new law. She adds: “this is evidence that you cannot suddenly pass new regulations without the necessary preparation and appropriate funds”. According to the regulations of the new Educational Act all six-year-olds will have to go to first grade in 2012. Until then it is up to parents to decide. However, Katarzyna Hall says that “if after three years still not enough parents have decided to send their children to first grade at the age of six, the Sejm can extend the transitory period by a year or two”.

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According to “Gazeta” Wyborcza” the authorities did not manage to convince parents of six-year-olds to send them to the first grade.

Reporters of “Wyborcza” have investigated how many six-year-olds will, in major Polish cities, go to the first grade in September. With the partial results varying from 0.4% in Gliwice to 14% in Gdynia and the countrywide average of almost 3%, the overall results are quite different from what the Ministry of Education (MEN) expected. In January, the Minister of Education, Katarzyna Hall expected that around 30% of six-year-olds will go to the first grade. Today she says that “I never assessed that many parents will send their children to the first grade at the beginning of the transitory period. I understand fears that parents may have about difference in treatment of their children in kinder garden and in school. After all, I am a mother myself”.

At present parents prefer that their kids stayed in the kinder garden a year longer. They even prefer to send them to the so-called “zero class” in schools, rather than to the first grade.

“Those actions show that parents vetoed the change”, says Karolina Elbanowska – founder of the parents’ movement Ratujmaluchy.pl, which is against the new law. She adds that “it is the evidence that you cannot abruptly pass the new law without proper preparations and appropriate funds”.

According to the regulations of the new Educational Act all six-year-olds will have to go to the first grade in 2012. Until then it is up to the parents to decide. However, Katarzyna Hall says that “if after three years still not enough parents decide to send their children to the first grade at the age of six, the Sejm can extend the transitory period by a year or two”.

Swine Flu in Poland

Polish Attack

The third case of swine flu in Poland has been confirmed. A 21-year-old man who recently returned to Poland from the United States is infected with the A/H1N1 virus. He is in hospital in Chorzów. How did the man discover that he might be infected with the virus? “He got a call from his friend from Washington saying that he is infected with A/H1N1. After the call, the man immediately reported to the doctor,” explains Jan Bondar, a spokesman for the Chief Sanitary Inspectorate. The 21-year-old man is now in the Hospital for Infectious Diseases in Chorzów. The man’s parents, who returned from the United States, are also in hospital. Employees from the Sanitary and Epidemiological Station in Kraków are trying to reach passengers from flight LH3322 from Munich to Kraków. An American infected with swine flu was on board this plane. So far a 58-year-old women is in an isolation ward in Mielec and being treated for swine flu. The woman recovered and was discharged last week. A 42-year-old man who returned to Wrocław from the USA was also treated for swine flu. On Monday he was discharged after one week in Kalisz hospital.
Dziennik

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Anti-Gay Cejrowski

Famous Homophobe

Wojciech Cejrowski, who hit the headlines after telling a schoolteacher to put a condom on a banana during his TV show WC Kwadrans, has now called upon the clergy to show stronger engagement in the fight against gays and abortion. “Every Bible-basher is obliged to do their missionary work,” said Cejrowski. The well-known traveller has expressed his irritation on YouTube, saying that last year during the March for Life and Family, organised to counter the legalisation of homosexual marriages, no priests participated. “Why haven’t I seen any priests at all? Why haven’t I seen any students of the University of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński? Why do you sit on your asses at home doing nothing?” asked Cejrowski.
Dziennik

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Kwaśniewski not to Disclose Alek

Secret Collaborator?

During an RMF FM-Newsweek interview, former President Aleksander Kwaśniewski reiterated that he was not afraid of the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) publishing material on “Alek”. Mr Kwaśniewski was in this way commenting on information that the next IPN bulletin will include an article on his alleged collaboration with the communist Security Services (SB). “Since there was no such collaboration and since I know that “Alek” was a completely different person, and due to the fact that I was vetted in 2000, I am not afraid of anything,” says Mr Kwaśniewski. Asked why the IPN has decided to deal with him now, the former President replied that this must certainly be revenge for criticising the Institute recently. Moreover, Mr Kwaśniewski claims that the issue is constantly being shelved: “you are the first people to mention this issue for several weeks, which suggests that the IPN documents do not contain anything important”. The former President admits he does not intend to defend himself because, firstly, he already pleaded not guilty during his vetting proceedings and, secondly, it transpired that “Alek” worked for Życie Warszawy, with which Mr Kwaśniewski is not connected at all. Asked if he would reveal who “Alek” is, he replied it would only be possible on his deathbed, when he writes his memoirs.
Dziennik

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Tragedy on Zakopianka

Road to Hell?

A tragedy took place on the so-called “Zakopianka” highway, near Mogilany, 10 kilometres from Kraków. A bus, with a team of young football players, went over onto its side. Nine injured passengers were taken to hospital, fortunately, two of them have already been discharged. Twenty three people (three adults and twenty teenagers aged 14-18) were on the bus. The passengers were on their way to Kraków in order to take part in a football competition. It is still not known why the bus rolled over. After the accident took place, six fire engines arrived on the spot immediately to clear the road. No passengers are critical-injured as they only sustained minor injuries. Police officers report that the bus driver was sober and the vehicle had valid service papers.
Dziennik

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