A pit bull emotional support dog recently mauled a five-year-old’s face at the Portland OR airport. She had moved close to him when the sudden attack happened. 

The dog was stressed by airport noise, crowds and confusion, resulting in the unexpected reaction. Your travel4seniors.com editor was also hurt recently in a similar incident. When I stroked the head of a costumed dog during a noisy holiday street parade, he quickly bit my hand. It caused a large, deep bloody wound that required many stitches.

Lesson learned? In your travels, always be careful about petting comfort dogs in airports and elsewhere with large crowds, loud noise and other stressful conditions that could frighten them. Be friendly, but keep a safe  distance.

After not visiting the Florida resort town for several years, we recently had lunch at a popular eatery. The food was health-themed, but the bill was sickening.

It was $190 for the four of us, with booze, but no desserts. When we first ate there just a dozen years ago, the same lunch cost less than $80 for four people. There are ways to fight the high prices. For seniors trying to live on limited budgets, we can deal with the ever-rising cost of restaurant dining.

The most obvious is to visit high-priced restaurants less frequently and find the most reasonable eateries. When traveling, avoid expensive restaurants and catered in-room hotel meals and drinks. Buy take-out food and booze at a nearby grocery, and enjoy bargain meals in the park and your hotel room.

Remember the old TV series, Have Gun, Will Travel? It sees too many people are taking that too literally these days. According to a USA Today report, last year TSA agents in U.S. airports had to confiscate nearly 4,000 illegal guns from passenger check-in bags and clothing. And the numbers keep increasing every year.

Before you decide to pack heat on your next flight, it’s best not to do it. If you have a legit reason to take firearms, be absolutely sure you know the rules that apply and have the papers to prove it. And, while checking in you notice another passenger with an unauthorized weapon or other illegal item, to insure safety for everyone on the flight, report it immediately to the nearest airport security officer.

Some nasty jokesters paste realistic-looking paper stickers of fake power outlets near waiting areas at airports. Then they giggle and grin nearby as people try to plug in their chargers before boarding flights. The sticker photos are so realistic, there’s often a never-ending line of passengers waiting their turn to be fooled.

If it happens to you, look around for a grinning creep nearby. Don’t do what you’d prefer to with your plug, but do flash an electric grimace and a few choice cuss words at him.