An Italian woman has been granted sick pay for time she took off work to care for her unwell dog.
The unnamed academic, from Roma's La Sapienza University, demanded she be compensated for two days she took to care for her pet.
A judge accepted her lawyer's case that her employer should treat her absences as legally allowable in relation to "serious or family personal reasons".
The Italian Anti-Vivisection League (LAV), one of the biggest animal rights groups in Europe, mounted the woman's case for her.
Their argument was underpinned by an Italian legal provision which says people who abandon an animal to "grave suffering" can be jailed for a year and fine 10,000 euros.
LAV presicent Gianluca Felicetti said: "This is a significant step forward that recognised that animals are not kept for financial gain or their working ability. They are effectively members of the family.
"Now, with the necessary veterinary certification, those in the same situation will be able to cite this important precedent."
