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Having a pet-loving president is a bonus for dog owners in Argentina whose state-run airline, Aerolineas Argentinas, is to allow small pets on flights starting in mid-January.

President Cristina Fernandez announced the policy change in a strange New Year social media address starring her beloved pooch Lolita, who regularly appears on her Facebook page.

'Careful! I said only small pets,' the post says. 'Don't try to board with a 50 kilo mastiff. Lolita only weighs two kilos.'

Argentine president Cristina Fernandez announced small pets will be allowed on Aerolineas Argentinas

Fernandez announced the state-run airline's policy change in a New Year's address on Facebook

Lapdogs are a popular accessory and status symbol in Argentina, especially in the capital Buenos Aires, and famously pampered. 

One photograph of Fernandez with Lolita on the presidential plane Tango 01 posted on New Year's Eve has attracted more than 42,000 likes and almost 5,000 comments. 

Hand-held pooches ranging from shih tzu's to pugs are commonly seen at outdoor cafes and on the wide avenues of Buenos Aires, which is known as the Paris of South America for its European layout and architecture.

As an aside, Fernandez addressed her country's worrying double-digit inflation, contracting gross domestic product and repeated sovereign debt defaults.  

She said central bank cash reserves rose 2.7 per cent in 2014, which could keep her from being forced into an unpalatable deal with hedge funds suing over defaulted bonds.

'Oh yes, I almost forgot, we've come to $31.4 billion in central bank reserves,' the post says.

Zoe Herman (pictured) is going up against some of America's biggest airlines with a petition to allow her companion hedgehog Heloise to travel in the cabin of an aircraft, just like small cats and dogs.

Heloise the hedgehog, from Portland, is not allowed to travel inside airplane cabins with her owner

The next president will be elected in October, so Lolita better make the most of the time she has left to enjoy the spacious Tango 01. Fernandez can't seek a third term as president.  

Pet travel policies vary from airline to airline but most able to arrange for a pet to travel in the hold, which is usually air-conditioned in the same manner as the cabin.

In the past week US woman Zoe Herman launched a campaign to make it possible for her to travel with her pet hedgehog Heloise in the cabin rather than the hold.  

Some dog and cat breeds are deemed unfit for travel. 

Virgin refuses to fly snub or pug-nosed breeds including all pugs, Boston terrier, English Toy Spaniel, British, American and French bulldogs, along with Himalayan and Persian cats, due to their respiratory problems.

British Airways allows cats or dogs in a carrier in the cabin if they weigh less than 6kg (13.2lb) - any larger they have to go in the cargo hold.