The reports that I've seen are inaccurate, yes.
It might be a translation problem, if the word for "space" is being translated into "orbit". Only someone familiar with the original language can answer that.
Laika was not intended to return, it was a one way trip.
As for the actual flight, no question that it was a suborbital flight, using a sounding rocket, with a live subject in a small retrievable capsule that ejects at apogee. I doubt the scientific return, but if you don't have fancy sensors (or if they are heavy), the monkey might be lighter and serve the same purpose. It it lives then you know that acceleration, temperature, atmosphere, etc, are all within parameters.