The next time you see someone pushing a stroller, take a closer look.

The occupant might be furry, four-legged and diaper-free.

Dog strollers are the newest trend to hit the streets of Toronto. And the reasons range from all-out glamour to the more mundane.

“We sell more when the weather gets nasty,” says Mike Fitzpatrick, co-owner of Bark & Fitz, a chain of pet boutiques based in Mississauga. “People don’t want to drag their perfectly coiffed dogs through the slush. And the salt can sting their paws. I’ve seen dogs roll over on their side because they don’t want to walk.

“It’s something that started in California, New York, Miami and Chicago and has become more mainstream in Canada in the last three years. At first we were hesitant to bring strollers into the market because we thought they were a little over the top.”

But once you get beyond the Paris Hilton-indulgence factor, there are practical issues that make pet strollers appealing.

“High-quality food is extending the life of dogs, but they are getting hip ailments and can’t walk,” Fitzpatrick says.

Even healthy toy dogs can get too tuckered out to keep up with their owners. In the summer scorching pavement can burn bare paws. And crowds can be treacherous for small dogs and nerve-wracking for their walkers who fear they may get trampled.

“And there are places where dogs aren’t allowed, so a carrier or stroller comes in handy,” Fitzpatrick says. “If the flaps are down people won’t even realize there’s a dog in there.”

Pet strollers at Bark & Fitz range from $150 to $400, from bare bones to sturdier models with high-end windbreakers and waterproof covers. “They’re not all pink and frilly,” Fitzpatrick says. “Jeep makes a pet jogger that even a guy would be fine with.”

Jeep strollers are distributed by Vermont-based Pet Gear Inc. (petgearinc.com) which also offers ultra-lights and an all-terrain pet vehicle.

Kittywalk.com has double deckers for situations where pets are better off travelling in separate quarters.

“There really is something for everyone now,” says Connie Wilson, publisher of Vancouver-based Modern Dog magazine.

She got a pet trailer this summer so she could cycle to work with her 65-pound Wiemaraner-pointer cross, Kaya, attached to the bike. The Burley brand pet trailer is built to withstand a larger dog’s heft. “And it has a flat bed with easy access and different ventilation than a baby stroller.”

Another option is the Tutto carrier on wheels, which resembles a big black lawyer’s briefcase and would be ideal in a situation that requires a professional image.

A stroller came in handy at Modern Dog when another office companion, a miniature dachsund named Esther, suffered a partially ruptured disc.

“She’s only 11 pounds, so it’s easy to pick her up, but if you go any distance it’s a burden. That’s when you really appreciate a stroller,” Wilson says.

“Prior to this, people had to make do and convert baby strollers, but now there is something for all kinds of different needs. And you can even colour co-ordinate.

“It all stems back to the fact that pets are integrated into people’s lives,” Wilson says. “They hold a spot in the family that is equivalent to a child. They give so much to us; it’s a way for us to give back to them.”

But is there a danger dogs might not get the exercise they need?

“Any responsible dog owner will understand a dog can’t be contained 24/7,” Wilson says. “But if you are out on a mission and you want your dog to be safe, then a pet stroller is a useful tool.”

A dog and his owner have been reunited after last Friday’s horrific tanker crash along Interstate 95 in Waterford.

The pit bull in a tractor-trailer struck by a tanker truck on the highway was reunited with his owner over the weekend.

As chaos broke out on I-95, a heroic pit bull remained calm, sitting in the front seat of a tractor-trailer hit by a tanker truck. As the truck crumbled, the dog stood tall, staying beside his owner until help arrived.

“I was calling to him, but he was just standing there and just guarding his person,” said Phyllis Martino, a witness at the scene.

That’s when another hero was standing by to step in. Vincent Gagliardi said the pit bull was frantic as his owner was carried away. So, Gagliardi took off his belt, ran to the dog, fashioned a leash and got the dog out of there.

“This guy was still sitting in the passenger seat, and there was diesel fuel all around, so I took him out of there,” Gagliardi said.

Walt Disney World is going after pet owners who might feel better about vacationing at the resort if they know their dogs will be coddled with bedtime stories or their cats treated to snacks such as tuna on Ritz crackers.

“We will be able to provide wonderful experiences for pets,” said Dennis Dolan, president and chief executive officer of Best Friends Pet Care Inc.

His Norwalk, Conn., company just got a contract from Disney to operate the resort’s five existing kennels — and to build a state-of-the-art boarding center where dogs and cats can board in two-room suites with patios and get all the pampering they have come to expect.

Walks? Sure. Runs on an obstacle course? If they wish, as shown on the right, at a Best Friends facility in New York. Ice cream snacks. Bottled water. Supervised socializing with other pets. Elevated beds with lamb’s-wool bedding. If special bedding is desired — even orthopedic beds — those, too, will be available.

For dogs used to curling up on a child’s bed and drifting off to sleep as a parent reads a bedtime story, bedtime stories will be available. For those conditioned to nap in front of a TV, televisions can be provided. And they won’t be playing just any TV shows; they’ll have dog movies, like Milo and Otis or Homeward Bound.

“A lot of people leave their televisions or radios on at home during the day to keep their pets company. This is really an idea that came to us from our clients who wanted a more homelike setting for their pets,” said Best Friends spokeswoman Debra Bennetts. “What we provide is luxury suites. . . . It’s really for that person who wants to make sure that their pet is being pampered the way they get pampered at home.”

Cats will get a different kind of pampering. Their “condos” will come with lofts. Their TVs will play videos of birds. They can have aquariums to watch.

Dolan said luxury boarding for pets has been emerging for years, and he considers his company to be one of the innovators. Best Friends has 44 other boarding centers nationwide. Most of the luxury features are available at most of them.

Note: an earlier version stated misleading rates for Disney’s kennels.

At those other Best Friends facilities, basic boarding fees for dogs range from less than $25 to more than $40 a day, depending on the local market and the size of the dog. Luxury features, such as 10 minutes of cuddle time, can be purchased separately for $2 to $12 per feature or in packages that add $12 to $38 a day to the cost.

The company has not yet set its Disney World luxury rates. Current Disney fees run from $10 to $15 a night, depending on the pet. Those basic rates will go up after Best Friends starts taking over operations in January — perhaps up to $20 a night, though the level of service will increase, too, Disney spokeswoman Zoraya Suarez said.

There’s no mistaking it when Vic starts to work. He ignores everybody. He rarely speaks. He’s all business.

Granted, such spurts only last a half-hour to 45 minutes. Then it’s time for a nap.

Vic, who turned 3 in September, is an explosives-detection canine trained by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) to detect more than 18,000 different substances, from gunpowder to peroxide-based explosives. His handler is Ramsey County sheriff’s deputy Doreen Genosky.

They’re on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week and go wherever they’re needed, whether it’s in Ramsey County or not. They were at the scene of the I-35W bridge collapse in August to help rule out explosives. Before the State Fair opened, they scoured every building.

Most days, Genosky and Vic’s office is the Ramsey County Courthouse in downtown St. Paul. Sometimes they’re assigned to a specific case. Other times they search the courtrooms being used that day. Vic is sniffing for guns, bullets, spent shells or any other type of explosive.

Nothing has been found at the courthouse, at least not in the year that Vic and Genosky have patrolled it together.

Some days ago, Vic’s star-shaped badge tinked as he stopped at Courtroom 840 on his regular rounds, where he greeted his fellow deputies (Vic isn’t actually a sworn deputy), a couple of reporters and members of slain St. Paul police Sgt. Gerald Vick’s family, including his mom, Maggie Vick, there for a hearing.

“What’s his name?” they asked.

“Vic,” Genosky said.

That elicited smiles all around. No, Vic is not named for the fallen officer. He’s a New York-bred dog and was named there.

Vic and Genosky’s skills are in demand away from the courthouse, too. They often go along when a narcotics unit or a gang strike force searches a home.

They were called when St. Paul police impounded a car believed to have been used in a drive-by shooting. Vic found the exact spot in the car where a gun had been fired. “He alerted to the residue from the weapon,” Genosky said.

She brought her canine partner to an empty courtroom a few weeks ago to talk to a reporter and photographer. Vic wandered the room, sniffing the corners, in and around the jury box, the witness stand, the judge’s bench, the benches in the gallery. Finished, he decided this was as good a time as any to nap at his partner’s feet.

Ten minutes later, he stood, barked — a bark even larger than the 70-pound dog — warbled, pawed at Genosky and jumped up to put his paws on her shoulders.

“He wants to work right now,” she said. “He’s telling me, ‘Let’s do something.’”

Genosky hid her ammunition clip in a desk in front of the judge’s bench and gave Vic a one-word command: “Seek.”

Vic’s muscles tightened. His nose rose to catch the scent, then dropped to the floor, and off he went. It took him about 45 seconds to find the clip. He put his nose to it, then sat and stared at Genosky.

“His alert is called a passive response,” she said. “He just sits and makes eye contact with me because we don’t want him disturbing anything he might find, in case it is an explosive.”

Vic got a treat for finding the ammunition clip. He returned to it and again sat and stared. And again, and again.

“That’s enough,” Genosky told him.

Genosky trains Vic at least an hour every day. If he doesn’t work, he doesn’t eat.

“Most of the patrol dogs, they work for a ball or a toy,” Genosky said. “Vic won’t work for toys. When he’s working, I normally have a food pouch on me. He finds an explosive and I … give him a handful of food.”

Vic was being trained to guide blind people when he was acquired by the ATF. He was trained for six weeks. After Genosky got the handler job, she went to the ATF canine training facility in Front Royal, Va., to train with Vic for another 10 weeks. At that point, the ATF estimated it had invested about $50,000 in the dog, Genosky said. Genosky agreed to a five-year commitment when she took the handler’s job.

Vic is one of seven ATF-trained dogs in the state; most other law-enforcement canines are multipurpose dogs, apprehending suspects and sniffing out drugs and/or explosives.

The ATF-trained dogs are imprinted on minuscule amounts — gunpowder residue might be smeared on a door handle, for instance — and trained on everything from gunpowder to peroxide-based explosives.

“It’s kind of like having a high school diploma vs. getting a Ph.D.,” said David Gottschalk, an investigator and explosives specialist with the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office who formerly worked for the ATF.

The ATF’s “five-family theory” is that all explosives are in some way related to one of five odors. If a dog is trained, or “imprinted” on one odor, it can detect anything in that family.

When the University of Minnesota received a bomb threat last May, Genosky and Vic worked hourlong shifts with seven other dog-and-handler teams, searching every building floor by floor.

“When they’re searching, they’re giving 150 percent,” Genosky said of Vic and the other dogs. “They’re pretty spent at 45 minutes. An hour was a really long time for him to be searching. He kept searching, but he was hanging his head and was tired.”

A quick nap in the car and Vic was ready to go again.

Genosky and Vic were sent to the Grand Prix auto race in Detroit over Labor Day weekend. Genosky hopes they can go to the Super Bowl this coming winter. “Heading to Arizona in January would be awesome,” she said. They’re almost certain to work at the Republican National Convention in the Twin Cities next September.

At the courthouse, almost everybody knows Vic and greets him with a smile. But he’s the one who decides whether he lingers long enough for a scratch or a sniff.

“It’s on his own terms if he wants to be distracted,” Genosky said. “If he’s working, he ignores everybody.”

Vic lives with Genosky in a Ramsey County suburb. When his badge comes off, he knows he’s off-duty. “At work, Vic is an angel,” Genosky said. “At home he turns into a little monster. He’s a bed hog. He likes to take my things. He’ll take my phone and move it. He thinks it looks better over, uh, here.

“He’s a dog and every once in a while he’ll act like one.”

For cat lovers with exotic tastes and deep pockets a California biotech company has created a hybrid breed that resembles a mini leopard and sells for $22,000.

The Ashera is a mix between an African serval, an Asian leopard and a domesticated cat that can weigh up to 13.6 kilos.

A hypoallergenic version is also available with a price tag starting at $28,000.

“It’s exotic, but under the skin. It’s a domestic house cat, very easy to take care of and extremely friendly,” said Simon Brodie, the founder of Lifestyle Pets that developed the breed.

“Everybody has thought at one time, wouldn’t it be great to have a leopard at home, or a tiger. Obviously you can’t and this is about the nearest thing to it,” he added in an interview.

The Ashera is not as aloof as some cats, is very vocal and can open doors and walk on a leash, according to the company.

“They’re more dog-like than anything,” Brodie said.

Many customers are first-time cat owners or dog lovers who are attracted to the canine-qualities and the relatively self-sufficient nature of cats. Most of the 100 Ashera cats sold this year by the company have been to customers in Russia and China.

The Ashera is just one of a growing breed of designer cats.

Other hybrid varieties include the Toyger, which is a cross of a Bengal and a domestic cat, the Chausie, a mix of jungle and domestic cats, and the Savannah, which resulted from breeding an African serval and a house cat.

Brodie admitted there were similarities between the Savannah and Ashera but said consistency in size and temperament were key differentiating factors.

“Anybody can throw the ingredients in, but unless you know what ingredients are the best ingredients in the best percentages, you’re not going to produce the same final product,” he explained.

The Savannah is classified as an African serval bred with any domestic cat, according to the International Cat Association. The Ashera’s domestic cat component is a specific one that Brodie said won’t be revealed.

“Is it a status symbol? I guess to an extent it is. But so are million-dollar racehorses,” said Brodie.

An Oklahoma City woman spent 43 hours upside-down in a vehicle after a wreck along an Oklahoma highway was saved by her four dogs, rescuers said.

Betty McCord, 78, has organized the annual Red Andrews Christmas Dinner for more than 30 years. However, while driving to see family in Hughes County three weeks ago, she wrecked, flipped upside-down and spent nearly two days trapped in her 1986 Oldsmobile.

“There was no way I could get out. There was no way. I tried for two and a half days to get out of there, and I couldn’t,” McCord said.

The car disappeared deep into the woods and landed on its top. The steering wheel busted McCord’s teeth, and the force of her forehead shattered the windshield.

“I thought I was dead. I didn’t know what the hell it was,” she said.

However, rescuers said McCord’s four Shih Tzu dogs — Mack, Misty, Ally and Tinkerbell — likely kept her alive by licking her face to keep her alert, long enough for Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Tyson Wright to notice some car tracks veering off the road.

“You couldn’t see the car, (and) I still couldn’t see it from right there,” Wright said.

McCord described how the trooper came to help her.

“He stuck his little head right in that window (and said), ‘Lady, are you all right now?’ I said, ‘I will be if you get me the hell out of here,’” she said.

That he did, smashing a window and calling for help, as well as getting Gatorade for Betty and her dogs.

“I will never forget how they acted, not just the wreck. I just won’t forget how they acted,” McCord said of her pets.

She said she is still pretty sore and is staying with family for now.

“It was just a hell of a mess, just to be frank about it … all I can tell you is I was lucky that I got found. That’s all I know,” McCord said.

Plans for this year’s Christmas dinner, she said, are still on track.

Izzie the Great Dane had been expecting four new pups, but after going into labour she just kept delivering, and delivering, and delivering.

Twenty-four hours later, the new mum was celebrating the arrival of 15 new babies – six short of the world record.

It has all comes as something of a shock to owners Gemma Caroll, 24, Mark Bibby, 38, who could not quite believe how the new arrivals just kept coming.

Now the family, including daughter Charlotte, 11, of Ewesley Road, Sunderland, have found themselves with a few more mouths to feed.

The three-year-old pedigree actually had 18 pups, but sadly, three did not survive.

The healthy pups have kept Izzie busy with more mouths to feed than she could manage so Charlotte, of Houghton Kepier School, dad Mark and his partner Gemma have been lending a helping hand with bottled milk.

Izzie had nine blue pups, five dogs and four bitches and eight black pups, six bitches and two dogs.

Gemma, a customer accounts manager for City Financial, said: “It is just crazy. We never expected her to have so many, but mum’s doing great.

“She looked very thin after she had given birth, but obviously with 18 puppies inside her, everything she ate was going straight into them.

“My friend who works at a restaurant has been saving all the leftovers for her and she’s been eating all of them so she’s back on form now.”

Mark, a self employed property
developer, originally bought Izzie as a present for his daughter, but then decided to breed from her.

Each puppy is expected to fetch more then £750 because they are pedigree and Izzie and the father come from families of champions.

The litter has started eating solids and exhausted mum is managing to get a bit more rest. But as the puppies get stronger, the family know they will become more of a handful.

Gemma said: “We are in the process of registering them with the Kennel Club and hoping to sell them all, but we will be very picky about the home the puppies go to.

“Great Danes are fantastic dogs and they are gentle giants. Izzie weighs eight-and-a-half stone and she makes a great guard dog because she has a big bark on her, but she has never gone for any of us.”

You’ve heard of dogs being used to sniff out bombs, drugs, even track people when their trails go cold.

But how about dogs that can sniff out potentially dangerous mold in people’s homes?

One company says it’s true. They say their 3-year-old Giant Schnauzer is a four-legged mold inspector.

These days Ebony is making the rounds- especially in homes like this where sales are pending.

Families know the dangers of mold so they contact Top Dog Inspection Services.

“Absolutely it could be a deal breaker. The home is the number one investment people make usually and so when they’re buying a home they don’t want any hidden surprises,” said owner Mike Lanius.

A preliminary walk-through revealed an area possibly affected by mold. Then enters Ebony.

“Her nose is like an x-ray. She can see behind the walls, what’s going on behind walls,” Lanius said.

Ebony sniffs her way around until she finds a trace. She helps the human inspectors find mold that they can’t always see or smell.

Her owners say she’s not only a family pet, but a colleague.

“She enjoys being with the family but honestly she really enjoys working and she’s a much better pet now that she has a job to do,” said Melenda Lanius.

And Ebony has attracted a segment of dog-loving clientele.

“There’s a lot of people that love animals and love pets and it’s a great way to relate to your customers,” Melenda said.

“Every morning I’ll ask her if she’s ready to go to work and she beats me to the door every day,” Mike Lanius said.

Top Dog inspectors still take air samples or swab mold for further testing.

Boo Boo the Chihuahua is the world smallest dog.

At just four inches tall, the diminutive dog in Raceland, Kentucky now has the very big title of smallest in the world. The Guinness Book of World Records made it official.

Lana Elswick says her Chihuahua Boo-Boo was born the size of her thumb. Elswick says from the beginning she knew her dog was special, but it wasn’t until a few weeks ago that she knew just how special.

The Guinness Book now considers the full-grown though petite pet the smallest dog in the world, nearly an inch smaller than the previous record holder.

A Dallas family lost everything when fire ripped through their home around 5:30 a.m. Sunday.

The family was sound asleep when an electrical outlet caught fire in the 2600 block of Birmingham Avenue in South Dallas.

Clifford Brown and his mother Betty were asleep when the fire broke out. Then their family dog Lucy jumped on Betty’s bed.

“The dog woke my mom up,” said Clifford. “Then I heard the boom and thought someone had broken into the house.” He said he knew right away he had to rescue his 76-year-old mother.

“I was screaming and hollering for him, and he couldn’t get through. There was so much smoke,” said Betty.

The smoke and the intense heat made it nearly impossible to reach the bedroom.

“I had to go all the way around and snatch the bar door open,” said Clifford.

“When he jerked the door down, he fell on the sidewalk, and I fell in the yard,” said Betty. “I didn’t think he was going to get me up, but he said, ‘Oh yeah. I’m getting you out of there.’”

Not much was salvageable from the home. Only one picture of Betty’s grandson was saved.

The family did not have home owner’s insurance, but they say they have many family members in the area that can help them.