Make the Most of a Dog's World

Williams notes that society and government have permitted dogs to integrate more fully than ever into Americans' lives by allowing them into restaurants, airplanes, offices and health spas. That's for the psychological support of anxious owners -- not just as a service for the blind. And since new federal regulations don't include language about training, Williams observes, empowered pet owners are gaining admittance to malls, public transport and housing with any old untrained puppy.

Animal culture has conquered Hollywood, too, as penguins, fish and bears have captured huge box office in the past 12 months alone.

To give your own Spot the star treatment, you can take him to the Buttercups Paw-tisserie bakery for organic biscuits in New York, give him a "bark day" party for his birthday, provide "doga" sessions while you do yoga, apply Pawlish to his cuticles, freshen his breath with Four Paws toothpaste or find him friends online by creating a cute page at Dogster.com.

In London, the hot new resort is Mypetstop, a spa, exercise, hydrotherapy and chill-out center chain owned by Mars Inc., a company better known for M&Ms and Snickers bars.

The Pet Portfolio

So what happens if your four-legged best friend just needs an aspirin, not aromatherapy? That's the arena of the $3 billion pet drug business in the U.S., led by PetMed Express(PETS Quote), a specialty online and direct-mail pharmacy.