Published in several syndicated online newsletters in January, 2000.

By Melany Klinck

They go to daycare and camp. They take expensive lessons. On birthdays, they have parties with their friends. At Christmas, they rack up on toys and treats. If you give them a chance, they'll gorge on pizza-flavored snacks and carob-covered cookies. And when they go out in the woods, you have to help them into their hiking boots . . . all four of them.

As Americans have gotten richer, their "best friends" have reaped the rewards. These days, many dogs are treated more like children than pets. And it's not just the well-to-do catering to the well-heeled. Even family-friendly mutts are welcome at doggie "spas." And Spot is as likely as Fifi to receive a doggie greeting card and gourmet gift basket.

Every dog has its daycare

Among the new trends being embraced by dog-lovers is doggie daycare. For $15 - $30 a day, you can drop of your canine companion on your way to work and pick him up at the end of the day. Some facilities even offer pick-up and delivery -- for an extra fee, of course.

"People don't want to leave their pets in an apartment all day while they are at work," explains Barbara Waldare, owner of DoggieView Daycare in Studio City, Calif. "Even people who have houses and yards will bring their dogs in one day a week for fun and socialization."

So what does a doggy daycare offer is pawed patrons? Not kennels and cages. Rather, expect "group play areas" often equipped with amenities such as children's play equipment and wading pools, as well as activities ranging from walks and massages to optional behavior classes and grooming services.

But there's more. At DoggieView, you can also check in on your furry friend during the day via a live "dog-cam." Simply log on to the daycare's Web site to observe the dogs in action -- much of which involves lying around and licking themselves. Nonetheless, there's something mesmerizing about peeking in on Waldare's facility, which is adorned with floor-to-ceiling murals of rolling hills and azure skies and is furnished with a park bench and a life-size fire hydrant ("I've never had a dog lift on it," assures Waldare.)

Overnight dog-boarding facilities have also been upgraded or, at least the vernacular has. Today, kennels like Heavenly Pet Resort in West Covina, Calif. offer heated and cooled "suites" with private patios and garden views. On hot summer days, pampered pooches can frolick in the resort's bone-shaped pool.

Dog days of summer

Not all dog owners want to leave Rover and Lucky behind when they take a vacation. For them, there is Camp-Gone-to-the-Dogs, a week-long romp and roll in the woods for dog lovers and their canine kids.

Starting at $900 (double occupancy) Camp-Gone-to-the-Dogs guests can attend Summer Camp 2002 on the campus of Marlboro College, Marlboro, Vt. Although accommodations tend toward the spartan, guests don't seem to mind. Camp director, Honey Loring, says she's usually 60 to 80 percent booked by the end of the preceding year, and many campers are repeat guests. Loring also offers a "Mid-Summer Merriment Camp" and a fall camp in Stowe, Vt.

What brings guest back to the 13-year-old camp again and again? Could it be the doggie swimming lessons? The agility training? The doggie square dancing? Well, yes. It's all of those and the 50 or so other activities available to campers, including arts and crafts, obedience classes, and grooming workshops. However, the most popular activity by far, says Loring, is simply walking.

"People love going for walks with their dogs off-lead in the woods, where it's safe and legal," says Loring. The obstacle course is also a favorite, as is lure coursing, a sport in which dogs chase a "bunny" lure that is propelled by motor-and-pulley system through a field.

The "wienie retrieval" contest also draws enthusiastic crowds, says Loring. In this just-for-fun event, owners toss a hot dog and send their dogs to fetch it. The trick is getting the dog to return the wiener uneaten.

Bone appétit

Speaking of eating, you should know MilkBones are passé. Modern-day Marmadukes are treated to homemade dog biscuits and bakery-fresh confections, such as carob-dipped peanut-butter bones, garlic and herb "bagel" biscuits, pistachio cookies, and even personalized birthday cakes.

Where do dog lovers find such delicacies? You're probably just a bone's throw away. Dog bakeries are springing up on street corners and on Web servers.  Three Dog Bakery franchises, for example, can be sniffed out in Kansas City, Mo.; New Orleans; Los Angeles (of course); Chicago; Birmingham, Ala.; Portland, Ore.; Milwaukee; Atlanta; and Des Moines, Iowa.

If you're not dog tired, you can also whip up some tasty treats in your own kitchen. There are several books available on cooking for canines. The best-selling Three Dog Bakery Cookbook by Dan Dye and Mark Beckloff, for example, offers "50 recipes for all-natural paw-lickin' treats for your dog." (Andrews McMeel Publishing, 1998)

It's a dog's life?

Hey, Dixie. SIT! Good girl! You don't mind if I have one of your pupcakes do you?