Dog dabbawalla Wasiff Khan, who runs the dog dabba service Home Care in Mumbai, home delivers piping hot, rice-vegetables-and-meat meals.

The bone-shaped entrance gate and the paw-shaped pool at the 32nd Milestone Resort’s new restaurant are attracting a lot of stares.

“Everyone’s curious,” says Mamta Sharma, proprietor, 32nd Milestone, located on the outskirts of Delhi.

Sharma plans to cash in on the curiosity. This Diwali, she will soft launch the resort’s dog restaurant, the Bow Wow Club. “With this restaurant, our resort becomes a complete family outing place. We entertain the parents, children and the pet,” says Sharma.

The Bow Wow Club accommodates two dogs at a time. They can begin with a swim and jump through a dog hoop. Then they can pick their favourite food from the Bow Wow menu. There’s nutty-buddy peanuts and sup-slurp soup for starters, and pupperroni pizza and bow wow chow — among other things — for the main course. And if Pluto doesn’t feel like food, he can ask for a canine carry out.

It’s clearly, a dog’s life — and what a life. A growing interest among urban Indians in keeping pet animals has spawned an entire industry catering to their demands. Pet grooming salons that have mushroomed in cities offer hair cuts, teeth and tartar cleaning, anti-tick baths — as well as frill services like nail pawlish, herbal hair colouring and party dressing.

Those who think beauty is not coat deep can pick an aroma therapy, pranic healing or a ‘Doga’ — short for dog yoga — session for their pet. If a dog has mood swings, it can visit a canine behaviour therapist for counselling. If he has a wild side to him, he can sign up with Mumbai’s Krazy K9 club for a weekend adventure outing. And bed wetting and dogs dirtying the Persian rug are problems of the past — pet shops now stock everything from dog diapers, shoes, dog colognes to canine winter coats.

Dogs have also moved up the food chain. When they’re not dining at Bow Wow, they can choose from a variety of imported and Indian branded dog meals.

The pet industry is booming in India. A survey done by the Pune-based chicken products and pet food firm, Venky’s India Ltd, in 2003 found that the dog population in India is growing by 26 per cent a year.

“India’s pet population increase is second only to that of Japan,” says .P. Singh, chief executive officer (CEO) at Venky’s India.

Pet grooming salons such as Tailwaggers Salon in Mumbai offer dogs hair cuts, shampoo, oil massage and more.

More dogs mean more business for their best friends. The Indian pet industry has an estimated revenue potential of Rs 350 crore. Of this, the market for pet food accounts for Rs 250 crore, while medicament, grooming and immunisation add up to another Rs 100 crore. “The industry is very upward looking. There is a huge infrastructure and food requirement for pets in India,” says Singh.

Singh says social change has driven the growth in India’s pet population. Venky’s survey found that an increasing number of single executives and women, and single-child families or parents whose children have settled abroad, kept pets. “As human companionship is reducing in urban settings, people keep pets instead,” says Singh. The survey also found that higher disposable incomes meant more Indians could afford pets.

Bangalore-based dog breeder and groomer Yashodhara Hemchandra says canine pets — who were earlier used only as watch dogs — now play multiple roles. “They act as a companion, friend and even a fashion accessory. They have become a part of the family,” says Hemchandra.

Visit Hemchandra’s pet grooming salon — the Fuzzy Wuzzy parlour — in an upmarket Bangalore locality and you know that living a dog’s life has a whole new meaning. Saki, an imported Shihtzu toy dog, is dropping off to sleep as Hemchandra gives him a gentle oil massage. “After this, he will be bathed, brushed and perfumed,” she says. On his birthday, Saki also gets his hair coloured in shades of brown and orange, gets a cologne spray and is dressed up in a bow tie. The session sets his owner back by Rs 3,000.

In Mumbai, the Tailwaggers salon offers hydro surge baths to its canine clients. The animals are massaged and then bathed in a warm, fur-friendly solution. “A lot of people import exotic dogs from Russia and Europe. They are not easy to groom at home,” says Gauri Keskar, proprietor, Tailwaggers, whose client list includes politician Priya Dutt’s dogs.

There are options galore to pamper pooches. Hemchandra’s kennel organises birthday parties for dogs — complete with dog games, a swim, beef steaks, cake and a song for the birthday boy.

Mohan Kadam, who owns a pet shop, Windsor, at New Delhi’s Khan Market, says business is growing by 40 per cent every year. “When I started 12 years ago, I only sold dog collars, leashes and food bowls,” remembers Kadam. Now varied goods like goggles, anti-stress chewing sticks, colognes, rain coats and breath fresheners fly off his shop shelves.

“The demand for non-essential products is spiralling,” says Kadam, who recently doubled his shop floor area.

Even dogs have bad days. If your dog suddenly starts treating house guests like intruders, don’t tie him in the backyard — take him to a pet psychologist. Mumbai-based canine behaviour therapist Shirin Merchant has counselled dog owners whose pets have turned temperamental, ferocious, insecure and even into nervous wrecks. “I explain the dog’s point of view to the owner and bridge the communication gap,” says the dog shrink. Five years ago, Merchant’s career choice was considered bizarre. Today, she counsels 100 dog owners a month — at Rs 1,000 per session.

Besides counselling, Merchant edits a dog magazine called Woof which deals with pet parenting. Launched three years ago, the magazine has a circulation of 7,000 copies. Woof also has competition — another pet magazine, Dogs and Pups was launched in Delhi in 2004.

“There’s a huge demand for information on bringing up pets. Pet magazine sales are growing,” says Shweta Khurana, editor, Dogs and Pups.

Food is the fastest growing segment in the pet industry. Pluto will not settle for a plain old bone as a treat anymore. He has branded food, snacks, munchies and chewies to choose from. Venky’s India sells four varieties of dog meals. Mars Food, which markets its Pedigree brand in India, offers a special rice and cottage cheese variant for vegetarian dogs. And Kadam’s pet shop sells chewing stix for every dog — senior stix for senior citizen dogs, anti-stress stix laced with green tea and vitamins and dental stix for dogs with tartar problems. A month’s supply of branded dog food can cost up to Rs 5,000.

If your dog prefers home food, there’s a dog dabbawalla in Mumbai who home delivers piping hot, rice-vegetables-and-meat meals. “We provide fresh food according to the nutrition, health and growth requirements of each dog,” says Wasiff Khan, who runs the dog dabba service, Home Care. A meal costs up to Rs 120 and is delivered in pizza-delivery-style scooters to 500 households across Mumbai.

And when pets cost almost as much as a car, insurance becomes important. Bajaj Allianz General Insurance offers dog insurance policies ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 20,000. The values have to be approved by the local kennel club. “The policy covers death resulting from illness to accident and permanent total disability,” says K. Krishnamurthy, head, underwriting, Bajaj Allianz. Iffco Tokio has a general pet insurance policy with a cover of Rs 10,000.

A dog owner will tell you that the emotional value of a pet is much higher. “People are realising the value of a pet,” says canine psychiatrist Merchant. “In double-income households, parents don’t have time for the child. Many people work and live alone in cities. In such cases, the dog acts as a substitute for a human companion,” adds Merchant. Pet parents, in turn, lavish luxuries on their dog. Also, ready-to-eat food, professional grooming and kennels for lodging have made it easier to keep pets, says groomer Hemchandra.

Every dog has its day. But some dogs have their season.

A dog’s life

• Delhi has a dog restaurant, with sup-slurp soup and pupperroni pizza and bow wow chow.

• Mumbai’s Krazy K9 club offers weekend adventures for dogs.

• Fuzzy Wuzzy even organises birthday parties for dogs, complete with dog games, a swim, beef steaks, cake and a song for the birthday boy.

• Mumbai-based canine behaviour therapist Shirin Merchant counsels 100 dog owners a month.