Cityfile: New York's Most Notable and Influential

There are an estimated one million dogs living in New York City, and the breeds of dogs represented are as diverse as the people who own them. But do certain canines reveal traits about their owner without that person even having to utter a word? We took it upon ourselves to ask Dan Rubenstein—dog behaviorist and co-owner of Spot (formerly The Paw Stop), a dog daycare, grooming, and training facility in Tribeca—to explain what you can glean about a dog owner just by looking at what kind of pup he's walking. Generally speaking, of course. "Owners tend to pick dogs and dog breeds that exhibit personality characteristics similar to their own," Rubenstein says, "although it's not as if they do it consciously." After the jump, Rubenstein sizes up a few popular New York City breeds, descriptions you can compare to one of the boldfaced people who happens to own one.More

Pet Fashion Week(end) | Were you aware that "Pet Fashion Week" went down this past weekend in Chelsea? You missed it? Guess you'll have to wait until next year to see a dog model a handmade gown made of red satin and black lace. [NYDN]

Pets In Flight | And you thought one of the silver linings of the economic downturn was that it was sending really silly companies out of business. Pet Airways, the "first-ever all-pet airline," took off from Republic Airport on Long Island for the first time today. The airline, which plans to operate in five U.S. cities, is now offering one-way tickets for about $250. The perks, however, are hard to beat. Pets get escorted to the plane by attendants who will check on the animals every 15 minutes once they're in the air. The pets are given pre-boarding walks and bathroom breaks, and there's even a "Pet Lounge" at the airport for "future fliers to wait and sniff before flights." If your dog has been begging to get away from his/her owner for little summer getaway, consider yourself fresh out of excuses. [AP]

Curb Your Dog... Or Else | A notice to dog owners who still refuse to pick up after their pets: Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe announced yesterday that the city is raising the fine for people who refuse to comply with the city's pooper-scooper law from $100 to $250. The fine doesn't take effect until June and Benepe says the move is merely intended to "change the culture of litter in our parks." Also? Dog poo may now be the city's secret weapon in tackling the budget deficit. [NYDN]

Is Dressing Up Your Dog Taboo? | Alarming news for society types who enjoy dressing up their dogs in elaborate outfits: Britain's animal welfare group, RSPCA, is threatening to take legal action against pet owners who "over-dress" their pooches in "restrictive clothing." Fortunately for Tinsley Mortimer, Cece Cord, and Ivana Trump, there's no such law on the books in New York yet. But if our fondness for all things British (Topshop, Agyness Deyn) is any indication, it may just be a matter of time! [Daily Mail]

Something New to Worry About: Dognappings | The current issue of The New Yorker has the details on the frightening surge in dognappings on the Upper West Side: "There's a two-man team, with one in a gray hoodie on a bicycle who comes by and slices the leash with a razor, then goes away with the dog. The other guy calls you up later on and says, 'Hey, I found your dog! What's it worth to you?'" Sounds horrifying, yes, but don't get too panicked just yet. Although versions of the story have been circulating for weeks, the 20th Precinct on the UWS has yet to receive a single report from a dognapping victim. Or a dognapping victim's owner, at least. [NYer]

Putting Your Pet To Work | As dog professions go, it's not quite sniffing out heroin or guiding the blind, but did you know that nowadays dogs can be runway models? At Saturday's New York Pet Fashion Show at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea, various breeds modeled sweaters and accessories, while their owners acted like horrible stage parents and pretended the poor little creatures enjoyed it. [NYDN]

Cleaning Up in Style | Just in case Upper East Side women with their handbag Chihuahuas didn't already have enough things to waste money on, German designer Junge Schachtel has given them one more—designer dog poo bags. A package of 16 brightly colored bags (which feature slogans like "Spoiled brat" and "Size matters") runs around $20. [PooPooBags.com, via BB]

Meet Dr. David Best. He's the Manhattan physician who got booted on last night's episode of the CBS reality competition Greatest American Dog. Best and his little terrier, Elvis, it seems, do everything together. And there's nothing it seems Best won't do for his best friend: The doc spent $10,000 last November on the canine's "Bark Mitzvah" at the Tribeca Grand (left), which attracted Dr. Ruth and Elvis's mother, and also earned him the attention of CBS execs, who promptly signed him up for the dog-centric reality show. So it probably shouldn't come as a surprise that when the judges gave the duo the boot on last night's episode, Dr. Best didn't take it very well. Tears were shed. Dreams were shattered. (You can watch the epic meltdown right here.) More

Rachael Ray appears to have finally run out of edible products to produce and/or endorse. So now she's turning to dogs! The daytime host is adding a line of nutritional dog foods called Nutrish (as in "delish") to her empire and is promising that some portion of the proceeds will go to her charity group, Rachael's Rescue, which assists abandoned dogs. Not surprisingly, Ray's detractors have already chimed in, pointing out that Ray shouldn't have had too much trouble coming up with Nutrish recipes considering her 30 Minute Meals have tasted like dog food for years.

Labradors might reign supreme when it comes to the average American in Orlando or Wichita, but you're not going to see some addled socialite in six-inch heels (and still recovering from her sixth facelift) walking down Madison Avenue holding the leash of a 80-pound beast. You need a dog you can fit in your handbag, of course! And, really, designer doggie shoes look so much cuter in small sizes, don't they? Below, a roundup of socialites, actors, designers, and other notable New Yorkers and their breeds of choice. More