A devoted vet and her blind Pomeranian are out to change the way people think about pets.

Sonith Balonith the Bandit Kisser, aka Tosey, Superbear, Sugarbear, Heartbeart, Boogaloo Down Broadway, Bun Bun Baroozer sits comfortably on the couch next to his owner, veterinarian Dr. Joann Donahoe, and his seeing eye cat, Shawny Nay-na Thundercloud. Donahoe chooses her words carefully as she attempts to explain the impact this 12-year-old blind Pomeranian has had on her life.

"Someone would get hyperglycemic listening to me go on about him," she laughs. "He''s a magnet who attracts people."

Tosey draws a crowd monthly at Borders when Donahoe holds her Animal Lovers Hour and serves as a greeter for the pets visiting Donahoe''s 22-foot mobile animal clinic. "The animals come in and see Toes on the counter and he''s not even fazed, so they think, ''I don''t need to worry,''" Donahoe says.

Born without eyes and half a liver, Tosey was rescued by Donahoe as he was about to be euthanized by a breeder who couldn''t sell him. Since then, Donahoe has made sure he doesn''t lack for the four-footed companionship she promotes for pets. She provided him with a "harem" of seeing-eye cats that groom him and help him around the house.

"Having more than one animal in the house is essential for the type of interaction they need," she says. "After all, most people don''t chew on their dog''s ears or smell their rear end," she laughs. "And if they do, I don''t want to know about it!"

Tosey gets plenty of the human attention Donahoe recommends too, riding on Donahoe''s shoulder around Carmel to sing operatic duets with the bank manager at Wells Fargo (only when he''s in the right mood) or to ride down the conveyor belt at Longs.

Changing the way people view animals is Donahoe''s passion, and a challenge she is attempting to meet through consultations with pet owners. Toward this end she promotes a series of 10 audio tapes and her monthly bookstore appearances. At a recent Animal Lovers Hour at the Sand City Borders, Tosey is dressed in a red Santa suit. The crowd giggles as he stands up on the table in front of Donahoe and jumps into her arms, licking her cheek rhythmically.

"There isn''t a parenting map to raise our own species, let alone another," Donahoe says to the group. "We need a paradigm shift based on logic, fairness, trust, love and consistency that gives the animals security. If you have security, you don''t have to act out to get your needs met."

In her in-home consultations, Donahoe frequently finds behavioral problems based on misinformation. "Roughhousing with your dog and getting on the floor with a tug-a-rope is inappropriate," she says. "We propagate aggressive situations in animals by teaching them that we like it when they resist, snarl, growl, bark and play bite."

Donahoe sees aggressive animal problems, especially biting, as worsening. "There are over 4 million dog bites a year, and it''s nothing compared to what it''s going to be," she says. Donahoe believes the problem stems in part from people treating their pets like siblings, which makes the animal believe it''s a human that can act however it pleases. "People are going to animals to meet their emotional needs, and the result is these enmeshed animals with no boundaries." That said, she emphasizes that using physical punishment is never appropriate, and a strong tone of voice can do the trick. "Just make sure when you tell a dog ''no'' you aren''t using an ooey-gooey tone that really tells the dog you like what he''s doing," she says.

Donahoe wants to change the way people interact with each other too, using animals as teachers. "The way you raise a Columbine child is the same way you raise an attack dog," she says. "It wouldn''t be appropriate for your 5-year-old child to slap you across the face, and it''s not appropriate for your dog to talk back to you, either." Donahoe firmly attests to the wisdom of nature''s way: patterning after a mother animal who teaches her baby with love and consistent limits. "I had a client tell me, ''I learned so much more about being a great parent by having animals than I ever did from being a pediatrician,''" she says.

Donahoe''s looking for land near Carmel and a miracle to create "Heartbeat Ranch," a sanctuary for people and animals who want to be inspired by the arts, each other and nature. "We''re coming in through the dog door to get this message across," she laughs. "I''m a voice for the voiceless."