LOOKING IN ON: SUBURBS

Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2006 | 7:09 a.m.

The generosity of Henderson city employees is going to make life a little brighter for Clyde Stout of Huntington Beach, Calif .

Stout's Seeing Eye dog, Topaz, took a misstep a few weeks ago and hobbled off the playing field with a torn ligament, a common injury in larger dogs.

Stout couldn't afford the $4,000 surgery required to repair the ligament in California. But when Henderson Police Department dispatcher Kelly Haugh, who trained Topaz, heard about the problem, she had the 7-year-old Labrador retriever returned to Nevada, where the operation cost about $1,500 less.

After the surgery Haugh started bringing the dog to work to make sure she rested. Soon, city employees had chipped in enough to pay for the operation.

Stout will get his dog back in a week or so. Then he'll again be able to take two buses to work as a customer care specialist for Marriott Hotels. Without Topaz, he has had to get a ride from his wife, Arden, and use a cane.

Stout has had guide dogs since he was in his early 20s. Topaz is among the best. "I've had dogs that were so bad I needed glasses," Stout said.

Meter readers in Boulder City soon will be cutting down on their own gasoline usage.

The readers soon will be driving hybrid vehicles, which will cut gasoline consumption as the city employees stop at every dwelling in the city over the course of a month.

To help cut costs and meet new federal regulations for fuel usage by municipalities, the city is purchasing a pair of Ford Escape Hybrid vehicles.

The small SUVs , which cost $26,275 each, get 36 miles per gallon in the city. They will replace two 18-year-old diesel pickup trucks.

"We haven't bought any hybrids before," City Manager Vicki Mayes said. "But we think it will be more cost-effective."