By: Catherine Dawson March

This new cartoon takes the creative ingenuity of Cars (an alternative world inhabited only by automobiles - right down to flying VW insects) and uses dogs instead. Even better, the dogs spend their days racing cars. For many kids, the combination couldn't be better. Turbo Dogs is a glossy, computer-animated toon based on the book Racer Dogs, by Bob Kolar. The series is full of verve, humour and parent-friendly messages about helping your friends and being a good sport. Sounds like every other good cartoon, but the excitement is revved up in every episode as soon as the doggy drivers jump into their cars. Someone always has an idea about how they can do their laps faster. Also, watch for each show's tacit joke - at some point, a chicken will attempt to wander across the track, usually just as there's a race under way.

Saturday, 8 a.m., Sunday,

6:30 a.m.; Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 7 a.m. on CBC