Mark Zehner knows Hazelwood streets like the proverbial back of his hand. It comes from 13 years of driving around the city as Hazelwood's lone animal control officer.

His is not a desk job. Zehner, 41, is constantly on the move, driving a special van outfitted with cages to catch errant dogs, cats and wildlife. He drives about 100 miles a day to cover the entire city.

During a recent afternoon shift, he started by patrolling the southeast corner of Hazelwood that borders Calverton Park and Berkeley.

He drove south on North Hanley Road, then made a left on to Latty Avenue. He first pulled into a parking lot to make a report on a computer mounted on the dashboard. A police radio squawked constantly. To untrained ears, the only coherent phrase was "10-4." On the computer, he typed in his location and some other information.

Zehner cranked up the air-conditioning, then drove back on to Latty Avenue to follow a complicated maze of small neighborhoods. Zehner talked about his job.

"Most of the complaints we get are about dogs," he said. "People call about barking dogs, running dogs. We also get a good share of wildlife calls. For example, a resident might be upset by the squirrels on the lawn. Unless they go under the porch or in the eaves, the squirrels can be on the lawn."

Zehner kept a constant eye on the houses while he drove. Besides animal control, he also is a code enforcement officer, one of six for the city. He looks for housing code violations, like lawns with tall grass. He also can write tickets for derelict automobiles.

One thing Zehner makes clear is that he is not a police officer and cannot arrest people. Still, he is one more set of eyes on the street for the police department. He is so familiar with the houses and businesses that he knows if something is wrong.

"I once called in about a couple of guys breaking into a business," he said.

However, it's the animals that are his top priority. He took a left on Moran Drive, then headed east on Flora Drive.

"I especially keep an eye out for pit bulls," he said. "You need to have a special permit to have one. Yesterday, I caught one. He was a sweet guy. I didn't have a problem with him."

Zehner feels that pit bulls get a bad rap. When raised correctly, they make good pets, he said.

He also deals with felines. The day before, he set out some traps at Boeing to catch a "mama cat and her kittens."

He takes trapped domestic animals to the St. Louis County Animal Shelter. With wildlife, he likes to let them loose at a wildlife area.

Zehner almost apologized for not having confronted any animals on this shift. It does not happen every day.

He made a left on Boehner Avenue down to Barto Drive. In the 200 block, he slowed and pointed at a vacant house.

"They used to have a pet kangaroo," he said. "They had a cage for it in the backyard. I'm not sure what happened to it."

On the route, several other homes stood with "for sale" signs on their front yards.

"The economy forced a lot of people to move out," he said. "It's sad."

He stopped at one vacant house at Woodhurst Drive and Midwood Avenue. The grass was far over the city's limit of eight inches. A couple of old cars were in the driveway. He put a bright orange warning sticker on the front door, telling the owner that the lawn had to be mowed in five days. The house was in bad condition with chipped paint. A pile of faded telephone books were stacked in front of the door.

He climbed back into the van and continued the patrol. At one point, he waved to a woman standing by the road, laughingly calling her "my informant."

"She keeps an eye on the neighborhood for me," he said.

After driving through several more neighborhoods, Zehner was back on Latty, then on to North Hanley Road. He drove to Hazelwood City Hall. He kept looking at the houses as he drove.

"I like working solo and having the independence," he said. "Sometimes, if I have a couple of dogs, I'll call the county for help or some of our police officers will come out and give me a hand. Other than that, I enjoy my job."

After a brief stop at the city hall parking lot, Zehner waved goodbye and headed out to another part of the city.