Be a responsible pet owner!

I made this little sign and put it up at work. There was an article about the importance of spaying and neutering your pets in the paper last week. A very informative, eye opening article. A dog or a cat left to reproduce can give birth to a staggering amount of babies each year. Far from all the puppies or kittens will find a good home. Many end up abused or abandoned. More than half of the cats and dogs that got taken in by the animals shelters on the Kenai area last year got euthanized. That is SO sad! It makes me very upset and emotional. So please, please, please - if you can do anything important and meaningful after reading my words, do not breed your pet. Even if it would be so cute if YOUR dog or cat had babies. It's not cute anymore when you can't find a home for all of them or if they end up dead somewhere. Sure, Chhaya would look so adorable with a litter of puppies suckling her. She would be a great mommy.But reality is that there is no way I could guarantee that I could find good responsible owners for her puppies. There are so many pitbulls that end up in shelters, I am not contributing to that.
At work there are a few girls that been letting their cats have multiple litters. Hopefully they will read my sign and THINK. I really hope they do.
Also, so many people just abandon their pets when they get tired of them or when they decide that having a pet doesn't fit their lifestyle anymore.
How cruel! A pet should be like a family member. If you are not willing to treat your pet as a member of the family - you should NOT have a pet.
I would never abandon Chhaya. She is my baby. And my friend. That is priceless.