Short...reminder about the reality of euthanisia.

It's 2009...and when it comes to companion animals, there are three rules:

ADOPT! SPAY/NEUTER! LIFE-LONG GUARDIANSHIP!

Please help PREVENT the overload of homeless animals in shelters. How?

(1) Save
ADOPT
-That's right, no breeders, no shops -- a cool guy or gal adopts!!

(2) Care
SPAY/NEUTER and get regular vet check-ups
-A healthy pet is easy on the wallett! and on shelters taking in unwanted litters caused by escaped, unfixed pets and irresponsible backyard breeders.
-Cats and dogs that go unfixed are also at much greater risk for certain types of cancers and other infections --preventable via spay/neuter surgery.

(3) Love
COMMIT to caring and protecting your animals for their entire lifetime.
-Do your research, consult a shelter/rescue group adoption rep, ask questions, be honest in the adoption process, and know what you're getting into.
-Dogs and cats can live up to or over 20 years! and they'll need your love and protection for each one of them.

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It is 2009, and we are in a crisis situation. There is no excuse for buying from breeders, if one knows about adoption, if one knows where their shelter is, if one watches the news...
There is also no excuse for turning a blind eye. Talk about the issues, encourage your peers and friends to "stray" from buying and look into adoption.

You do not have to look very hard to find evidence in your community of the reality of overwhelmed shelters, rescue groups, and deaths of healthy, adoptable animals in all of America.

One of the things that will never cease to bring tears to my eyes is thoughts of the reality of euthanasia in the U.S. Today our citizens continue to put money into breeders and mills, usually because they believe they must have a certain look in a dog or cat, a certain breed, a popular breed, or just a puppy or kitten for the day. Such motivations and intentions are wrong when dealing with live animals -- thoughts like the above apply to inanimate objects and products, not to cats, dogs, rabbits, horses and other animals that families typically keep as so-called pets... who can't speak up and say "Look, I know you may not want me anymore, but I need you. Please don't neglect me because you've changed your mind. Please don't take my home away. Please don't let me die".

It is still way too easy to buy an animal and it is too easy to also get rid of an animal. While that probably won't change any time soon, we must advocate for adopting as well as being responsible and showing love for household animals for their entire lifetime.

To those who feel they must have the dog their friend has, the dog they saw in a movie, the one their friend has or a celebrity shows off on TV... it is not always about what YOU want, but what animals need.

Saving a life, caring for an animal that needs you far outshines buying an animal that looks like the product you want or what everyone else has.

YOU are the only one that makes these decisions. Think about YOUR decisions only, do not feel that you need to change the minds of others. You cannot single-handedly stop the gassing of cats and dogs who have outlived their stay at shelters and die in metal boxes like this one pictured here. You can contribute to saving lives by making the right decision for yourself. Individuals buying from shops and breeders or having their animals give birth, and others who give up their animals to shelters have slowly contributed and helped build up the problem we are facing right now. In the same fashion, we can all do our part to reverse this and reduce, eventually eliminate, the market for buying and selling animals.

Again, the best way to do your part is to make the right decision for yourself -- adopt, spay/neuter and vaccinate, and commit to lifelong guardianship of your animals' lives. Be proud of doing something good for our communities. Others will take after you and reap the same rewards. If you have children, your children will learn something you cannot teach them with books or words.

Don't forget -- Euthanasia is NOT a solution to overpopulation. PREVENTION is the SOLUTION. Millions of cats, dogs, rabbits, and other companion animals are sentenced and put to death every year.

AND if you think death is quick and painless for unwanted animals... watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0KucYppXO0.

We do not need to deal with this sadness, these feelings of helplessness, if we take steps to prevent it and educate others to do the same.

Kitten Mills...what you may not know!

Most of us know about puppy mills...but...cats and kittens suffer from these cruel practices as well. Please don't forget about the millions of cats that suffer at the hands of cruel people every day.If you care about the puppies and their breeder moms, you should be inclined to care about and help spread awareness of the kittens and cats that are abused in the same way puppies and dogs at puppy mills are.
The best way to show you care is to adopt -- never buy from ANY breeder -- and encourage others to do the same.
Please PLEASE always adopt. I have rescued cats, and my life is forever enriched because of them.
http://www.petfinder.com/
If you use facebook, please join this Group page: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2231723482#/group.php?gid=59671486684&ref=mf
Here you will find more hard facts and information about the feline side of breeding mills. The bottom line is that the best way to stop this cruelty is to not support it. Over the years, we have seen increasing numbers of mill busts by groups like the Humane Society of the United States, Rescue Ink, and Companion Animal Protection Society. But there are tens of thousands of these mills across the country and in other countries as well, including suburban areas in Canada, where mills churn out puppies and kittens (and rabbits, for some) to be sold not only in Canada but in the United States as well. Because there is still demand, stores that sell animals, particularly puppies and kittens, are making significant profit off animal cruelty. The aforementioned groups are making significant inroads on combatting this problem, but it's a huge industry and we need more people to be educated and take actions on their confictions that animal cruelty is wrong and should NOT be tolerated anywhere.
If you want to take your stance against animal cruelty one step further, don't buy ANY products from stores that sell these animals. I recommend buying your pet food and supplies at smaller boutique and neighborhood stores that tend to carry the higher quality food, such as Wellness, Weruva, Blue Buffalo, and Halo, to name a few. I personally would prefer people make the choice to buy their pet good from these smaller stores that do not sell any living beings of any type -- not bird, gerbels, or even fish.
Remember -- you can empower yourself and reaffirm your stance against animal cruelty by making informed choices and not giving money to any business that exploits animals. It's up to you!
For more information about the kitten/cat mill industry and how you can help, see below:

What can you do to help?
1) NEVER BUY A CAT OR KITTEN FROM A BREEDER. Always adopt from your local shelter or rescue organization. Find the perfect cat or kitten in your area here: http://www.petfinder.com/.
2) BECOME INVOLVED WITH A CAT RESCUE ORGANIZATION. These organizations save lives every day by rescuing unwanted cats and kittens from local shelters and helping to find them homes. Many also provide low or no-cost spay and neuter services that help curb feral cat populations without killing. This is some of the most important work that can be done.
Join Stray Cat Alliance.
WEB http://www.straycatalliance.org/
FACEBOOK http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=59671486684#/group.php?gid=38783974284&ref=ts
Join Alley Cat Allies
WEB http://www.alleycat.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=191
FACEBOOK http://www.facebook.com/pages/Alley-Cat-Allies/37899252087?sid=66d31e438b18fb0697fa04d1d967c75c&ref=s
Join Kitten Rescue
WEB http://www.kittenrescue.org/home.php
FACEBOOK http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kitten-Rescue/115219435429?sid=b9e79643375723ef5ce0161bde38a1e5&ref=s
PLEASE DONATE YOUR TIME OR MONEY TO AN CAT (OR DOG) RESCUE / AWARENESS GROUP.
Your help is desperately needed, and every little bit helps.
In New York City, please go to http://www.animalalliancenyc.org/ to find a group in your neighborhood or that you're interested in volunteering for or donating to.

Contact ckistler@rational-animal.org to find out how to get involved with our awareness campaigns aimed at shutting down breeding mills and fighting other cruelty issues, including educating the public and engaging people to be active in supporting kindness to animals and efforts to lower homeless animal populations.