Probably most of you who read this already are responsible owners, but, just in case anyone hasn't thought of the following points, I just have to say this. It doesn't just involve the welfare of our furry best friends, but the welfare of human beings as well. So, please don't be offended by what seems like the obvious.

I grew up having dogs as pets. I didn't get to know cats until one was thrust on me by my daughter and now I understand why everyone loves them! My pets consist of one 11 year old (and rather odd) male Beagle and two cats - male and female. All are neutered, which is VERY important. I heard a statistic on the radio concerning how many unwanted cats come from one unneutered cat roaming on its own - can't remember the figure but I think it was something like 10,000 in five years! IF YOU LOVE ANIMALS GET THEM NEUTERED! The number of unwanted animals that must be killed each week is mind boggling.

Not a week goes by in my little town that I don't see a dog or cat dead on the side of the road. Pets need to be confined for their safety as well as the safety of humans. A few years back a woman in Daytona, Florida, caused the death of her two children when she swerved to miss a dog in the road and caused an accident. Just a few months back in Jacksonville, Florida, a young policeman was killed doing the same. It is very hard to avoid doing that when any living thing runs out in front of your car!

Finally, veterinary care and immunizations are very important - both for the sake of the pet and also, again, for the sake of humans. Having grown up in the south I have observed what happens when pets don't receive regular rabies vaccines, and I can remember being afraid when approached by several cats that ran loose in our neighborhood during a rabies epidemic. A neighbor actually took a gun and shot the cats that came near his home during that time. And most of these cats came from one person who had an unbelievable number of unneutered cats that ran loose and reproduced constantly.