This information was exerpted from PETA's factsheet entitled "Companion Animals: Doing What's Best for Them". Please direct any questions or comments to PETA directly at 757-622-7382 or info@peta.org.

Dog Breeding & Domesticating

Because the number of animals far exceeds the demand for them, millions of homeless cats and dogs suffer from abandonment, abuse, starvation, disease, freezing, highway death, or procurement for laboratories.

More than 70 percent of people who acquire animals end up giving them away, abandoning them, or taking them to shelters(1), which receive about 27 million animals annually. More than half—about 17 million—must be destroyed for lack of homes.(2) Most are under 18 months of age, and 90 percent are healthy and adoptable.

In light of these tragic statistics, no breeding can be considered "responsible." Those who breed animals for profit and individuals who let their dog or cat have "just one litter," however well-intentioned they may be, contribute to the severe dog and cat overpopulation crisis. Every newborn puppy or kitten means one less home for a dog or cat desperately waiting in a shelter or roaming the streets.

Problems With Purebreds
Purebred breeding (breeding animals to have certain appearances or traits) has caused a wide range of health defects in animals. For example, "flat-faced" dogs, like bulldogs or Boston terriers, experience respiratory difficulties due to shorter breathing passages; bloodhounds and Shar Peis are prone to skin infections from excessively wrinkled skin(3); other dogs suffer from epileptic seizures, hip dysplasia, painful back problems—the list goes on—as a result of human manipulation.(4)

Sadly, while breeders "custom-design" millions of dogs and cats each year, millions of equally deserving dogs and cats languish in shelters. About 25 percent of animals euthanized by shelters are purebreds.(5)

Certain dogs bred originally for fighting, like the "pit bull" breeds, can have additional problems. Pit bull terriers were originally bred to fight chained bulls and bears. Today, they are frequently used by drug dealers to guard drugs and money, and in inner-city fighting rings where they often die very violent deaths.

Few good homes are open to dogs perceived as overly aggressive. Breed-specific legislation (with a "grandfather clause" for those dogs already in existence) can be an important tool in ending the tragic exploitation of these breeds.

Obedience Training
PETA wholeheartedly supports humane, interactive training: It gives dogs more freedom and understanding of our world. Untrained dogs must be constantly restrained from running off into a street or punished for anti-social behavior. Dogs should be trained only by those they live with; turning a dog over to someone else to train not only allows for unseen abuse, it also prevents guardians from learning how to communicate effectively with their animal companions.

Compassion, clarity, and consistency are the most important elements of dog training. Training should not include any activity that endangers animals or puts undue stress on them. Good books on the subject include: Mother Knows Best: The Natural Way to Train Your Dog, by Carol Lea Benjamin, Communicating With Your Dog: A Humane Approach to Dog Training, by Ted Baer, and Dog Talk, by John Ross.

Working Dogs
Relationships of mutual respect and benefit are truly wonderful. However, working dogs are often used as a substitute for innovative programs that intelligently address human needs. Sometimes they are used in situations considered too dangerous for a human being and, therefore, too dangerous for the animal. They may even be treated cruelly in preparation for, and during, their lives of servitude. Some people with working dogs love them, and some don't, so working dogs cannot always count on having homes where they are well-treated. Also, some working dog programs contribute to dog overpopulation by breeding their dogs (with the notable exception of programs for the deaf that rescue dogs from shelters).

When working dogs become too old to work, they may be separated from their human companions and either "retired" with another family (always wondering, no doubt, what they did wrong or where their lifelong human companion went), returned to the training center, or even killed. Optimally, human services for the disabled should be improved rather than relying on the breeding and exploitation of animals.

What You Can Do

• Spay or neuter dogs and cats.
  
  
• Adopt from shelters--and don't forget adult animals, who are often overlooked by people looking for a puppy or kitten.
  
  
• Take strays to humanely run shelters.
  
  
• Work within your community to legislate mandatory spaying and neutering. (See PETA's "Spaying and Neutering: A Solution for Suffering" factsheet for more information.)
  
  
• Speak up if someone is planning to breed an animal. Urge people who desire the companionship of animals to adopt from animal shelters.
  
  
• Point out neglect—talk to the animal's guardian, send an anonymous letter, or contact the humane society. Be persistent!
  
  
• Walk and play daily with your companion animals.
  
  
• If possible, adopt two animals. Animals need both human and animal companionship. Having an animal friend can help alleviate the boredom and loneliness of long hours spent waiting for you to come home.
  
  
• Read You CanSave the Animals! 251 Easy Things You Can Do to End Needless Suffering, by Ingrid Newkirk, for more tips on how you can help animals.

References

1. Whitemore, Hank, "Pet Owners: Do the Right Thing," Parade Magazine, Feb. 19, 1995.
2. Moulton, Carol, "Animal Shelters: Changing Roles," The Animals' Agenda, May 1988, p. 14-15.
3. "Breeder's Integrity a Factor in Health," Washington Times, March 23, 1995.
4. Shook, Larry, "Bad Dogs," New York Times, Aug. 8, 1992.
5. Associated Press, "Breeding Industry Swells Glut of Dogs," The Morning Call, Aug. 1, 1993.