Agree 100% and fighting those battles for most of my life. My family raised me to that. And you're right about the behavior issues, not only with dogs but with humans (or anyone else) -- society is the way it is because of bad, or no, training by parents/family/teachers/clergy/guardians of kids. It's not the kids' fault. Kids are born blank slates. They soak up whatever is around them. If what's around them is evil and/or uncaring, it's pretty hard (not impossible, but difficult) for them to become productive and caring members of society. My folks were exemplary and I give them all due credit for instilling the best values in me. And I pray that everyone could have such amazing inspirations for family members. It makes all the difference.That statement was in context to this site. I've probably rescued more dogs than many dyed in the wool dog lovers. I abhor all animal abuse. I have warned many dog owners out here who let them run loose. What one dog will never think of, two will consider and three will act like a pack if there is one among who has the proclivity to chase and kill or chase livestock. I had a goat for years that came from a horrible situation. She was horrible and no one else wanted her so I learned to lover her for who she was and that led the way to transforming her.
Dogs can be trained to suppress some of their natural behaviors IF the guardian takes the time. The biggest issue with all astray animals is they are acting like animals and their guardians have failed to crawl out of the low end of the gene pool and behave like adults.
The lawsuit that still sits ready to sell the holy ever loving crap out of my in-laws for their loose , vicious , untrained, unsocialized non stop barking dogs is not because the dogs were bad but because they allowed them to become a menace. So far the threat of real legal action has suppressed most of the nonsense.
Most of us here get an animal make if family and settle in for better or worse and deal with issues. Other people use their car and a dirt road in the dark of night. They are usually serial animal owners.
I shared Frog and Toads first year here and while it may have been heartwarming raising kittens to be good cats does take some effort.
I shared the horrors of losing Kitten to a veterinary monster sub human and the pain we go though when we lose one of our own.
Never once did we consider dumping her in the night box at the shelter or just dumping her in a crate somewhere. If you can't handle the eventual end no matter how it comes you shouldn't have that puppy or kitten. That is simply a transitional stage to the very quick onset of adult dogs and cats. Your dog doesn't belong chained to the bumper of your car and your cat cannot take care of itself outside alone.
To bring home an animal and then abandon it or dump it in a shelter is pure selfish and self serving behavior. It is why Bek that getting the laws changed to hold DVMs legally accountable for some of the gross negligence they are guilty of is so hard. People still think it's ok to acquire animals like objects to be used , liked and then discarded like last years scarf from Aunt Mable. We're a going to change that.