Dear Future President,

Some cats and dogs that don’t have homes are put in shelters and they need to be rescued or adopted. According to pet statistics “70 million stray cats live in the United States”. Sometimes, if a stray animal is walking down a street some people don’t know how to react and are very cruel to the animal. This should be a priority of our future president because we need to get strays off the streets and into loving caring homes so they can get the care and protection they need.

Although animals can be wild the also can be very loving and people don’t always see that. So if they see a stray animal coming towards them they might freak out and start to yell and kick the animal leaving them scared and afraid. Which can cause them to become angry or hurt and they still have predator instincts which can kick in and they might bite people. Cats and dogs need to be put in shelter to protect them from injuries, illnesses, or infections they could get from the streets. The cats and dogs that are living on the streets are not getting the medical attention they need and could become a bigger target of animal cruelty. There are so many things that can harm animals that live on the street on a daily basis and it can happen to any dogs that are outside but there will be a larger chance of it happening to strays. If the pavement is too hot it can hurt their paws. Bird droppings can cause a disease that can be life threatening, mostly caused by pigeon droppings. If they don’t have an owner to feed them the only thing they have is probably trash and that can be dangerous for them to eat. If dogs are living in the city, mice and rats can spread a disease that cause liver or kidney failure. And so people need to rescue and adopt more pets so they are getting the proper care and there will be more room for more animals in need. Obviously we can’t give every single dog and cat a caring home, but 7.2 million animals enter into shelters every year. We need to work together to make sure as many as possible do get a home. That is why as many cats and dogs as possible need to be rescued or adopted so more pets can have an opportunity to have a home.

On the other hand some people think that they are still wild animals and they should be left alone in the wild. If they are going to be treated like wild animals we wouldn’t be able to use them to help the blind and people who have trouble getting through their everyday lives. Dogs also help solve police cases and are guard dogs who are protecting people. According to service dog central there are “approximately 387,000 service dogs across the US. People are using these animal to help others and get through their everyday lives. This is why animals are helping our community and should be treated accordingly.

To help solve this problem, we can make sure that all pet owners have collars on their animals and if someone's finds a dog that doesn’t have a collar they need to make lost dog posters. Then, if there is no one claiming the dog they would be sent to a vet, where they get a proper check up and put up for adoption. This relates to the 3rd Global Goal: Good Health and Well-being, and the 15th Global Goal: Life on Land. Animals that cause sickness will get off the streets and be treated which will mean that there are less diseases being passed along to people on the streets. It should be a priority so animals are treated fairly and are getting proper care so they can be a loving companion or a helpful service dog.