There is no doubt that shelters in the United States are overcrowded, that feral cats roam the streets of our cities, that thousands of dogs live in grotesque conditions in food factories. puppies across the country, and yet most U.S. citizens when surveyed will readily report that their cat or dog is like “a member of the family.” The situation for pets in this country is precarious to say the least; stuck between scientists who subscribe to Descartes' idea of ​​"anima ex machina" (insensible, a living example of biological processes without the status of "being") and the more common phenomenon of people who pamper their pets a way that most people would envy. For most individuals living in an urban society like ours, the most common interaction with animals occurs at home – so the animals we relate to and interact with most continue to be abandoned. and abused on a large scale, there must be a solution that involves more than simply building more animal shelters or practicing euthanasia more liberally. The evidence that pets are not considered very important in the United States is easy to find – as Bernard E. Rollin and Michael DH Rollin assert: "We acquire these animals while knowing nothing about their needs and of their nature, then we get rid of them because they cannot meet those needs and that nature… we adopt them on a whim, and we get rid of them when that passes…” (Rollin & Rollin “Ethics and Companion Animals” 546). The overpopulation of pets like dogs and cats presents perhaps the most visible dilemma: "Although no completely reliable statistics exist, it is estimated that between 6 and 10 million dogs and between 7 and 10 million cats were humanely killed in U.S. pet shelters. United States in 1990" (Palmer "Killing... middle of paper...... Ernard and Michael Rollin, I believe "that we have a contractual relationship with all domestic animals, but most clearly with those who are totally dependent on us, and for whom we have left no room to subsist, much less to thrive on their own” (Rollin & Rollin “Ethics and Companion Animals” 547. Our unique relationship with companion animals should give them a considerable importance in our lives, and) as Clare Palmer says, "solving the problem of homeless animals is a step towards extending our attention to all living things" (Palmer, 579). "Living with Animals." Palmer, Clare. "Killing Animals in Animal Shelters." The world of pets”.