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But if you speak to local veterinarians and animal control officials, there's nothing good about injecting poison into a cat or dog without a home.

"It's not a very pleasant job," said Walt Rodabaugh, chief of the Lapeer County Animal Shelter. "This is nothing we love to do. It's something we have to do. This county would be overrun with them. You wouldn't believe how many there are out there."

And according to a 2006 Michigan shelter survey from the Michigan Department of Agriculture's Animal Industry Division, there were plenty. Data from 140 shelters showed more than 100,000 cats and dogs were euthanized in the state. Out of 106,245 dogs received from shelters, 41,919 were put down, averaging around 806 dogs per week. Cats didn't fair any better. Out of 120,602 felines admitted, 76,000 were euthanized, averaging a whopping 1,461 cats a week.

When broken down by age, dogs younger than six months show more adoptions to enthanizations from 13,977 adopted to 7,369 euthanized. The odds are against those older than six months showing 34,550 euthanized to 21,973 adopted.

"We get a lot of older dogs in here that people don't want anymore," Rodabaugh said.

Cats don't fare well in either age group. Those less than six months were adopted 15,930 and euthanized 32,772. Six months and older revealed 14,022 adopted compared to 43,228 euthanized.

In 2006, there were 583 total euthanizations of cats and dogs in the county's animal shelter out of around 5,000 brought in, Rodabaugh said. So far this year, that number has already broke the 500 mark at 503 with 1,322 brought in.

"The economy has driven a lot of this," Rodabaugh said, "because people can't afford to take care of them. It's a real big problem right now."

The cost to adopt a cat at the shelter is $20, and $60 for a dog under the age of six months; dogs are $50 otherwise. There is also a $50 spay and neuter deposit on every animal, which is refunded if the owner shows the animal has been spayed or neutered within the given time period.

The average time an animal stays in the county shelter is between six to 10 days. By law, stray animals must be held there for five days, or 10 days if the owner can be identified. After the time period, the animal becomes property of Lapeer County, and can be placed under adoption depending on the health, or be euthanized. If they are put to sleep, they are then cremated in an incinerator at the shelter.

The shelter has 17 cages for cats, typically one per cage unless they're part of a litter, and can house 52 dogs.

"We can fill up with stray cats in one day," Rodabaugh said.

If the shelter is filled to capacity, animals must be taken somewhere else. This could be Paradise Animal Rescue, an animal protection shelter registered with the Department of Agriculture. The rescue can house between 60-70 cats at one time, and currently has 12-13 foster owners to take care of dogs. The building at 265 Howard St. is under renovation with a separate room being added for cats, along with a dog kennel and an exam room

"Paradise is technically a no-kill, though in certain cases we do euthanize," said Tracy Thorpe, veterinarian for Thorpe Animal Hospital and president of Paradise. "We can only take in as many as we can handle at a time because we don't mass euthanize."

Thorpe said the numbers for cats are high because they breed a lot faster than dogs by having more heat cycles. One way to reduce the high put-down rates, she said, is to spay and neuter pets.

"If they're not breeding their pet for quality breeding, they should spay and neuter," she said.

James Sillers, a veterinarian at Imlay City Veterinary Clinic, believes laws and restrictions that force all animals to be neutered in some communities put a hurt on the serious breeders.

"You have serious breeders and everyone seems to blame them," he said. "All the new laws hurt them. Other's don't follow the laws and allow their dogs to go loose. So many are being irresponsible."

Sillers is no stranger to euthanasia. When he entered the veterinary business 40 years ago, his first job was to put cats and dogs to sleep. He said he doesn't like that part of the profession, but with so many out there, he wonders what else can be done.

"They would bring them in one by one," he recalled his first job. "As fast as I would put one down, the next was there."

He said people, especially children, should be educated properly about pet ownership. This can be done by taking dogs to obedience school, understanding what kinds of dogs are right for their living conditions, and learning responsibility.

"I have so many clients that want to have a litter of pups so their children can experience having a litter of pups in the home," Sillers said. "I will say 'What will you do with the pups when they're eight weeks of age?' They'll say 'Well, if I can't find a home then I'll take them to the animal shelter.' Well they euthanize them there and they'll say 'That's not our problem.'"

Thorpe adds more needs to be done as a community if the problem is to be alleviated.

"It's a community problem," she said. "It's going to take the whole community to solve the problem."

While high euthanasia rates may cast a dark shadow in the pet world, there are success stories too. One of those is the adoption of Carmella, a gray tabby who was found with her litter by a garbage dumpster behind Country Cafe in Lapeer. When a leukemia outbreak occurred at the animal shelter, she and her kittens tested negative prior to the euthanasia of many cats. She ended up being adopted shortly after on July 21, 2006 at the rescue center by Metamora resident Annette Swett.

"We had gone in there and pretty much fallen in love with her," she said. "She wanted attention and wanted to be held. She wanted to be loved."

Swett has adopted four cats from Paradise: Olivia, Diesel and Gabe being the others. She said she was surprised hearing the high amount of euthanasia and recommends the rescue center for those looking for a cat.

"There's a lot of good cats there that need a good home," she said. "They all have their own personality. I would recommend anybody to go up there and get a cat."

Rodabaugh said the adoption rate at the county shelter is good and a lot of other things happen to animals besides euthanasia. For example, dogs can be transferred out to other rescue centers and be trained as police dogs or used to guide the blind.

To spread the word about the pets who need homes, the chief of animal control is working on a Web site that will allow people to view pictures of animals currently in the shelter. Along with word of mouth, The County Press also publishes a "Pet Pick" every issue in the Et Cetera section highlighting a pet.

For more information on Lapeer County Animal Shelter or Paradise Animal Rescue, visit the Web at http://lchd.lapeer.org/htmlpages/shelter.html and www.parpets.org, respectively.

Jeff Hoard can be reached at (810) 664-0811, Ext. 8127 or jeff.hoard@lapeergroup.com