You lean toward idealism, I am too firmly anchored in cold, hard reality, and too quickly dismiss the ideal. (Plus, I freely admit that I can't match you for sheer volume.) While I feel that every animal being placed for adoption should be altered, I don't envision a doubling of adoptions if we make it more affordable. Indeed, it would simply bring us back to my original point - we don't want to make "pet getting" a rock-bottom, cheap endeavor, only to find the animal neglected or turned out when the financial realities of "pet owning" come home to roost. You have lots of wonderful suggestions on how to make ends meet, but you and I know that most people won't bother to explore the options, and the pet will suffer. (To put it bluntly, you cannot dismiss the link between poverty and education.) We ALL have to pay our way through life, not depending upon the government or playing Blanche DuBois by depending upon the kindness of strangers. It's bad enough that people shirk their financial responsibilities by having children they can't afford, let alone pets. (I'd rather see my tax money go toward spaying or neutering those irresponsible people.)