Most of us had pets growing up. Even if you didn't, you still likely have fond memories of your friend's pets or the companion animals around you. Remember Scruffy, with his melting puppy eyes? What about Magenta, the neighbor's orange tabby who loved rubbing against your feet?

Now, we are at the age where we can start getting our own pets. But why should we? Making the decision to open your home to an animal is more important than deciding if they will match your furniture. There's a lot to think about!

1. If you adopt one animal from a shelter, you will save a life.

2.7 million animals are euthanized in the USA each year, in shelters. Most of this number is simply because people didn't adopt them, not because of any fault of their own. If each person who adopted an animal chose to do so from a shelter, rather than a breeder, this number would go down dramatically.

2. You will get a healthier animal.

Breeders tend to breed purebred animals. Sure, purebred basset hounds might be the cutest dogs on earth, but because of their inbred genetics (like any purebred dog) they have lots of health issues and lots of pain. If you adopt a mutt from a shelter, their larger gene pool will make them much healthier than purebred dogs. This will make life easier both for them, and for you because you won't have to pay as many outrageous vet bills.

3. You will get a new best friend.

In my experience, rescue animals have more gratitude and love than bred animals because shelter animals know that you saved them.

There are a million more reasons to adopt animals instead of buying them, but it can be summed up with the phrase, "It's the right thing to do."

But what if up you can't adopt? You live in the dorms, or your boyfriend is allergic? Maybe you're just not ready to make that kind of commitment yet. Well, you can still help your furry friends! Here's how:

You can volunteer at your local shelter. Shelters are always looking for volunteers to do anything from petting the cats to walking the dogs. Just because you don't want to scoop any litter boxes, doesn't mean you shouldn't volunteer! If you have an apartment, fostering an animal is a great short-term substitution to adopting. This is where an animal not ready to be adopted lives with you for a short time, such as a really shy cat who needs to learn that humans are friendly.

As humans, we have an advantage over the smaller life forms on our planet. It's up to us to take care of them in every way that we can!