Ignorant breeding makes me sick!

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I've seen a lot of people talking about their dogs and cats having litters today and it really aggravates me! Everyone is busy saying "ooh congrats, how cute"...does no one else see that this is terribly wrong? Every single puppy or kitten born is one more home taken away from an animal in need. Besides which I have yet to see any of these people going about it with any kind of reasonable ethical standards! Before your pet ever reaches breeding age ask yourself what does your pet have to offer the gene pool? "He/She is just sooo cute and I wuv him/her soooo much" just won't cut it! Every dog and cat is soooo cute and they all deserve to be "wuved" soooo much! That doesn't mean that they offer anything beneficial to the gene pool!! If they don't spay/neuter them right away! They can still be "cute and wuved" till you both turn blue and not be bred! I deal in dogs, Great Danes to be exact, so I'll speak from my own experience but all of this could just as easily be taken for cats, ferrets, or any kind of animal. First you must consider if your dog honestly has something that would help improve upon the breed. Is s/he outstanding conformationally or as a working/herding/hunting dog? Who says so? Joe Schmoe down the street who wouldn't truly know jack about it or more than one person very experienced and knowledgable in the breed? If so wait until their poor bodies are mature enough! This does not mean their first heat! You should always wait until AT LEAST the second heat if not the third for some breeds! Even though they are physically able to have pups their first heat it takes a real toll on them later in life. At their first heat their own bodies are not fully developed and mature yet so putting so much physical stress and strain on the mother's body is detrimental to her health! How much can you really "wuv" your dog if you'd do this to her? Then you must have your dog tested thoroughly for genetic defects common to that breed. Hip dysplasia is a big one for many breeds. You dog may show no outward symptoms of problems for many years and only proper testing by a vet may tell you if your dog is carrying a genetic defect which may be passed down to their offspring. You can't say you love dogs if you don't care or attempt to prevent puppies from crippling defects now can you? If the tests come out right then you must thoroughly research bloodlines and critically view each candidate for mating. Are there known problems in the bloodlines? Have these two bloodlines been crossed before with poor results? Does this dog compliment your dog's strengths and offset the weaknesses? If you don't care enough to check how can you even think about breeding? You must also make sure that your dog is in sufficient breeding condition. That means being in tip top healthy condition! You must feed the best foods and have all routine vet checkups up to date. This is so important for the health of the mother and pups you just can't say you care without doing it, can you? This is all the VERY least you should do if you honestly care about animals. If you don't then I have just one thing to say to you...I sincerely wish you employment putting animals to sleep at your local shelter because that is exactly what you are doing!