Pets

Hi everyone,
I would like a discuss a topic that is very important to me. The topic is about pets. Some people will just call them pets and others will call them part of their family. I cannot speak for anyone else how they feel about their pet. 
why do people have pets? Do they get them because they really want them or maybe because their kids want one. Do they buy them or get them from a shelter or from someone that found one abandoned.
I would like to explain how my Mitzi came into my life. She was just an itty bitty little girl at the time. She was abandoned when she was 13 weeks old and started to wander in the street and then my ex picked her up and brought her home to me. We already had a dog which he got from someone and so he thought I would want a kitten too. I grew up as a dog person and not sure about cats. Mitzi wanted me to like her so she tried every way she could. The dog would tower over her, but, she was not afraid. She was very curious that one day she got caught somehow in the bars and the kids downstairs were watching to see what would happen. I saw that she was caught and got her out and from day on I was her heroine. I wasn't much of a heroine. When my ex moved out and we got a divorce I got custody of the dog and the cat. The dog passed away and then it was Mitzi and I. I will not abandon Mitzi and always want to make sure she is ok. I do not travel here because Mitzi is not a good traveler and I will not leave her behind or with someone else to watch over her. I understand her and I believe she would also not be happy with someone else here. We have a very special bond. So, please think before you just say any animal you have is just a pet. Remember he or she has feelings too and G-d created them also.
Thank you and I needed to get that out. I feel that people that really truly love their animals understand them better than someone that just considers them a pet.