Some of us come from animal loving families. I did. My earliest memories are of pet rabbits and twin Spitz dogs. Then came my mother's horse, ducks and geese on our pond, many more dogs over the years, my father's flying squirrels, hamsters, guinea pigs and a skunk. Oddly enough, never a cat.

Last winter, I unpacked many boxes of family photos from past generations. As I began the process of sorting them, I noticed that just about every family member on all sides of the family and through the generations was shown with a pet, mostly with their dogs. I ended up with a fat album of those family pet pictures and the conclusion that I inherited my love of animals.

My mother was my role model. She adopted from the local shelter several times and donated to various animal welfare organizations. I adopted my first dog, Eloise, from the ASPCA shelter in Manhattan. I put that little 18-pound mutt through a lot over her lifetime taking her on subways in New York City and cross country trains and buses and even commercial airliners to California and Mexico.

She lived with me in a number of cities and became friends with the people who passed through my life. I was ignorant about the benefits of spay and neuter and eventually she got pregnant and had four puppies. It is not uncommon for unsprayed female dogs to develop life threatening tumors and she did. She died at age 11, and I grieved for a long time.

Now, many years later I have a memorial garden with the names of all the dogs and cats that have shared my life and a marker for all the puppies and dogs and cats that I fostered (more than 100). Thirty-five years ago, I educated myself on animal issues and became an animal activist. Around that time I also became a vegetarian.

This year my son moved to California and, with his girlfriend, adopted his first dog, one from a shelter. They, too, are vegetarians. Their life pretty much revolves around their adopted pup and they are having great fun and a lot of responsibility.

So the family dog photos continue. And my son is now volunteering at an animal shelter which makes me proud. I have no doubt that when they have children, those kids will continue the long line of dog adoptions in my album.

My participation in the animal welfare movement was, until recently, focused mostly on dogs and cats and other pets. In spite of advances in the animal rights movement, there is still much to be done for dogs and cats in our society. Too many are throwaways. Too many are euthanized. Too many are treated cruelly. Too many children grow up and perpetuate the attitudes of their parents toward animals.

Over the years, I became aware of more species of animals that are victims, that are being used, abused, killed, eaten.

No nonhuman animal species has escaped this fate. My consciousness has broadened to include them. I will share what I've learned in future columns.

Judy Vorreuter is the founder and director of Animal Advocates of the Finger Lakes. Contact her at judy@cayugaanimaladvocates.org