Broadway Bernadette to the Pet Rescue -- 4.9.06

April 9, 2006— -- Broadway star, Bernadette Peters, has long sung the praises of adopting abandoned animals. And on Monday, the nation's oldest rescue society, the ASPCA, celebrates a big birthday -- number 140. So we asked Peters and her rescued mutt Kramer to help honor the anniversary.

Bernadette Peters: I don't think people realize how great and beautiful the dogs are in shelters. They think that something is wrong with them.

I've had rescued animals and I've had an animal, a dog, a little dog, that was given to me and not rescued. And the rescued animals come with a history. They know their life is different now. They know that something's changed. They say dogs don't have memories, but I really do think that they do, dogs and cats. And they realize that you've saved them, and now they're there to maybe save you or connect with you. They're very, very appreciative of being picked.

The reason these animals, these dogs and cats get euthanized is not because they're bad animals, [but] because there's nobody to adopt them. There's no room in the shelters. It's crowded, it's overcrowded. And that's sort of a sin.

And I feel it's my job to get them to where they should be going, to the people that they should be going to. And I think that the more and more people connect to them, then we'll realize what an invaluable spirit this is.