I don't think anyone could have said it any better then you did.

What I always tell people to make it simple is

"Pet are like your children, love them, care for them as if they where your children. The responsible of a pet should be taken just as serious as the responsible of your child" "A life depends on it"

And what really makes me mad is when pet owners tell me " well he/she was uncontrollable or wouldn't listen so we got rid of him/her" I don't get rid of my children if they misbehave, I work on changing the problem, my pets the same. I don't dump them off.

If you can't take the good with the bad you don't need pets.