They say that a dog is a man’s best friend, and to quote Charles Dickens, “what greater gift than the love of a cat”. But that is not the case for some animals who have been brutally abused and killed by humans just for sport. Animal cruelty is a growing phenomenon and a worrying trend in Malaysia. To overcome this problem, we need to teach compassion of animals to kids. As an adult, it is our responsibility to teach children to treat animals with respect and kindness. A great way to do this is to be a role model. If we are kind to pets, our kids are most likely to follow suit.