I agree with education being the ultimate solution, however with the way americans are today, education will not work. We tend to only listen to what we want to hear and when we hear something we don't want to hear we ignore it, and still proceed with what we were recommended NOT to do. When the decision backfires we can always "dump the dog, cat or whatever have you, in a pound somewhere and the decision is no longer ours to worry about". In Europe we don't even have this option, at least not in Sweden ( at least not when I checked last, a while back) It is called accountability..Very few average people living in America know what accountability is..there is always somebody there to take care of messes being made.
I wish there was a way to not have so many dogs roaming the streets, and being put down on a daily basis, it is absolutely heart breaking, education will help some, but it won't stop it. In my honest, humble opinion.