When someone picks up a pet from a shelter, it's not just the animal that gets rescued, Bernadette Peters said.

"They realize that you've saved them, and now they're there to maybe save you or connect with you," the actress said on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday. "They're very, very appreciative of being picked."

As the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals turns 140 this week, the Broadway star said it's "sort of a sin" that animals are euthanized when no one will adopt them.

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