Several hundred dog owners gathered outside the Greek Parliament on Sunday to protest a new law that would force them to neuter their beloved pets. “We are here to show our love to our children,” demonstrator Christos Xiros told the Associated Press of the bill that would make sterilization mandatory for household pets. “Those who govern us want them taken away from us.” Dog owners took issue with the bill’s focus on abolishing amateur breeding, which they called “the backbone of dog loving” in a statement. The Greek government has pushed back, saying that amateur breeding is often tied to abusive treatment of animals, especially female dogs who can be forced to continually breed in order to create as much profit as possible for owners.