The first thing you need to know about adopting a dog from a shelter, any kind of shelter, is that you will have to have a lot of patience. You would think that I mean you need to have patience as your puppy figures out the rules of her new home, but I’m talking about patience with all the people you will have to interact with during and after your dog adoption.

The places that sell dogs- pet stores, animal shelters, dog pounds- do not need to wow you with their customer service, with their sparkling facilities, or their amazingly well behaved puppies. As soon as you walk into their store, whatever desire for a furry companion that drove you there in the first place takes control and overwhelms your better judgment. And they know it. Which is why after standing in line three times (totaling to about one and a…