I don't think anyone was arguing those steps you mentioned (he seemed to pass on most of them in his post), but the things that I gathered had gotten to him were the "trial dog" and the fact that you can't pick your own dog in the end. At that point, you're leaving a lot up to that group. I know why they think these practices are a good idea, but I'm not sure who designates themselves the one with the best opinion of which dog matches which person. I know plenty of people who are terrible judges of character.

I really wish someone would take in the cats who have been living next door to my friends. They live in a townhouse complex, and for some reason about a dozen cats congregate on the stoop next to theirs. The people who live there don't own them or anything, they simply hang out there. They were kittens in the fall, and I'm hoping they all survived the winter.