Taking Pet Adoption Seriously ...

... sometimes means not adopting at all.A couple of advice columns dealing with pets reminded me of the time one of my brothers broke up with a girlfriend decades ago. The straw that broke that camel's back: She came home with two yippy dogs without having consulted him about it.I am not a dog person. I was sympathetic then, but it took me time to appreciate what a good move this was on his part. That wisdom has nothing to do with my preferences regarding dogs and I would go so far as to say that anyone who seriously appreciates dogs should agree with me.Why?Because some pets -- off the top of my head: anything dangerous, high-maintenance past a certain point, or large enough to have the run of the house -- inherently affect the daily life of the members of a household enough that everyone in the household deserves a say before making such a commitment. I can even see the argument that such pets demand a degree of commitment that is comparable enough to a human relationship that…