Dog Days

Could someone please tell me why it is so hard to adopt a dog that I find appealing. All that I want is a simple little dog that won't grow too big, so that he has a nice disposition, so he won't walk my wife, when I am either too lazy or not at home to walk him. You can adopt a child with less pain, you can adopt a road, you can adopt a school. All of these are much less painful than this. I saw puppy in the next state up, he is a Jack Russell Terrier and something mix, the reason behind this later. He has 18 applications, I'm not going to drive 100 miles with gas prices as silly as they are and come home empty handed. Not going to work, all that I want is a simple JRT and something mix, that looks like he has some sense.
I've almost always had a dog in my house since I've been on this earth, and having one is as natural as breathing. You get up in the morning, wash your back, put some clothes on, take the doggy out, maybe you drink some coffee on the trip down the block, maybe not. You take him to the doggy doc when he is sick, you treat him with courtesy and respect not unlike your children or your spouse, not saying that you should treat your spouse like a dog, even though some folks do and most of them seem to have zero luck on Saturday night with getting that itch re scratched by the same person over and over. But I'm not going there today, not the time or the place. So can someone, anyone, please tell me why it is soooo hard to adopt a little puppy.