The saga of Iggy and Ellen

I’m sure everyone knows by now of the Ellen DeGeneres drama. She adopted Iggy, a Brussels griffon mix, from Mutts and Moms animal adoption agency. When the puppy couldn’t get along with her cats (even after a pet trainer was brought in), she “rehomed” the dog, giving it to her hairdresser’s family. Giving Iggy away to another home was a violation of Mutts and Moms’ rules of adoption. Apparently, DeGeneres and her partner, Portia de Rossi, didn’t realize that when they adopted Iggy. The dog was taken from her hairdresser’s family by the adoption agency and has since been placed in another home.
Is there more to this whole story than is being told to us? From the photos I’ve seen, the dog was small enough and I’m sure DeGeneres’ home is large enough, couldn’t she just keep the dog and cats separated? Doesn’t she have the staff to keep an eye on the situation? In my experience, the dog matures and learns to leave the cats alone and the cats learn to tolerate the dog. (And I never had to bring in a pet trainer, especially one who wasn’t successful at getting the “lions” to lay down with the Iggy.) With all the resources DeGeneres must have, couldn’t she make this situation work if she really wanted the dog?
It also raises the issue of adoption agencies and their rules and regulations. Agencies have to have some standards for adoption, but common sense and the best thing for the animal should rule. And maybe Mutts and Moms did the best thing in this case for Iggy, but sometimes it seems that a few people with animal rescue organizations have control issues that have nothing to do with adopting an animal.
I guess the lesson learned out of all the controversy is an old one that bears repeating and dogs us time and time again: Read the fine print.

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