I agree that light may not be necessary, but if you need to use one, stay with constantly on lamps. You don't need to get expensive. I haven't seen them in a while, but those cheap clip-on headboard lamps for kids or for dorm students would work well. I'd suggest LED bulbs. They are under $30 now and aren't very hot and unlike CFLs, they don't break and leave lots of glass and nasty chemicals. As far as a light stand, the clip-ons can attach to anything, so you may not need one. If you do, you shouldn't need anything special, just sturdy....and pee-proof. For dog shows, you can throw a self-made plastic stand around the base to protect against pee. Think of a solid version of the classic Christmas tree skirt. Personally, I just quick rinse the stands if something happens.
Whatever you use, make sure its secure. The animals are sometimes easily scared and if something falls around them, the shoot it off. They will constantly be looking in the direction of whatever fell in fear something else may drop...doesn't matter if it was heavy or light. If you want to use a backdrop, I'd suggest a simple sheet pinned to a wall. Make sure it doesn't flap around as that disturbs some animals.
Make sure cables aren't where the animals can chew on them. Not good for the cables, and if they carry power, not good for the animals.
For most animals, shoot at their level or below. For large animals, you may want to shoot from slightly above to make them appear smaller.
And if you aren't personally very familiar with rescue/shelter dogs, don't try to handle them. Let the volunteers take care of that as the dogs probably know them already. Besides, you need to remain free to take the pictures. You might also ask to start with the most stable dogs as you can work with them longer while you are getting setup. As you get familiar with the best settings, you can take whatever they want done most.
Hope it helps.
