Well, it's by no means certain, but there is now the possibility that we're going to get a dog.
The criteria are a) small (about the size of a Jack Russell Terrier or a Wheaten Terrier (able to sleep in a bed that's in a footprint the size of a guinea pig cage) b) adult or damn close, c) housebroken, and d)non-shedding. The secondary criteria are a) quiet, b) friendly, and c) not particularly energetic. "Rescued" or "from the ASPCA" are good, too, as would a life expectancy from acquisition date of about six to eight years. Neutered, of course; chipped, if possible. I know that some of those characteristics are contradictory. Well, heck, so am I!
We'll see. I am sure there are lots of things, many of them expensive, that we've never considered.
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We are planning on getting a dog in June. Medium sized and probably from a shelter. We will have to compare notes.
I did a little cursory looking, and found that most sites seemed oriented toward getting a puppy as distinct from an adult dog. Since we would prefer a shelter animal, those sites are only of passing usefulness, though they did suggest several things to be aware of when selecting a dog. The 'no or minimal shedding' came from a friend who spoke fondly of her family's yellow Labrador when she was young -- "But, oh, there was hair everywhere!"
I have to admit that my local shelter's pictures of dogs tugged at my heart...and whatever the opposite reaction is called occurred when I read the notes about 'this dog is medicated for incontinence', 'this dog's left rear leg was amputated'. Shudder. So much for the depth of human kindness.
This page has a pretty broad, though by no means exhaustive list of dog breeds and characteristics. I immediately dumped it into a spreadsheet and sorted by characteristics - weight, frequency of shedding, etc. It was instructive, as some of the dogs I "knew", and would think of first, were types that didn't meet my criteria. Then again, my niece has a Jack Russell terrier, and she doesn't seem to need to give it extraordinary exercise, despite what the page says; similarly, my grandfather had a beagle, and it didn't seem to be all that big to me when I was a kid. So I guess you take their descriptions with a grain of salt.
I want another guinea pig just so we can use up the bedding we bought! Then again, I'd also like an aquarium...and a pony.
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