Picking a dog-

[Not Afraid]

I think you might be happy with something from the herding group. Border Collie, Australian Shepheard, Australian Cattle Dog, Collie, Corgi (for a smaller version) or German Shepheard. You can ALWAYS find shepheard mixes waiting to be rescued. Aussie Shepheards are GREAT dogs. I took care of two miniature Aussies for a while. VERY trainable and smart as well as loving and friendly. Aussie Cattle dogs are short hair and easy to take care of as well as being great companions. I really like this entire breed group.

The one bad thing about these dogs is that they can be TOO smart.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Poodle mixes. Poodle mixes don't shed and produce fewer allergens.

[Not Afraid]

If allergies are a problem, there are quite a few dogs that have hair instead of fur and product fewer problems for the allergy-prone. There's a decent list here. Of that list, I'm partial to the Westies, Wheatons, Basinjis (who don't bark), and Schnausers.

I'm not a poodle fan. They always seem to be the most annoying dogs I take care of. Spaniels come in a close second. But, again, it's not a universal thing. My cockapoo is about the cutest thing on the planet, but she's one bad dog at times. She's got the attention span of a toothpick.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Originally Posted by Not Afraid

I'm not a poodle fan. They always seem to be the most annoying dogs I take care of.

Thus, poodle mix. Labradoodles (Lab/Poodle mix) have become very popular recently (and they're adoreable).

[Not Afraid]

Labradoodles are great, Cockapoos are not always so good. It just depends on the mix. Poodles have been bread with just about everything lately. There are a whole host of new "designer" mix breeds.

Here's more great information about the recent "hybrid" craze.

[Alex]

I'm a big fan of not being able to answer the question "what kind of dog is it?" Purebreeds always seem to have some personality or health quirk that makes them a lot of trouble.

All the "who the hell knows" dogs we ever owned were always the best ones.

A coworker has a couple non-allergenic dogs that are imported from Cuba or something like that. I forget what they are called but he is very fond of them even if firmly in the hairy-tailed rat category.

[Capt Jack]

Originally Posted by Alex Stroup

Just remember, if it is under 20 pounds it is not a dog, it is a rat with a hairy tail.

*whew* Chewy jusssst made it.

[Snowflake]

Originally Posted by Not Afraid

I'm not a poodle fan. They always seem to be the most annoying dogs I take care of.

Well, I grew up with a poodle. She was a great dog, smart and never missed a damn thing in the neighborhood. We grew up together (had her as a puppy) and she was always fun, playful and a great watchdog. We never had an incident of biting any other kid in the neighborhood. She was a toy poodle size and was really a whole lot of fun.

My dear friend Xian has a poodle (named Garbo) and Garbo is a lovely poodle. But she is of the high strung variety and, bless her heart, she's a dunderhead.

Your Mileage May Vary, of course, as does NA's. I love poodles.

[Motorboat Cruiser]

I saw the thread title as "Pick a drug" and I was ready to offer helpful advice.

As far as dogs though, eh, I'm a cat person. Still, Matthew and I had the pleasure of living with a wonderful golden retriever named "Peanut" for a couple of years and she was wonderful. We both grew pretty attached to her. And she was friendy enough that we didn't mind the boatload of fur.

[sleepyjeff]

Over the years I've had:

Bassett/Beagle Mix---Pretty good dog but lots of health problems.

Terrier/Mut---Male dog who was a runner. Ran away after only a few months. Never found.

Corgi---Best dog ever. Great with kids, inteligent, easy to train(except as a puppy she did nip at everyones heels a lot(herding her human flock); but she grew out of that), rarely barked(except every day at 3pm, when the Nunnery down the street rang their big bell)and perfect lengthed hair(not so short that it embeddes itslef in everything but not long either). Lived a very long life(almost 18 years).

Chow Chow---Like NA said, best dog to have around cats....ours actually meowed. Very protective(she always positioned herself at night in between our bedroom and the front door--watching the front door). Lots of hair...everywhere(but at least it wasnt that short hair dashunds have that gets embedded). We had a black one and when we went camping with her once she was mistaken, from a distance, for a small bear

Dashund/Basset mix---Only my second male dog. He doesn't get along with strangers at all, but his shyness may be due to his former owners husband who we think abused him. He's not my favorite dog but he does obey most commands, and a couple of years ago even found a mouse in our house

Beagle---Just aquired this dog(puppy) a few months ago. She is very, very spirited. Barks a lot but responds pretty well to reward/praise training. Somewhat destructive due to both naughty chewing and plain clumsiness. She is great with kids(loves the attention in fact). I actually made a mistake in getting her. Someone I knew said he had a litter of beagles, and asked if I would like one. I thought he said bassets(my hearing isn't very good sometimes), and knowing my wife loves that breed told him to set aside a female for us. Once the mistake was discoverd it was too late....we already had told our Son a new puppy was coming