Difficult decisions

Here’s Alicia with our new dogs. Just kidding! They are, instead, Jock (white and tan) and Lucky (black and white), the two lovely boys for whom we are dog-sitting this week while their parents (M3+family) are out of town. They illustrate perfectly most of the characteristics I’d like in a pet, friendly, smell nice, short hair, not too slobbery. The only thing they don’t fit (by a long shot) is the 25 lb weight limit imposed by our new apartment complex.

Difficult decisions

Alicia and I are, in fact, strongly considering getting a dog next fall - though probably not one as large as either Jock or Lucky. We have had many discussions about which type of dog would best fit with our relatively small apartment, our busy lives, and our need for a small pet (under 25 pounds) to comply with the regulations set forth by our apartment complex. We are also weighing the kind of grooming necessary for each particular breed, how much we think the dog might bark and annoy our apartment neighbors, and how happy it will be with the amount of exercise we can provide it.

Here are the current contenders, as well as my thoughts about each one (the links will take you to the Animal Planet description of each breed, a slightly more fun-pet rather than show-pet oriented website than the American Kennel Club, though both were helpful for us):

Boston terrier: These dogs are super cute, and are at the top of the list right now. Of their minor health problems, “stenotic nares” are included, which means they snort and make crazy breathing noises all the time. I think we can work around this, as they are cheerful and energetic, but seem like they would be happy with our living arrangements (walk + playing every day, but having to stay home alone a bit in the middle of the day).

Pug: Alicia and I are somewhat divided on the cuteness of the pug. I think they are adorable. She does not. Alicia is also somewhat turned off by the fact that the grooming needs include “cleaning facial wrinkles.” They are also plagued by the “stenotic nares,” so I’m currently pushing for a Pugston - a Boston terrier/pug mix.

Miniature daschund: Alicia’s mom still has the dog they got when Alicia was in high school - Sam - a super cute little miniature daschund and she would love nothing more than to get one for ourselves. I’m strongly considering this, though I might like to branch out a little bit.

Bulldog: The bulldog was my attempt to suggest a dog that was my idea of cute like a pug, but less “ridiculous looking” for Alicia. Because of the need to clean the bulldogs facial wrinkles as well, I think this one is sort of near the bottom of our list. That being said, I think they are sort of cute and tough-looking.

So that’s the short list. I’d love to have a little vote take place, as well as get your comments/suggestions. Please click here to vote.

PS. The board exam is finally over. It’s hard to believe that it was only a few days ago (Thursday), as I’ve done so much since I finished (read: I had over a month’s worth of errands to run).