When my husband and I watched the Westminster dog show recently, we would comment to each other about this breed or that breed. It gradually dawned on me that I at least was beginning to compose a mental list of what I wanted and didn’t want in a future dog. Kelly wasn’t exactly thrilled when I mentioned this to him, but that’s how it usually goes when we get a dog: I start the process and a bit later he too throws himself into it.

Some of the things we came up with have to do with training, most don’t exactly. I’m sure each person’s list would be very different. For what it’s worth, here’s ours as it stands right now. We have had mixed-breed rescue dogs and am not averse to one again, but for starters I *am* thinking of a purebred dog for the predictability.

• A breed that likes training, which is different from a smart dog. Our Basenji was very smart but had next to no desire to please us. She was more like a cat in that way.
• Not a huge dog.
• Not a dog with a long coat that requires lots of grooming. Been there, done that.
• Probably not a dog with a flat face, due to their snoring and because my husband prefers other dogs’ looks. This is negotiable; Pugs and Boston Terriers do interest me.
• Not a terrier: we are writers who work at home and we need a dog who who has a lot of lazy time. We’ve had two different dogs in the hounds category and they worked well in this way.

We haven’t decided about size. Nor about when!

UPDATE: Several months later, we got a rescue Rottweiler puppy, several months old. So much for “Not a huge dog” but we adore her!