| Getting a pet dog is really a Zen process of | | | | |
| self-discovery. You can't know the right dog | | | | - Welsh Corgi |
| for you until you know yourself. For example, | | | | |
| a jock would prefer an active dog. A lazy | | | | - Scottish Terrier |
| slug would prefer a dog that doesn't require | | | | |
| much exercise. | | | | Quiet dogs |
| | | | |
| A touchy-feely person would prefer a friendly | | | | - Basenji |
| dog. A tightly-wound person would probably | | | | |
| prefer a dog that doesn't bark or shed too | | | | - Borzoi |
| much. Think of picking a pup like choosing a | | | | |
| mate; you have to find one that compliments | | | | - Chesapeake Bay Retriever |
| your personality. | | | | |
| | | | - Greater Swiss Mountain Dog |
| Here are some very general guidelines. Of | | | | |
| course, we won't list every dog breed on the | | | | - Whippet |
| planet, but they'll get you thinking in the | | | | |
| right direction: | | | | Friendly dogs |
| | | | |
| Intelligent dogs | | | | - Brittany Spaniel |
| | | | |
| - Poodle | | | | - Bichon Frise |
| | | | |
| - German Shepherd | | | | - Old English Sheepdog |
| | | | |
| - Australian Sheepdog | | | | - Bearded Collie |
| | | | |
| - Belgian Sheepdog | | | | - Golden Retriever |
| | | | |
| Dogs with little exercise | | | | - Labrador Retriever |
| | | | |
| - Dachshund | | | | There are dozens of breeds and dozens of |
| | | | traits to sort them by. You get the idea. |
| - Brussels Griffon | | | | |
| | | | Again, these guidelines are EXTREMELY rough. |
| - French Bulldog | | | | Picking a dog based on these lists is like |
| | | | getting a phone number off a bathroom wall. |
| - Manchester Terrier | | | | There are no shortcuts. You can try going to |
| | | | a dog show or talking to a vet. |
| - Toy breeds (such as a Chihuahua or | | | | |
| Pekingese) | | | | In our opinion, though, the absolutely best |
| | | | way to research is to talk to friends who |
| Good with kids | | | | have dogs. Believe us; they'll give you more |
| | | | information than you care to know: Sometimes |
| - Pug | | | | even more than what we know. |
| | | | |
| - English Cocker Spaniel | | | | In case you didn't realize it, all of the |
| | | | breeds we listed above are purebreds. This |
| - Beagle | | | | means that they are the product of parents of |
| | | | the same breed. To get a true purebred worthy |
| - Basset Hound | | | | of being in a dog show, you often have to pay |
| | | | thousands of dollars. |
| - Brittany Spaniel | | | | |
| | | | Most people get mixes of some sort (the |
| - Old English Sheepdog | | | | "cockapoo," a combo of a cocker spaniel and a |
| | | | poodle, is quite popular), because rumor has |
| Good city dogs | | | | it that purebred dogs can have personality |
| | | | problems because the gene pool is so small |
| - Pug | | | | (think of people who marry their cousins). As |
| | | | a result, many people choose to go with a |
| - Basenji | | | | mutt, a mish-mash of different breeds. |
| | | | |
| - Boston Terrier | | | | Mutts can combine the best of two or more |
| | | | breeds in a one-of-a-kind dog. Having a mutt |
| - Bulldog | | | | is like the canine equivalent of owning an |
| | | | original work of art. Benji was a mutt. And |
| - Lhasa Apso | | | | who doesn't like Benji? |