Want a new dog, but have concerns... advice please.

[Tomoe Gozen]

We haven't had a dog in 3 years (my ex took the kids' dog ).  We're moving to a place we can have a dog again. 

My kids and I are all allergic to pollen and cats.  I am afraid that one (or all!) of us might develop an allergy to the dog. 

Of course, we want a dog that is gentle and good with kids.

Also, I have a personal concern.   I like dogs, but I'm really sensitive to how they smell.    Are there less-stinky breeds, or is this just my fantasy?

Just to be more complicated, we definitely want to get a rescue dog.

Suggestions? 

[ChitownTracy]

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Edited by ChitownTracy - 7/19/12 at 7:42pm

[JavaFinch]

I am not going to pretend to be an expert but in my searching for a breed to get I did read some things about the doggy odor being stronger for many hound breeds or any dog that has an oily coat ('water dog').  We used to have Basset Hounds and they did get smelly.  I chose a Collie and they are supposed to be less smelly than many breeds.  But other than that, I would encourage you to just google something like 'dog breeds least smelly' or 'dog breeds doggy odor' and you'll probably find hours of reading that will help you out :)

As for the allergies, I have no idea.  I know I LOVE my vacuum cleaner and plan to use it a LOT and hope for the best!

Good luck!!!

[starrlamia]

a good diet will help cut down on smell.

[DoubleDouble]

And a good bath! Don't get a huge dog that's hard to bathe. We had one that was almost larger than the bathtub.

[kythe]

Originally Posted by starrlamia 

a good diet will help cut down on smell.

I second this.  I just posted in another thread about my dogs' smell.  I had always fed them a diet of grain free food that used no meat by-products.  But I switched to a store brand food when I was tight on money and could no longer afford the expensive food.  Only then did the dogs develop a strong body odor which seemed unaffected by bathing and grooming.  It's just how they smelled.  Now we are back to natural food for the dogs and the odor has diminished again.