Love Again?

OK, I think I'm ready to fall in love again...with a new dog, that is! We lost our beloved Ben to age related illness at Christmas & I feel more ready to look at adopting a second dog now. I'm nervous though - we lost two great dogs that we loved in 2010 due to horrible illnesses & our adoption of Juneau has not been all easy.

So...I want a large to very large male with short hair, no undercoat. I'm actually allergic to all dogs but the shorter hair seems to be better for me. I'm looking for a dog that loves, loves, loves people, as I'd really like to work towards a TDI (Therapy Dog license) again. I loved earning that title with my German Shepherd, Hunter, several years ago. The learning is fun & the actual therapy visits are just really "my thing". 

So, my first choice is German Shepherd (LOVE them!!!) but I am so allergic to them I'm trying to look seriously at other breeds.  So - it's Rottweiler, Labrador Retriever, Boxer, and maybe Great Dane, but I think I have to rule out the Danes because they are just so big! We like to take our dogs on vacation with us & once you load up a Great Dane there's not much room for anything else! Can anyone think of a fabulous breed I'm overlooking? I'm open to mixes too.

I've committed to go meet a 1 year old Rotti that sounds like a sweetie in the next few weeks (it requires a bit of a road trip). It's a big decision for me & I so want to make a great choice. We love Juneau but we just didn't "see" how afraid of men she was when we adopted her. It is so bad that I don't think she'll ever make TDI, let alone even a basic CGC.  She is a wonderful dog just for our family but we love to do so much with our dogs, that it feels pretty restricting that we have to be so vigilant with her in public places. Her fear bullies her into bad behavior. 


Anyway, here I go...anxiety & all...taking the plunge into a new family member & (I hope!) therapy work partner......