i want a D.O.G.!!!...

well, i've been talking to spike about getting a dog & he said to wait until 1) we got home from our cruise (we did) 2) through spring break (we did) 3) through ruby's surgery (we did), so now i'm ready to get one!... not that my life's not 'full enough' already, but the girls & i are home all the time & i think they'd benefit from helping to care for a dog & with us being home a lot, the dog wouldn't need to be crated a lot... i also think with ruby being deaf, that a dog would help her with various things (ie: alerting her of a fire, alerting her of an intruder, etc.)... i've been thinking of the beagle breed as they're SO adorable & spike's had them before, growing up & said they were good family pets... the main 'problem' with getting a beagle's that we've no fenced in yard, but we could always get the invisible fencing so, in my mind - problem solved!... i did get him to say that, "absolutely NO males!", so that means females are alright, right??... we also were talking about names & we've both decided on riley *smile*... so for now, it's a female named riley & that's all i know... i've been looking online for adoptable dogs in the area (indiana), but need to get a commitment from him first!