Since my climate in Georgia is really different from Alaska...I can't recommend a small-to-medium shorthaired breed like a Beaagle. Why don't you check around your neighborood and see what breeds your neighbors have? Longhaired dogs tend to be bad shedders unless they are one of the few non-shedding breeds, but I'd hate for you to get a shorthair and him/her be miserable in the cold! I highly recommend Petfinder.com and your local shelters and rescue groups as well. Rescue groups, especially, are good at matching your needs, activity level and wants with one or more of their dogs. Additionally, rescue groups usually have volunteers who foster the dogs until adoption, and the foster parent can tell you so much more about the dog than you'll ever learn from a shelter or breed research. Just remember, too, that mixed breed dogs make really good pets too. And if you want to know their breed mix, doggie DNA testing is now available for around $60 so you can answer the inevitable question, "What is she/he?"