My sympathy goes out to you on the loss of your beloved dog and I wish you the best in your search. I know just how you feel about missing that wiggly butt greeting at the door!
We have three dogs of various allergy inducing degrees. I am allergic to dog dander, but cannot do without dogs in my life.
Our Silky Terrier Penny, whom we adopted from a rescue, does not bother my allergies at all. Not even a little. And she does not shed one bit either. Her hair is quite easy to keep trimmed in a puppy cut and I do it with scissors myself (clippers do not work on her)
Our little Schnauzer / Yorkie mix Pip is rescued from a puppy mill that was mass producing designer dogs which the humane society shut down. Pip is my lap limpet and she rarely gets my allergies going. Even though she does shed a little, I think she also might produce more dander than the Silky.
Our Border Terrier Piper however makes me have terrible sinus headaches and sneezing fits if we don't keep her bathed regularly. Borders can get quite pungent, though she is so adorable we don't hold it against her.
You can google allergy "free" dogs and find lists of breeds. But keep in mind that all dogs produce dander, the protein found in saliva and shed skin cells. And it does not neccessarily correlate with how much they shed. Dachshunds, for instance, have one of the higher rates of dander production for their size. Bathing the dog regularly and keeping your home vaccuumed and aired helps too.
I see folks here are giving you good advice about finding reputable breeders. Definitely never buy a dog from a pet store. Even if you get lucky and do end up with a dog with no major genetic problems, it would still be supporting a horrible industry. This is because most pet stores buy from puppy mills: mass producers of dogs who do no health or temperament screening before breeding and who keep their breeders and pups in often horrifying conditions.
But, that being said, we highly recommend getting a dog from a rescue or a shelter. That way you are helping these poor dogs without putting monoey in the puppy mill's pocket. We found our dogs through Petfinder.com, which is a website for rescues and shelters. You can search your area or the whole country by breed, size, gender, housetraining, age, good with children or other pets, etc. Many of the rescues listing there will often state that their dog is low allergy. Out dogs have added so much joy to our lives, we can't thank God enough for them.
Hope this helped and good luck!
Last edited by BuzzinBumble; 12-31-2011 at 08:26 AM.