Do you recommend a breed?

[KenyiGirl]

Hubby and I have been talking and we've decided we should add another dog to our family. Our perfect number is 2 dogs, 2 cats, and we're at one dog, one cat right now. We will not be getting another puppy. It's way too soon to go through puppy stages again, and Molly is still a puppy herself, so we aren't out of the woods yet! We want a playmate for Molly, mostly. She's a great pup and we both feel really lucky that we got such a good dog But she seems to have more and more energy, and while we expected that, we feel like she should have a dog to play with. We decided to wait till spring to start actively looking at the local shelters, but I would like to get your recommendations on what may be some good breeds for our family and lifestyle.
So, some preferences:
We would like a breed not prone to excessive barking or digging.
We would like a smaller breed. I'm expecting Molly to reach 70-80 lbs full grown (we didn't think she would get so big, lol), and we would like to adopt a much smaller dog, like 25-45 lbs. Molly only plays with dogs that are smaller than her (she's scared of dogs her own size), and has pretty good playing manners, so I'm not worried about her hurting the new dog.
We would prefer a short-haired breed, but are open to longer-haired breeds as well.

Already my hubby favors getting a beagle, and I favor getting a cocker spaniel...

[Romy]

With a beagle you will probably be spending some time training your dog not to bark.

Have you thought about whippets? 25-40 lbs, low maintenance coat, quiet, sturdy, many enjoy playing with other dogs. Once they are out of puppyhood they are a pretty laid back breed, happy to keep your couch warm all day, but just as happy to get up and play/run/hike when you or your other dog want to.

It shouldn't be too difficult to find an adult whippet through a rescue or a retired adult show dog from a breeder.

[vanillasugar]

If you don't want barking or digging I would NOT recommend a beagle.

Cocker might be a nice fit (other than the grooming requirements), as would Romy's suggestion of a Whippet (I always forget about them, they're great little dogs!!).

What about a Pug or a Boston Terrier? A bit smaller than your size range, but great hardy little dogs who are a LOT of fun. Either breed would make a good play buddy for Molly, as well as meeting the requirements you've stated.

[bubbatd]

I wouldn't be searching a particualr breed ..... you'll know when you find the right one !

[Laurelin]

Hmmm... in our shelter we get a lot of dogs like the one you described. They vary in breeds really. While most beagles wouldn't be what I'd think of (they are very very vocal!), we had one very calm, not barky beagle that I thought was fabulous. Whippets might be great too.

If you're wanting an adult, that is a great option.

[FoxyWench]

a general rescued mix...

but cockers are GREAT and woudl definatly fit your description of needs very well!

[RD]

How about a Whippet? They're small, gentle, generally quiet, short-haired, and energetic in spurts.

[KenyiGirl]

Thank you everyone for your input! I also want to add that we aren't looking for a purebred, we just want to explore some breeds that perhaps we hadn't thought of, to see if they would be a good fit into our family.
I must admit, we had not considered a whippet, Hubby and I have never even met one. However, a quick check of petfinder showed that the nearest whippet up for adoption is more than 4 1/2 hours away O.o

you'll know when you find the right one

Grammy, I hope you're right