OK I'm on my computer at home so my sentences aren't going to be as short and to the point.
Ugh. Having two people with completely different preferences sucks sometimes. I love mini poodles, Erin doesn't like them as much. She's had pitbulls in the past, and doesn't like "feminine" dogs. LOL. Airedales are sweet too, and I like the look of them. Erin doesn't want a dog that's going to look like Cthulhu.
I had to fight just to get Dachshunds as a consideration. She's pretty hooked on Chis. News to me.
It sounds like you guys are putting a LOT of emphasis on appearance. I think that's one of the things you really need to work on. I can understand seeing these great pure breed dogs and saying 'I want one that looks like THAT'. It happens to everyone on here and if they say it doesn't they are lying. If a dog fits everywhere else but you or your wife think it's too 'girlie' that to me is a pretty big issue because you are closing a door on a TON potential perfect personality/requirements.
Also you could go to a breed rescue and see if they have mixes. They might be able to locate a dog they have that hits all the breed personalities but that looks 'off' or 'different' so you end up with a dog who's breed meshes with your lifestyle but doesn't have a certain look that you don't want.
All I can say is fair enough. You make a really good point. I'm also the type who dislikes when people automatically assume a bully breed is some evil fight-dog, so I should have realized this right away.
While I won't apologize for my pet rock comments since all of them just had to do with pet rocks in general and not that you should only have that as a pet. I will say saying that is the only pet suitable for you is a little out of line. But to be honest this thread didn't really start out on the right foot either.
I don't know how you want to do it if you want to try to keep getting info from this thread or if you may want to start a new one I think you'd get quite a few more replies if you included more info about what you are looking for. Because as you can see by some of the replies a lot of people just read the first post and then comment.
Some info that might help:
What city, state are you wanting to move to? For example in Tulsa I'd say about 90-95% of rental places are owned by case and associates and all of their pet policies are the same so it's pretty easy to see what you will be able to get away with and what you won't. Also while a lot of places have a weight limit I know quite a few where if your dog is over the weight limit if they are under the height limit they are still allowed.
Realistically what are your training abilities? Do you want an easy to train dog? Do you get frustrated easily by a heard headed dog? You may be able to put a lot of time in it but realistically with both of you be able to put in time to train the dog and to stay constant so that training with dad isn't different than training with mom?
How much time/effort are you able/willing to put into grooming?
Will you want a dog that you can take to a dog park or will your dog for the most part never be around other dogs?
Will younger kids be around this dog? *I'm not saying kids can't be around dogs but just like I would be nervous about my big dog playing with a toddler because of a potential accident caused by my dog not realizing how much bigger she is I'd also be nervous about a small dog possibly getting hurt by a child with the same problem*
Do you want a dog that is friendly with everyone or would you want one that is more wary of other people?
How much time/effort each day can you put into exercise?
How long do you plan to stay at your new place? If you have to/want to move again how soon do you think it would be and would the next place be another apartment/rent situation? Like I said earlier certain breeds are hard to have if you rent.
How vocal do you want/can you handle?
There's probably way more but right now there are very few posts with important info that could help identify breeds for you. I'd also go in with a totally open mind because really it shouldn't come down to which one is prettiest/coolest/manliest looking it should come down to which one clicks with your family the best.
ETA: I know a lot of people are suggesting smaller dogs if you want a larger one I know there are some out there for you but right now there isn't really too much info other than you suffer from allergies, some dogs are too loud, and you don't want a girly looking dog.
ALSO ETA *again I know but I forget stuff x.x*
You wanted to know about dogs that could do good in TX climate. What kind of outdoor stuff do you do? Yoshi get's hot super easy, like the house is 75 degrees or hotter easy, but even in OK in over 100 degree temps with super high humidity she's fine depending on what out door activities I'm doing.