Any of those GSD pups or other mixes that Kelly found look terrific. I shouldn't look at links with puppy pictures anymore. We have our full of dogs, but that little black GSD pup sure looked good.

CJ said it best, and I second. I like Akitas, but they are really not an ideal family dog, generally. And can be dog-aggressive. I think you've made a good decision on not considering these breeds.

I would recommend getting a male (opposite sex). I've found males to generally be a bit easier going than the females. If you don't want to deal with some of the male stuff like marking or mounting that's certainly trainable.

As I side note, when I was looking for a pup, I had a tough time finding a rescue that would work with me on allowing me to wait on early spay/nueter. I also found that most wouldn't adopt to homes with any intact dogs. My dogs are so physically active I like to allow pups to fully mature (about 18 months) before I nueter them (if at all). But if you find the right rescue, or adopt from animal control I doubt this will be an issue. Most city pounds require neuter/spay by 6-8 months, which I think is fine. Much better than nueter at 8 weeks. I don't want to discourage you from adopting from a rescue or pound. Just something to keep in mind.

I've adopted three of my dogs from city animal control or as strays and been more than happy with all three of them. German shepherd, airedale/old english sheepdog, and alaskan husky/deerhound/kuvasz. Only one was adopted as a puppy. The other two were 1-2 years old and had no problem forming strong bonds with me- immediately.

If you have no serious sport/training goals that require a specific breed or bloodline, consider adoption first. I think GSD or mixes there-of can not be beat for ideal family dogs. Find the right one, and you will be very happy.

I grew up with two female dogs because my father didn't "want to deal with a male dog". Our older terrier was a dominant dog and the new puppy did "fall in line". The co-exsisted perfectly. Fast forward to now. The terrier is long dead, the PWD is older. She is extremely nervous around almost any dog, strikes out and attacks when she feels any pressure from one (which could be walking by). They will not be able to have another dog in the house until she dies because living on eggshells as a puppy with the terrier ruined that. My current dog is the only dog she has EVER liked because he's neutral and turns his back on her the moment she tenses. They've successfully played together.

I NEVER thought I'd like a male dog, growing up with my father telling me they're stupid and nasty. My male dog is one of the smartest stable dogs I've had.

As for breed recommendations. How about a poodle (standard). They can be energetic but the larger ones tend to be pretty sweet and they're very kid friendly. I'd also say boxer but they can be drooly. I'd recommend against the vizla unless you're getting an older one. I've known a few all needed a lot more exercise than they were given and all but 2 of them were in active homes. They also all ate drywall...which wasn't fun.