Best of luck on finding that special new family member.
We adopted a rescue, last year.
A middle aged, 11 pound poodle mix.
So smart, highly trained, never barks..unless door bell rings or my oven timer is going off, and, I’m in the laundry room 😂
No shedding, is a fringe benefit.
Never wanted a small dog but one was kind of placed in my lap (yes, I did that on purpose). A Maltese. She was sweet and so easy to care for. No shedding and easy to groom. Small dog, small food bill, small poops to clean up. She did have one annoying habit that could not be broken - she licked. Anything and everything. Even just licked the air like a snake sometimes.
After she passed I ended up with what was supposed to be Bichon/Maltese mix. And he probably is. But definitely more Bichon than Maltese. He’s a joy! The breed is so into pleasing the master. Same easy no-shedding coat. Loves everyone and everyone loves him (he looks like he’s smiling all the time). Only downside versus the Maltese is the coat is more curly/kinky so when his coat gets longer it becomes nearly impossible to comb out. So he get frequent groomings. Barks only at door knocks and doorbells. Sometimes when he sees someone walking outside.
The think I learned about small dogs is they don’t KNOW they’re small dogs. That said, I know there are some breeds that can be very yippie with constant barking.