Boston Terrier, Toy Poodle, Yorkie, Brussels Griffon, an English Bulldog, or Mini Pinscher?

Playful and loving? Go with the Boston.
Toy poodles and yorkies tend to be too highstrung.
The English Bulldogs are great but there are drawbacks; health issues, skin and coat problems, farting (OMG the farting!), breathing problems, and they are extremely expensive for a well-bred one. Pretty much couch potatoes after age 1.
Min Pins are extremely high energy, can be high strung, hard to get one to hold still long enough to be loving…
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Work at Doggy Daycare with all breeds except the Brussels but I have a feeling they're going to be a shedding problem BIG TIME…

If you are concerned about shedding I would go with the Boston Terrier, the Bulldog, or the Mini Pin. The terrier and the Mini Pin are your best bets as far as playfulness. I have heard that a yorkie is a very loving dog, but I personally have no experience with them. Personally I would say the Mini Pin. ( but that is just because they are one of my favorite breeds lol) I have a Jack Russell Terrier so I can attest that terriers are quite loyal and playful, but can be a bit much at times ^_^
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My personal favorite, Silkie Terrier. Ours is a great family member. He's smart, energetic, loving, vocal and a good friend. He is a "big" dog in a little body. My second favorite, Yorkies.
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Out of all of those, I have had the best experiences with Boston Terriers and English Bulldogs. I run a dog rescue so I have had experience with many different dogs of almost all breeds and the worst have been the min pins. Sorry min pin lovers, but I have not met one that didn't bite strangers. I have had several dog bites over the years and the worst one was the min pin that bit me on the hand. I wasn't even going near her. I was bending down to pick up another dog and she CHARGED me and bit my hand and punctured the skin really bad. The other min pin that bit me was a male that also bit me out of nowhere when I was putting his food bowl down. Those are the only ones that actually pierced the skin, but pretty much all the other min pins tried.
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GO TO YOUR LOCAL SHELTER AND SAVE SOMEONE"S LIFE! They are soooo grateful to you. Believe me. the animals seem to know that you saved them somehow.

there are so many animals in this world and not enough homes for them all and so many have to be killed every year just because someone was irresponsible enough to let their animals breed.

Breeders are not the most respectable lot either (my apologies to the few that are but you know it better than anybody that a lot of people that call themselves breeders do not take good care of their animals and do not deserve to call themselves responsible!)
Good luck and God bless. Look online for your local shelter. Sometimes you can actually find pure breds available for adoption as well and a lot of the shelters screen the animals and let you know which are good with kids or other pets too.

There is someone special waiting for you, sitting in a cage somewhere waiting for you to come pick him out….
A lot cheaper too - usually $75 -150 for a dog and that includes shots and spaying/neutering.
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i have a english bulldog, she's the sweetest thing ever and loves to play but get tired very fast. so if you're looking for a loving AND high energy dog, i'd go with a bostie! their adorable!
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Poodle - They are known for being playful, but the one I owned was neurotic. She was very cute, but wouldn't really recommend the breed based on my xp.

Brussels Griffon - Great playful, confident little guys. You will need to comb him a few times a week, but he shouldn't shed too too much. They don't tolerate cold or heat well, so will have to be mainly indoors.

Mini-Pin - LOYAL but way too smart for their own good. They will get into everything, but they are like a big dog in a little body. It needs a lot of playtime, probably the most out of all the breeds you have mentioned. They may be little but they need the mental and physical stimulation so that they don't become destructive. It is also important that you teach them that YOU are the BOSS, not the puppy.

Yorkie: Very playful, but I personally don't recommend them… I find them high-strung. Cute but yappy type idea. Still, the size can be appealing for many people.

Bulldog: One word: expensive. Most are born by c-section, so the prices tend to be high. They are jovial guys though, GREAT pets. Grooming is minimal, but you have to clean their "wrinkles"daily. Great with kids, and very mellow.

Boston terrier: Minimal grooming, but very playful. Most love to chase a ball! They have a personality but are generally willing to learn and be trained. Some can bark a lot but are still great dogs.

Over all, I would recommend first the Bulldog, if you can afford it (where I live they go for about $1300.00 Canadian). If you have owned a dog before, then a second choice would be the mini-pin for what you are describing, or if you haven't owned a dog before, a great third choice is the Boston Terrier. This is just from what I have read and from my personal expeirence.
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Get yourself a miniature poodle. They don't shed, are extremely intelligent, loyal and very very playful. Also they don't yap like the toys. Typically they grow to 13 - 14 inches at the shoulder. They are so versatile too they will do anything you want to turn your hand to - obedience, agility, conformation showing to name but a few.
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