lraK, I'm glad to see that you have a both a bit of experience with dogs and are taking the move seriously. I do a bit of volunteer work, and one of the places that I volunteer is our local Humane Society. Another is a local food pantry, but that is another story.
I've seen dogs that have been surrendered, or confiscated, come in that are in need. Be it abuse, for family economic reasons, whatever. For being a crusty old fart, my heart goes out to these animals.
The Humane Society here is "no-kill", and competes with a "kill" facility operated by the city/county. The HS has no building, but depends on people to foster the animals. That's how we got our last two Boston Terriers. Shylah was an Amish "puppy mill" breeder that had refused to breed and was going to be put down by the farmer. She had a hernia that covered the her entire side, had no integrational social skills with other dogs(probably from living her entire life in a cage). She would spend the entire day sitting on the couch or on the bed, away from the other dogs. She has overcome all of that and is now one of the "pack". Good to see. And she, s getting to be more like the others, has come out of her shell and loves "Momma" and really gets into a little of "Poppy's Lap Time". She still has a little bit to go, but she's getting there. It took us two days to housebreak her. That amazed me.
Baby, the other rescue and a larger Boston, weighed just 13# when surrendered. She had a severe sinus/respiratory infection. I honestly thought we were going to lose her the very first night here. We made a return trip to the Vet and placed her on Benedryl in addition to the meds she was already taking. Dried her right up within a few days. She does have a bit of an aggression problem with toys when we are playing, but is doing better with that. And she now weighs 27#. What a comeback!!!
As a note, the HS had an outing a couple of weeks ago. Angela made some "hula skirts"(I told you that this girl was talented!!) for the three girls and a "Don Ho" shirt for Otie, our only male, who also has a story, being born with part of his intestine exposed. Vet fix him up and you could never tell his auspicious start to life. Anyway, the dogs won "Best Costume". Otie looked like a Hawaiian pimp and girls looked like his "island hookers". I never thought I'd be one to "dress up" a dog. What the hell am I turning into?
And EVERYONE loves Otie, the most gregarious of the pack. He also won "Mr. Personality" at the HS outing.
All dogs will have some odor. Bathing usually fixes the problem as does diet somewhat. Does the trick for our dogs. Monthly baths and do I ever get wet!!! All seem to enjoy the bathing once we get started.
Owning a dog is a commitment. Much like raising a child. Teach them and give 'em a bit of love and they return it all unconditionally. Amazing animals. We take our dogs with us whenever we can. Vacations, on the boat(Otie is a great fish finder barking when we are on fish), walks, to the pet store, to the convenience store for pop or cigs, to "Grandma's House"(Angela's mom's house, a farm in Payne, Ohio).... The local BP gas station now has Milk Bones for customers buying gas that bring their dogs just because of or pups as does our bank drive up.
As for dogs that have no smell, many terriers fit the bill and will be larger than your cat. Otie weighs 37#, Baby 27#, Shylah 21#, and Hannah, our first Boston, 19#. Any "oil coated" dog, Labs, Goldens, Weimies, Beagles, Bassets, etc, will have an odor given time. Some long haired dogs seem to be extremely vulnerable to "stink". Not trying to push Boston Terriers on you, just saying.... and I'm not much into the "designer breeds".
Still, examine your lifestyle and energy level and choose a dog that fits. AS I said before, owning a dog because the breed is "chic" doesn't fit any purpose and is bad for the dog and the owner.
Bob