Jim,
the issues with Rescue dogs is that you inherit whatever brought them into Rescue plus whatever psychological issues they've developed there. We have our Rescue girl, Marion Louise, and she's been perfect in every way so, as you know, Rescue can also be very rewarding.

The issues with a puppy are, well, the obvious: housebreaking, teething, being breakable so you have to hold them out of rough play until they're older, etc. The advantages are that you get to mold them completely and to train them to be the kind of dog you always wanted. Plus, if you got a recognized breed, you could run the pup in Agility or other performance events. I think you'd actually enjoy that.

I love puppies so I'd opt for one unless I met the perfect Rescue. And I've had the pleasure of meeting a lot of them so they are out there. But our new girl, Moxie, is just a dream puppy. Such a love and very smart and trainable. After Sundance, aka Butthead, we deserved a break . Good luck with your decision. Picking new family members is never easy.

Jim