Sigh..... what to do?

We got a phone call today. A neighbor of a friend of ours lives in a suburb of Cincinnati. About a year or so ago, he thought it would be a fantastic idea to buy a doberman and keep him tied up outside...

He's come to realize that he isn't giving the dog, Nate, much of a life (his words not mine) and wants him to move to a farm with "doberman people"

Soooooooooo of course the friend tells him he'll call us.

I'm only hearing half of the conversation while hubby is talking, but a couple of times I hear, "I'll have to ask mom"
I'm thinking, ok, he's got to ask his mom something.

He gets off the phone and looks like he always looks when he's got not so good news... I asked "what's up" he drops his head, and tells me who it was... I said, "OK.... what do you have to talk to your mom about?"

Not mom, you... I think ok, and ask what's up, and I"m thinking something BAD is wrong....when he answers he says; There's this dog......
I sigh...... what kind?
his voice lowers, A dobe...
At this point I'm thinking, if it's a red one, it'll probably be here in an hour... so I ask him what color?
he replies... "Black, his name is Nate, he belongs to "bob" you know, he lives over by "fred" well, like 3 houses back behind in the big stone house, well anyway he's 18 months old, and has a great personality, he doesn't have time to play with him, and the kids won't he says he's put a lot of $ into him, so that means he's up to date and neutered more than likely, and he's got a really great personality and he just wants him to live on a farm and be loved he says he's not got much of a life and it was unfair for him to buy him in the first place and he knows enough about dobes to want him to go to people who have dobes"

And, YES, that all came out in ONE sentence...he says it's up to me, but he's going to go and meet Nate tomorrow sometime...

My dilemma, Although I love our dogs, *we* had agreed when Princess died that we weren't going to get any more dogs....and that as each one left us, they would not be replaced, so that eventually, we'd be a dogless household. Part of me is very much looking forward to a petless house.

My other side is telling me to save the poor dog from a life of being chained up outside and not having the family and the love that he deserves. Afraid that if we don't take him the guy will give him to a family that won't understand him and won't take the time to and he'll end up in a shelter or worse. Then that same voice is reminding me that Zoey is getting older, and asking myself if I really want to *not* have a dobe in the house.

Then, what if he's not housebroken, what if the other dogs don't like him (all females) what if he chews... then I remember how rambunctious our male, AJ was when he was that age, and I cringe at the thought of going through that stage again.... thinking he's probably not trained in much of anything....

Then... my daughter looks at me and tells me that there should be no thought given to it, the dog needs us, so he comes here. Maybe it really is that simple? I don't know.... what would you do?