thanks for the replies everyone- much appreciated. I respect my fellow PT-er's opinions, I know you guys understand these things.

yeah, I already have more animals than Im supposed to so why not add 1 more? lol indoor cats & (silent) rabbits are easier to hide than a dog though. but I dont think the people around here really care. our neighbours are pretty anal about some things it seems, but they are always really nice about everything, (even if they are a bit nosey) and confront us when they have any issues, so I dont see them "telling on us". plus they have 2 doxies, so theyd prob love him. lol also, pit bulls arent allowed here, but Ive seen 3 pit-type/pit mix dogs here. and I know in 1 of the apts above us, they have (at least) 2 cats and a dog (thats at least 1 pet too many! lol). oh, and the guy who used to live in our apt, apparently had a ton of cats- or so Ive heard. I havent heard of anyone being evicted b/c of too many animals at least. but you never know I guess. I just dont know that the owners here really care. I mean, they get paid for any damage no matter what, right? Plus I can always fall back on my parents if it ever came to that. Id rather lose a limb than a pet.

The main issue for me though is that I dont want to get Lin in any trouble, and adopting him will (obviously) affect her too. So, we both have a lot to think about.

well anyhoo.. thanks again. I shall continue mulling everything over (and over, and over..) in my head.