Actually, we're going with nigerian dwarves We wanted something relatively hassle-free, small, and well tempered. We don't particularly care about the 'show' aspect of it.

The heating thing is definitely a concern. My house is very efficient (it's brand new and was one of the requirements I had when purchasing one) but aside from a kerosene heater backup heat is not exactly in place ATM. It's something I'll definitely consider thinking about.

Overall my wife has done the bulk of the research and has been doing a good job with making sure she fully understands the constraints and time involved with making something like this work. I just make sure the bills get paid