What breed(s) is this dog anyway?

So, occasionally a dog arrives at the shelter who is such a mix of mixes that it's hard to pick out a dominant breed. New girl Rainey presents such a challenge. She's a happy, friendly girl with lots of character. As for her heritage? Shepherd? Hound? A pinch of pit? Shar-pei? Any educated guesses or wild speculation?

Curious what others would think, I posted this question and pictures on Craig's list and asked for input. Less than twelve hours later I had received the following responses:

* I would say the dog is a shepherd by the ears I would think GSD and APBT I have seen pictures of purebred pits with that color combination on breeder sites. But, I can safely say a type of Shepherd and APBT mix.
* German Shepard, Pit Bull mix....width of the face is the pit, and the heart shape shading on the top of the head is shepard....Good Luck.. ps shepard's hold their front feet out like that, often crossing their paws..used to work in a Veterinary Hosp.....and we used to play name that breed often, but now you can do a DNA test on dogs....
* looks like greman shepard dobermen mix -- no pit doesnt have the pit eyes or muscle, has long legs and dobe body with short hair coat i got a lab,dobe ridgeback mix
i think it's dobe gremenshepardridgebakmix short coat just what i see im pretty good with finding out different breeds
* I say it's a shepard and cattle dog.
* Could have some Akita in it? Or Beauceron or Malinois?
* german shepherd and boxer with a little great dane thrown in? should be a loyal and very smart family member!
* My guess is a mix of German Shepherd and Pharaoh Hound. Just seeing the ears on your dog brought the image of the Pharaoh Hound to mind.
* I'm no expert but that dog has a Boxer face and Kelpie ears. Just a thought!
* I have a dog that looks just like the one in the pic, she is a Pit bull-Pharaoh hound cross.
* Looks like there is some Great Dane in this dog. My guess is German Shepard and Great Dane mix.
* http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/pharaohhound.htm
* Hmm hard to tell without being able to feel the texture of the coat. Looks reminiscent of Rhodesian ridgeback... maybe even shar pei.
* my guesses are pitbull, german shepherd, possibly some boxer and/or great dane! A true "Heinz 57" :o)
* Really I don't see any pit in her. I would say cattle dog and malinois. Pits don't have faces like that and their ears are not that prick.
* She is cute though, Reminds me of one I had 13 years ago, he was Akita mix looked a lot like her but with more hair.
* pit/shep good luck
* What does it matter - hes a beautiful mix.
* Your pup looks like a typical GSD/pit mix. I have seen a few where both parents were known, and while the puppies varied in looks, a few looked just like the dog in your ad. I think GSD/pit is a safe guess!
* Hi there, I'm sure that dog has some Belgian Malinois and probably Boxer. Are you adopting? If so you'll need some good training help and will have to keep the dog occupied. Malinois are very intelligent and need tons of mental and physical stimulation. Good luck!
* Ears, coat, color and jaw/face bone shows boxer in there. To be sure you can do DNA test.

Note: I'm kind of partial to the Malinois Shepherd theory. Check out these images:

Malinois 1
Malinois 2
Malinois 3
Malinois 4
Malinois 5

BTW, Rainey is a lovely dog and she's looking for a home! Read more about her here.

Puppy Pile

Look what showed up at the shelter today! Four little girls and one white boy. They're underage and need to go to a foster home. Oh my!

Sunday Shelter Smiles

Elegant Athena
Betty Jane out on a walk

Lovely little Lia

Larry, part dog/part frog?

Larry & Athena: A Successful First Date

Big, goofy, brindle-and-white boy wants to meet playful girl pooch for romp in dog run and exchange of slobbery dog kisses. Gorgeous, stately brindle gal with lots of class looking for strong silent type to sweep her off her four feet.

It can happen and it did! Larry and Athena had a brindle-blast playing in the shelter dog run today. They wrestled, they ran, they sniffed, they licked. It was great fun to see these two doggies at play.

Adopted!!

Two of our favorite dogs left the shelter this week! After waiting oh-so-long both Hendrix and Ollie found their forever homes. What a thrill. We haven't had a pit bull adopted in several months (sigh). Let's hope this is the start of an upward trend. Both of these stellar pooches would have been adopted some time ago if we had dressed them up as shepherds or pugs ;-)

Bo (2005 -2008)

Every so often, a dog comes along who changes you, helps you to find something within you that you didn't know existed, who teaches you about the purest form of love, who elicits a tenderness that we save for the most heartrending cases, the most innocent beings, and the most beautiful of souls. Bo was such a dog. I do not think he encountered one human being who was not struck by his sheer enthusiasm for life, his trusting eyes (and after all that had befallen him, hard to fathom), his warm, soft head, layered in folds of skin covered with soft, downy velveteen fur. This was our Bo, who came back to us from the brink of death to teach us about resilience in the face of adversity, about survival in the company of those who are indifferent to it, about forgiveness when you are finally embraced by the open arms of those who would never harm you, but would do anything to protect you.

When Bo came back to us after his first adoption, he seemed to garner a permanent place in the hearts of staff and volunteers alike. Those who hadn't known him well before, were touched by this velveteen pooch, this Bo-licious, Bo-frog, Bo-wrinkle, as he was affectionately nick-named by one of his favorite volunteers, Rachel. We looked at this dog a little differently than we had before, for he had defeated death and miraculously came back to us so that we could love him more than we had loved him before, and more than many of us have ever loved a dog in our lives.

Rachel took this dog with boundless reserves of energy for regular runs around Aquatic Park. Afterwards, refreshed (and hungry) from the exercise, they would eat lunch together on "the bench." Others took him for on-leash romps in the bay, where he lay on his back, let the cool water wash over his stomach, get up and decide he liked it so much that he lay down for yet another chance to let the gentle waves lap across his velveteen tummy-- probably the first time Bo had ever been "swimming."

I believe Bo experienced a lot of firsts in his life, while at the shelter. Upon his arrival at the shelter, Bo was withdrawn and frightened. It took almost two weeks for a gentle volunteer to gain Bo's trust enough to let this volunteer take him for a walk. Having been a backyard dog for most of his life, the walk was the second of his firsts. The kindness shown by this volunteer, was the first of his firsts. Then there was the medical attention to his skin, the daily walks, the weekly socializations, the regular meals, the warm kennels, the blankets, the kurandas, the baths, the CARE.

One of the last moments I spent with Bo, was one I never thought I'd ever have, for this effervescent angel with endless energy never seemed to stop long enough to have a quiet moment. But this late afternoon, after lining his sleeping bin with soft, fluffy blankets, I sat with him-- he lay his head in my lap, and I stroked his big, beautiful,warm head, a gesture as calming to me as it seemed to be to him. He let out that big sigh of relief dogs will give you at the end of the day as they settle into position to sleep, and I knew our sweet, velveteen Bo was at peace, feeling loved and warm as the heating unit in the kennel hummed above our heads.

Good-bye sweet Bo. You taught me about forgiveness; you taught me about protecting those I have come to love, from harm; you taught me that regardless how many dogs I have loved, there is always room for another; you taught me to savor the company of someone who loves you; you taught me the value of living in the moment, and how that moment can last a lifetime in your mind; and you taught me that pure innocence, absent of motive or pretense exists. Thank you for these lessons. I love you Bo. WE love you.