What breed do you think Shadow is?

Shadow is very unique in his appearance. He looks like a large German Shepherd, but with a larger chest, and a flatter nose in the front. He has the pointed ears like a German Shepherd, but they are quite large as well (around 6 inches long). At 130 lbs, he is slightly smaller than most Great Danes that I've seen, but larger than an Akita. Speaking of the Akita, his build is most similar to them, with longer legs and a very powerful, broad chest. What do you think? Please post a comment if you have any ideas. His face is closest to a Newfoundland, with the flat front and slightly loose lips that have jet black skin. The Newfoundland has much longer hair, though.

He has a great temperament, being quite gentle around the kids, but just by size alone, and his deep growl, he will definitely make an intruder think twice about approaching our yard or house. Most of the time, he thinks he is human. He is always hanging around someone in the household, curious as to what we are doing. If we are just relaxing, he will lay on the floor by our feet calmly, but when there is activity, he HAS to be a part of it. From what I have read, these are all traits of a Great Dane.

Being a big dog, he needs lots of exercise, so he pretty much owns our backyard. We have a good-sized fenced lot for him to run in, and we also walk him as often as possible. He loves riding in the car, so we try to take him whenever we have errands to run.

Mischievous is also a good word to describe him. People with small dogs have no idea. Most dogs will get into anything that they can reach if you let them, but when your dog can reach EVERYTHING, it is quite a challenge to keep him out of trouble.

Anyway, those are his traits. If you have any ideas on what type of dog he might be, drop me a line.