What breeds do you think?

I have a mixed breed dog, that I've had for about 3 years. He showed up at our house as a stray. He was extremely thin, we called him the big headed dog for awhile because his head looked huge compared to his body(it still is pretty large lol). But we just can't decide what breeds he has in him. I'm thinking definately lab and maybe gsd with alaskan mal possibly. He is a very friendly dog, but protective of his yard. Very good with kids. LOVES to swim in the lake, he can swim for hours. He also likes to just run, he will go in the woods and just run until he drops. He has a strong prey drive, chases after deer and squirrels. He's put on some weight this winter probably around 80 lbs now, but not overweight. Has a very thick coat especially his winter coat. Gsd coat color. One of his ears likes to try and stick up sometimes. I've only got one picture of him and its not the best picture, I can get more but it will be 2 weeks before I see him again. He looks smaller in this picture than he really is. I can't remember how tall he is, but he quite a bit taller than my australian shepherd.

It's hard to tell from a head shot like that, seeing the body would help a lot.

But if I had to guess from that pic... I would say yellow lab/sibe mix

yeah I no I wish I had more pictures here. I'm at school so I wont be home for 2 weeks then I can get some better pictures.

Definitely Golden or Lab mix ....GSD ???

yeah I really think he has lab in him. He has that big lab head and to me he seems to have the lab personality. And the labs in my area are really large so I think that would give him his size and stocky biuld (hard to see that in this picture). I will get more pictures up soon.

I see husky/lab. Cutie!

Guessing husky/lab here.

If he has GSD, I don't think he's a 50/50. Maybe 1/4 shepherd. The reason I think that is because the gene for a black mask is dominant, and if he was half shepherd he would have inherited it.

ETA: Just noticing the white tipped tail and paws, chest marking etc. That convinces me even more.

I knew a Malamute/Lab mix that looked very similar, especially in the face. So I'll say Husky/Lab or Mal/Lab mix.

Oh, what a pretty boy! Funny you said you thought he might be part Lab- that was the first thing I thought, too.

Dogs will chase anything that runs, but the running til he drops sounds very Siberian Husky. Even before reading the other responses, my guess what Lab/Siberian with maybe a little GSD.

Exactly what I've thought, the way he runs and runs has always made me think of a husky or mal. There was a siberian husky in my agility class that resembled him quite a bit. I think he most likely has one full lab parent and one husky or mal/gsd parent. Has anyone ever done of the dna breed tests? I've heard they arent always accurate. Not that it matters what he is, but I've just always been curious. I've never seen another dog quite like him. I have seen a gsd/siberian husky mix that looked like a smaller version of him once, but it had a more pointy nose and upright ears.

I personally dont see any German shepherd.. Huskey, yes.. Lab yes..But GSD, Nahh.

really? Most people who have seen him have said gsd first off. But I think thats more from his markings and tail. husky I guess could give him the black back marking and bushy tail. There definately isnt very many husky's around here I know of a couple mals lots of mal mixes. The first time we saw him he was in a nearby town where everyone lets there dogs run loose and few of them are willing to pay to feed there dogs let alone spay/neuter them so there is a lot of mixed breeds running around there. We just dont think he looks like one of those mix of a mix of a mix dogs that runs around there.

Im thinking golden retriever/ gsd possibly collie in there. I really dont see many sibe traits in him except coat color and he appears to be shaved.Yea i dont know why everyone always guesses huskys ive got two and they have lots more hair and alot diff traits.

How does he carry his tail?

I was wondering to even in mixed breed if they have sibe in them there tail still normally curls a little its hard to tell since hes sitting.

He's not shaved, but his coat gets very short in the summer, which is when this picture was taken. Right now his coat is very thick similar to a husky or mal. His tail does curl a bit especially when he's excited about something he will carry it up and it will curl over his back. Usually he carries it down but there is definately a noticable curl at the end. I dont really think he has golden in him, his coat isnt as long and he just seems more lab like to me (but maybe thats because I'm not a golden fan lol). I'm leaning toward mal rather than sibe because of his size and I was wondering if sibe would give him more of a pointy nose, his is very square. I don't no much about genetics, but its interesting to see what traits show up in mixed breeds. I might be able to get some more pictures up this weekend. I have some pictures on my phone but I can't send them when I'm at school for some reason.

Not necessarily. Our Siberian/GSD mix carried his tail straight out behind him, similar to how they carry them when showing.

He's adorable!

First dogs that popped in my head was GSD and either Golden or Lab.

ok I have some more pictures. They all off of my phone though so not the best quality. And they arent good full body shots just pictures of him trying to figure out a way to sit in my sisters lap haha, he see's our little dog sittin on our laps and just cant quite figure out how that works.

face shots:

Here you can see his tail, but he's wagging it so you cant see the curl in it. he carries it down like this when he's more relaxed, he carries it up when he's excited:



And here you can see his markings better, and get a better idea of his size. You can also see how he has all that extra skin on his neck(cant think of the word), it makes his collar look tight because it hangs over. We have a hard time with collars, he can slip out of them so easily lol: