I thought he looked a bit like Shepard as well, but he is no where near the size of a Shepard. He is only sightly larger than a Basenji. As for traits, he has a wrinkly forehead, he does bark, but he also yodels with excitement when we return home from being gone.... (he only uses it on us).... not really destructive but he has a habit of ripping up the tissue paper in the bathroom waste basket into tiny little pieces. He has a tail curl, but not as tight as purebred. He is also very protective of me and aloof with strangers. And finally, he is headstrong... if you ask him to do something, he will evaluate whether it's going to be beneficial to him or not. LOL