Our dog is little, considering her likely parentage, Shepherd and Lab and lots of people say it looks like there’s Rottie in her too - but she’s only 50 lbs. Barks big, though.
Anyway, I’m glad we started with a smaller dog, because I had to learn how to be Boss Mama Alpha Queen, but the next dog - oh I love Shepherds, the best dogs I’ve known. Saw the most beautiful well-trained blond Shepherd off-leash in the park, big, big dog - first time our dog ever realized she was not the biggest dog around - and a lovely black scary-looking one named Demon escorted me around a local nursery for five minutes before the owner came out.
A hundred pounds of auxiliary muscle and teeth at my side and in my home, at my service? Oh, yeah.
With the bigger dogs, you do have to learn how to be boss woman. My kids joke that our GSD listens to me since I am the alpha-witch. All puppies pull the old, “I am going to defy you to see if you are in charge”... once or twice. After that, they fully understand their position in the family. That being said, my husband works some nights and travels. It is very nice having your own security force. They hear things we can’t and I swear they can sense if someone is close to the house. I can look at him and know he would die protecting his “pack”. There isn’t a doubt in my mind. The hair.. well, it sort of is accepting some bad with a whole lotta good. An animal type vacuum, some brushing and changed vents.. you’ll get use to it. We did!