I have Belgians, smaller than a German Shepherd but high energy. Met a girl a couple months ago that bought a really nice Malinois (a calm one) through Craigslist.
A good dog is a great first line of defense. Even little dogs can be good guards.
My Malinois scares all the neighbors, including the postman.
The fences wrap around the house and only the front wall lays outside the backyard.
I have an eight camera Swann video system that I mounted in conspicuous fashion across the front yard & garage.
Nothing can approach my home without being recorded into the cloud in real time.
The camera at the front door alerts my cell phone.
Beyond that I have really good insurance.
::Even little dogs can be good guards::
Anything that barks - from inside the house is the best deterrent I have read about. Our daughter’s family took in a beautiful lost Golden Retriever two years ago and he’s always in the house but he wouldn’t bark - he’d lick an intruder to death first..but not before he rolled over to get his belly scratched.. I wouldn’t recommend a Golden for that reason tho’ they are lovely, lovable, loyal dogs - follow you anywhere and everywhere - LOL!
I prefer Dobermans - had two years ago but not logical now as they need lots of outside time and neither my husband nor I are able to do it now.