We use llamas. We have 3 border collies but they aren’t guard dogs, they are herding dogs and are used specifically and only for moving sheep. Herding and guarding are two different jobs and require very different dogs breeding and training.
We also have a toy poodle that thinks she’s a herd dog. Unfortunately the sheep think she is some sort of crazed rabbit or ground squirrel and don’t take her very seriously.
I love wolves. They’re great to use in clearing minefields. Just put some fresh meet on the far side and let them loose.
They shouldn’t be confused with domesticated German Shephards or other large dogs. They don’t use the phrase “Wild Animal” without reason.
On Animal Planet’s ‘Dogs 101’ segment about Border Collies it showed a clip where the dog and sheep were wired up with battery-operated lights, filmed at night, that looked like a fireworks display, very cool, I’ll have to look it up on youtube. Llamas are cool, do you gather their wool? The former owner of my property had sheep and when we bought the place it looked like a park because the sheep kept it manicured. I have considered getting some, but don’t really know anything about their care. We had a coyote out back the other day, my dog just stood near the porch looking at him. I thought collies would protect sheep, but I guess that confirms what you said. He does ‘protect’ us from the deer that wander up :(
Not necessarily true. Belgian Sheepdogs are herding dogs but are widely used as guard / police and protection dogs. My BSD is herder, but he is an absolutely awesome watch dog. Most people think he’s a wolf. Fine by me.