IMO dogs respond to people who love them, care for them, and don't take any crap. Spend enough time at it and the rest is an academic matter of different approaches to different objectives. Those vary a lot more than most people reaize.
Dax is a BIG DS bitch for her age (75# at nine months). She is typically headstrong for a DS, as the trainers call it a "hard" dog. Very conniving, very smart, and just too adorable for her own good. There's a lot of feral in her. I spend about eight hours a day with her while I work, training her to be a helper on the land: carry stuff, watch for trouble from the right vantage point, chase things off without getting into a fight, etc. She's a good pup, and VERY nice to small children. Time will tell but I think she's worth breeding.
I agree with your comments about dogs. Sounds like you've got a great relationship with yours. I have an opinion that human lives are a lot more complete with a dog in the picture. Good luck with yours. I wouldn't blame you for wanting to breed her.