[QUOTE=BluePitbull]
As soon as I start working as a veterinarian, I am definately owning one of these dogs. In vet school, I learn all these disorders that GSDs can get. It really is sad that a beautiful breed has been destroyed. I am willing to pay a good price for a shiloh puppy if it means that it will be healthy. So are they good gaurd dogs?
[/QUOTE]
Funny you should mention becoming a vet as my vet was thrilled to meet a Shiloh (kidjanot). Obviously they see hundreds of wonderful animals but, I am guessing, the rarity of a Shiloh really jazzed her (them actually…the whole office seemed to manage to stop by and say hi on every visit…something they never did when we brought our cats in prior to having the dog).
I should note that while Shilohs have been bred to avoid the issues GSDs suffer from they are by no means immune to them. A carfeul buyer who pays attention to the bloodlines can certainly minimize the risk and Shilohs have been bred to minimize them but as with all things in life there is always a degree of uncertainty.
As for being good guard dogs I think they are among the best guard dogs. If you want something vicious as a guard dog then no…Shilohs are not what you want. What Shilohs possess is a natural affinity for their family. They bond deeply. Combine that with their innate intelligence (they really are nearly Einsteins of the domestic dog world…one or two breeds may beat them out but by and large they will be among the smartest dogs you ever see) and large size and you have a potent combination.
If you read the Wiki article linked earlier in this thread they touch on it. Shilohs combine a calm demeanor, high intelligence and stable personality that enables them to make independant decisions…and good ones at that. New situations are not something that freaks them out but rather are something to be considered. I swear you can see them thinking as they assess a new situation. No flying off the handle or running and hiding. I have seen this in action with my dog.
Keep in mind my dog was never trained explicitly to be a guard dog. I was walking her one night on a rather dark street in Chicago at 1 a.m. and a homeless person wandered out of an alley maybe 30 feet away and started to approach me (not random, I just happen to be going that way but locked eyes walking to me). Living in the city people are wandering all over the place and my dog takes little note and continues sniffing the fire hydrant. This time, of her own accord, she took note. After an initial glance up to see what was there she snapped into alert mode. She assumed something just shy of being overtly agressive. Her stance was solid, legs positioned to move her if needed. Ears straight up and pointed at the guy. Eyes locked unblinking at him. As he took a step closer there was an almost imperceptible quiver in her body and she seemed to tense just a tad more…next step the same. It is hard to describe really even if it is happening in front of you. It is just an unmistakable sense that this animal has you eyeballed and is an inch away from doing something you will not like…next move is yours. Maybe it is that animialisitc part of our brain that just identifies somethning that wants to eat us. Of course…a 100 pound German Shepherd looking dog backs up the implicit threat nicely. The homeless guy could not help but notice and stopped approaching. My dog never growled, I never said a word. Homeless in Chicago will usually get in your face begging for money…this guy calls out from 20 feet away if I have any money to which I answer “no”. He then walked the other way (usually they beg more not accepting the “no money” answer). My dog (I did nothing just to see what she would do) remained in her psychoceramic pose unmoving beyond keeping eyes locked on the guy. She watched him till he rounded the corner and then watched maybe another 30 seconds to see if he was coming back. After that she looked at me, I patted her and praised her and she went back to sniffing the ground.
I gave no command to the dog to do any of what she did. Maybe she could feel my unease and clued off of that but I think she just was able to assess this situation as different than the hundreds of other times people walk by her on the street. She behaved brilliantly in my view. No jump to rip someone’s throat out, no hiding behind my legs. Just a Clint Eastwood style, “Whatcha gonna do punk?” attitude while knowing she held her equivalent of a hand cannon (read big, nasty teeth) at the guy. I wondered during the whole thing when she might actually jump the guy if he persisted. While I do not know (never tested it with her but I am confident in this belief) I suspect threat or no she would not actually have attacked without some indication from me.
I believe any shepherd breed to be rather decent guard dogs. Just seems to go hand in hand with their shepherding instincts. I know shepherds are not flock guardians but still it seems a natural outgrowth of their herding instinct. Shepherds usually have a strong affinity for their “family”. They seem to know what is “theirs” be it sheep or kids or the pack leader human. As a result they tend to not run away or feel the ned to roam widely. Our GSD when growing up seemed to have a crystal clear notion of where the property lines of our house were drawn. On that property she’d chase things…off the property she barely notice (she’d chase rabbits to the edge of the property and stop literally at the property line).
Sorry this is a bit long but I am trying to give you a good idea of the Shiloh. If you want a snarling, snapping threat for a guard dog choose something else. If you want a dog that canmake its own decisions but remains fearless in protecting its family then the Shiloh is one of the better choices you can make. They are bred to be in the middle of a hard or soft dog. Hard breed might be an American Pit Bull Terrier. Soft breed might be a lab or Newf (sorry EJsGirl but every Newf I have met, while powerful as hell, are big softies…gentle giants to their core…not a bad thing by any means but a guard dog choice?..probably not).
Last thing, there is just an implicit threat when people see dogs like Dobermans or German Shepherds. Even if your dog is the biggest wimp on the planet most potential troublemakers do not know that. While studies have shown that any dog in a home lowers the chances of being robbed (even a Pug can act as an alarm by barking) it’d take a truly ballsey burglar to test a 100 pound shepherd staring at them intently.
Ok…last, last thing…Shilohs excel at training of any sort including Schutzhund training which is exceedingly demanding (think Police dog, bomb sniffer and so on). Few breeds can succeed in this arena. While this training does not make them a guard dog per se only those breeds which possess the intelligence, courage and temprament for these jobs pulls them off. It is no coincidence that you then find these very same breeds working with police, guarding military bases and so on.
Sorry for this extended hijack of this thread but this is somethin I am passionate about. 
His dam was only allowed to breed once, it was a problem litter & her owner didn’t want it repeated. Two long hair (an uncommon fault, and yes it’s a fault), one with SAS, one with some eye thing, two stillborn. 
