[gemy]

Which larger breed is the question? You mentioned getting a larger breed for guard purposes. Well clarify that to yourself. Guarding against what or whom?

You do have some larger sized Yorkies, but still predatory birds could be an issue, and one which a dog any dog might not be able to guard against. Even with two very large dogs in the water with Razzle, the turkey vultures still circled in closer and closer to Razzman in the water. I got him out of there fast, and guess what those vultures circled away from us! The two larger dogs had no idea there was any danger circling in from above.

It seems to me what you want is a breed that has high defense drive, but lowish prey drive. Ie you don't want your big dog to look at your Yorkies as prey.

Also even with a large guard breed you just can't rely on them to always keep your Yorkies safe. Some coyotes have been known to distract the larger dog, and then go after the small one.

Also if you are walking as a pack, understand there might be situations which you might have to choose between protecting your Yorkies and trying to protect your large guard breed dog. Eg: we were on vacation this past summer, and my friend and I were walking 6 Yorkies and one large guard dog. Two of the Yorkies were off lead and leading the pack on the walk. My guard dog and my Yorkie were on lead. Out of the bush comes crashing a Rottie mix, who went straight for the two off Lead Yorkies. Very dangerous situation. Magic roared and stopped the Rottie in his tracks; for he had not realized there were other dogs present. My Yorkie went defensive too, aggressively barking, I picked Razz up. Now what? If that Rottie brought it forward to my Magic, I was severely hampered to help break up a dog fight. As was my friend with her five Yorkies back under control. In the country I had relaxed my guard. In the city where I live, I never walk Razz and Magic together, for just this reason.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying don't do it, but just think about potential situations et al.

IN terms of Labs - they do require high exercise and really are still pretty clumsy and puppish for at least three years.

Also consider are you going to keep this dog as an outside guard dog? That makes a huge difference in what breed to consider. Many large breeds do NOT do so well as being only outside dogs. They require the love and companionship of their owners. In other words to live in the home with you and your pack. For example my guard breed does not (BRT). Many of this breed do not have HUGE prey drive, as they were designed to guard humans, and of course their pack - which they do very very well. But like all working breeds require a large commitment of time for training and socialization.

I think as I would love to live in the country; I would have an outside run for Yorkies to run in, and another for elimination. Those runs would be covered above (ie birds of prey).

A large breed dog will deter many threats just by their presence but not all threats!

Another true story, I was working my large boy off lead early morning in a park nearby. Luckily for us I did catch some movement off about 50 yards or so away. It was 2- 3 coyotes circling the perimeter of where we were working. I thought oh boy we might be in trouble here! Luckily Magic had not seen them yet as he was focussed looking at me for his next command. I called him to me, leashed him, then hit the PANIC button for my car. The loud sound scared those coyotes away. We returned to our car, and of course there was no training that morning for little Razzman.

I do think that some things to consider when purchasing a large breed dog are:
A) do I have the time and willingness to train this dog?
B) Do I have the time and willingness to provide the necessary exercise for the breed?
C) While I bought this dog for their guarding qualities - do I have the understanding on how to keep them safe? By this I mean you don't want to un-necessarily expose them to danger.
D) Should my dog get involved in a "fight" do I know how to assist?
E) Can I afford the food, expense and vet bills for a large breed dog
F) And finally when or if a life and death situation occurs -my dog might be severly injured and or killed. Think about this for a moment. You bought breed X because they are good at guarding and protecting. They WILL do it. And all the training in the world, if their owner was seriously threatened and or their pack, their natural instinct will take over. They will lay down their life for you and yours. It behooves you to make sure you can both emotionally and finacially bear the brunt of this encounter.

Some food for thought ...........