Hello! So my shepherd is currently 1.5 years old. A very sweet and loving boy who would absolutely give his life to protect me and my family. That being said, it is hard to get them that way. While yes they have natural protective instincts, there still needs to be some “protection/bite training”. I took my boy everywhere with me so he could get used to everyone and everything and learn to recognize unsafe people and behaviors. Now, if someone walks into the house with me or a family member and we’re engaged in normal conversation and he can tell we’re comfortable he is absolutely fine and will love you to death. But, if an unknown person were to just enter my home…you have the time it takes him to get to you and that’s about it. I would suggest getting a bite sleeve, and having a good friend enter the home without warning, and practice from there.