If you want a guard /pet that looks awesome but is placid in nature then you still have to have a good deal of basic training. German Sheperds are without doubt an awesome dog but you must have dog experience with them. They don’t respond to heavy handling or hitting and can grow into a fear biter, they need a lot of stimulation and care but you have to be firm not hard. They are the only dog I know that is constantly watching to see where you are when out walking, they have a great guard instinct and if they love you they will defend you with their lives. It is important to know the parents and our dogs all come from military backgrounds so it is in their make up. All you have to do is make the dog confident don’t scare him when he is young and although they do go through a fear stage , it is normal and by the time he or she is an adult you have a fantastic dog.
Only one problem they can get all sorts of ailments and you must make sure their hip score is good. In other words you must make the time for these animals. Lastly the great thing about Sheperds is they are a very vocal dog and bark with tremendous intimidation. They are a powerful dog and probably the best all round dog there is.
They are not a dog that you can just love, you have to maintain at all times control over these dogs. If you have other dogs and you socialize them providing from puppy the dogs will get along fine, same thing with children, if you have kids you must socialize the puppy with the children and teach children as the dog gets bigger not to run too much as these dogs have a high level of chase on small animals and it excites these instincts. It is not that the dog will bite but a 6 month Sheperd is still quite big and could easily knock a small child down.