I don't know if this is helpful or not but when Uallis was around 5 months old or so, he's an English Mastiff BTW, we had someone suddenly appear at our house that Uallis had never met before. He growled and barked from a distance but when the visitor ignored him and kept walking towards us, Uallis didn't do anything but tuck tail and run for all he was worth back inside the house. 
So just because they will bark at that age, doesn't mean that they will follow through with anything.
Someone told me awhile back certain breeds, especially Guardian breeds, have that instinct to protect "their people". This came about from a conversation about Uallis having "temper tantrums" whenever I left a room and he couldn't see me. They told me that if he couldn't see me, then he couldn't protect me. I don't know if that is how Uallis thinks or not but occasionally I have noticed that "instinct", trait or whatever you want to call it. He DOES seem to have a knack for guessing whether someone's intentions are good or...not so good. But it could be argued that that trait could be in many types of dogs, which I'm sure it is. But whether its true or not, I've never seen any indication that he'd ever follow through on any bad "vibe" he may feel towards anyone. He's never been tested (and I hope he never is) and that's the only way that I'd ever know. I just don't think that it will ever be a given that any family owned and trained dog will ever follow through on anything if they *needed* to. I think the only way that anyone will ever have any idea of what their dog would really do would be to have a dog professionally trained to be a guard dog and I don't know many people who would go to that expense or even want a dog with that kind of liability attached to it. So, I guess for everyone else who doesn't go with the protection training route would just have to wait and see if the need arises and *hope* your dog reacts the way you want it to, which ever way that may be. Personally, I don't want my dogs to attack and hurt anyone...namely because I don't want my dogs, themselves, hurt or killed. A person robbing my house can clean it out for all I care; I'd much rather have my dogs safe. Granted, I don't have children either...
So just because they will bark at that age, doesn't mean that they will follow through with anything.Someone told me awhile back certain breeds, especially Guardian breeds, have that instinct to protect "their people". This came about from a conversation about Uallis having "temper tantrums" whenever I left a room and he couldn't see me. They told me that if he couldn't see me, then he couldn't protect me. I don't know if that is how Uallis thinks or not but occasionally I have noticed that "instinct", trait or whatever you want to call it. He DOES seem to have a knack for guessing whether someone's intentions are good or...not so good. But it could be argued that that trait could be in many types of dogs, which I'm sure it is. But whether its true or not, I've never seen any indication that he'd ever follow through on any bad "vibe" he may feel towards anyone. He's never been tested (and I hope he never is) and that's the only way that I'd ever know. I just don't think that it will ever be a given that any family owned and trained dog will ever follow through on anything if they *needed* to. I think the only way that anyone will ever have any idea of what their dog would really do would be to have a dog professionally trained to be a guard dog and I don't know many people who would go to that expense or even want a dog with that kind of liability attached to it. So, I guess for everyone else who doesn't go with the protection training route would just have to wait and see if the need arises and *hope* your dog reacts the way you want it to, which ever way that may be. Personally, I don't want my dogs to attack and hurt anyone...namely because I don't want my dogs, themselves, hurt or killed. A person robbing my house can clean it out for all I care; I'd much rather have my dogs safe. Granted, I don't have children either...
