If you had too pick one dog breed to help you survive in a land of extremes. What dog breed would it be
Can you back your choice up with:
Advantages your dog has..
Hunting ability
Tracking
Protection from other predators
etc.
Disadvantages of your breed..your choice
Why, the Beagle, of course
As for advantages ... one must never underestimate the tenacity of the Beagle! My first Beagle was a pure patch hound, she was commonly mistaken for a pit mix she was so aggro when the need arose. Patch hounds are oversized, she was about 35lbs, so just large enough to be a deterrent or to inflict damage if need be. On that note, the jaw strength of a Beagle is tremendous for their size. Do not scoff at a Beagle as a guard dog! lol Seriously, though, Beagles will naturally attack predators, both human and animal.
Of course, hunting/tracking ability, patience, desire is quite high in the breed. You'll never starve with a Beagle because they are versatile - most will naturally hunt anything if hare/rabbits are unavailable. They can efficiently hunt any small game incliding squirrel, game birds, deer ... Save for large game (obviously) you do not need a firearm. A good hunting Beagle is "run to catch" and many of them either do it naturally or can be trained to retrieve.
Beagles have the added advantage of not needing to be trained for their work. Save for coonhounds, they are one of the only breeds that need experience, not training, to be proficient @ their work.
As for the disadvantages, the only one I can think of would be size. The full 15" and oversized hounds would be the best in this doomsday type survivalist scenario but personally speaking I have several that average 14-19lbs!!! That being said, you don't mess with my 19 lb little male who WILL take on anything 3x his size. He will not back down, and he is powerfully built. His sister can probably bench press a deer. She can pull 9000lbs *without* rails so watch out! All I can say is this dog is normally mild mannered but I wouldn't want to get on his $*** list
So really, size might not be that big of a disadvantage, if you had a pack of Beagles! It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog.
So yeah, no disadvantages, all positives to Beagles as a survivalist dog. I'm really not biased. They are, lol
ETA: They are easy keepers as well, so a little food will go a long way. It would be doable to keep a pack even on limited food resources ...
And in the process give your opinon of your dogs superiority and basic differences between it and the (German shephard and rottweiler) my undecided choices.
I have owned both breeds, albeit we only had the Rottie for less than a year. Nice dog, would be well suited as a survivalist dog because obviously they are ideal guard dogs, can also be used as carting dogs. The GSD is naturally loyal to the owner. My experience with them has shown that they are so naturally intelligent they pick up on what you want without training. Don't underestimate how much of a bonus having a dog like that can be. Generally, though, they are not strong or hardy dogs and might not be able to withstand harsh conditions where food is limited. The Rottie is not as intelligent and more likely to be dominant aggro to the owner than a well bred GSD. A true Shepherd will do anything for you. But again, the hardiness factor is there for the Rotts, so if I had to choose with my head I would do a Rott. But I like GSDs better, lol.