I owned a german shepard as a kid. They are medium sized dogs. 
I love dogs. What are german shepards bred for?
to 1899. As part of the Herding Group, German Shepherds are working dogs developed originally for herding sheep. Since that time however, because of their strength, intelligence, trainability, and obedience, German Shepherds around the world are often the preferred breed for many types of work, including disability assistance, search-and-rescue, police and military roles, and acting. The German Shepherd is the second-most registered breed by the American Kennel Club and seventh-most registered breed by The Kennel Club in the United
scent. These dogs search for suspects, lost victims, and evidence that suspects may have discarded. Seven are European bred German Shepherds, one Dutch Shepard, and 13 are Belgian Malinois' (Mal-in-waa). The LVMPD has 15 detection dogs, nine of the dogs are Narcotic Detector dogs which are trained to locate marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin. The LVMPD uses hunting breeds such as Springer Spaniels and Labrador Retrievers because of their high hunt and play drives. The LVMPD has six Explosive Detector Dogs