go to a.k.c. they have all the breeds and any info you might need. God bless you.

I believe they were originally bred to guard *and* herd sheep.

If you MUST BREED - breed a Briard to a Briard.

They're herding dogs.
Here is the history of the breed.
Lineage goes back to even the 8th century. They claim their ancestry to the rough-coated sheepdogs which were brought to Europe accompanying Asian invaders in the Middle Ages. In native France Briards have long been regarded as one of the four shepherd dogs, consisting of the Briard, Beauceron, Berger Picardy, and Pyrenean. The name Briard came to be used in 1809 when people started calling him the chien berger de Brie (shepherd dog of Brie). Brie was a region in France, supposedly where this breed lived. They were developed in France for the reason of herding and guarding, and still retain these attributes today. The Briard was used in both World Wars, serving as a military dog that would carry ammunition and supplies to soldiers. The breed was also used to find and help wounded soldiers. It was said that if you were a wounded soldier and the Briard passed you by you were beyond help. Briards were known to be able to distinguish whether a person was going to live or not with their wounds. This dog was a favorite of Napoleon Bonaparte, a friend to Charlemagne, and imported to the U.S. by both Thomas Jefferson and Marquis de Lafayette. The first litter in America was registered by the AKC in 1922.