I was once given a lift in his car by an Italian who told me during the course of the journey that he had a ”pastore tedesco” at home, and I spent several seconds wondering why he would have a German Lutheran cleric in his house, until finally the penny dropped.

Sort of reversing the idea, round here most houses have Alsations, but suprisingly few have german shepherd dogs…

why he would have a German Lutheran cleric in his house?

probably very effective at deterring intruders