Wasn't the point to prevent theft?

the simple presence of a firearm will not prevent the thief from attempting, unless hes aware of said presence. with a dog, hed still get in the house (unless the dog was outside, or there were signs posted) but i think im trying to say : if im going to be there when the thievery is attempted, id prefer taking a huge chunk out of his anatomy over having him run off at the sight of a ferociously non-violent dog and be physically well enough to make future attempts, on myself or someone else.