Testimonials

Mary,

I take great pleasure in watching Schatze maneuver. Yesterday, I watched her bound effortlessly up a HUGE snowbank. She was at the top in just a few strides. When she got to the top, she looked down at me, completely elated to be up there. Of course, she was waiting for me to throw some snowballs to her. Sometimes her movements are completely breathtaking. Every once in a while, when she's playing with a dog friend, I watch her do a flawless herding maneuver. She pivots perfectly on her hindquarters, bringing her front end from side to side to block her friend from passing and then leaps off her hindquarters in pursuit. This dog could be trained for ANYTHING! I keep thinking that if she is this coordinated at 8 months.........can she get any more agile!?!?!?!

Thanks again Mary for breeding such an amazing animal!

Cindy

Hi Mary!

Just wanted to check in now that Otter is 15 months old and let you know he is doing great! He's really a great dog who loves (LOVES) to play and run as much as possible. He is also coming along great in his training. He is almost ready for his off leash test and knows the commands: sit, down, stay, wait, come, here, and heel. We are just polishing up on some verbal only and hand only commands and then his test will be just around the corner. Our trainer said he's very smart (too smart at times) and he's ready for beginner protection training.

He's now about 95lbs with more room for growth - not too shabby for a runt! He's very tall and slender and will definately fill out another 5-10 lbs (at least) over the next few months. He loves his soft frisbee and loves car rides!!

Here is a picture of him about 2-3 months ago (he's on the left). As you can see, he has turned into a handsome boy!

Thanks again,

Kevin Connolly

Hi Mary,

I look at your website every now and then and decided to send you a picture of Otto. He was a year old on Sept. 2, 2006 and is from Hannz and Lexie.

He is an extremely smart dog. He knows all the commands we've taught him, that's not to say he always behaves. He can be very mischievous, but a very loving dog. He is gentle and good around children. He tries to herd the cat around the house which gives us some laughs. He mastered his first 14er in July. He absolutely LOVES the snow. We woke up to about 6 inches of snow this morning and he was whinning to go out and play.

He does have some separation anxiety issues which causes him to not want to eat in the morning when he knows we are going to work. We are working on that by incorporating some canned food on top of the dry and he is putting on more weight. He weighs about 75-80 lbs.

Thanks for a great dog!

Julie Nelson

Mary,

I just wanted to thank you so much for such an amazing animal. Boog is so much more than a dog, he is a partner. Even at eight and half weeks he is so so smart and pleasing. All he wants to do is make me happy. If I say its play time we play, if I say its nap time we sleep. He is friendly with everyone but hes defiantly my dog.

I could comment on his wonderful confirmation and great coloration (not to mention his beautiful coat!), but I think the fact that he has all this plus an AMAZING personality is extraordinary! Ive had a lot of dogs in my life but I have never felt so...connected to one. I think this is due to how you raise them in your 'pack' and they learn appropriate behavior from the adult dogs. I also think that by encouraging the people to come and see their puppy while they wait for its arrival, helps to build a strong bond from the beginning. I connected with him from the moment I saw him and theres no doubt he is the one for me. However I feel that I would be just as please with any of his litter mates (or any of your dogs for that matter)!

Thanks so much for this wonderful addition to my family!

-Kayla

Hi Mary,

As we left your house, Leto howled and screeched for his momma and litter-mates (you know…the “help-I’m–being-kidnapped” cry). My wife, Donna, just kept cuddling him and coo-ing to him. Within 20mins, he quieted down and was fine for the rest of the ride.

I’ve had MANY pups, but this guy is hands-down the best pup I’ve ever had !!! We had him house-trained within a week. He had only a couple of “piddle” accidents at first and has never once pooped inside the house. He hasn’t destroyed anything in the house (having my other GS, Alia, to play with helps burn off that excess energy!!) Alia adopted him the moment we brought him home and they are now inseparable. They play non-stop until they drop.

Leto LOVES to train. He’s already very well trained to heel on the leash and he’s doing great with the come-sit-down-stay commands. He loves to please and he looks forward to our training sessions every day. And he’s nuts for hiking in the woods.

Thanks you for providing us with a wonderful companion!!!!

Bill Knox

Hi Mary,

On his 4month birthday…here’s a couple of pics of Leto. He’s doing great…and getting HUGE (over 50lbs now) !!!

In the picture with my female, Alia, you can see how big he is already (she’s 90lbs).

Almost all his permanent incisors have just come in. Still no permanent canines yet, but his baby canines are ready to drop out any time.

His intelligence continues to amaze me…still the smartest pup I’ve ever owned or trained!!!!

I’ll send you some more pics when he turns 6months

Bill

...yep it's me Judy...short update on your baby. Pinky Girl has a name. She had a name before we ever got home. Her name is "Kiss Me Kate" and of course "Katie" for short. The name suits her perfectly. Strong name like Kathryn Hepburn...she definitely knows her own path. She settled in here so fast, like she was born here. She'd been here maybe 3 minutes and after greeting "Bandit"...she located food and water and then was out in the back yard...exploring. You did such a wonderful job raising her! She is the most amazingly well adjusted little puppy I have ever seen. She's afraid of nothing and interested in everything. She listens to you, understands a Serious NO...in a calm voice and comes when called. She slept all the way home with her head on Brandon's lap. As for housebreaking...you are right...she heads for the door. She did whine a few minutes when she went to bed in a crate..but the Crate is next to my bed...so she adjusted an d knew the crate was OK. I am an early riser so...we were out in the backyard at 2:30 a.m....hopefully not so early tomorrow. I was up a tad early today...didn't want her uncomfortable and needing to pee...in her crate. So that's about it for now...She's just a pure love and we feel so blessed to have her. PS...Katie and our cat Whisper...still have to work things out. Katie has had a couple of not bad swats...warnings with no harm intended...so I know they will be fast friends much sooner than later. Bandit is acting the MOM and just loving playing with Katie up to a point. No warnings needed...Bandit just lies down and Katie goes on to something else.

All is better than well here...I'll keep you updated. Hugs to you and your amazing FAMILY, tell them..they did a Great JOB raising Katie :).

Judy

"Hi Mary,

Bella is six months old now and has been working towards getting a Novice Rally Title. She is doing so great and I have never been so pleased with a dog in my life. As you are well aware of she certainly is smarter than I am some times! When I came looking for her I wanted a dog similar to your Hannah. I must say, I don't think there is any dog more similar to Hannah than Bella. She is so beautiful, I am always getting stopped and complimented on her looks. She is also really social with strangers and other dogs, thus I never worry about taking her in public. Bella is my little shadow, not only at home but also on the road. She goes in the car with me 95% of the time and is so well behaved. Any dog can be well socialized and trained but it takes a great foundation, and good genetics to make such an outstanding companion. Thank you so much for such an amazing dog, friend, and working partener. I plan to take her as far as I can!

-Kayla"

Hi there Mary: I just wanted to let you know how much we love our puppy that we got from you! Gunther is almost 4 months old now and what a joy he is to us! I have never had a puppy who is so smart and fun to raise. He was literally potty trained within a couple days of having him in our home. I highly recommend you to everyone as a wonderful, reputable breeder. Thank you very much for such a wonderful gift.

Regards,

Kimberly

Mary: Feel free to use us on your websight. I have so many funny stories to tell with this dog, I could write a book. They say you should have several "belly laughs" a day to give yourself a long, healthy, life. I haven't had enjoyed this many in years! He has also been credited with keeping us safe on several occasions already and he is only a puppy! Just yesterday, a couple of men were approaching us in the dark while we were going to our car and the minute Gunther sat up and stuck his head out the window of the car, they both immediately turned and walked away. He is only a puppy! I am so grateful for him and thank you for your wonderful breeding. He is now micro-chipped and we are now shopping for a fence to give him roaming priviledges in the entire yard. I spoil him like a little kid, but he is so worth it. Thank you again, Mary. God bless you and may you keep spreading such joy to others through your puppies. :) Kim PS Both ears are up now and he looks so pretty. The entire vet office staff had to come and look at him when we were in this past week. They were all so impressed. :)

Mary,

I haven't sent an update in awhile, so I wanted to let you know how things are going. Chomper is doing just great, he amazes me every day. I can't wait to see him when I get home and he never disappoints me because of his exuberant welcome. He went to the Vet on the 14th, he weighs in at 54 pounds and is very healthy. I had him microchiped. I am kind of 'on the fence" on getting his rabies shot and would like to know what you think. My dog trainer says not until he's a year because of his immune system. My vet has been very cooperative in not combining shots, we did the puppy shots one at a time once a month, also started on the worming. You know the vet loves it because we how up once a month. The vet is not pushing me on the rabies shot, it's just the different advice I am getting on this. I would defer to your opinion as you are the breeder and I think the most expert opinion. Also, I am still feeding him Avoderm, he is thriving on it. I now mix the kibble and canned and he loves it. The trainer is trying to talk me into a raw diet. I don't want to change his diet until he is a year. what do you think?

Otherwise, we are into the second session of obedience training, he gets it so fast. Will and I are just amazed at how well he does. After our obedience training we are planning on agility classes or possibly tracking. The trainer told us he can do anything. He doesn't have to convince me it's just keeping him busy is the problem because he will find something to do.

I don't know what i would do without my big boy as I call him now. He is really good dog, he will not poop or pee in the house no matter what. Will got a job Nov 2nd so we have to leave him at home. We fixed up a nice area so he has a large dog run and can get into the garage for shelter, we have a heater in the garage. Then when we get home we let him run for about a half hour before he comes in. I was so worried about him the first day, it was like taking your kid to kindergarten, but he is a really balanced dog. I am planning on doggie day care one or two days a week, but he wasn't quite 6 months and they wouldn't take him until. But then there is the question of the rabies shot. so please let me know what your advice is. Gosh, I kind of got carried away. I will try to get you an updated picture. and I still look at your website, hope everything goes well with the new pups. I loved the picture of Pistol, Will and I remember him from when we were signing Chomper's papers, I think anyone that gets one of your dogs is very lucky indeed. Hope everything is going good.

Suzanne

Hi Mary,

I thought I would send you a quick update on Maxi (the love of our lives!!).

Maxi is growing at an astounding rate! Last Thursday, she weighed 35lbs. Her ears and her paws are huge and I'm thinking she's going to be more like her dad's size than her mom's! Both of her ears are now up but fall to a point in the middle of her head. She is quite funny looking at times, but it only makes us love her more.

She is such a smart dog. She picks up on training and has been pretty house trained from day 1. She loves to go for car rides, play with other dogs, and is starting to learn how to swim.

The only thing she dislikes right now is small yappy dogs (but loves big dogs) and being bored. She is quite the talker and will let you know when she wants something, has to go outside, or just wants to tell her toys something. She loves going to the dog park, but won't get more than 20 feet away from us. I think that is the "people dog" coming out. We are keeping her very socialized and she is around puppies and adult dogs most days. She likes to play and wrestle. And still has some sharp little teeth (even though the vet says her adult teeth are starting to come in).

Take care,

Susan

We just wanted to send some pictures and let you know how Blitz is doing. He is definitely not shy anymore. He loves to go to the park and play with other dogs. He has done great with potty training, he picked it up within a week and a half. He has graduated from his kennel to a "big dog" bed and now sleeps in our room with us. He is still a very vocal dog, not so much with barking but he likes to "talk" to you a lot. He is definitely a mama's boy, he follows Nicole everywhere she goes. He had his last set of shots yesterday and weighed 35.3 lbs. He is growing up so fast its hard to believe he was 11 lbs when we brought him home. We attached some pictures for you to see how he has grown.

We hope everything is going well with you and your dogs.

Take care,

Billy and Nicole

Dear Mary,

Pharoah is a wonderful dog. His health is excellent. At his last check-up in August he weighed 85 pounds. He gets lots of exercise and is so good with other dogs too. He reminds me of his dad who I loved the minute I met him at your house in Longmont: so joyful and loving. He loves to run for the ball but if there are dogs around he'd rather run with them :) They adore him at the groomer (I take him a couple of times during the hot months and they get all that undercoat out and he looks and smells divine for weeks!) I take him to class at UNC at the end of the semester and the students love him too. There is not a mean bone in his body but at the same time he is a terrific watch dog. It's one of the many things I love about a good German shepherd dog.

My friend who called you got a puppy from another breeder ($1600!) He was an import from Germany. I met him this morning and he reminded me of your puppies: calm, intelligent, thoughtful, handsome.

I am so impressed with your pups. Thank you for being a breeder with integrity.

Gratefully yours,

Lisa, Pharoah and family