| People the world over have come to admire the German Shepherd Dog for its intelligence and versatility, courage and trainability, and of course its noble look. Whatever brings you to your search for a German Shepherd Dog, we hope that the information provided here will excite you about the possibilities of owning a Hollow Hills/vom hohlen Hügel Shepherd (because we breed both American and German import lines, we use both the English and the German translation of our kennel name). |  |
At Hollow Hills/vom hohlen Hügel we have been breeding, training, and showing German Shepherds for nearly thirty-five years.
Originally this involvement was through the AKC, and we have accumulated a list of accomplishments, among which are eight AKC Champions— including our Champion Hollow Hills’ Nimue v Major, OFA who was ranked #4 nationally— as well as several obedience title holders, including a
ranking in the top ten nationally. Performance, temperament, soundness, health and longevity have always been of higher priority than show wins in our breeding program, and we generally incorporated German import dogs into our pedigrees. For some years now we have dealt almost exclusively with dogs imported from the foremost West German bloodlines, in order to
combine the best possible genetics to provide for the health, longevity, intelligence, temperament, and conformational excellence for each succeeding generation of our German Shepherds. |
 Our breeding program is intended for the betterment of the breed, the kennel is small and litters are carefully planned. All pups are born in the house, graduating to large grassy paddocks for romping and roughhousing. They have socialization with other breeds of dogs while playing with our Rat terriers, Pomeranian, and poodle, and are exposed to our horses, chickens, and the occasional woodchuck, deer, turkey or other woodland neighbors who frequent our property. German Shepherds are an intelligent, sensitive, people-oriented breed that do not reach full potential without proper socialization and early mental stimulation. Rest assured that vom hohlen Hügel puppies are provided with the kind of start in life that provides a sound foundation for reaching their full potential as competitors or companions.
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As marvelous as German Shepherd Dogs are, they are not a breed that is appropriate for everyone. They have the innate energy levels of a natural working dog, and therefore require a dedicated dog owner to provide the requisite amounts of exercise and attention to keep them happy and healthy. They are not for the weak-willed, as their intelligence will soon have them ruling the household if proper human authority isn’t provided. Ideally they should have a “job” to do, as this is when they are most satisfied (dogs of our breeding have succeeded in obedience, schutzhund, agility, search & rescue, tracking, therapy work, and a multitude of other endeavors). Even a family pet must have formal obedience training to be a proper canine citizen. |
Our puppies are given a temperament evaluation (the Volhard Puppy Aptitude Test, or PAT) at seven weeks of age. This, together with our close interaction with the puppies from birth, helps us to make
recommendations as to the best matching of the puppies’ talents &
traits with the situation into which the pups may be going, whether for
show, schutzhund, family companion, or other work. |
If raising a puppy just isn’t practical for you, we do have other alternatives. We can provide custom-trained young dogs, or for more specialized purposes, fully titled adults. In addition, I travel to Germany several times a year, and am able to custom import dogs, either young adults or fully titled dogs, from either the West German Sieger lines or the more serious working lines. I work primarily with Werner & Frank Maxein, of Zwinger Hasenborn, and have found them to be impeccably honest and accommodating. Occasionally I will have a young or fully titled adult of my own that may become available. This is not a commercial kennel, so visiting is by appointment. We will try to accommodate visits but appreciate your understanding that time is a limited commodity, and the kids and dogs come first! |
