References

Dear Bill and Nannette,
I can't begin to thank you for our precious little Blaza. He arrived by plane to San Antonio in the best of condition. He wasn't even shy. I brought him home and he made himself so comfortable right away. He even played with his toys. He is now 9 weeks old and the smartest puppy you would ever want. He is "potty" trained for outside, knows the words "sit", "out" and "where is your piggy" (that is his squeak toy) He has the sweetest temperment ever. I have never seen a dog with such a good disposition. I am so glad I bought him from your kennel. I read about other kennels, but when I saw how they "bashed" other kennels, I was leary to buy from them. . if they were like that on the web, how would they be with customers? When I came to visit you in August to "check" out your kennel, I was very pleased to see the cleanliness and how friendly all the dogs where. They were so well behaved. I have recommended your kennel to many people who have come to visit Blaza and even to our local police force. Hope something good comes of that too! Will send pictures shortly. . you will all be amazed how quickly he is growing and how very handsome he has become. Keep up the good work and God Bless you and your family.
Your friend
Ericka J.
11/30/04

Hi Bill

How is it going? We're doing great. . . Blaza is doing wonderful. . .he does what dogs do best. . play ball, run and play. . . he loves us as much as we love him.
I must tell you an amazing story however. . . German Shepherds are herders by nature and he had never herded anything in his life until a few days ago when my husband
neglected to close the gate to the alley and all 8 of my pedigree rabbits got out into the alley. . .
well Blaza saw that his rabbit buddies were missing and off he went to the alley. . . .
the rabbits were down by the road so he just ran past them, circled and literally rounded them up and back to the yard. . .
I was so proud of him and he was proud too. . . he loves his rabbit buddies, he went trotting around as if counting them then came all proud to me for his hugs and kisses. . .
of course after that he decided to go and kiss the bunnies too, but he got jack slapped in the nose by one of them, so he decided not to do that anymore. . .
yes, he loves the rabbits and doesn't harm them, they are out together but supervised. Today I was picking the last of the cherries off the trees and so was Blaza.
He would put his feet up on the trunk of the tree and pluck cherries off just as fast as he could and eat himself a feast. . . cherry eating dog. . . go figure???
Does the same with the peaches . . . ummmm at least he has fruit in his diet huh??? LOL. I'll be sending photos on his 1st birthday. .
I'm going to include the bunnies so you can see how a huge dog and rabbits get along. . . you'll love it. . .
Anyhow just had to tell you the herding story. . . hope you enjoy it as much as I witnessed it. . . chat again soon.
P.S. The 8 month old pup is beautiful. . . hope she finds a home soon.

Your friend as always
Ericka J and Blaza
6/2/05

Hi Bill!

This is Ericka J, let me know if you recieve this picture of Blaza at 22 months old. Yup, he'll soon be 2 years old.

Hard to believe isn't it?

He is doing very well and keeps doing better each day!

Your pal,
Ericka and Blaza
6/2/05

Hi Bill!

I'm sending you a couple photos, I wasn't sure how to put them on an attachment, so they will come individually. . Blaza is doing good. At the last vet visit he weighed 105lbs. He doesn't hold too still for the vet. LOL. Still eating the Dick Van Patten Ultra Premium. . 5 cups a day now. . . he will be getting "fixed" October 1 I wanted to wait until he was 2 years old before getting him fixed so he could reach his growth potential. . as you can see from the pictures, he looks alot like Kobe and has alot of Brandy in him too. He is a very good dog. . he acts so silly around us, chasing flies, birds, or anything when we're around. . but he is so protective and "big" when strangers or things that aren't in the norme are around. We took him to the beach a couple of times, he didn't know what to start. . . Anyhow, I see from your web page you are doing pretty well with the kennel business, I am so happy it took off so well. You have a clean kennel and your a honest and very nice person, God takes care of those kind. . .how is your darlin' daughter? and of course your wife? (I didn't get to meet her the time I came over, but she must be nice) Now since we are settled and such, I will continue to keep in touch and send you pictures as we go along in life with Blaza. . . he is a happy camper and I want you to know that. . . chat more soon. Let me know if you get these pics. . .my daughter took them with her phone, and let me know what you think. . . Your friends
Ericka and Blaza

[Is that a can of
dog food opening I hear]

Hi Bill and Nannette,
We are madly in love with Zuma. He is so smart, intelligent, loving and playful. His ears stood up today!!! We feel like proud new parents.
Thank you again for our new son.
Matt and Debbie Y

HI Bill and Nannette,
Zuma recieved his 3rd puppy shots today. The vet said he looks wonderful. He weighs 28 lbs now and he's not fat. He has made himself right at home and we just adore him. We purchased an extra large crate for bed/nap time and he doesn't even cry, he likes his den. He's not just intelligent, I think he might be a genius! It took only 2 pieces of kibble to teach him to "sit" and "down". Then no treat was needed. He hasn't had any potty accidents in the house for at least a week, he paws at the sliding glass door when he needs to go. He loves our dog Sarah. She is very gentle with him. He is going to be an alpha dog most definitely, lots of confidence.
Take care
Debbie Y

Hi Bill and Nannette,

Zuma is doing wonderful. He has had all of his shots as of 1/17/05 and weighs 50 lbs at 4 months. We think he will be very large. The vet is impressed with him. She has made many comments on how handsome he is, how shiney his coat is and what a wonderful and sound temperment he has.

We started puppy kindergarden last Sunday and he is the star of the class. He needs to be shown most things only once and catches on very quickly. There is a high speed comuter train that passes near the class and Zuma is not at all afraid, he just looks up and watches it go by. He is very social but protective of his house. The puppy class instructor says he is one of the best Shepards she has seen and asked who his breeder is. Needless to say we are beaming with pride. I gave her your web address, maybe she will know someone that will be good for the 2 girls that are left.

It is wonderful to see your family tree and how beautiful Zuma's littermates are and what wonderful homes they have. I think Zuma and Jack look alot alike.

Here are a couple more pictures. The one by our slider was taken during the last rainstorm and it had been raining for 5 straight days. The second picture shows his handsome profile.

Debbie and Matt
1/19/05

Hi Bill,

We love Zuma so much, we can't help but brag. I would recommend your Shepards to anyone. Yes, we received the vitamins, thank you. He has been taking them since we brought him home. I ordered them online from your web site link and we also give them to our other dog Sarah. Zuma's coat is shinier than any GSD I've ever seen. People ask if we spay him with a grooming spay. We only give him a bath if he gets really dirty (during the last rainstorm he found out that he loves mud puddles) and we brush him daily. I wonder if it is the Natural Balance food or the vitamins or both?

Matt and I will have to bring him by so you and Nannette can see him sometime, when Matt's knee is better. Matt is awaiting approval from the insurance for his total knee replacement.

Zuma is really well behaved for a young pup. He listens really well and each day we are amazed at his progress.

Take care,
Debbie

Zuma is great. He loves his people. Those are the ones that come to the house and are introduced properly. If he takes to you the first time, he remembers you and you are his friend. He is till unpredictable out on walks and in the public. When things settle with Matt I will send him through more training so we have more control. My parents could come in the house with us gone because he loves them. Walk up to us on the street, he thinks he has to protect me, What is weird is it is off and on and mostly when there is a dog.

Matt feels like crap and at times wants to give up. He has more good days than bad I would say.

Here is a pic from yesterday when my parents were over.

Deb

Bill and Nannette,

Here is Zuma on Christmas Eve. Looks like his papa and acts like his mama.

Deb

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Lane: We will be sending you photos soon of Charlie (Black Boy). He has been a terrific addition to our household. We have gotten loads of love and joy from this little guy. His ears are almost up and he is house trained already. Everybody that visits us falls in love with him...
Best,
Orlando B

Hi Bill and Nannette,

I apologize for the late email. Deuce is doing great. What an amazing little boy he is and not to mention extremely handsome! I'm looking at him right now and he's sleeping soundly in his corner inside our office.
When we brought him home the day after Thanksgiving we were thinking that we had a long night ahead of us. Well imagine our shock when he didn't even wake us up at all during the night. He woke up at 6:00 am and when we checked his box, no accidents whatsoever. We were amazed with the fact that this little one already had great bladder control. Not once has he woken us up from sleep yet. We took him to the vet the next day after we picked him up. She just fell in love with him. She cut his nails and he just pretty much slept through it. The check-up turned out great. The vet said that he's a very healthy boy.
At 10 weeks old he learned how to go up and down the stairs. You should've seen the concentration on his face when he was learning how to do it. It was precious. Going down the stairs was a bit more challenging for him, specially with the first set of stair (our stairway wraps around and we have a landing). He practiced on the smaller set before he tackled the big set. Right now, he's just going up and down the stairs no problem. He knows he needs to take his time and is careful about doing it.
He is potty trained already and consistently goes outside. He's even letting us know when he needs to go outside now. If we're upstairs in the office, he sits by the door and stares at us. When we get downstairs we just tell him to go outside and tell him to make potty and he goes. He actually goes potty on command. So even if he's gone already, if I take him out 10 minutes after, he'll relieve himself even if it's just a litte. It goes a long way before we head out to work and we need him to be empty before we put him in his pen.
PK (my 10 pound shih-tzu) and Deuce get along really well. I remember telling you guys that that's my biggest concern. Silly me, they're fine together. They play a lot - sometimes the not so fun for us barking game. They were so funny when they're playing tug-of-war with this one toy.
We had our first private pre-school puppy training class yesterday. We found a trainer close by that's practically our neighbor. She lives about 3 or so blocks away. I can't begin to tell you how smart this boy is. It didn't take us long to teach him to come (well he did this already), sit, lay down, roll over and wait. The trainer was quite impressed with how smart he is. She was also very impressed with how affectionate he his while maintaining his confidence. We will be taking him to a group obedience class sometime in January. I would like to thank you both for breeding such beautiful german shepherds. The love and care you give to the breed shows in these puppies. We're so very happy and grateful we found your kennel. Deuce have brought all of us (including PK) such happiness and not to mention entertainment. He is definitely living up to your standards - Intelligent, Dignified, Loyal, Confident, Excellent Temperament. Again Thank You. - Ann & Karim
P.S.
I have so many pictures I need to make an online photo album! Once I do that, i'll send you the link. Here's 4 pictures for now. :)

Hi Bill & Nannette,

Please accept our apologies for not getting back to you sooner. We've been so busy lately.

Deuce is doing great at 10 months old. He's our handsome little (well not so little anymore) prince. We gave him a nickname of Boom-Boom because we can hear him anywhere he is in the house -- specially when he's coming up and down the stairs. :)

Water, water, water... he absolutely loves water. He gets upset when the sprinklers are going off and we don't let him play in it. It's his favorite game chasing the water stream from the sprinklers. Once we caught him with his whole mouth around the water stream while making these funny noises. He, he, he.

He's absolutely healthy and he's everything we could ever want in a dog. We don't really look at him as a dog though. He's our son. :) PK (our 10 pound shih-tzu) and him love each other completely. They even eat and drink out of the same bowls now.

Anyway, I'll stop babbling now. Attached are some recent pictures of of Deuce. Enjoy! :)

- Ann & Karim

hey guys,
sorry it took so long!! ,
loki is doing great i did his shots on dec17, thanx for everything, he's a chewing monster!!!! but we love him ,
k
ps. ,some of these pictures are dumb but, it was hard he never stop moving....

Bill,

Everything is going very well with Bella. Both B and I absolutely love her. We go to the park at least once a day, and for the first time, we took her to the beach. She loves the sand, went into the water (she followed dad in, and there was a sudden drop that dad didn't know about so she was soaked, I now know she can swim), don't think she liked it too much though.

She is great at listening to commands (sit, down, settle (lay on her side), roll over, paw, etc...). She is also showing high levels of discipline for a puppy. I can have her sit, tell her to "leave it" and then through a treat on the floor in front of her. She will remain sitting until told to "take it." That one always impresses the friends.

Even more impressive is that she heels very well both on and off leash. When allowed to play off leash she loves a good game of fetch with the tennis ball, or just exploring and tasting everything her little nose can smell (leaves, twigs, branches, etc...) and her favorite, run between Brooke and I just too make sure we are both okay at all times.

She still gets a bit distracted when she is around other dogs, but she never wonders too far away.

Her protective instinct is very strong. All perceived threats (pretty much everything right now) are greeted with her bark. B and I are working on letting her sound off in protection and then having her stop, this is going slow but I think she is starting to get it...

Everyone at her Vet's office loves her. She is schedule for her final round of shots on January 21.

We finally have a digital camera again so photos will soon follow.
Regards,

J

Hi Bill - I'm sorry it took so long to reply but these owners of mine are really lame in the picture taking catagory. Anyways....I'm pretty much trained by now and use the backyard to take a dump and pee. They give me three squares a day of this crunchy stuff called Natural Balance which I dig. The vet is a specialist in Shepherds that the boss found and he examines me and answers any questions and pokes me with the needles when I need them.

I found out that I dont get another shot for a year. I get out to a doggy park in Brentwood (excuuuuuse me) where I met some pretty cool friends and some really snooty ones too. But we all get along pretty well. I go to work every day with the boss and play with Jenny the other partners Pointer. She's a little hyper and runs my legs off in the parking lot and in the shop. I cant wait till my legs get a little longer and I can catch her. I have a million toys but a few favorites which everyone here is happy to play with too.

They buy me these chewy thingys which I love. I go down to the beach too and run around in the sand and play ball. You should see all the water over there. Lotsa birds too. I also learned to walk next to a left leg and not pull on my leash. I also sit down at each corner before we cross. I'm usually dog tired around 9 oclock and put myself in my comfy cage in the little girls room at night and go to sleep. So far the only problem is the other furry thingy that I want to play with and keeps running away or making hissing noises. Maybe its because I find her food and eat it when I can. Whatever. Anyways.....I'll keep you posted on whats doing. You can write to the boss if you have any questions or suggestions.

Ciao for now - Jack

Jack is 11 months today I believe. He weighs a little over 100 pounds. He is extremely smart and very gentle when he plays with other dogs and people. He goes to a park twice a day for a total of three hours. He walks without a leash and knows what sidewalk means. He still chases our cat but we are working on that. Anytime I take Jack out in public people ALWAYS comment on what a great looking guy he is. He is aloof to strangers although he tolerates their petting him but really gives little reaction. He is very affectionate to everyone in our household though. Most people at the dog park are jealous because Jack always comes when I whistle or call him and he listens to me when I talk to him. He couldnt be a better pal.

Gary

Oh my gosh - Bill!

She's so cute.
Our poor cats aren't quite sure what to make of her, they are keeping their distance.

I think we'll have a good feel how we're doing after this weekend. She's trying to figure/smell out our place and we're trying hard to make sure we're doing everything right.
We've cleaned up a bit of pee - I think she's pee machine! I'll stand out there with her, congratulate her pee and then we get inside and in 1 minute there's a puddle on the floor - thank god for tile!
So, I just keep the water to a minimum and we'll see how we make out this week.

I love to cuddle her - I sit on her bed and she curls up next to me for quick hugs. She loves to touch, needs to be in eye contact and within touching distance.
That makes walking a bit hard, but she's not that bad on the leash considering. A few lessons and she'll be just fine.

I just took her on her 2nd walk tonight, this one was very short walk - our neighbor brought Max (a 7mo old boxer) over so we walked about 5 houses down and came right back.

She's a barker - when I come to the door I can hear her barking, if she can hear the neighbor bark, she barks too. I'd love to start now on cutting that back.

Questions: 1. she is really busy - doesn't stay in one place for any length of time (except when we put her in her bed/crate to sleep. Is this just puppy energy?
2. Does it take time to get her interested in playing with a ball? I throw it and its like she has no idea which way to look - is that puppy stage?

We got the pictures, thanks! We've both been sending it around to our family and friends showing her off. My friends at work are begging me to bring her in to work (we're allowed to bring them to work all day, whenever). But, I've got to get this potty thing figured out. Would be embarrassing to sit in a meeting with her and then watch her pee in front of everyone!

Thanks for allowing us the privilege of raising her - we're so happy to have her here with us.

*it's funny watching Paul lean half out of the bed on her crate so he can touch her and so they can see each other, then he picks her up, carries her downstairs to go potty during the night - very cute.

Here's Hannah with her new little brother Cassius!! Hannah is doing well - she just got her stitches out last week from being spayed, and she's doing real well. She rides around to most places with me, the old people at my grandmas care home love when she comes to visit. The kids in the neighborhood still come over and ask if Hannah can come out and play. She is really good with Cassius and they seem to love to run around and then cuddle together.

Hi Guys-

Here's a photo of me with the babies last week taking a break on the couch.
I know you aren't supposed to have favorites when it comes to your kids - but Hannah has stolen my heart! We have a fabulous trainer that comes to the house to work with both dogs, she was quick to see how smart and tender Hannah is (I'm sure she favors her over Cassius too)!
I'll send some more photos this weekend of our beauty Hannah (I call her Angel) > I'll get her to pose for the camera, which she is used to.
She was 56lbs 2 weeks ago - she's filling out very nicely.
Hannah still plays well with her little brother Cassius and the neighbor dogs, she loves to hang out with me - wherever, and as you see, she likes to cuddle too.

Modeling photos to come on Saturday.

Have a great rest of the week!

Best,
K

Hello Mr. & Mrs. Lane,

well I just want to thank you for the beautiful gift i know have in my house. He is a handful, but he is one of the best. He loves to play with his brother Yorgo... everyday they play with a ball and he is a very good fetcher. He is learning very very fast and that is great... hope the pics come out good, i'll send better ones soon!

Nancy H.

Hi Bill,
Attached (finally!) are pictures of Sasha. She has gotten so much bigger! Her training is going better then great and she is truley a joy to have as part of our family. Scotts Mom works for a pet store so we have gotten her vitamins through her. She is well taken care of, up to date with her shots and in very good health.

Thank you for your concern. We WILL send more pictures as we take more these next coupld weeks with her and the kids.

Thank you!
Kim C

Hi Bill & Nannette,

We are so so sorry that it has taken us this long to e-mail you pictures of Kaya. Our computer broke down, and then our camera, so it has been a little bit frustrating, I know. Please know that Kaya is well. She loves to play basketball, and tear up any sort of paper she can find. The kids absolutely love her, and she is already so very protective of all of us.

She weighs about 61 pounds now, and will be getting spayed this week. She has some friends in the neighborhood that she likes to play with, but is a little bit intimidating to some of the other dogs. Kaya is a little bit overly eager to play with anyone, and gets very excited. She has made a great addition to our family, and we all love her very much.

I will say that she is a little bit stubborn, and I get a little jealous that she listens to Bob better than to me. Again, I am sorry for the delay, but with a little luck all should be working properly and we will send pictures more often. Hope that all is well with your family, and I will send pictures again soon.

Sincerely,
Maggi Y

HI Bill,

I have experimented with my camera phone. She is doing wonderful I feed her twice she gets fed after morning piddles and at 6 pm I gather you fed her at 6??? I have named her Jada she is loving it here learned how to fetch and return I am afraid we were her out so taking it slow she sleeps well at night!!!!

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