# Hans Prager/Alpine K9?



## Raizo

Czech German Shepherd Dogs from Alpine K9

=) I've recently been looking into getting a dog from Alpine, and my father's gonna call tomorrow (if I pester him enough to, anyway). Since someone on another thread mentioned that a member here had a Hans Puppy, I wanted to know what their experience was, and if there are any more of you with pups from Alpine K9.

So here's my lovely little questionnaire for y'all. 

1. What was the process like, getting a dog from Hans?

2. I've heard on Leerburg and PDB that he's a very knowledgeable person, who really knows his stuff -- from your personal experience, do you agree or disagree with this?

3. If you were looking into getting a dog from Alpine, but changed your mind, what was it that made you do so?

4. Has anyone met Hans' dogs at his kennels in Phoenix, Arizona? 

5. Any idea on the pricing? (We'll probably get the pricing tomorrow during the phone-call, but a rough idea now is always good) 

=) Thanks in advance to anyone who can help me. Alpine looks promising, but I don't want to get too excited only to find out it's not all it's cracked up tot be!


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## NarysDad

I sent you a pm


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## Raizo

^^ I received it and replied, thank you! The dog in your avatar is beautiful!


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## szariksdad

sent you a pm about hans


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## Raizo

=) Yep! Replied to it! Thanks!


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## richxd87

Hi, new here and I am also interested in purchasing a pup from Hans. Could you guys please give me some insight on AlpineK9 as well please. I've read many things about them on PDB but more info never hurt!

Raizo, I hope you don't mind me stealing a part of your thread =)... I didn't want to create a new one and ask the same questions. Good luck on your search!

Thanks,
Richard


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## JakodaCD OA

I don't know him personally, I also read alot of his stuff on pdb, I think he's pretty knowledgeable when it comes to czech dogs, I like what I see of his dogs, and I personally, wouldn't refuse a dog from him


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## szariksdad

Rich I will send you the same pm I sent Raizo.


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## Ace952

Rich,

What type of dog are you looking for?


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## Konotashi

I've heard good things about his dogs.

Would you guys mind sending me the info/your thoughts as well? Just realized he's in AZ. Haha, I'm a little slow today. *Der*


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## szariksdad

Konotashi;
I will send you a pm about him


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## Rush

Do you mind sending me info as well? These are all the questions I have about Hans, I was considering looking into him  Thanks!


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## Jgk2383

me as well please!


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## onyx'girl

Why don't you all just contact him with a list of questions after you've read the sticky on choosing a breeder? http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/choosing-breeder/137533-things-look-responsible-breeder.html
Talking with the breeder himself would be better than taking someones opinion who you don't even know. 
I'm sure you'd get a feel for who he is and his program by actually communicating _with him_...


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## robinhuerta

*Good, solid advice Jane*...communicate with the actual person..


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## szariksdad

Jane;
while I agree with you partly about communicating with the breeder also. I think it is pertinent to also ask other people what there experiences are with that breeder so you go in with your eyes wide open. After all some breeders are really good at feeding people a line of BS to get them to buy the dog. Other people can then give a more honest opinion of the breeder from there experience.


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## GermanShepherd<3

Hans lives in AZ as well as me. I have seen dogs from Hans many times throughout AZ, and I was very fond of them, even though working line is not typically what I look for. He REALLY knows his stuff, I have never spoke in person with him, but through the internet like PDB. He is a great breeder imo.


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## lemans

Can I please get the relevant pm as well? He's someone I am looking at for a good Czech dog.


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## saucy2011

seems like a really great and honest breeder from talking to him and talking to others who have a pup from him are very happy with their pups and his service, he seems like one of the best out there!


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## Alphak9

Hi, i am new here and interested in czech dogs. I have heard about alpinek9. Please pm me for relevant info about this breeder. Thanks.

Alpha


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## szariksdad

Alpha, I notice you are in Florida I believe there are closer Czech working line breeders than going all the to AZ for your breeder. Is von Linmarc kennel near you they are breeding a similar line.


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## wolfstraum

Check with AKC to see if kennel is in "good standing: - ie can their dogs/pups get papers???? Good idea for many kennels actually...

Lee


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## Alphak9

Hi szariksdad and wolfstraum,
Yes, there are a few kennels nearby, but i hear many good things about him with czech gsd at pdb. 
But i have never contacted him before. If anyone has experience dealing with Alpine, please share your experience. Either good or bad is fine. 
Thanks....


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## ymm

*Bad Idea*

I did a google search on Alpine K9, and came up with two bad reports on it:

ALPINE SAFETY K-9 INTERNATIONAL | Rip-off Report: 529877

AlpineK9 | Rip-off Report: 619943

I have not heard anything bad against Ivan Balabanov, he seems to be well regarded across the country, so maybe I'd go with him.


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## JakodaCD OA

those reports were a disgruntled puppy buyer and from what I know was resolved


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## cliffson1

Alpine k9 has excellent dogs and one of the most knowledgable people about Czech lines in this country. Would get dog from them in heartbeat.


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## wolfstraum

A lady here that I know was from AZ, married a State Trooper and moved here. She had 3 young dogs (all three the same age +/- a few months) that she acquired from him. She neutered and spayed them all by 1.5 years, all three sharp-shy. Two are gone now - one left, and she will get her next pup from one of my litters or one I find her.

The PDB is hardly a reliable source of information for anything. It is a cesspool and full of inaccuracies, lies, misinformation and drama. People have been known to triple and quadruple register there to have discussions with themselves to promote themselves. Have seen the IP records that prove it.

Lee


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## GSDElsa

Ymm-highly suspicious that you register here just to post those. Little grudge?

Amd why on earth are you recommending a mal guy when she is looking for a gsd.


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## Samba

A yes, interesting first post there. Important to remember there is no breeder bashing on the board here. If you feel it is valuable to share unhappiness or such, the PM function is available to communicate with individuals.


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## Holmeshx2

All I can say is consider the source... Read that second link and just how unstable that woman is and resorts to calling people fat and ugly as a way to dispute a dog issue?

I know nothing personal of Hans I researched him some when I was looking for a breeder and even emailed him he seemed very knowledgeable and was nice but not quite what I was looking for. I contacted a decent amount of breeders and while they all had awesome dogs I really had a harm time deciding because the dogs were awesome but I had to find someone who matched my personality and that was my deciding factor in the end. Best advice is lots of research on here is good but really talk to the breeders first because tons of great dogs you need to find the breeder that matches you best especially if you want support after the sale.. many give it but you obviously want one you connect with.


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## Puppy-Wuppy

*Please pm me as well*

Looking to get an import from Alpine.
Can you pm me your positive/or negative experiences.
I've done the search and agree with disgruntled people so your input is appreciated.
Thanks,
LM


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## scuba_bob

So what's the deal with AlpineK9 seems like mix feelings about him?... He's someone I'm looking at but those reports are kinda scarring me off. Who has dogs from him and what are your experience with this kennel?.


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## JakodaCD OA

LM, if you agree with disgruntled people, why post on here asking for more 'stuff'?


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## GSDElsa

I think you just have to do your research, admit that not everyone is going to be "happy customers" and do what you feel comfortable with. I know the one complaint harping on the AKC registration not being with an imported dog is just bizarre....imported dogs don't come with AKC registrations nor the paperwork.

You really have to evaluate the company the complaint is against and the complaintee sometimes. Not to say one way or another than Hans is a good person to deal with (no personal experience), but there are definitely some quirky things going on with both of those rip-off reports (the first was a person from Indonesia who admitted the issue was cleared up and the second sounds a bit looney and not sure everything shoudl be believed in there just based on some of the obsessions like the AKC registration thing)


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## JakodaCD OA

I agree with Justine,


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## Ronda

I have an AlpineK9 dog. Very happy with her, she is everything I asked for (even if I didn't exactly know what I was asking for , she's a lot of puppy!). She's a bold, confident, PUSHY, driven little thing that takes a lot of work but Saphira is a wicked cool puppy. 

Hans let me visit his home to meet Saphira's parents and I got a full tour and actually met ALL of his dogs. His place was clean and neat, the dogs looked great (he had some awesome looking dogs that I would have traded a kidney for), and he was very forthcoming and informative about his dogs, telling me the strengths and drawbacks of each, who was behind each particular dog and what it would bring to the table, etc. Zero issues with papers and Hans was very adamant about calling him if we had any problems or questions with Saphira and that he would help if he could.

Will buy my next dog from him as soon as Saphira is older and I forget how much work/blood/sweat/tears I had to put into her puppyhood. :laugh:


Here is the monster looking serious and grown up...she's 15 weeks old in this pic.









Ronda


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## JakodaCD OA

She is STUNNING)) if you get sick of her I'll send you my address


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## Castlemaid

She sounds like my kind of puppy! Lucky you for having her!


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## Ronda

Thanks Diane and Lucia, I'm a bit biased but I think she's pretty great.

She's out of his stud Quint, who is a Mambo z PS son. Here is her pedigree Ohen z AlpineK9 - German Shepherd Dog.

Hopefully she'll be my very first french ring dog, well if I don't mess her up too much.

Ronda


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## Ace952

wow....she is so pretty.
Im excited for you with the french ring training!


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## JakodaCD OA

the pic in your avatar and on database, is soooo CUTE, she looks like an angel with the devil in her eye


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## holland

Beautiful headshot


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## Ronda

Thanks again for all the nice comments about her. :wub:

Ace...wish us luck, as soon as she is done teething (she's lost 6 so far!) we'll be heading back out to the ring club...really nice people and they seemed to like her when I brought her out for them at about 10 weeks even if she wasn't a mal!  I'd be more than happy to get her brevet and would be over the moon if we could get a FrR1 sometime in the next decade!

Ronda


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## Prager

Suprise suprise. Not everybody loves me??!! Gossip galore.
Can you email me the message about me too, or are you too much of a chicken? ...who ever you are. 
Look I have been around for long time. There are going to be people who will say good and bad. Go on my website and read references. On top of what is on my website I have thousands of them. Yes I sometimes pis pepole off mainly if I tell them the truth which they do not want to hear. I treat everybody fairly and in worse case scenario of a conflict I stick to my warranty. At first however, I always tend to err on the side of kindness. 
Prager Hans


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## gagsd

Hi Hans! And welcome! 
Hope all is well with you and yours.

Ole Sonia Eva emailed me threatening to sue.... And I don't even know the lady. Go figure.


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## JakodaCD OA

Hans, I think this is an old thread and the person has disappeared in a puff of smoke

MARY, you are on her hit list to? LOL


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## Betty

gagsd said:


> Hi Hans! And welcome!
> Hope all is well with you and yours.
> 
> Ole Sonia Eva emailed me threatening to sue.... And I don't even know the lady. Go figure.


Good grief, that woman is something.


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## gagsd

Yeah... Not sure why. I am so sweet and charming it must be a case of mistaken identity.


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## pets4life

them along with eurosport i think are the best in the world young dogs great breeders of pups also you can't go wrong glad people here are doing their research


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## Jefferson's_GSD

Please, this type of message must only be sent in private. 

Thank you,

ADMIN


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## hmc

*Info on Alpine K9 and Grand Canyon requested*

This seems to be an old thread, but I am looking at getting a working line pup from one of these two breeders. It looks like PM is method of choice and I hate to bother anyone to repeat, but it is much appreciated it I could get any info.


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## cjrazus1

*Researching for New Dog*

Hi all,
I'm new to the forum. My wife and I are looking for a new GSD after we had to put down our last one. We live in Phoenix and are researching reputable kennels in AZ. I'm looking for experiences with Alpinek9 as well as other recommendations? We are looking at a dog for mostly family companion and hopefully some family/home protection.

Thanks


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## Franki1015

I see this is an old thread but I am looking for a new pup. My current boy is 10.5. He has his Schutzhund II. I too am looking at Alpine K9. I have seen a lot of information on the net, some good some bad.
Any current information would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
Franki


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## EMH

IMO, if you're honest with him about exactly what you want, he will do his part in finding or setting you up with a pup that will _potentially_ meet your needs. Note, puppies are always a crap shoot, so it's about trying to stack the odds in your favor of getting the dog you asked for. 

Be honest with him and, more importantly, be honest with yourself about what you want. It's easy to get carried away thinking, "Oh I'm gonna title this dog to Sch3 and get my FH2 title", but when the time commitment, challenges, and other worldly pleasures in this veil of tears we call life start creeping up, it's easy to change your mind. Unfortunately, we can't change the nature of the dog looking up at you.


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## RZZNSTR

EMH said:


> IMO, if you're honest with him about exactly what you want, he will do his part in finding or setting you up with a pup that will _potentially_ meet your needs. Note, puppies are always a crap shoot, so it's about trying to stack the odds in your favor of getting the dog you asked for.
> 
> Be honest with him and, more importantly, be honest with yourself about what you want. It's easy to get carried away thinking, "Oh I'm gonna title this dog to Sch3 and get my FH2 title", but when the time commitment, challenges, and other worldly pleasures in this veil of tears we call life start creeping up, it's easy to change your mind. Unfortunately, we can't change the nature of the dog looking up at you.


Well said!


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## pets4life

very nice post EMH!! Specially about being honest with yourself. 

You can love it at first then a year goes back and you decide all that work daily is just too much and you want your life back to spend it on golf or something.


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## czechshepherd

I just called Hans, *** Removed by ADMIN - Negatives to be shared via PM only ***


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## cammo

In all fairness, I've never talked to Hans, but by reading his comments, he's pretty blunt/to the point, very eastern European  

Talk/email Zbynek @ aritarbastet.cz. He's a vet who's been breeding DDR/Czech GSD's for a long time in the czech republic and is very courteous, polite and experienced. Apparently many of the RCMP K9s are from his litters.
While there are others here who can give a much more informed opinion of him than I can, I've found him exceptional, friendly and quickly answers the multitude of questions I send him. I plan to get a pup from him for SAR.


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## Sunflowers

cammo said:


> In all fairness, I've never talked to Hans, but by reading his comments, he's pretty blunt/to the point, very eastern European
> 
> Talk/email Zbynek @ aritarbastet.cz. He's a vet who's been breeding DDR/Czech GSD's for a long time in the czech republic and is very courteous, polite and experienced. Apparently many of the RCMP K9s are from his litters.
> While there are others here who can give a much more informed opinion of him than I can, I've found him exceptional, friendly and quickly answers the multitude of questions I send him. I plan to get a pup from him for SAR.


Most Eastern Europeans are great. 

I recommend Aritar Bastet as well. I have received nothing but prompt, courteous replies from him.

Going to visit the kennel in person next summer.

Can't wait! :wild:


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## martemchik

He's from Central Europe, not Eastern Europe.

But I agree that most Eastern Europeans are great.


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## alexg

martemchik said:


> He's from Central Europe, not Eastern Europe.
> 
> But I agree that most Eastern Europeans are great.



That is simply semantics. The East and West Europe was never meant as a geographic term but a political one. And former Czechoslovakia belonged to the East.


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## Sunflowers

martemchik said:


> He's from Central Europe, not Eastern Europe.
> 
> But I agree that most Eastern Europeans are great.


Last time I looked, the Czech Republic was part of the Eastern European Group.

UNITED NATIONS DGACM



Several geopolitical divisions of Europe have been used at different times for different purposes. Depending on the authorities cited, some countries may belong in one or other regions.
There is no official Central Europe group.


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## martemchik

Well, I guess your interweb research is much more true than my real life experience in the Czech Republic and Eastern Europe. I'll make sure to let all my Czech friends know that the interweb tells them that they should call themselves Eastern European and not central. 

Berlin Wall is not the dividing line anymore. Sorry to burst your American bubble.


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## Sunflowers

Your Czech friends are in denial, LOL.

I do not have an American bubble.


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## Sunflowers

alexg said:


> That is simply semantics. The East and West Europe was never meant as a geographic term but a political one. And former Czechoslovakia belonged to the East.


Thank you.

You know what is funny? 
If you look at the EU website, they say it is in Central Europe.

http://europa.eu/about-eu/countries/member-countries/czechrepublic/index_en.htm


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## Saphire

martemchik said:


> Well, I guess your interweb research is much more true than my real life experience in the Czech Republic and Eastern Europe. I'll make sure to let all my Czech friends know that the interweb tells them that they should call themselves Eastern European and not central.
> 
> Berlin Wall is not the dividing line anymore. Sorry to burst your American bubble.


Why is it you ooze disrespect and sarcasm towards anyone who has a differing opinion from yours?

It's actually ok to not agree but why not do it nicely?


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## Sunflowers

martemchik said:


> Well, I guess your interweb research is much more true than my real life experience in the Czech Republic and Eastern Europe. I'll make sure to let all my Czech friends know that the interweb tells them that they should call themselves Eastern European and not central.
> 
> Berlin Wall is not the dividing line anymore. Sorry to burst your American bubble.



Max, I need to ask: is this supposed to be an insult to Americans? 

What I said has nothing to do with being American.

I am sitting here, literally, right now, in Eastern Europe. Having a very nice real life experience here. Flying back to the US on Wednesday.
Just so ya know.


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## alexg

Sunflowers said:


> Thank you.
> 
> You know what is funny?
> If you look at the EU website, they say it is in Central Europe.
> 
> http://europa.eu/about-eu/countries/member-countries/czechrepublic/index_en.htm



We can also look on the map. The geographic center of Europe is located in the western Ukraine ?


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## Sunflowers

alexg said:


> We can also look on the map. The geographic center of Europe is located in the western Ukraine ?


But then you will have at least five countries telling you you are wrong :rofl:

Europe: Many Countries Vie To Be The Heart -- And Soul -- Of The Continent


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## martemchik

I made the initial comment as a joke, but yes, most people will consider the Baltic states and Russia as Eastern Europe, and Ukraine along with the Slavic states Central Europe.

My second comment was also a joke, as I consider myself an American lol.

Where in Europe are you?


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## asja

Vienna is farther east than Prague, for the sake of argument. I am in Germany right now, have been for a month, and we are going to the Czech Republic next week for the fourth time in a year. As far as I can tell, Czechs seem to prefer being called Central European, not Eastern European, probably because they dislike Russians, who they consider Eastern. Just my observations. Your individual experiences may vary.


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## Smithie86

Central Europe is the correct phrase....


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## Castlemaid

Old thread, getting off topic, so closing it now.


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