# Opinions wanted Peters Elite Shepherds- Medina, Ohio



## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

Hello,

I’m new to the board and am looking for honest feedback.

Breeding Pedigreed German Shepherd Dogs in Ohio - Peter's Elite Shepherds

This breeder is on our short list. We are looking for our first family dog. Both my husband and I grew up with dogs, but this will be our first dog that we are responsible for as adults. We are taking our time researching breeders.

We are specifically looking at the female Sierra who will be bred to a male from Haus Juris in VA. They are both imports from German Showlines.

Our dog will NOT be bred. We are a pretty active family and love the outdoors (running, camping, hiking, etc.) and want a dog that will be active with us.

The health and breeding of the dogs is most important to us (as I am sure it is for most buyers). I have confirmed the female’s hips have been scored by the OFA. I checked several references provided by the breeder and all have wonderful things to say about the dogs they purchased. The breeder is very active with all of her dogs and really asked me a ton of questions about myself, where we live, etc.

Please provide feedback good or bad. I want to make the right choice and need an expert eye to review and give feedback. Please pm me if that’s more appropriate.

Thank you!


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## GSDSunshine (Sep 7, 2009)

Something I would be curious is that while it is stated that she has OFA certified hips and elbows, they don't list her rating. Could be good, could be fair, could be poor...doesn't say.


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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

Things like that are easy enough to look up at Orthopedic Foundation for Animals


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## Woodreb (Oct 27, 2008)

If you search for her on the OFA website she comes back with good hips and normal elbows.

OFA: Display OFA Records


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## DianaM (Jan 5, 2006)

Honestly, for those prices I do think you can do better. I don't feel it is wise for breeders to have tiered prices and give buyers the option to purchase full registration right off the bat. How can anyone tell whether a pup is show/working/breeding quality at eight weeks of age? Many good breeders will now offer ALL pups on limited registration, only lifting the restrictions to full registration once the pup passes certain qualifications such as a working title and a hip/elbow rating. I don't see anything necessarily bad with this breeder and it's great they screened you with many questions, but I think for the money you can go with a much higher quality breeder who does in-depth testing and trialing to fully understand and prove their dogs' genetics and temperament.

(Working German Shepherd Breeder in Michigan, by Wildhaus Kennels )
For a similar price (even with shipping), the above is an example of a breeder I find exemplary. Many members have dogs from this breeder and they are all consistently amazing examples of the breed. These are working lines but you can see how much effort the breeder puts into her dogs to test and trial them to ensure they are producing dogs that are as true to the breed as possible.
http://wildhauskennels.com/index.html


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## GSD07 (Feb 23, 2007)

Diana, you are comparing apples with oranges, German showlines and working lines. I also don't think it's very fair to tell that the breeder OP asked about is of lower quality and knows nothing about their dogs just because some other kennel produces great dogs. 

I think the breeder from the OP looks good for what you need, they work with their dogs, and the prices are reasonable for German showlines.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

That pricing is not high for German show lines. Some of those dogs are American show lines and I don't know prices for those but I would assume it's about the same as German lines if not more. I don't know this breeder or dogs, just commenting on the price. I don't like pricing hierarchies, but that's more of a personal dislike. For show line kennels, limited reg doesn't always make sense if you want your dogs in show homes. These are not dogs I personally would be interested in, but I like that the breeder is actually *doing* something with the dogs, they are OFAd, and they are home companions (not just rows and rows of kennels).



GSDSunshine said:


> Something I would be curious is that while it is stated that she has OFA certified hips and elbows, they don't list her rating. Could be good, could be fair, could be poor...doesn't say.


If they are OFA certified they will be fair, good, or excellent. Anything less would be dysplastic (borderline, mild, severe...I think?)


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## Doc (Jan 13, 2009)

DianaM said:


> Honestly, for those prices I do think you can do better. I don't feel it is wise for breeders to have tiered prices and give buyers the option to purchase full registration right off the bat. How can anyone tell whether a pup is show/working/breeding quality at eight weeks of age? Many good breeders will now offer ALL pups on limited registration, only lifting the restrictions to full registration once the pup passes certain qualifications such as a working title and a hip/elbow rating. I don't see anything necessarily bad with this breeder and it's great they screened you with many questions, but I think for the money you can go with a much higher quality breeder who does in-depth testing and trialing to fully understand and prove their dogs' genetics and temperament.
> 
> (Working German Shepherd Breeder in Michigan, by Wildhaus Kennels )
> For a similar price (even with shipping), the above is an example of a breeder I find exemplary. Many members have dogs from this breeder and they are all consistently amazing examples of the breed. These are working lines but you can see how much effort the breeder puts into her dogs to test and trial them to ensure they are producing dogs that are as true to the breed as possible.


Who died and left you queen? Do you personally know the breeder the op asked about? Have you ever had any first hand knowledge of the dogs or bloodlines? If you don't, why do you feel it is necessary to critique their dogs? Geeze. 

And you wonder why so many people have left this forum? Your running commentary is way out of line. And then you praise a working line breeder when the OP was looking at show lines - there is a flaw in your logic.


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## Betty (Aug 11, 2002)

If I was looking for a non working line dog I would be interested in their pups from the website.


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

I don't think there is anything wrong with people expressing their opinion and explaining their line of thinking, especially when they can do it without resorting to personal attacks. 

If other members like what they see, and can express their likes and dislikes and personal preferences in respectful, matter-of-fact ways, I am sure that the OP will take all comments in consideration.


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## Chris Wild (Dec 14, 2001)

I don't know this particular breeder and can't really comment on the bloodlines. They are a cross of American show and German show, and those aren't bloodlines I study. Though I did meet the sire of their stud, Ringo, a couple times in person. 

But based on what is on the website and the OPs comments from having already contacted the breeder, it sounds like this breeder could be a very good choice for what the OP is looking for in a dog. Dogs are health tested, they do things with their dogs and most have some form of title or at least temperament test, sounds like the breeder did a good job of asking questions and screening the buyer, and has references from happy past customers.

As far as different pricing heirarchies, sometimes they are ridiculous, but I don't see that as the case here. I think this is far more common with dogs bred for show and with show dogs makes a lot more sense. Same with limited registration. While limited is a great tool a breeder can use, it also precludes a dog from showing in conformation. For a breeder breeding show dogs, using limited on all pups would be shooting themselves in the foot. With show kennels, I think selling "show quality" pups at a higher price and with full registration is completely understandable.


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## Doc (Jan 13, 2009)

The dam has a strong show line background and Haus Juris is one of the finest kennels/breeders on the east coast. If that is what you are looking for, I would talk to the owners of both kennels so they understand what you are looking for.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Elaine Peters is a member of the dog club I am a member of, GSD club of Northern Ohio. 

I agree with Doc that these are people looking for a showline dog and it does not make sense to compare them to the working line breeder on this site, the Wilds. I am glad Chris came on.

I further do not think that a showline breeder should be dissed for not titling her dogs in Schutzhund, when she is titling them in other stuff. 

I think you will get a nice pup from them, they are towing the line on health certifications, and they are very involved in the dog world. Good luck.


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

Thank you to everyone that responded to my post


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## RubyTuesday (Jan 20, 2008)

> I don't think there is anything wrong with people expressing their opinion and explaining their line of thinking, especially when they can do it without resorting to personal attacks.
> 
> If other members like what they see, and can express their likes and dislikes and personal preferences in respectful, matter-of-fact ways, I am sure that the OP will take all comments in consideration.


IF I was the breeder in question I wouldn't have found Diana's remarks very respectful. IF I was the OP, I wouldn't appreciate getting answers to questions I never asked while essentially ignoring the questions that were asked.

The breeder seems to provide what the OP is seeking & at reasonable prices. The breeder gives every indication of being knowledgeable, caring & experienced. IF the OP likes these dogs & gets good vibes from the breeder this could be an ideal breeder for her.

I'm not wild about showlines yet IMO these dogs are lovely & appear well balanced. From the little that can be gleaned from a web site, the breeder appears to be both ethical & easy to deal with.

The OP is wise to do the research & it appears she might have found an exemplary breeder.


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

I was not put off by any statements made by my questions. It was a question that I posted on a public forum knowing there would be varied responses. 

The breeder mentioned Wildhaus Kennels has an awesome breeding program with beautiful working line dogs. However, for us that would be “too much dog”. As mentioned we are very active, but working line dogs are a very high driven dogs and I believe benefit from owners that want to work them & keep them very active. It would not be fair to us or the dog to own one at this time, but again they are beautiful!

Again, thank you for all the feed back. Our breeder search has been a long one. I feel better knowing we are on the right track.


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## RubyTuesday (Jan 20, 2008)

Courtney, it's my understanding that many working line dogs work well with active families. IF WL appeal to you, it's worth checking into them further. I haven't personally had WL & I've only known a few but I usually prefer them to SL.


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## LARHAGE (Jul 24, 2006)

I like the dogs on that web site very much, it's very true you can find a dog to suit your families life style in all the lines, it really boils down to what type is more appealing to you, my sister has a working line that is a great family pet and gets along and plays with her kitten, I love her, but I prefer the Showlines myself, they are just more beautiful to me, but that's the beauty of German Shepherds, you have different types and styles within the same breed! Good luck with your search, I know how hard it is to find the perfect puppy!


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