My wife and I began our search for a new GSD following the passing of ours several months back. The…read moreloss of this last shepherd (it was our second) was especially painful as we don't have kids and the dog was a true family member to us.
In the course of our extensive research to find that special dog, we spent literally weeks on the internet studying dog bloodlines and titles, calling many breeders nationwide, and even driving significant distances in our state (Texas) to visit numerous kennels where we viewed many litters and pups for sale. Backyard breeders were excluded from our consideration. While there were definitely some good kennels out there, they often felt like dog-manufacturing plants and not the unique quality we were looking for. Our search finally ended when we came across Vom Ragnar kennels.
The experience we had with Von Ragnar was much different than the other breeders we had talked to or met. The best way to describe them is as a high-end boutique breeder, very specialized, and the bloodlines were not the same ten dogs that seemed to permeate the dogs of all the other breeders. There's a saying that one pays for a good breeder not just a good dog, and indeed here this was the case.
Vom Ragnar is owned and run by Natalya Babenko and her husband Jey. From the start, Natalya proved to have substantial expertise in breeding and a passion for working with and showing her dogs (both nationally and internationally). It would not be an exaggeration to call her a perfectionist--and was evident from both discussions with her, and seeing her new state-of-the-art kennel. Her breeding dogs are of the finest quality; once you meet Natalya it's apparent that there is no way she would settle for less. In dealing with her/Vom Ragnar, everything from start to finish was done honestly and with integrity. Yes, Vom Ragnar is more expensive than the typical "good" kennel (not over-the-top more), and to us, the extra expense for acquiring a dog of the quality they were offering was well worth it.
The dog we chose was a red-sable male; they had two available, made videos of both, and Natalya helped us make a final choice within a week. After purchasing the pup (you must do so when locking in your choice), Jey made a second video to show the pup playing and update his looks and progress. We set a date for pick-up right after the puppy turned 8 weeks, flew from Houston to Chicago, and drove up to the kennel to pick up the dog. Everything in the final pick-up and transaction was very friendly and all went smoothly. The dog was up-to-date on the necessary shots and was microchipped prior to our departure.
As of this writing, we have owned the puppy for 5 days. We had it checked with our vet who found the dog fully healthy. The puppy was all "go" from the time we got him home, displays significant confidence, and while calm to loud noises (like thunder), has a very high energy level and is very outgoing. He is not timid or shy in any respect. The puppy shows us a ton of affection, displays high intelligence, and has a real interest in learning. To be clear, he's not an "angel" and will definitely take some real effort to train properly, but that is exactly how good GSDs are. Our overall feeling is this dog is of exceptional quality, and going through the effort to fly 1,000 miles to buy one from Vom Ragnar was well worth the time and money. If we were going to buy another (and we may get a female in a few years) we would absolutely buy another from them again without hesitation or reservation. Getting an extra-special pet to fill the paws of our last GSD meant so much to us, and Vom Ragnar really came through. We are very grateful to have chosen them as the breeder of our new dog!
