At Driftwood Shepherds we intend to promote Capitan Max von Stephanitz’s vision.  My dogs are evaluated to be free of both Hip & Elbow Dysplasia by the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) and PennHip.  I believe that both tests are important to understand how the hip joint is positioned as well as the laxitity of the joint.

Additionally, my dogs are involved in obedience, agility, rally obedience, personal protection, weight pull and have done herding.  Not only are they working dogs, but they are also Certified Therapy Dogs and Canine Good Citizens.

 About The Founder

I have had a life long love for dogs and most recently for the German Shepherd Dog.  I have owned and trained German Shepherds for the last 4 years.   I have trained my female GSD Hope to be my service dog by alerting me to asthma attacks that I have while I’m sleeping.  She has been doing this type of service for me since she was 1 ½ and continues to be very mindful of my breathing patterns.  I initially, trained Bo to do this service for me; however, due to the bad pet food I lost Bo and subsequently started training Hope to take over.

Initially I trained in Ann Arbor and later moved to Portland following work. I've had the opportunity to train with a lot of different trainers including Cesar Millan a.k.a. The Dog Whispher. My dogs participate in UKC Conformation and Weight Pull. In the next year we will be focusing on Competition Obedience and perhaps Agility. Please check back to see the accomplishments of Hope in Ace in the next years.

My desire as a German Shepherd owner is to promote the working German Shepherd as a quality conformation show dog, as well as, an all around working dog that meets the standard Captain Max von Stephanitz outlined.

"The dog can tell from the glance of the trainer the state of the trainer’s soul. "

- Capt. Max von Stephanitz