Graduate of the International Shiloh Shepherd Association's Breeders Training program and mentored by Vanessa Dutton of Guardian Kennels
Proudly raising Shiloh Shepherds with love & science!
Wilderness Kennels specializes in breeding for intelligent, family-friendly dogs. Each of our breeding dogs is specially selected for superior problem solving, dexterity, trainability, and focus. These are the unique qualities that I love to see and nurture in all my Shilohs, young and old!
We believe that in order to produce the ideal Shiloh shepherd a breeder must strive for excellence. Balancing the need for optimum health, temperament, intelligence, and conformation in every litter. This balance is necessary for every great Shiloh and gives them the potential for success in many roles, including as a family companion, competing in conformation, or the various fun canine sports. Perhaps even for a career as a service dog.
Our dogs are carefully selected from outstanding bloodlines that maximize biodiversity, with proven pedigrees full of titles, health testing, and all-around amazing dogs. We spend a great amount of time researching these bloodlines so we can better understand what is behind the dogs we are producing today. But great pedigrees aren't enough! Our dogs and their progeny also need to prove themselves by actively participating in conformation shows, temperament testing, and our mandatory health testing program! (Warning we ask a lot of our puppy buyers, but this is how we have been able to continue improving the breed for the future! It's all thanks to people like you!)
We go even further, striving for excellence in our pup's diets and in customizable immunization decisions. In order for our puppies to leave us prepared for whatever purpose they are intended to fulfill, we are constantly researching and using the very best socialization methods for our puppies, including the wonderful Puppy Culture program! They are socialized with a wide circle of dog-loving family and friends and introduced to varied indoor and outdoor environments.
Wilderness Kennels is a small home run facility. We limit the number of dogs and litters, in order to spend lots of quality time with each one individually. I enjoy working with our dogs, as well as breeding beautiful, healthy puppies. It's more than just a hobby for us, it is our passion. We are committed to producing amazing new generations of Shilohs based on groundbreaking science and proven bloodlines, in order to produce conformationally sound puppies true to the Shiloh Shepherd breed standard. We know our adoptive families are counting on us to bring beauty, character, and good health to every puppy we produce. Great breeders prove themselves with standardized temperament and health testing while also proving themselves conformationally in the show ring!
(Mixal/Fortune 2022)
Photo credit: Cynthia Kelly
Photo credit: Cynthia Kelly (Mixal/Cash litter 2021)
Dedicated ISSA Breeder
I am passionate and committed to this breed for life. There are so many special qualities to these dogs, and the positive and supportive community of like minded breeders (and pet owners) really takes things to another level of amazing! I see very great thing for the future of the Shiloh Shepherd breed!
Backed by Betterbred
DNA testing is one of the most powerful tools available to all breeders! Testing for over 180 genetic illnesses and profiling biodiversity of every individual dog to make smart breeding choices which lower the COI’s and maintains the valuable biodiversity in the breed.
EMBARK
Check out Mixal's Embark results here, she tested completely clear for over 180 genetic canine illnesses.
Health
Health testing every dog for the benefit of the future, and so we can learn from our past.