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March 2024 by Susan Engelsman
Just brought home my puppy last week from Mittelwest. We drove from Minnesota, so had bought him without actually seeing him in person. (We did receive a lot of pictures : ) We were NOT disappointed! He is the most beautiful boy, as were the other shepherds we saw that day. The adult dogs were STUNNING! Can't wait to see what our Rafe will look like as an adult, but just are enjoying every single day of his puppyhood! After being disappointed by another kennel in the past, we decided to go to the #1 German shepherd breeder in the U.S. It was a wonderful experience!! We knew when we got Rafe that he had been well cared for and loved! Thank you to all at Mittelwest who had a part in his care and doing such a wonderful job - they really know German shepherds and it SHOWS!
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March 2024 by Alexander Blom
Please do not waste your time and money! I visited Mittelwest German Shepards and had horrible experience. I have been searching for a puppy with obedience training and a good foundation to train to be a service dog for me. Julie and Grant lied to me multiple times about the health, age and and weight of the puppy I was I interested in. They told me he was 9 months old and fully healthy. Before I made a decision I wanted to take him to the vet to get checked out. After we took him to the vet I found out he has a bunch of health issues and is older than I was told. The vet said his paperwork was questionable with 2 different rabies certificates with different ages. The breeder said this was because the vet they went to made a typo. After the vet looked over the dog he said he was not 9 months he said he was probably a year and a half old. The breeder also said he was 62 pounds and he was 48 at the vet. The health issues that were found included bilateral lung noise, rapid and shallow breathing, resistant to bilateral hip extension the vet said that is early signs of hip displasia and he suspected that he has hip displasia. Also he tested positive for giardia which is a very contagious disease that humans can also get from a dog and the vet said that all of the dogs there most like have it at Mittelwest probably have it because of how contagious it is and they are not treating it. Also the dog smelled bad and that makes me question the care and living environment. Also they would not show me we’re he was living. Please do not waste your time and money and look elsewhere.
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March 2024 by Eric Franco
When we first pulled into Mittlewest , the security gate reminded us of a Kentucky Thoroughbred Horse Farm! Needless to say, it is more of a compound than a mere place to get a dog! When we parked by the “barn” (anything but), we were greeted by the most perfect specimen of what German Shepherd Dogs should look like – athletic, deep red, black, tan, strongly-angled backs, but with strong hind legs – no signs of hip dysplasia or indicators of irresponsible inbreeding.We brought Mona, an 8-week old female puppy, home on December 30th ; Mona will be 12 weeks old on Friday and here is what I want to highlight:• Mona is extremely intelligent. I have owned 6 German Shepherd Dogs in my lifetime and I can honestly say she is off the charts by comparison.• Mona’s temperament is very interesting:o Refreshingly feisty, yet obediento Quick to learn commandso Bite inhibition is not a problem with us or her “sister,” Maggie (7 year old GSD). That said, Mona and Maggie are perfectly compatible…I can tell they are developing a strong bond.o Excels at learning through routine and consistent training.o Loves human interactions – cuddles, playing, and just being in the room while we’re working.• So far, Mona is the Valedictorian of her puppy Kindergarten class…I work in the field of Emergency Management and I see in Mona the traits that indicate she will be able to be trained to be a Search and Rescue dog, so I made arrangements to begin that training. We will see how THAT goes, but given her bloodline, I am confident she will be a strong candidate for being a good working dog to serve the community.ALL that said, what I described above is a testament of the dedication Mittlewest exhibits in the care and breeding of their GSD lines. I was impressed by the medical mitigations they put in place BEFORE breeding, which helps ensure healthy puppies with minimal predispositions of issues common to less-informed breeders. Mona’s first visit with our veterinarian was a great experience – she indicated that Mona’s health was top-notch.So, reviewing Mittlewest, I must say we could have certainly spent less $$ for a GSD from a different breeder. However, given the fact that I have had 6 other GSDs previous to Mona, I must say that she was worth every dollar…I can tell the difference in temperament, disposition, intelligence, and confidence! In fact, if the monetary price we paid for Mona is commensurate with how well she continues to develop over her lifespan, I would say we made out on the better end of the deal because she is likely the most genetically perfect GSD I’ve ever had the pleasure to care for and love. I highly recommend Mittlewest and if we lose Maggie, I would not hesitate to look at Mittlewest to get Mona a new brother or sister.
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March 2024 by Ward Team
We recently visited Mittelwest German Shepherds and selected our new German Shepherd puppy. The quality of their dogs was outstanding and made it difficult for us to choose. The staff were Amazing! Julie Martinez was very knowledgeable and willing to help, providing us with information. We would highly recommend Julie and her Team!!
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March 2024 by Barb Halvorsen
This breeder is amazing. Highly recommended! My son has PTSD and from the very first day of getting his puppy, he fell in love. Julie knew he needed a puppy with mild temperament and suggested one from a particular litter. The puppy is so smart, sweet, and attentive to my son. This is exactly what he needed. Thank you, thank you!
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March 2024 by Sue george
I just purchased another shepherd from Mittelwest. I decided to get a puppy that was 6 months old rather than 8 weeks and I can only tell you how fantastic he is. He's beautiful, smart and was trained to respond to basic commands. He loves people and is wonderful with my great granddaughter that is 2yrs old. I have been getting shepherds from mittelwest for years and they never disappoint. Gunner is wonderful and immediately filled the void from the death of my last shepherd. Thanks Julie
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March 2024 by Michelle
This place was referred to me I saw a family this morning with a 1 1/2 female she’s beautiful I wanted to find a good breeder after reading all the comments ? I would rather take my business else where
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March 2024 by Jennifer Hissa
We just brought home our second Mittelwest puppy! Mittelwest breeds the most wonderful GSDs. Our adult female is 6yo. She took to the puppy quite nicely. I have had German Shepherds throughout my life but our Mittelwest dogs have by far been the best! We are lucky to live nearby but I wouldn’t hesitate if you are considering getting a Mittelwest puppy from afar. They obviously care about their dogs. We also board with them when needed. I rest assured that our dogs are well taken care of when we have to go out of town. Also considering training our new male puppy with them.
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March 2024 by Tim Harrison
Please please! Do not buy a dog from this place, you will regret it!!! These dogs all have problems in one way or another. And that contract is just a way of convincing you to spend $5000. Do yourself a favor and don’t waste your time or money here
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January 2024 by Katie Hoch
We purchased our second shepherd from Mittelwest a few weeks ago and we couldn’t be happier with our babies! They are such sweet dogs and extremely gentle with our little kids. I have gotten so many compliments on both looks and temperaments. We will definitely be going back for all our future German Shepherds (but hope these two are with us for a very long time!) thanks for caring about the breed and their reputation!
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December 2023 by Angello Ralph
Have been wanting to get a puppy for years but the moment I exchanged emails with Julie and met her team at Mittelwest, there was no going back. Professional, courteous, advisors through out the process and beyond!
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December 2023 by Katherine Fan
I had a wonderful experience purchasing our puppy from Mittelwest. Julie and Grant were both incredibly helpful from the start. They provided a lot of information about their breeding standards, care requirements for the puppies, as well as transportation options. They were super helpful in supporting us with selecting a puppy. I was fortunate in being able to fly out and see their kennel and grounds, which were absolutely beautiful. They provided a couple weeks supply of food as well as a leash and collar upon pickup. We have had our puppy for 2 months now and he has been a wonderful addition to our family. His temperament is amazing and he has been a fast learner, very eager to please - a true testament to Mittelwest’s breeding standards and the reason why I sought them out in the first place. Julie has been great with answering follow up questions since bringing our puppy home. We feel so lucky to have our puppy and will definitely continue to purchase our shepherds from Mittelwest in the future.
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December 2023 by The Studio Beverly
We picked up our 4 mo old puppy last month and he has been the perfect addition to our family. He's sweet, calm, and so smart. The facility was very impressive and everyone was very helpful to find the perfect dog for our situation.
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December 2023 by Francisco
If you are looking for a German Shepherd look no further! My wife and I picked up Aegon (Pico) several weeks ago and honestly I am blown away. From the start Julie is prompt and informative when answering emails and we were able to schedule a date to visit and see some of the dogs available! We already had two other dogs so we needed to make sure the one we picked out would fit into the family without any issues and well let me just say Pico did just that! We got a beautiful 8 month old boy. When we went to visit it was originally just to see the dogs but I could not help it as soon as I met my boy I knew he had to come home with us! My other dogs are two Newfoundlands weighing about 180 lbs each and Pico was not at all afraid or timid when meeting them. I was hesitant to get a GSD because of the horror stories about them being skittish, anxious, and other things but Pico is nothing but confident, sweet, and playful. We could not be happier and we will ABSOLUTELY be getting another beautiful dog from them in the future. I do not write many reviews and I wish I could explain how amazed with are with Pico, he truly has blown us away!
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July 2023 by Shayan R.
We picked up a 3 months old puppy by the name Mango from Mittelwest in June of 2020. He had been returned by their previous owners and we were lucky to get him 2 days later, so we didn't have to get on a waiting list. He was super cute and turned into a beautiful looking dog, we got compliments for him on a daily basis. Mittelwest advertised him as bred in Germany, imported from Germany but his passport was from Croatia and his pedigree was from Bulgaria. The pedigree also had his date of birth and gender wrong and that couldnt be fixed due to COVID Julie said. The guy in Germany handling the dog imports insisted that the date of birth in the pedigree was correct which would mean that he wasn't from the litter Mittelwest said he was. The bigger problem was Mango's GI issues. He had diarrhea from the day we got him and lots of puking. It took us a while to figure out that he had to be on a raw diet to stop the diarrhea, the puking still happened once in a while. Feeding Mango was torture most of the time, he didn't have much appetite and needed enticing and no distraction to make him eat his expensive food. He had a sweet personality but he was fearful of almost anything. He liked to play but he hated walking, so I drove him to places where he could play off leash. At the age of 3 Mango had bloat which according to vets is unusual for his age but we caught that right away and he got emergency surgery which was successful. Most dogs recover if they survive that surgery but Mango went in and out of the hospital for the next 3 weeks with complication after complication unrelated to the surgery. There is nothing that we wouldn't have done for Mango, the vet bills added up to 45K but we had to end his suffering and let him go last week. Before the bloat we were treating him for bilateral tendonitis in his shoulders which required rest and 12 weeks of limited play, we knew that he had mild hip dysplasia already and during his recent hospitalization a CT found that his prostate was enlarged out of proportion for his age and would probably need to be dealt with. It is not normal for a young dog to have any of these health issues according to the specialists. This is certainly not what we expected when we paid a Mittelwest $5000 for him. Our dog from another breeder in Indiana has been completely healthy, the breeder checks in on us frequently to see how he is adjusting. It's night and day compared to Mittelwest. The worst part about this is learning to love a dog and then having to put him down at such a young age. We miss him so much but it is also a relief that our sick dog is gone.
