Testimonials
Here’s some feedback I’ve received from visitors to the website and from happy customers of Sportwaffen K9. I have removed names from it and edited only for length or typo’s. If you have something you’d like to add, send it to me. I’m very proud of these comments because I am passionate about what I do at my kennel and really care about taking care of my customers and treating people the way I’d want to be treated.
“It’s me, —, from —- Seminar last weekend. Thank you for being such a great guest in my home. Your knowledge and understanding of the dog far exceeds your human years. You not only see the dog, you see it’s shadows. After you left it was fun to watch all the “little Nate’s” as I call them, running around looking for dogs to work. Great job. Thank you again and hope our paths cross in the future.”
“You are a great guy to do business with, Nate. I’ve been in the dog business 35 years as well as the scuba business with my husband and people like you are hard to find. Everything is very much appreciated….You have made this a pleasant experience, I hope I can return the help someday.”
“From what I’ve seen through video all of your dogs appear to be very strong with tons of fight drive. Kudos to you and your fantastic animals. I love what you are doing with your breeding program, and it appears that everyone else feels the same. Thanks, again for this magnificent little girl.”
“She’s beautiful! Good bone, great expression, gorgeous coat (reddish), VERY happy at the airport. Brought her home and she was all over the place, very inquisitive…on counters, under tables, ran around outside and played in the snow. I had my sleeves under a tarp in my kennel and she dove on it and started scratching frantically. My husband put one on and she hit him with a good full bite, nice dog, I’ll have fun with her….She’s everything I wanted and more…what a nice gait! Thank you Nate, you did an amazing job….She’s a real strong female. Thanks…”
“Hey Nate, I received the papers today in the mail. Thanks. Yes, you are absolutely right, she is all that you described she would be; a mitten full of energy and more. She has no fear…I introduced her to the rest of my pack. She has fit in soooooo well. She has shown respect when needed but overall, has NO FEAR of anything or anyone! She fit in well and I am expecting big things from her from what I see already. Compared to my other three working GSD’s she hands down has the most drive of them all…. Thanks for the best GSD I have owned to date.”
“I have been following your site for a while now and like what I see; you believe in your dogs and you have a true sense of ownership. You have pride in your dogs and know them personally through working and handling them. That means alot to me as a customer because anyone can buy a titled dog and breed. Thanks again for considering me as a future owner of a Sportwaffen dog.”
“Hello. ——- is doing great. He adjusted to the our home pretty quick. He now follows the girls around endlessly and really looks after them, just like you said he would. I’ll get you some pictures once things slow down a little, thanks for helping us get such a great dog. Our family thinks the world of him. Our neighbors think he’s pretty neat too. People will ask where we got him and we always give them your name. Thanks again.”
“Nate,
My name is —– ——. I just wanted to compliment your article “Table Training: Theory and Practical Application.” It was very well written. With your permission I would like to email your article to some of my friends in the Police K9 arena.
This topic came up a couple of months ago when some of them were at an in-service training and the instructor began talking about the horrors of this thing called “Table Training”. After they returned and told me what they had learned I tried to explain to them that done correctly table training could be very positive. I have never used table training and my knowledge is limited to what I have read or what has been explained to me by those who have trained on tables. Your article explains things so clearly that a dumb cop like me can understand. I think the others could greatly benefit from it as well. However they do not belong to Schutzhund USA and don’t receive the magazine. Would you be willing to forward me a copy of your article via email?
On another note I have a Stuka puppy. His name is Diego Vom Reichtal…..I saw Stuka compete at the Regionals in Indy….he had more heart than any other dog that I saw. When my friend Richard Greba told me that he was breeding his female Aja to Stuka I knew that if I had to beg, borrow, or steal I wanted one of those puppies. Diego is an awesome dog! He is my first dog that I am training for sport. I am having a blast with him and he is a great teacher. I look forward to competing with him.
….Thanks again for the great article.”
“…She is kicking up quite a storm too!! I cannot thank you enough in picking her for me, she is a carbon copy of my own personality. She is a retrieving maniac, hits like a steam train on the long-bite and knows what I need before I even realize it! Her color is a beautiful dark sable, absolutely wonderful ground covering movement (true- both coming and going) great nerves (nothing spooks her out) ears are nicely shaped and set perfectly (no tipping or bending even when she is running). Very, very high desire to please and ability to take a good strong correction without showing signs of stress, in fact, a good correction makes her stronger and more confident. She gets along wonderfully with both Chipsey and Palmach, her and Chipsey work on my left and Palmach works on my right, quite a sight to see!! I have started tracking work and scent discrimination with her, she can identify and track Mountain Lion, Coyote and Raccoon. Two weeks ago, both she and Palmach tracked and treed a mountain lion, department of Fish and Game came out and darted and re-located the big cat. I was so very proud of her, she would have taken on that cat if she felt that she was supposed to protect me from it, absolutely confident and full of courage!!
Nate, you have done wonderful things for the German Shepherd breed and for the lucky people involved with both you and your dogs. Not only are your dogs structurally sound and healthy, their nerve base is strong and reliable, they are safe and social around people and other animals and they have tons of courage….”
“Hello. I check your website almost everyday. You have a superb site and your dogs are amazing!! There is SO much information there. I have watched every video you have. People working with me keep asking where the dog barking is coming from!! LOL!!”
“Nate, the puppy is doing very well. We’ve moved from the rag to a bite pillow because of the biting and the other day we were using a clatter stick to see how he handled it. He did very well. Actually, when we used it over his head he bit down even harder and acted mad! LOL!! It was funny. Everyone enjoyed it. I am very happy with him and have no doubt that you sold me a great puppy! Thank you Nate.”
“We cannot thank Nate enough for honoring us with this special girl!! She is extraordinary, not only because of her temperment and conformation, but, she is also training to become an assistance dog for one of the most special people in my life.”
“Loved the site and check it often. Really like what you’re doing there.”
“I wanted to tell you this puppy is great! Tons of ball drive and you would think she drinks red bull when I’m not watching.”
“Her drive is crazy – she is way more driven than our other dog was with the ball. She is very ball driven……she is relentless about wanting it thrown for her.”
“I bought my first puppy in the summer of 2008. I had been referred to Sportwaffen K9. While searching through the website I saw the most amazing looking shepherd (Stuka) and saw that he was going be stud. I called Sportwaffen K9 and talked to Nate Harves. Nate told me about Stuka, and after my conversation I knew this was where I wanted to get my puppy and sent out my deposit the next morning. Over the next couple of months I called Nate several times “probably too many LOL!!!” to check on the litter and see how their progress was coming along. Nate would spend up to an hour at times just talking and telling me about their progress. I drove 6 hours from Detroit to get the new addition to the family; I was very pleased with the set up Nate had. The kennels were clean, the dogs were very happy and active. Nate even brought out the legendary Stuka and did work with him for the family to see, he even let my cousin and I give Stuka a grip on a sleeve. WOW!! What a powerful dog Stuka is. My puppy is now about 6 months old, and she is just an amazing dog. Her obedience is going very well, and I just started to work with her on some bite work, “she’s got her fathers power.” Nate I would just like to thank you, Zenzi is such a beautiful dog we couldn’t imagine her not being part of the family, and thank you for taking so much out of your days to answer my million and one questions.”
“Nate, I’m so glad that I first called you when I needed a good dog. So many horror stories out there about dog deals. What a terrific experience this was.”
“My experience with Nate Harves and Sportwaffen K9 has been everything I hoped for and more. As soon as I visited Nate’s elaborate kennel and got an opportunity to meet him and interact with the litter’s parents it became obvious that he would be able to provide me with the German Shepherd I was looking for. Over the course of the first seven weeks after the litter was born, Nate monitored and charted the progress of each puppy in a number of areas in order to best pair the right owner with the right puppy. Nate’s system worked remarkably well and I appreciate tremendously the effort and care he put into the puppy I purchased from him. She has turned out to be an extremely happy, affectionate, intelligent, and healthy K9. I’m grateful that I found a breeder as professional, thorough, and trustworthy as Nate Harves.”
“She sleeps on my bed like my friend.” (A message a small boy’s mother sent to me about his new puppy.)
“Thanks Nate, she is everything you said. She is adjusting very well and I can see her being the alpha female here in a couple months. So far so good, I’ll send picture of her soon. Thanks again, she is perfect.”
“Dear Nate, I just wanted to say thanks for the new girl. You can tell that she was properly socialized as a puppy. Everyone that has met or saw her was impressed with her over abundance to greet; there is no shyness in this girl. While training at the Schutzhund club, a world team competitor was impressed with her speed, genetic grip and drive. I look forward to earning some titles with this little maniac. Thanks Nate!”
“Got him in this morning. He is absolutely stunning. Came right out wanting to do something. Family loves him. Thank you so much will stay in touch.”
“When you said this dog had ball drive you weren’t lying! When I took him to the school the instructor asked where I got him from, said he’s a maniac for the ball. Thanks again for all the help and the perfect dog!”
“My husband takes him out every morning and runs with him. They have so much fun together and I swear he’s made him feel like a little kid again. When I watch them in the yard it’s just like two little boys being friends. Thanks Nate.”
“Well, I think we found out if he’d protect us or not. Last night we pulled off in a rest stop on the way coming back from family’s. Some man walked up towards our car in the parking lot and I just had a feeling something was off. When he was getting up close the dog growled real low and I figured safer than sorry if he didn’t like him either and did like you said to turn the dog on. He jumped into the front seats over us and was REALLY mad. Whatever the man wanted, he didn’t want it from us anymore and left quick. We told him what a good boy he was and got out of there.”
“I check on your site often and really enjoy it. There is a lot of good information there and I love your dogs. You can tell you really care about what you’re doing.”
“I completely agree with what you say about the breeding of these magnificent animals. If we don’t do something the breed will get worse and worse (than it already is.) Keep up what you’re doing to make sure it is done right and that good dogs are produced.”
“Your website is fabulous. I have learned so much from it!!!! Wish I lived closer to train sometime and hope to meet you someday.”
“We love her so much Nate. Perfect manners in the house and so affectionate. Everyone asks us where we got her from, she is so beautiful. Thank you again, we can’t imagine having gone to anyone else for such an important thing as our newest family member.”
“I took him to a seminar this last weekend and almost didn’t get to bring him home LOL!!!! You would have thought he laid gold eggs from how everyone acted after seeing him work. It was awesome, just what I asked for.”
“I would like to give you a call regarding your wonderful article. I really like it! I’ve got your number here, so I’ll try you later. Thanks so much for writing this!”
“He loves to play ball and tug now ALL the time. He’s very pushy and persistent when he wants something…..His drive is really building. When I have the dogs sit or down before I throw the ball or rings he barks and bites the air and you can hear his jaws close, its very funny how intense he is about this game. He is a fast runner, he outruns our other dog by a couple of feet….He is quite the watch dog, he sounds very ferocious, he has a deep bark. He has quite a nose on him also, alot of the time he finds the ball in the snow or in the dark before our other dog and when we let him outdoors to go potty if someone has recently left our house he tracks there exact steps to where they got into the vehicle, its very cool. He is getting big! He’s about 25 inches tall and 76 lbs or more right now. And he’s very smart! So I guess I said all this because we’re very proud of him and very happy with him! And to say keep up the great work! You breed some very fine dogs.”
