Mrs. Bootes is committed to raising healthy dogs that exemplify this working breed. Barbara has been raising Berners since 1987 and is a member of the the Bernese Mountain Dog Club of America (BMDCA) and the Potomac Valley Bernese Mountain Dog Club (PVBMDC). She also maintains close contact with her breeder veterinarians to stay abreast of the latest information on genetics and best breeding and health practices.

All von Lindenhof animals go through extensive training in draft work (carting), obedience, agility, and conformation showing. Our Berners are represented in many dog events and training activities throughout the Mid-Atlantic region and beyond. Currently all our adult dogs have earned their Canine Good Citizen titles (CGCs).

Retired senior mom, Brenna's Cindy von Lindenhof (Cindy), earned her AKC conformation Championship in 2004, her Bernese Mountain Dog of America (BMDCA) Novice Draft Dog (NDD, 2004) and Open Draft Dog (DD, 2006) titles, her obedience title (Companion Dog - CD, 2006), then her Rally Novice (RN), Rally Advanced (RA), and Rally Excellent (RE) titles, also in 2006. In 2007, Cindy took up agility work, and at the ripe age of almost 8, completed her Novice Agility Preferred (NAP—jump height 20”) and Novice Jumpers Preferred (NJP) titles. During 2008, she “raised the bar” on her performance, earning her Novice Agility (NA—jump height 24”) and Novice Agility Jumpers (NAJ) in the fall. Finally, in March 2009, she completed her Open Agility Preferred (OAP—jump height 20”) and Open Jumpers Preferred (OJP) at nine years old. The spring of '08 saw her also try her "paw" at herding sheep, and she easily passed her "Herding Capability Tested" (HCT) while attending the BMDCA Nationals in Rhode Island. In between, she raised 39 pups in four litters, thereby demonstrating her extensive skills in mothering as well as performance activities.

Boy, Swiss import Nico von Nesselacker (Nico), passed on at age nine, but during his lifetime produced 56 offspring from four girls, including Cindy and Lani. He too was very accomplished, completing his AKC conformation Championship in January '06, his CD in March '06, and his NDD in October '06. He started competing in the Rally ring in '07 and completed his RE title in September '07. In April '07, he passed his open draft test and became a DD along with Cindy. He too passed the Herding Capability Test (HCT) while at Nationals in April 2008. Nico often visited the local assisted living center in central Virginia to work as a Therapy Dog (TDI), where he was welcomed as a valuable staff member to ease the loneliness of some of the residents.

Cindy and Nico were awarded “Versatility Dog” status in 2006 because they had both earned a working title, their draft titles, and their conformation titles. This award is conferred by the Bernese Mountain Dog Club of America (BMDCA) and is a special achievement of which we are particularly proud. In 2008, Cindy was also awarded “Working Dog” status by the BMDCA for her additional accomplishments in agility. For the “Working Dog” award, the Berner has to complete a draft title plus two other working titles at an appropriate level. A “working” designation can come from titles in obedience, herding, tracking or agility.

Cindy's daughter from her first litter (the “F” litter), Fulani Neriza von Lindenhof (Lani), crossed the Rainbow Bridge in March 2008, but while alive, managed to add letters to her name as well in between her three litters. In January '06, Lani, like Nico, earned her AKC conformation Championship and followed up with an obedience title (Companion Dog - CD) 3 months later. Together with Nico, Lani debuted in the Rally Ring in '07 and shortly before her death, completed her RE title. Altogether, Lani produced 25 fine Lindenhof puppies.

Ingrid Ida v. Lindenhof (Ingrid, “I” litter), daughter of Cindy and Nico, has been following her parents' winning traditions. She successfully completed her CGC and TDI tests in '06, and earned her Rally Novice (RN) title in style with three successive qualifying scores. She finished her RA and RE titles before she was two years old, with her last RE qualifying score in November '06. Ingrid completed her HCT on sheep along with her parents at the BMDCA Nationals and her CD title in November 2008 after producing her first Lindenhof litter (the “M” puppies) in January. Altogether Ingrid brought in 26 beautiful, healthy puppies in three litters, the most recent being the “Q” litter in February 2010. We are looking to focus on her draft skills now that she, like Cindy, is a retired mother.

Our younger dogs include Lindenhof's Freya von Chargun (Freya), a Zoro (imported from Switzerland) daughter and Nico neice born in April 2007, and two girls from Lani's last litter (the “L” litter) born in September '07. Lara Lydia v. Lindenhof (Lara) and Leatha Lorelei v. Lindenhof (Leatha) represent Lindenhof's 4th generation of Berner pups. In July 2010, puppy Ilse v. Rueschbode (DOB May 2010) from the leading Swiss kennel that produced Nico’s father joined our group. She comes from a line of Swiss champions and her ancestry is linked to Nico’s through both the Nesselacker and Rueschbode lines.

Freya started out strong in the performance department by successfully passing her CGC test on her six-month anniversary in October 2007, then followed up with three consecutive passing RN scores in November to earn that title. She completed her RA the following summer and is now only one leg away from her RE. But it is in agility where she shows the most potential, which is something we will pursue once she is past producing puppies. She has had one litter of pups (“O”) for us. As in the past, I breed a qualified and producing BMD mother about once annually for a total of about three but not more than four litters before she retires.

Lara and Leatha have both completed their CGC and RN titles. In December 2009, Lara produced the fifth generation “P” litter, two of whom show potential for carrying on the Lindenhof lines (Petra Peri v. Lindenhof [Petra] and Paledin Pax v. Lindenhof [Max]).

The “Versatility” and “Working Dog” Awards earned by Cindy and Nico confirm that the lines not only look great, but can actually perform the tasks expected of a well-rounded, Swiss farm dog. I am also pleased that my younger pack members seem to be on the way to achievements in line with those that their more mature relatives have completed over the past decade. Detailed information on the health and activities of all Lindenhof Berners can be found on the Berner-Garde website at www.bernergarde.org.