Red Dog Ridge's Reference Page

Ever since we began our love affair with the Dogue de Bordeaux breed in 1994, we have made many friends, and have helped folks come to own the most precious pet in their lives. These folks have been kind enough to put down in words, their feelings toward us as breeders, and of course, how their dogue has brightned their lives in a way they never could have imagined. We are proud to call them friends, and hope that in the years to come, even after their dogs have grown old and passed on, that our bond through that dog maintains our friendship.
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Pat and Willliam Whitaker,  King, North Carolina -We bought our Dogue, Sam, from Michelle, 9 years ago.  He is in perfect health, and still jumps in and out of the back of a pickup truck with no problem at all.  He has brought us joy every day of his life.  We are so grateful for Michelle's attention to breeding standards, and her intense desire to improve the breed.  She is a person of great personal integrity, and the beauty and soundness of her Dogues are a testament to that fact.  I am so very glad we found her. I consider her a wonderful friend and a tremendously knowledgable breeder of DDB's.
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Jennifer Mittendorf, Anchorage, Alaska - Back in 1999 when myself and my husband made the decision to get a DDB we did much research. We found Red Dog Ridge after doing a lot of reading on the internet. We were so excited to work with Michelle. We had to have the Dogue shipped to Seattle where I flew in from Anchorage to pick him up due to extreme temperatures and the Airline would not fly him to Anchorage, AK. Oscar was with us for almost 7 years of his life until he died in July of 06. He is missed dearly.  I cannot say enough about how wonderful this breed is. They are the most loyal and wonderful companion anyone could ever have as part of their family. We contacted Michelle again in September of 06 to make a go of adding to our family again, and we now have another DDB, “Buster”, in our family whom we love very much, and is a loyal companion and a wonderful addition, as he has filled our hearts with joy. I hope to add a female to the family someday. I want to thank Michelle for everything and her loyalness to the breed. I would deal with Red Dog Ridge over and over again.
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Amalenia Almeida, St. Thomas, Virgin Islands - When I began my search for a dogue de bordeaux a few years ago, I looked at just about every kennel in the United States, Canada and in Europe. I seemed to find a tremendous amount of inbred dogues and/or breeders that were less than cordial when you began asking important questions about the breed. Many breeders seemed unduly greedy and self absorbed and wanted a rediculous amount of money for pups out of un-championed and un-health tested parents, as well as a large majority lacked correct breed type, and therefore were clearly not in any way worth the kind of money some of these breeders were asking for them. I couldn't seem to find that perfect balance of a fair price, the correct 'look', health tested parents as well as championed parents, until I came across Red Dog Ridge's website. I was floored by the magnificent quality of the dogues this breeding establishment owns and has single handedly produced over their years in the breed. I could barely believe my eyes when I saw all the champion titles on the dogues from this kennel, and their price was much more reasonable than many breeders who did nothing with their dogues but throw them a little food everyday in their outdoor kennel runs. I liked the fact that Michelle and Dave at Red Dog Ridge have all their dogues and pups within their home and that not a single one is kenneled outdoors.  To me, for someone to give up large portions of their home in order to house their dogs and puppies to make sure that they are comfortable and well adjusted, made a huge difference to me. I placed a deposit on a litter that was expected, and then, when my female pup, Mekannah, was 10 weeks old, I flew from my home in the Virgin Islands to Michigan to pick up my puppy. I was even more amazed with the quality of Red Dog Ridge's dogues when I saw them in person. And the temperaments on their dogues were so gentle, inviting and very playful. I can say that my experience with Red Dog Ridge has been a good one. I would not hestitate for a moment about buying a second, third, fourth puppy and so on from this world class breeding establishment. Their eye for breed type and their unwavering good morals and good ethics makes them the best kennel in the breed worldwide, hands down. Just look at other breeders websites and really look over their dogues, then look at Red Dog Ridge's website and compare their dogues and you'll see what I mean - no contest, Red Dog Ridge's quality and commitment to the breed is clear!
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Gina Repucci, Pelham, NH - Michelle from Red Dog Ridge is by far one of the most knowledgable DDB breeders I have had the pleasure of contacting. Her DDBs are in excellent health (verified through health testing)--visit her website and you'll see for yourself. I purchased my beloved DDB "Pumpkin" from Michelle 3 years ago and could not be more pleased! She offers ongoing support, which I have found to be invaluable--thank you Michelle!!! Anyone interested in adding a DDB to their family should feel 100% comfortable working with Michelle at Red Dog Ridge.
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Warren & Kim Haase, Dawsonville, GA - We purchased our first Bordeaux, Red Dog Ridge Hooch, from Michelle in 2005, and could not be happier with this dog in EVERY way! He is absolutely BEAUTIFUL, very healthy, unaggressive towards other strange dogs, yet protective of his family, and most of all, Great with our son!!
Michelle has always been very helpful with any concerns we might have in the past 3 years, which usually stem from our inexperience in this breed!
I highly recommend Red Dog Ridge to anyone looking for a QUALITY Bordeaux with THE best experienced support in the breed.
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Samantha & Hubert Johns, Hesperia, MI - When I was looking to buy a DDB I was concerned mostly with health and temperament. I have 3 small kids (all under 12 years of age) and I wanted to make sure that the dog I got was going to be a trustworthy pet, and since we are a family of 5, the cost of owning a dog was a big concern too and why we wanted to get a dog from really healthy bloodlines and not one that was inbred. I also was not crazy about getting a dog shipped because I wanted  to go and meet the parents of the pup we may get and see how those dogs would interact with our kids. We thought that we probably had a pretty tall order with this being a breed that can be harder to obtain than most other breeds. But we got really lucky when we discovered Michelle Convis and her Red Dogue Ridge kennel. She answered all of our many questions no matter how silly we thought it was, she answered it with concise and accurate information and we feel she has been an invaluable resource to us from the day we bought our male, Romeo, to this day. Michelle is always available for questions and is certainly always there 100% for her puppy buyers long after the sale. Our male is so gentle with our kids. The kids can do just about anything to him and he never gets mad, he just wags his tail. He is smart and learns fast. When we brought him home as a puppy at 8 weeks old we started right out on a bathroom routine and got him completely house trained in like 3 weeks! He is also a good watch dog and many people will even cross the street and not walk on the sidewalk in front of our house because he looks so intimidating! If they only knew what a love bug he is, they wouldn't be so scared. But he has a deep serious sounding bark and sure lets us know if he feels uneasy about anything going on around outside our home. I am sure he would protect us with his life if he needed to. He is also in perfect health and has never had a health issue come up and he is 4 yrs old now (as of 2008). We are certain he will grow to be a ripe old dog and will give us many more years of companionship. I can't recommend Michelle Convis at Red Dogue Ridge highly enough. I have never dealt with any breeder in any breed before with such knowledge and with such a caring, open and honest personality. I think that alone speaks huge volumes, because who a person is carries over to their breeding practices and will reflect what quality of dog you will be getting.
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Mary Jansma, Cambria, WI - We own two Dogue's that we purchased from Michelle. One is 4 and the other just short of a year. I did alot of research on breeders at the time and am so thankful to have found Michelle's breeding program. Their temperament and looks are #1. I cannot imagine our lives without Chewy and Rupert. We have two little granddaughters as well as a large horse ranch. I cannot imagine not having the dogue's help around here. They watch over both with care and diligence, Thanks Michelle for some of the most wonderful companions!
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Reginald Thomason, Willoughby Hills, OH - All I can say is that sheer fate brought me to Red Dog Ridge.  I feel I dodged a bullet by making the choice to buy from Red Dog Ridge rather than two other breeders I was contemplating to possibly buy from. I found out later that the two kennels I was considering have been in trouble with the law and with the breed club, so I really hit on some good luck when my web search led me to Michelle's website and her fine dogs. My dog is everything I could have asked for. He is big, strong and smart and is the talk of the town where ever we may be. My boy has a big old head and scares the tar out of those up to no good who have snooped around my house. I think they have done themselves a favor by passing up my place rather than taking their chances on breaking in and having that big old face to contend with. Thanks Michelle for my best friend and my protector all in one.
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Scott & Susan Stalker,  Sanford, NC - First DDB pup, brought in for guard dog. She was so adorable, could never conceive her as a guard dog. Brought in a male 6 months later as a play buddy for our first DDB, and to be the guard dog. My wife and I have two DDB's from Red Dog Ridge. The puppy's are now grown. My referral is on the disposition of the breed. Michelle can give everything you need to know and more from the gene pool. Everything she has informed us on the breed and the ancestry with characteristic traits of the breed and our own DDB's, is accurate. The biggest recommendation we could give is Michelle cares and loves every pup that comes from Red Dog Ridge, and it shows when you get your new family member. Michelle is an expert on the breed, Red Dog Ridge is not a puppy mill, it's a professionaly run breeder for DDB's. To end this, our home has never had an incident, although other homes close by have. The first cute little puppy that I couldn't conceive as a guard dog, is the guard dog, and the male is her backup. Both are well disciplined around people and animals, back to Michelle's breeding. The grandchildren think the dogs are big play toys, which our two DDB's love. Red Dog Ridge has our highest RECOMMENDATION.
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Tami Andersen, Delton, MI - I think the proof of what an important figure Michelle Convis at Red Dog Ridge is in the breed is the fact that she was chosen out of all the breeders in the united states and canada by Dog World magazine and she was interviewed by them and that interview was published in their September 2008 issue. I understand too that the writer even cut out featuring three other breeds in order to do a thorough write up on Michelle's kennel and the breed. That alone should tell you the profound integrity of this breeder. Michelle is just the best. But now on to my dogue. I bought a female from Red Dog Ridge and she is a joy to us every single day. I have an 18 month old baby girl and that dog is her best friend. The dog is always watching out for my baby and always kissing her face. The baby can do anything to her and the dog has nothing but love in her heart for her. I know my dog is just pet quality and not one of the grand show dogs that Michelle produces, but I can attest that the wonderful temperament my girl has is the same temperament that all Michelle's dogs have and I know this because I went to Michelle's house and picked up my puppy in person. I live close enough that I have been able to go and watch Michelle and her dogs in action in the dog show ring. It's so cool how her dogs are so easy going with any dog or person that approaches them. Not all dogs in the breed are, but that was a super important factor for me when I chose a breeder to buy from. So if you want the total package in a dogue then the buck stops with Red Dog Ridge because they are #1 and they receive my highest recommendation and I would refer anyone to them who is looking for a  dogue de bordeaux.
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MaryLu Stefan, Bartlett, ILL. - I highly recommend Michelle Convis and the dogues she breeds at Red Dogue Ridge. I have known Michelle since 2002 and consider her both a friend and mentor. I have one Dogue de Bordeaux and two Boerboels from her -- and they are my three best reasons for my recommendation.
All of my dogs are healthy, have a great temperament and are solid examples of the breed standard. What I love most about Michelle is that she's a breeder of high
integrity who is willing to support you with her knowledge at every turn. She has taught me so much about my dogues and how to give them the best care possible. Michelle truly loves her dogues and is committed to producing the best family companions around. Overall, I have been very satisfied with my experience with Red Dogue Ridge and can wholeheartedly recommend that you purchase a puppy from Michelle. I consider her my dog breeder for life and will certainly be back to buy more puppies when the time comes.
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