The Shepherds of Honey Meadow Farm

It is impossible to share the story of our homestead without honoring the beautiful German Shepherds that have graced our lives.

Since before the house was completed in 1991, we have had GSDs living with us. Their incredible intelligence, beauty, unwavering loyalty, and bravery make them the right breed for our family. Sammy, Luke, Trooper, Hera, Brody, and Grace have been our constant companions through the years, rarely ever leaving our sides. The joy each has brought to our lives has made us better humans. Here are their stories…

Sammy loved blueberries!

So much, that Gayla would have to leave him home when she went to pick wild berries as he would eat them off the bush faster than she could pick them! She always knew that 20 – 30 minutes after she left, I would let him out to go find her. Sure enough, out the door he would go with his nose high in the air. He would take a huge sniff and 5 minutes later, be at her side. We brought him home in 1983, a month before Val was born which shows what a wonderful lady I married! Nothing like a getting a puppy and having our first baby at the same time 😉 He loved fetching baseballs hit with a bat, would bring back every rock I ever tossed out of the garden, had his nose in every hole we ever dug and roamed our land before the house was built, loving to scratch his back rolling under the oak tree that now towers over the back deck.

Lukie was the dog who picked me.

In 1998, I went to visit a breeder in Plymouth, MA. She brought out a number of 6-week old puppies. The one that followed me everywhere I walked or sat was Luke.

Two weeks later, he came home with us and took on the role of family protector and Gayla’s shadow. He was the dog that would chase bears out of the yard or send them up a tree. One time he came back spitting bear fur after successfully defending his kingdom! He hated the Airborn Express driver (showing he was also a great judge of character). He loved our walks in the woods and thought he was Chris’s brother and pillow.

Trooper, the King of Shepherds

Then we found the Traumhof family of GSDs and never looked further. Trooper was our first long coat German Shepherd, a genetic variation in Shepherds who have a gene for longer fur than a standard coat Shepherd. Trooper’s whole reason for being was to simply please us, which he did constantly for almost 10 years. He was gorgeous, uber-smart (200+ word vocabulary), had a play drive that would tire a kindergarten class, loved leaping 3′ in the air and “styling” while catching a ball, was very protective and, at times, had eyes filled with a quiet serenity you would swear looked into your soul. Every night he would go upstairs with Gayla while she settled into bed, then come bounding down the stairs and run over to me with a tug or ball for our final time to play. The German Shepherd is called the “king of dogs”. If that is true, then Trooper was the King of Shepherds.  Plus, he loved to cuddle…

Hera was our snow girl

Hera, was Troopie’s half-sister, sharing the same father, Shery. She was our wack-a-doodle. So pretty, yet absolutely walked to the beat of a different drummer. She was built for New Hampshire, a definite cold weather girl who lived for winter and would lay out during a snowfall – refusing to come in – until all you could see is her eyes and ears. Come spring, look for the last patch of snow in the yard and you’d find her laying on it! During summer, she loved to “play hose” and be soaked with water. Naturally, she immediately wanted to come in while dripping wet. Unlike the rest of our pups, she had a coat that held water for hours. On a hot summer day, she would play hose at 10 in the morning and still be damp at dinner…A very sweet girl who adored her big brother, Trooper. She passed at 10 years old, she loved licking out coffee cups while still in use, ice cream, cashews, and I swear would smoke cigarettes and drink bourbon if she could have!

Brody, the puppy who never stops

And now to the “little” guy who made me quit writing this section and chase him around the house because he was bored. Gotta’ love a puppy! Our new male, Brody, is our 3rd Traumhof long coat shepherd and has quickly taken over our hearts. He never leaves my side unless Gayla is feeding him. If I move, he moves…loves our hikes in the woods, already follows scent trails, was a pain in the tail to his Aunt Hera (literally), and is working very hard to keep me fit! He absolutely does not like other dogs except his “cousins”, Brae and Junie, and lets everyone know it. Oddly, he looks more and more like Trooper every day. Otherwise, he loves everyone he meets, wants to be in the middle of everything you are doing, obeys hand signals and remembers his nose work. This boy is going to need a job, so the training continues! We are really looking forward to him sleeping past 5 AM!

Note: Brody turned 5 on April 16, 2023 and is exactly the dog we wished him to become, except we still wish he would sleep past 5 AM! He is my constant companion and lives to be outdoors with me! He’s incredibly smart, extremely well behaved and brings us a huge amount of joy every day. He is my best buddy!

Grace, is definitely Momma’s girl!

When Hera passed in summer of 2019, it immediately became evident that Brody needed a playmate. Enter Gracie! Another of the Traumhof pups, she joined us at 6 months of age and is the smallest of the Shepherds we have had. From the 1st moment when we went to see her at Karen’s home, it was obvious she was going to be Momma’s girl! To say her adjustment to being home with us was a challenge is an understatement, to the point I was ready to take her back the next day. She  fought with Brody (who had no clue why) and whenever she even looked at me she would start barking. When the kids brought their dogs over, it was the same. Gayla assured us this would all change and almost a year later, she slowly has. Now Brody’s  her favorite playmate and she loves our walks in the woods. She is an incredibly sweet pup who still needs a bit more TLC and training but is a fun loving, energetic girl who sure loves her Momma – and now – even me! Gayla’s natural ability to nurture has worked another miracle!

These are the dogs that have blessed our lives and are as much a part of our family as any one of us. We have been very fortunate to have such wonderful animals come into our lives, share our days and bring us such happiness. I simply cannot walk our woods with Brody and Gracie without feeling Sammy, Luke, Trooper, and Hera are also still by my side.

We hope you have similar stories about your pets and enjoy their company as much as we do ours. If you happen to be interested in German Shepherd dogs, email us and we will discuss helping you connect with our breeder.