Kim Greene has never seen her dogs as luxury items.
Before founding Svalinn, a personal-security dog breeding business where her pups sell for over $150,000, Green lived in Kenya in the early 2000s after serving as a policy adviser to the new Afghan government.
Living with her then-husband, a former Green Beret providing private security to diplomats and NGOs, Greene struggled to feel safe amid Nairobi’s carjacking problem and terrorism threats, especially after learning she was pregnant with twins. Not wanting to carry a gun, Greene opted for the next best thing: a pair of Dutch shepherds named Banshee and Briggs.
Boomer, a fully trained and matured dog, attacks Cullen MacAndrew in the bite suit. Boomer can stop attacking and be pet by MacAndrew at a word from his handler.
Kim Greene, the owner of Svalinn, gives love to a dog after they do a good job going through the course. Svalinn’s methodology doesn’t use treats, toys or domination in training, but instead relies on trust, bonding and mutual respect between the dog and staff member in the training process.
Cullen MacAndrew waits to give the cue for the dog to go through the Phoenix course. In addition to agility and obedience training, the dogs also get protection training and socialization, both around other dogs and people, to see how they interact outside of Svalinn.
Local meat sits in coolers for the dogs to eat with kibble as their meals. The dogs are all bred in-house to have “a specific mix of the most desirable characteristics from very old bloodlines” and are a mix of German Shepherd, Dutch Shepherd and Belgian Malinois.
Kim Greene and Josie Gillespie watch as Boomer, a fully trained and matured dog, attacks Cullen MacAndrew in the bite suit. Boomer can stop attacking and be pet by MacAndrew at a word from his handler.
Indi Dubay leads a dog through the Phoenix, which is an obstacle course they set up for the dogs. The staff will change it weekly to practice agility and obedience.
Kozlow attacks Cullen MacAndrew as he pretends to be a danger threatening Indi Dubay. Greene says they work with many families who are looking for the “peace of mind” a protection dog can bring.
Cullen MacAndrew guides puppy Riot while Indi Dubay trains with her litter mate Mayhem around the Phoenix. Every litter had a different theme they were given which is how they got their names.
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