Hello – and welcome to our site about the Belgian Shepherd, Rough Collie and Shetland Sheepdogs!

We are a family of three – Ada (myself), Even (my husband), and our daughter Elisabeth, who was born in 1997. She and her boyfriend own two Shetland Sheepdogs together with us. At home, we currently have two dogs – both Groenendaels.

We also have several dogs in co-ownership, and without these wonderful families who share dogs with us, we could not have bred the way we do today. Good cooperation is the key to so much :-) So thank you so much to all of you who own a dog with us – we are truly grateful!

We live in Bergen, Norway. It is not always the most central place when it comes to dogs, but we really enjoy living here. We have been breeders of Tervueren and Groenendael under the kennel name “Vikholmen” since 1989. We cooperate closely with kennel Cordelia (Collies). Together with Elin and Peter, we own two Collies. This cooperation allows us to import more good dogs from interesting lines, both for the Collies and the Belgians, than we could have done alone. The fact that they are also good friends of ours makes it even more enjoyable :-)

We have specialized in breeding the black variety of the Belgian Shepherd – the Groenendael.

Our first Groenendael, Black Hawkwind’s H-Vickie (Vickie), joined us in 1987. Then came the Tervueren Rainbows End’s Flying High (Chrissie) in 1989, and later the lovely Rough Collie Nuch Lancetta’s Fantastic Blue Heidi (Heidi) in 1999.

We have received Honour Prizes in breeding and progeny classes for both Collies and Groenendaels – and have won many Best in Show Breeder awards.

At our house, the dogs are considered true family members and are very spoiled. They sleep in our bed and relax on the sofa — and we love it :-) The puppies are raised in the same way, except that they are not allowed in the bed (at least not on purpose…). We believe that puppies should grow up inside the home, together with us, and because of this, we do not have any outdoor dog yards.

I have completed NKK Instructor Education Level I in both obedience and agility, and I have also attended the NKK Breeder School Part I and II, as well as numerous courses and seminars arranged by the Norwegian Kennel Club on breeding, genetics, and canine behavior. I firmly believe that there is always something new to learn, and I value the insights and experiences of others in the dog world. I also read extensively about dogs — particularly about behavior and genetics — and try to stay updated on what is happening internationally in the field.

Over the years, I have held many roles in the Norwegian Belgian Shepherd Club (Hordaland division) and the Norwegian Collie Club (Western Norway division). I have served as Chairman of the Breeding Committee and board member of the Norwegian Belgian Shepherd Club, as well as Deputy Chairman of the Hordaland division, where I was responsible for organizing our annual specialty show. Altogether, I have been active for 17 years in NBFK Hordaland and 7 years in NBFK. I am currently a member of the board of the Norwegian Kennel Club, Region Hordaland, where I have served for nearly three years.

I am a qualified Special Nurse (registered Operating Room Nurse) with further education in mental health, substance abuse, and health promotion and prevention. I have worked for many years at Haukeland University Hospital, the main hospital in Bergen, and also at Volvat Medical Center. From 2016 to 2020, I worked as Department Manager at Unicare 12Trinn. Since 2020, I have been working for Bergen Municipality as Head of the Health Department at Sandsli Nursing and Activity Center.

Our breeding is a very important part of our lives, and we spend most of our free time with the dogs. I always want to keep more puppies, but since we believe that each and every one of our dogs has the right to a rich and happy life, we only keep two dogs at home.

I have had dogs almost my entire life and truly cannot imagine living without them. Long walks in the forest bring me great peace of mind. I train different activities with our dogs. One of our Groenendaels earned the title of Wild Game Tracking Champion some years ago — something I am very proud of :-) We can often be found at dog shows around Norway, and I plan to try something new with our youngest dog soon — we’ll see how it goes!

In our breeding, we place great emphasis on producing stable dogs with sound temperaments that function well in family life. Health and breed-typical qualities are also very important to us, and our goal is to breed dogs that can be used for what they are intended for. We only breed from excellent, typical representatives of the breeds with good temperament, and through the years we have produced many high-quality examples of both breeds.

This is me and my first dog (Katinka) Mayonly Silver Sweet and Gentle in 1979, Silver Poodle Standard.