Breeding & Training Dogs for Lives of Significance & Service® since 1977

OUR DOGS DO STUFF®

Welcome to Cher Car Kennels!

Celebrating 47 years of Serving the Dog Community

Take a tour of the Kennel

Cher Car Kennels has been breeding and training dogs for lives of significance and service® for 43 years beginning in 1977. Although many of our dogs have been involved in formal service such as Search & Rescue, Police K-9 Service, Competitive Dogsports, Conformation, Assistance and Therapy Service, Theatrical Productions, Television and Film; the vast majority of our dogs have served as loving and loyal family pets.
Our breeding program emphasizes physical soundness, intelligence and temperament, and we carefully match each individual puppy to its new family based on your stated activity needs and desires. We only utilize x-ray cleared (hips and elbows) dogs in our German Shepherd, Belgian Malinois and Dutch Shepherd lines, with OFA certification obtained at the appropriate age. Our foundation Jack Russell Terriers have both CERF and OFA certifications.
Our combined training programs have graduated over 20,000 dogs from our facility to date. We specialize in preventing dog behavior problems by educating dog owners through personalized private home visits, group classes or in-kennel "boarding school" training, using a balance of reward and leadership in our method of dog obedience instruction. We provide the knowledge, understanding and expertise necessary to teach your dog "good behavior" rather than simply punishing what you might perceive as "bad behavior". The overall well-being of the dog is then achieved through a special balance of loving attention, exercise and a sense of purpose derived through training.
So come visit us among the beauty and splendor of Saint Johns, Michigan. We are located on 20 country acres surrounded by farm fields and horse pastures; with indoor and outdoor training arenas, two kennel buildings and our office complex with whelping kennels. We also maintain a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat (#184417) on several acres of our property which attracts and offers sanctuary to native wildlife species.

Kennel Office

Boarding Kennel

Whelping Kennel

Training Facilities

Our customers love us

  • "I can't say enough good things about Cher Car Kennels! The facilities are great. The staff are knowledgeable and friendly. Obedience classes & Boarding are top notch! This is the only place I'll take my dog!"
    Stephanie Hirsch
  • "I purchased two German shepherds from Cheryl....in my opinion, she is #1 with knowledge on the breed, and matching a pup to a person/family. She can read her dogs/pups personality like no one I have ever met. I would never buy a German Shepherd from anyone else."
    Penny Ducat
  • "Let’s talk a bit about positive only training, shall we? I know this is touchy but hear me out. I have two Dutch Shepherds and I’ve fostered numerous dogs. I love my dogs dearly and positive training sounds great. However I learned the HARD way that positive-only training can be a disaster with certain dogs. I have a dog that was becoming reactive to people. Positive only trainers made things worse …and WORSE. Sure, he could hold it together for a treat but he was still WAITING to react. The tension & drive were still there and treats were just enforcing that. Positive Only trainers couldn’t figure it out. I called Chercar. (Cheryl Carson is a legend in the working dog breeding and training industry.) She listened carefully to my issue and got right to the source. She gave me practical advice that actually worked. She showed me how. And here’s the best part - my dog understood the assignment. Immediately. She went from a dog that lunged at a man, to licking his hand with a RELAXED wagging tail …in minutes. I brought the lessons home and my dog is improving rapidly. Thank you, Cheryl, Lori and scary decoy dude (Kurt?) "
    Anika Hubbard
  • "Excellent place to do GSD training. It's my first time doing protection training and I'm very impressed with the trainers and their staff. I drive 1-1/2 hours each way for class and it's totally worth it. I highly recommend Cher Car Kennels. "
    MM
  • "The obedience class was worth every penny and then some. I picked Cher Car because of their experience with Shepherds! I couldn't be happier with the results in my GSD after training and the information I learned while in class. I would highly recommend Cher Car to anyone who wants to learn how to train their dog. I will likely attend more classes with Meeko. Thank you ladies!!!!"
    Melissa Dinkens
  • "My wife and I were lucky enough to pick up our little Duchess today from Cher Car Kennels. Duchess is a gorgeous GSD and we feel fortunate to have been able to get her from Cheryl and company!! Cheryl, Lori and Carole were absolutely incredible and took as much time with us as we needed to feel ready to take our little girl home to meet the pack. What a great day with these ladies. Their expertise in every aspect of this process is quite unique and excellent. We can't thank you enough and look forward to seeing you for training this fall. Just a top notch organization of dog lovers!"
    John Sebring
HIGH QUALITY
Click above to view our Better Business Bureau review
EXPERIENCE
Click above to read the Cher Car Kennels HISTORY page
BREEDING LEGACY
Click above to read about our breeding program
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Our Dogs Do Stuff®

Breeding and Training dogs for Lives of Significance and Service® since 1977
Copyright © 1998-2024 Cher Car Kennels LLC, 4215-4305 S. Lowell Road, St. Johns Michigan 48879 (989-224-7225) All rights reserved. The copyright in this website and the material on this website (including without limitation the text, artwork, photographs, images, music, audio material, video material and audio-visual material on this website) is owned by Cher Car Kennels LLC and/or its contributors. (Click here for detailed copyright notice.)