Our names are Paul & Gina Grote. Together we care for our dogs on our 90 acres in beautiful Northern Michigan, acres and acres of fields & woods and beautiful nature. Our dogs are our passion!

I have been involved with dogs since I was a young girl. I’m a second generation Sporting dog enthusiast. My father raised and hunted over pointing dogs, my entire life has been dogs. Many an afternoon were spent “running the dogs” or hunting in farmers fields outside the city. Paul has loved and had dogs all of his life, when he married me, he married into the dog lifestyle. He is a natural dog handler and they love and respond to him.

Our days revolve around our dogs.

As for me, I began a career as a Professional Pet Groomer by serving as an apprentice at a local Pet Salon in 1972 at the age of 15 years old. I completed  my program a year later and soon after went to work at a boarding kennel in St. Clair Shores, Michigan in January of 1974. Eventually, at the age of 28, I purchased that same kennel that was my first place of employment. For 45 years + I have been involved with all aspects of dogs. Being a groomer exposed me to and led me to synergistic activities in the dog world, Training, Grooming, Showing, Boarding and Breeding.

I love seeing and working with well bred dogs, that passion led breeding and raising a well bred puppy always from the best pedigrees possible. my mentor was Cherie Berger of Meadowpond Golden’s, her depth of knowledge and willingness to share it knows no boundaries. 34 years later we still maintain a great friendship! I also love helping people get the perfect pet for their families.

I have bred, raised and shown to Championship requirements, in Conformation, Obedience, Filed & Agility with the AKC and CKC,  countless Champions under the prefix of Clinton Oaks. We also have great owners who do the same! We have the honor of having bred numerous loving Family Companions,  Search & Rescue dogs and countless Assistance & Certified Therapy Dogs. One of whom, holds a record for her hundreds of daily visits to Detroit’s Children’s Hospital.

These days, now in my 60’s, I have retired from active showing and the boarding kennel business. I continue to do limited grooming, but still active in breeding and raising puppies. I am fortunate to have clients and partners that show our dogs and I get to enjoy the various dog related accomplishments through their participation in events.

As I said earlier, I am still active in the breeding, which I find is one of the most rewarding part of my career. It is a special feeling to be able to breed the finest dogs possible and match them to a families and see the excitement and exchange of love when we hand over a puppy. Its my favorite moment.

In a litter only a small fraction of the pups go on to become a show Champion. They have to not only be beautiful & healthy, but they have to have “it”, that quality that distinguishes a Show Dog from a Companion dog. It’s the same percentage as people who go on to become movie stars...we may all have a great loving personality, but how many can be on the world stage?

Breeding dogs is a costly endeavor and sometimes frustrating. Clinton Oaks, armed with patience, love and the technology currently available makes sure all breeding pairs are healthy. This has enabled us to produce some of the finest companion dogs anywhere. Each dog in our breeding program is screened for abnormalities relevant to their breed. All of our dogs are Vet certified prior to entering into a breeding program.

If a dog is not suitable, they go on to be our or someone’s couch potato.

None of our dogs have ever ended up in a shelter or rescue. We take personal responsibility for them being on this earth, if someone can no longer care for a dog bred by us (and many times by others) we contractually require those dogs be returned to us. In 45 years we have received back 7 dogs that ended up staying in our home or that of an adoptive family.

Currently we screen for the following

• All of the dogs in our breeding program are PennHip or OFA Certified
• We do eye exams. Those exams are done by Board Certified Canine Ophthalmologist, Dr. Daniel Lorimer, DVM.
• Cardiac Exams on Golden Retriever's by a Board Certified Cardiologist
• We also adhere to the breed standards as written by the GRCA, ASC, VCA and those published by the American Kennel Club.
• All of our dogs offspring are Registerable with the American Kennel Club on the Limited Registration option.
• Each puppy is microchipped, we pay the fee to register the chip and order an engraved tag.
• Puppies are PAT tested and matched to families
• Our dogs represent nearly 12 generations, ( 50 + years) of certified dogs.
•  Lifetime support
• References from countless happy owners

When it comes to hip & eye disorders we can only certify that the breeding pairs themselves are physically clear of abnormalities. The screening for Hip Dysplasia & eye disorders shows us that physically none of our dogs have HD or eye disorders.

We like to emphasize that there is not a breeder around that can guarantee all offspring will be free of inherited disorders, it is simply not possible.

However, as a responsible breeder we do everything in our power to reduce the odds. There is always a possibility that our dogs may carry the gene for inherited disorders as of now there is simply no way of knowing when and if a puppy will be affected.

After several generations of judicious breeding we feel we have significantly reduced the odds in our pedigrees by testing and using unaffected individuals.

However, despite our best efforts we have not totally eliminated certain issues, statistically we have a very low occurrence of problems. We attribute this to a great foundation by reputable breeders before us, selective breeding processes, our recommendations of delaying spay and neuter, close monitoring of physical trauma on slippery floors, steps and impact exercises, judicious use of vaccines, topical/oral products designed to prevent parasites and with extreme caution use of products on lawns.

Simply put, we have done and continue to do our very best to provide well bred dogs and recommendations for the care of your pup.

We want you to have as many years as possible with your dog.

Limited Registration means all puppies can be registered with the AKC and have a certificate. But, they are not to be used for breeding, should they produce any offspring, those puppies are not eligible for registration. This option discourages individuals who are not knowledgeable in breeding practices from breeding dogs. This enables us to protect the efforts we put into our planned breeding program, as well as the work breeders before us have done. Breeding dogs requires a knowledge and understanding of animal husbandry.

We warranty all of our puppies temperaments under normal conditions of stress.

Read about our Puppy Matching process.

  The adult dogs enjoy walks along miles of trails and a huge play yard, our kennel building is heated and air conditioned for their comfort.                                                

We always encourage folks to "check out" a breeders home.

Since we live in Northern Michigan, if you live out of our area we understand how difficult it may be to visit..

We like all families to know they have an open invitation to see where our pups are born and raised prior to birth or at an open house when pups are 5 weeks old.

Several families have come to visit, and if you would like a first hand description and opinion, we will gladly put you in touch with them. They have all indicated a willingness to share their experience and give a referral.

Our home is located in the "snow belt" of Antrim County.  1/2 hour NE of Traverse City,  a 3.5 hour drive from Metro Detroit. A short 5 min trip from the Shanty Creeks Resorts.