About Vom Hognadottir

Hello. My name is Betty Burden and I would like to welcome you to the online home of Vom Hognadottir Rottweilers and German Shepherds. Our Rottweiler and German Shepherd kennel is located in Pilot Hill, California, approx' 30 miles east of Sacramento, CA. (Pilot Hill is in El Dorado County, CA in the Sacramento metro area). We have been breeding top quality Rottweilers and top quality German Shepherds with stable temperaments, sound structure and high intelligence for over thirty years.

I am often asked about the origin of my kennel name, what it means, and how you pronounce it. I wanted to use a unique kennel name that I knew no one else would have, and that would have a special meaning. I am originally from Iceland, (I came to the U.S when I was 19 years old, and speak fluent Icelandic and English) and Hognadottir [pronounced: Hog-na-daughter] is my Icelandic family name, and a big part of my heritage.

Here is a basic explanation of how Icelandic family names work, taken from a wonderful website by Eve Andersson. You can visit her site here for further information, pictures, and some very interesting facts about Iceland.

"About 10% of Icelanders have a family name that is passed down from generation to generation, as is done in Europe and North America (e.g., Mary and Joe Smith's kids also have the last name Smith). Most families in Iceland instead use a patronymic naming system, where the last name of the children is taken from the father's first name. For example, if the father's first name is Gunnar, his son's last name will be Gunnarsson and his daughter's last name will be Gunnarsdóttir."

So, as you can see, being a daughter, my (maiden) name is "Hognadottir", so my kennel name became "Vom Hognadottir".

My love for the German Shepherd breed began when I was a young girl. My best friend had two German Shepherds. These wonderful dogs would pull us on sleds in the winter months and then on carts in the summer. There was no need for horses with these dogs around... and so it had begun! My love of Rottweilers began not even two years later, upon discovering how intelligent, extremely loyal and willing to please these dogs are. (much like the German Shepherd) I knew that I would always have a Rottweiler in my life. My love and devotion continues to this day as I try to give others the same wonderful experiences with these dogs that I have had.