RuneStone Neapolitan Mastiffs - About Us

All our dogs are AKC registered and we show in AKC shows. We are a small Hobby Kennel. Our
dogs live in the house with us. I am a member of the Parent Club for the Neapolitan Mastiff in the
US - The United States Neapolitan Mastiff Club - The USNMC

Our lives changed completely and dramatically when we bought our first Neapolitan Mastiff, our
eventual foundation bitch, USNMC CH. and IABCA Int. CH. Stoneybrook's Francesca. She's
gone and I still cry for her. We have several of her descendants and I can still see her
mannerisms in them. I didn't think I could ever attach so closely to a dog like that again. I was
wrong. Her daughter, RuneStone Aradia, stole my heart and is so much like her Mom and yet so
unique in her own way. Maybe it will always be like that. The Neapolitan Mastiff is very loyal and
loving to its people. They attach themselves completely to their owners and you wonder "who
owns who". We also bred RuneStone Grimoire - known as Grim. Grim is Cesca's son. What a
character - you can read more about him on his We bpage. Grim just passed away in Nov. 2007
of bloat. We really miss him. And I still miss his mother, Francesca, my "Cesca".

I chose the kennel name "RuneStone" because in Minnesota there is evidence that the Vikings
were here. The Vikings are of Scandinavian origin. They left behind "runestones" wherever they
went. Runes were their alphabet. They chiseled or carved stories or records of events into large
boulders. The one in Alexandria, Minnesota is called the "Kensington RuneStone". Minnesota is
connected to the Atlantic ocean via Lake Superior and the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence
seaway. It's very possible that they were here. It's very possible (and some say true) that the
Vikings made their way to this continent long before Columbus. It is somewhat of a legend and I
have always loved the story. The Vikings were a great sea-faring culture. You can see a map of
some of the known places they have travelled to around the world on our Index page. They left
behind RuneStones, burials, village ruins, jewelry, tools and weapons. Some were farmers and
some were adventurers and some were marauders. The Viking women were very strong and
sometimes accompanied the men on the travels. Other women stayed behind and ran the
villages and had political power. The Vikings believed in the God "Odin or Thor" and the Goddess
"Freya or Frejya" among a pantheon of others. They believed in beings called the "Valkyrie", a
group of female lesser dieties who brought heroic warriors slain in battle to Valhalla.

If you're into professional football, you'll know our team is called the "Minnesota Vikings". The
reason for the name is because of this Viking Runestone legend.

We recently moved to 5 acres. We're completely surrounded by farmland, now. There are easy
rolling hills and a creek called "Wolf Creek" within walking distance. We're south of the
Minneapolis-St. Paul area. We live near Northfield, Minnesota, the place that the Jesse James
gang had their last bank robbery. The bank is still there and they have a museum. The city is
situated next to the Cannon River and it's a quaint little town with a cool downtown area. The
city also has two colleges, St.Olaf College and Carlton College.

After we moved we proceeded right into breeding and whelping and raising 2 litters of puppies so
we've taken an entire year off from showing - I miss it and we'll be going back to that very soon.

I hated the moving but it's worth it and we'll be here for quite awhile, I think.

If you'd like to contact me please email me - or my cell is 763-742-3140.

Thanks for visiting,
Wendy Gieske

RuneStone Neapolitan Mastiffs is owned and operated by Scott & Wendy Gieske.
We're a small hobby kennel located in Minnesota, USA.
We usually show our own dogs and and also rely on the help of our friends.
We love our dogs and this breed.

We're located near Northfield, Minnesota, which is south of the Twin
Cities.

This is me on a good day, singing to my poor dog.

Scott, Nadeari and Aradia
full sisters

		Northfield

Wendy with Nadeari and Aradia, full sisters

Wendy with RuneStone Grendel

This is me, Wendy, with my favorite sweetie-pie, Aradia, she was my best friend and I miss her so much!
The middle picture is from Tampa Bay, Florida at one of the
Top 25 Eukanuba Shows.