Too many people believe Curlies are slow and without desire in the field. Many Curlies are neither. Curlies with a desire for birds move fast, and with power.

We (my husband and I) have hunted with curlies for nearly 23 years. We go out to South Dakota pheasant hunting every year and, in some years, have been lucky enough to stay out for two weeks. My husband often goes out for a week at a time several times a year. Curly coats are NOT JUST retrievers. They are stunning upland game dogs, with extraordinary noses and a desire to run big. Historical evidence indicates curlies were ALWAYS upland game dogs. Throughout the years, we have placed many curly puppies with pheasant/grouse hunters. While it takes a steel will on the part of the hunter to keep a Curly close enough to hunt tight grouse covers, I believe a Curly is a better pheasant dog than any other dog breed on this planet.


The photographs and images on this page are the property of Janean Marti. They cannot be reproduced in any form, including on web pages, without the express written permission of Janean Marti. Any use of any images on the web pages authored by Janean Marti will result in the violator being hunted down by the Ptarmigan Curly herd, and being forced to throw a tennis ball 600 times a day for the next century. Human lawyers might also be involved in hunting down violators, since the lawyers hunt bucks better than tennis balls. This page authored by Janean Marti.