other

CH SoftMaple's Comin' To America CGC, CD

To minimize the number of Curlies that end up in rescue, we encourage you to learn as much about the breed, the breeds traits, problems, and the breeder you choose to get your Curly from before you make the commitment. You should talk to as many breeders and curly owners as you can before you make your choice. Often times, people find out that the breed may not be suited to there lifestyle. Curlies are an active dog. There personality is better suited to being an integral member of the family, and not a kennel dog. Contrary to common belief, Curlies do shed. A female who is not spayed will generally blow coat (shed heavily) twice a year. All other curlies (neutered and unneutered males, and spayed females) will shed throughout the year, and more so as the seasons change. Curlies are not hypoallergenic.

No breeder can guarantee that a puppy will not grow up to have any health problems, but they should be able to tell you what they are doing to minimize the chances that your puppy will be affected. You should ask for proof of any testing the breeder has done. At the very least, the breeder should be able to give you OFA (hip results) and CERF (eye results) for the puppy's sire and dam (father and mother) If they cannot produce these papers on both parents, do not buy the puppy.
If the breeder claims that there are no problems in there lines at all- run! There is no such thing as a perfect dog. If they say there are no problems, than they are not looking back far enough. A breeder should know the ancestors behind there dogs, and the physical and behavioral faults of those ancestors. They should put in writing what they will do if your puppy develops any of these problems. You should be aware that AKC/CKC/UKC registration does not mean quality. It only means that the dog is pure-bred. The AKC will not be there to back you when your puppy develops a genetically linked problem.

All breeders should be willing to give references of people who have purchased puppies from them in the past. All breeders should readily give references from other breeders, trainers, vets, breed club affiliations etc.
You should be able to view the condition of the breeders dogs and their kennel. Never buy a dog from a pet shop, not even if you feel sorry for it. The store's supplier will only breed more dogs in puppy mills to fill up the empty space. No breed of dog, no matter how rare, is immune from the puppy mill problem. Mill owners view these dogs purely as money-makers and do not care about the future health or welfare of the animals.

SoftMaple's Comin' To America CGC, CD &
CH SoftMaple's International Fling CGC Cardiac Clear, CERF CR-640G26F-PI, CR-640G26F-PI

We at SoftMaple have been active in showing and breeding pure bred dogs since 1979. Active in Curly Coated Retrievers since 1993. We do not earn our income from the sale our puppies. For me raising a litter is a very rewarding, time consuming and expensive passion. We are breeding for healthy, sound, highly trainable, versatile dogs without compromising the correct structure and breed type set out in the standard.
Early puppy stimulation, as well as continued puppy socialization are key in our breeding program. We stress temperament and health. Our dogs are family companions, first and foremost. We are only interested in finding homes for our puppies in which potential owners are genuinely committed to loving a Curly for its life-time, be it a pet, show, or hunting companion.
We as breeders are caretakers of the future of the Curly Coated Retriever. Breeding just to fill a demand for puppies can damage a breed for years to come. Not all dogs are worthy of being bred. Having a Championship title is not a good enough reason to breed a dog. There are many judgment calls that a breeder has to make according to their own conscience. There is no perfect dog, and unfortunately, no perfect breeders!
Breeding dogs is a labor of love. Their health and well-being is of primary importance. We check Hips (OFA, or foreign country of origin hip score equivalent) Eyes (CERF)and Cardiac (OFA). Puppies come with a contract covering replacement of puppies that do not OFA, do not CERF, or do not pass Cardiac testing.
Since a dog is a living creature, we can not guarantee that the dog will not have any problems. We do our best to check the health history of the parents, grandparents and siblings. We study pedigrees and dogs to help make informed breeding decisions. No one has yet bred the perfect dog. We will stand behind our dogs if there is a problem.
The pups are raised in the home. We use the Bio Sensor method of early puppy stimulation. We temperament test our puppies at 7 weeks of age. As we know the personalities of the puppies better than anyone having lived wiht them since birh, we try to match each puppy with the appropriate family for its needs. Every pup that leaves SoftMaple goes with the condition that if for any reason you cannot keep the dog I will always take it back, for whatever reason.
A curly is not for everyone. They are a strong willed, challenging, intelligent dog. We screen our prospective puppy buyers. Your not just buying a dog from SoftMaple, your joining a family. We ask you questions, and strongly encourage you to ask us questions. Anyone looking to add a Curly to their home shouldn't stop at just contacting one breeder. We encourage you to talk to as many breeders as you can.
See a list of SoftMaple Litters

SoftMaple N HunterBay's Poetic Justice

CH SoftMaple N HunterBay's NYwkend CGC TT CR-EL99F28-PI CR-645E28F-PI, CR-CA135/34F/C-PI
SoftMaple Highlights