We are a husband and wife team. We are small, home-style breeders and trainers of gun dogs, specializing in the breed
Braque Francais (Pyrenees). This is an old breed of pointers of French origin and relatively rare, especially in the U.S. The French bred for a small size and mild mannered temperament as compared with the more common German Shorthair Pointer. They look similar but the size is generally smaller and more compact (35-55lbs). This breed also has more of an easy going temperament which works well in a family environment. Imagine a pointing gun dog with an "off switch". These are working dogs that love to hunt. Braques are versatile enough to hunt both upland birds and warm weather waterfowl. They are normally, naturally close ranging, which makes them a pleasure for the walking hunter.
Our Grand-Dam, "Moose" (pictured above) is French Canadian from excellent blood lines and from a NAVHDA Breeder's Award kennel. Although Moose is now retired from breeding, she is the origin our breeding program being an excellent representation of the breed to this day. The photo on this page is Moose handling a Montana pheasant! Our second Dam "Flying Squirrel" is the pick of the litter from Moose's first breeding. Her dad, "Hawg Wild" is from pure French bloodlines and a NAVHDA Breeder's Award kennel as well. Her Grandad, "Uron" was the first North American Braque Francais to achieve "Versatile Champion" (NAVHDA Invitational-2009). Squirrel has produced 4 wonderful litters and is now retired. Our third Dam "Veri Birdi" is pick of the litter from Moose's third litter. Her dad is the magnificent "Mack De Grand Ciel". She is the dam we plan to breed this summer.
We are committed to producing quality pups, so our Dams have been tested for the retention of their natural hunting ability through NAVHDA. Their eyes are tested and certified clear by CERF and their hips have been OFA certified good & excellent. Due to the quality of their litters, future litters are planned. Email us to be put on our contact list and we will let you know when we intend to breed again. All of our dogs and puppies from them are registered with the Canadian Kennel Club. Full pedigrees and more photos are available on request or click on "PEDIGREES" on this page to view the last three generations and more photos. We raise our dogs and litters in a home environment, as part of our family. We hope one of our pups can become part of your family too.
Submitted by: TIMOTHY CAINE on Jan 07, 2021
I have a 2 1/2 year old female from the Norm and Adrienne. Mazy has been a true joy at home and out of the field. At a little over 6 months she was was hunting well. Her first hunt was a 4 day wild pheasant in ND. I was amazed at her point and nose day one and she has only continued to impress since. She has a strong drive, solid point but her strength is cooperation. If you want a team dog, Norm and Adrienne have hit the nail on the head with their dogs.
Mazy has a strong desire to track and retrieve shot game birds, making her a great Chukar dog. She has tracked and retrieved crippled Chukars out 400 and 500 yards. And all she asks for in return is some love and chance to go hunt for more. She is a strong swimmer and retrieves shot birds out of the water. I however do not shoot birds into the water in sub freezing temperatures. Her coat is not built for cold weather water work. She hunts great and is durable in cold, snowy weather.
Lastly I must comment on her as a house dog. She loves people, is very connected to them and loves her humans. She can be a couch potato all day but is happiest when she has off leash runs. She is great with kids, other dogs and even cohabitates with cats. If you are looking for a great companion dog, fantastic field dog , Norm and Adrienne have the dog for you.
Submitted by: Ann Visscher on Jun 20, 2020
We wanted another French pointer but the original breeder started breeding larger pointers. We came across the Graziano's and discussed what our needs were. They encouraged us to come visit and see for ourselves. We found that our last French pointer was related. We did wait for the next puppies and requested a male. Luckily only one male. Since the grandma was Moose and the mama was Squirrel we named our pup Rocky.He was birdy from the start and easily trained. Our English setter helped. Rocky will be 5 in October. He never wears out when hunting. You have to watch so he doesn't over do. Best gun dog since our 16 year old French pointer. They get to about 42 lbs. Great family dogs. Our grandson plays tag and soccer with him.
Submitted by: Jacob Miller on Mar 29, 2018
The Graziano's are wonderful people that breed excellent dogs. I received a puppy from them in early 2017 and she is just a delight. Many members of my family have GSPs and they take a few years to develop and point to the level expected. After only a small amount of training and a few days in the woods, my pup was locking down and pointing like a 10-year veteran. I was so impressed with her natural instinct out of the gate and at 10-months old she was as good of a hunter as some of my family’s older GSPs. Her personality is great and she is a wonderful dog to have around the house. The Graziano’s were great through the whole process and produce great dogs!
Video of Luka, hunting for chukar in Utah: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMfFgpvhFaQ
Submitted by: Scott Goehring on Nov 20, 2017
In 2011, I thought I wanted a German Shorthair. while searching for a local CA breeder, I stumbled across the Braque Francais. Having never heard of this breed, I was surprised to see the similarity to the GS. The nearest breeder, Graziano's Gun Dogs was only 2hrs away. I placed a deposit and in March 2012, I picked my pup "Rufus". For the first 4 years of Rufus' life, Ca remained in a severe drought, which resulted in... no birds. However, I worked with Rufus on basic obedience and we became best buddies. I am not a trainer and have no training skills except what I have read online. I figured after 4 years of very limited bird exposure, I probably missed the boat for a fantastic bird dog. Boy was I wrong ! this 2017 quail season has barely begun, and it is amazing how this dogs instincts have kicked into high gear. When Graziano told me these dogs train themselves... you can take that to the bank !! Rufus has no quit... his ability to find birds is amazing. He finds em, points em and waits for me to get ready then flushes em. Rufus would not retrieve a stick, a ball or anything I wanted him too, but when I shot the first bird this season, he snatched it right up and brought it right to me. Graziano's grow great dogs.... we might be late to the party, but we are not wasting any time. The Braque Francias is an amazing dog! and Graziano's Gun Dogs live up to their reputation.
Submitted by: Meg & Frank Verardi on Jan 08, 2017
We got our female Braque Francais from Norm and Adrienne Graziano in early 2012 when she was a wee pup. Kate is now 5 years old. We can only speak highly about the Graziano's, our dog, and the Braque breed.
Kate is a supreme hunter, and classic pointer. The only training we did with her was basic obedience. The rest came naturally to her. Frank had hunted, we had owned family dogs, but we had never had a hunting dog, so we really didn't know what to expect. The Graziano's have a thorough knowledge of how to introduce the pup to hunting. They gave us information at each stage of our pup's growing up, from initial crate training (which has served us so well in our camper travels) to how and when to introduce aspects of hunting like loud noises/gun fire. An additional contribution to the Kate's wonderful disposition came from the Graziano's inclusion of their pups, from birth, in their home life. All their pups are exposed to the sounds, smells, and sights of routine living. When we brought Kate home, there was nothing that spooked her. She fit right in from day one.
Raising the pups in the home (as opposed to a kennel) also speaks to the quiet disposition of the Braque Francais. Kate is the perfect companion in the house and on our daily walks. She is calm, does not need a lot of attention, but stays close to us throughout the day. She is also the ideal travel companion, riding quietly in the back, even during long days of driving.
However, when we take her hunting, she has as much energy and heart as any other pointer. There is pure joy her face as she hunts up the birds. Her sense of smell is unbelievably keen, and she finds birds where other dogs have just been.
If you want a Braque Francais, get it from the Graziano's. And if you don't want a Braque, maybe you should reconsider!!
Submitted by: Micheal Black on Jan 07, 2011
Adrienne and Norm,
That's great to hear you will be breeding your dogs again. I have enjoyed my puppy, Tucker [8 months old] and has been very easy to train throughout this last hunting season. Me and my uncle Troy have had great success with our two dogs and I will be happy to spread the word that you guys will be having another litter. As for a little up date on Tucker, he has been in the field on pheasants, quail and ducks almost every weekend of hunting season this year. He has just started to figure out how to point and hold birds which has been very exciting to see all the progress he has made in the last few months. Me and my dad have had almost 25-30 birds shot and retrieved by him so far this year. He is turning out to be great hunting dog and family dog. He is still a little hesitant to go and retrieve in the water but I am sure it will come in time and I have not had one complaint about this dog. I am very excited to see what he will become in the next few years. I hope all is going well and hope you had a great new year and I will try to keep you up to date on how things are going with Tucker throughout the new year.
Michael Black
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