Humble Beginnings

Bad Dog Lures began as a compilation of innovative lure designs which were the genius of a guy by the name of Gary Snyder. Now some of you might recognize that name, as it was Gary who was the lure designer and owner of Jig-A-Whopper some 12 to 15 years ago. Jig-A-Whopper got so big that some guys with money offered to buy Gary out with an offer he couldn't refuse, and so he took it.

After several years, Gary began to see an opportunity in the area of ice fishing, which was starting to catch on with more and more anglers. Putting that creative mind back to work , he saw the need for innovative, high quality crafted lures that would primarily be used for ice fishing, yet have open water applications as well. Thus was borne the core group of BAD DOG LURES such as the Crippled Willow, Jeweled Willow, Lazer Eye Willow, Jeweled Treble, and neutrally buoyant lures, which are becoming very popular as of late, like the Slo Dog, Featherlite and Speckled Grubs, Glitter Lure and Water Bugs and Fleas.

Oh, how did Gary come up with the name BAD DOG LURES ? Well, one spring afternoon he set out to test a few new prototypes. One of the benefits to owning a fishing tackle company is the fishing, I mean testing. He decided this day to take his Golden Retriever Jesse along in the boat. After about twenty minutes of fishing, Gary started to get into some nice smallmouth responding to one of the prototypes. The action was one right after another, with Jesse always keeping any eye on what was going on. Well, Gary hooks into this real nice smallmouth, a five plus pounder. As he gets it to the boat, the fish is very active in the water, thrashing about. Jesse is totally focused on this bass when all of a sudden, the dog jumps right on top of that big smallie! After the splash, all that was left was a broken line, no bass, a lost prototype, and the thought of hauling 65 plus pounds soaking wet back into to the boat. In his moment of frustration Gary blurted out BAD DOG, and after a few seconds the light went on, BAD DOG LURES. Believe it or not, one heck of a story.