Irish Setter

Size: Medium | Average lifespan: 13 years or more | Temperament: Spirited, intelligent, and affectionate | Coat: Medium-long or long | Origin: Ireland.

With their distinguished allure, shiny coat, and spirited character, the Irish Setter is easily recognizable. There are two varieties of the breed: the Irish Red Setter and the Irish Red and White Setter. Follow our guide to learn a little bit more about this dog breed.

A dog with Irish origins

A dog breed from the country of clovers

The Irish Setter is the most popular of Setter breed. There are two others: the Gordon Setter and the English Setter. The first traces of the breed go back to the 18th century. As they were mostly bred in Ireland, where they were very popular, they were originally used for hunting in the vast Irish stone-covered plains.

According to one of the first references of the breed that goes back to 1570, they originate from the ancient Spaniel. While the dog that was described is not the Irish Setter that we know today, the description already foreshadowed the characteristics we find in this dog breed nowadays.

Late recognition

However, it wasn’t until 1882 that the Irish Red Setter Club was founded. This club defended the red variety of hunting dog and wrote the first standard of the breed in 1885.

The Red and White Irish Setter was recognized by the FCI (Fédération Cynologique Internationale) in 1989, or a few decades after the red variety was recognized in 1954. They quickly became more popular, thanks to their flamboyant coat color.

The Irish Setter’s character

The Irish Setter is a spirited, courageous, very intelligent, and affectionate dog. They are also patient, dynamic, loyal, and joyful, and are great pets for the entire family. They are excellent hunting dogs, have a good sense of smell, and love living in the countryside. It is not recommended for them to live in an apartment in the city, except if they are able to leave the house at least twice a day.

A dog that has a hard time staying put

If the Irish Setter is obliged to adapt to city life, the ideal situation is to let them live in a house with a large backyard because they need to exercise to maintain their excellent physical form.

The Irish Setter is a dog that can run away if they are left too long without surveillance and they haven’t had enough physical activity. They could take advantage of a door or window left open to go outside and walk alone. In the absence of regular physical activities, the Irish Setter can find other ways to respond to the need that you will not like (ruining furniture, destructing objects, etc.).

Teaching that requires patience

When it comes to the education of the Irish Setter, it needs to be both firm and gentle. This breed can sometimes be hypersensitive and they do not forget easily the bad treatment that were inflicted on them. They also cannot handle verbal violence or physical violence. However, this breed is a bit stubborn and rather independent, you can, therefore, be obligated to make efforts to make your dog listen to you. However, once they start to get used to their teachings, they will stay engraved in their memory.

If good work has been done on their socialization, they will not have a hard time living with other dogs. However, if they need to live with cats, it will be important to get them used to the presence of a cat early and keep an eye on them. Their joyful character makes them adapt well to life with children, especially with older children.

The Irish Setter’s physical characteristics

General

The fundamental difference that exists concerning the two varieties of Irish Setters lies in the color of the coat. In fact, the coat of the Irish Red Setter is one solid color and a beautiful red color that reminds you of the color of chestnuts, while that of the Irish Red and White Setter is bicolor (with a white background marked with red). Outside of this distinction, they are both athletic, they have a harmonious form, and a gentle expression that you absolutely cannot resist.

Body

The Irish Setter is a medium dog with shiny and abundant hair around the stomach, that is short and thin, as well as in front of their paws. On the rest of the body, they are flat and medium-long. With a long head on a medium long neck, they have hanging ears that are medium sized, small oval eyes that are brown, and a tail that is medium long.

Coat, colors, and grooming

Coat

Their coat is rigid, long, and thin, with the hair behind their legs and on the exterior part of their ears.

Colors

This dog breed can have two coat colors: a vibrant chestnut color in the case of the Irish Red Setter and a white coat with red marks for Irish Red and White Setters.

Grooming an Irish Setter

Caring for the Irish Setter’s coat is not at all constraining. Brushing daily is, for example, largely sufficient to avoid that they get tangled hair. From time to time, you need to trim the coat that is behind their ears so that knots do not form. You can also occasionally offer your services of a professional, that are in charge of complete grooming of your Irish Setter.

However, while the loss of hair of Irish Setters is generally very low, they increase during molting season. When this happens, brushing needs to become more regular (around 3 times per week). Take also care to examine your dog when they get back from a walk in order to get rid of eventual things that can be attached to their beautiful coat In addition, you have to often trim the claws of the Irish Setter if they are too long.

The Irish Setter’s health

The Irish Setter is rather robust and rarely gets sick. However, you need to get used to cleaning their ears regularly, because these dogs can easily get ear infections. This is because the hanging ears prevent air from circulating correctly in their ear canal; which has direct consequences and spreads bacteria.

They can also be have bloating and twisting of the stomach. This is why it is very important to respect the digestive process by preventing intense physical efforts around mealtime. The Irish Setter can also gain weight easily and can become obese. This is especailly true when their lifestyle doesn’t allow them to sufficiently exercise. You need to make sure they get vaccinated and deworm them often.

The diet of the Irish Setter is simple. You just need to ensure that it is varied and balanced. It is also recommended to share their daily ration in two meals, to avoid feeding them an excess amount of food.

Did you know?

In 1969, the former president of the United States, Richard Nixon, received a Irish Setter as a gift. The dog stayed at the White House with their owner, until 1974, the year that Nixon needed to leave power. This period was one when the breed gained a lot of popularity in the United States.