Irish Red And White Setter Dog Breed

The Irish Red and White Setter can be found in artwork dating back to the 17th and 18th century and, by the end of the latter was a popular gundog for bird hunting. Red and Whites often hunt grouse, pheasant, ptarmigan, blackgame, snipe, woodcock, quail, willow grouse, sand grouse, guinea fowl, sagehen, and francolin. The breed was finally acknowledged by the AKC in 2009 as part of the sporting category. We recommend this breed for sportsmen, active individuals and families that have a large home and property for them to expend their boundless energy. Curious about the pros and cons?

PROS

• Lively, pleasant temperament
• Skilled gundog, particularly for birds
• Eager to please and easy to train
• Great with children
• Good with other pets
• Tolerant of strangers
• Great exercise buddy
• Fairly low maintenance grooming

CONS

• Not hypoallergenic
• Must be kept physically and mentally stimulated to avoid becoming destructive
• Needs quite a bit of outdoor time daily
• Not for apartments or as an indoors-only dog
• Not for protection or guarding
• Not a good match for households that have avian pets

The Red and White setter is lively in every sense of the word. She has a strong, athletic appearance while still remaining proportionate; the breed standard calls for 22.5-26 inches for shoulder height. The vibrant white and red coat is short-medium over the majority of the body with characteristic feathering on the ears, belly, backs of forelegs, hindlegs, tail and a bit on the sides reaching to the throat area. The ears are fairly large and the eyes are keen to match the gait.

Intelligence- Lively, pleasant, and eager to please, the Irish Red and White Setter doesn't take much polishing to make an excellent hunting companion or family pet. You must take the time to train them though-- they are a very determined breed and a bored one can be quite a handful.

Kids,Other Pets, Strangers- This breed is energetic and can play probably even outlast rambunctious children-- they are a great family dog for active types. They are not, however, a guarding breed and are not aggressive. Red and Whites get along well with other dogs and most other pets, although they will retain a high prey drive towards birds and fowl.

Exercise- A large property (or at least a big, fenced yard) for them to roam is necessary; they aren't apartment dogs. They thrive out in the field practicing their gundog activities but, otherwise, can get by with an hour of daily outdoor exercise and some playtime in the yard. Games with toys and balls, jogging, hiking and long walks are just a few ways you can exercise with your pet.

The Irish Red and White Setter temperament is one that you will find friendly, willing to please and extremely desirous of companionship. Along with this dog's many abilities and well-known work history, you will find these personality traits remarkable. They are also highly adaptable, seemingly untiring and not easily excitable even as they respond quickly to situations requiring their attention. All this is what makes them superior gun dogs that can be easily trained to carry out most any aspect of hunting: retrieval, tracking, treeing and so forth.

The one aspect that should be understood is this breed's need for exercise and how neglecting that will quickly lead to very bad and highly destructive behavior. Not giving them ample space and enough time to burn that energy that highly active hunting dogs need will end in anxiety, barking, and aggression.

Although they have a relative small gene pool, the breed is healthy with only 3 notable genetic health concerns. A 2011 push by the Irish Kennel Club to outcross this breed with Red Setters met with mixed reactions; while some see the point in interbreeding to prevent additional health concerns, others don't see the point in outcrossing with a breed that has a greater amount of genetic issues. The Red and White Setter's current major health concerns are:

• Cataracts
• Von Willebrand's Disease-- blood clotting disease
• Canine Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-- immune system disease that leads to increased infections