Irish Setter: Temperament, Breeders, Price, and Puppies For Sale

The Irish Setter is considered one of the most beautiful and elegant dogs in the world.

This is another descendant of the Spaniels, the Irish Setter was bred to become an excellent hunting dog, but it is also a loyal and lovely companion. Let’s dig a little deeper into everything related to this wonderful dog breed with an article detailed with its distinctive characteristics.

Irish Setter: Origins

Among the many hunting dogs that we have gotten to know in this wonderful journey to discover the most beautiful and interesting dog breeds, the Irish Setter deserves a special place. This is because its appearance is fascinating, and its unconditional and deep love is capable to reach everyone.

This is a canine breed with the typical tawny coat, it was bred in Great Britain and Ireland before the emergence of the English Setter. With this last one, it seems to share some characteristics related to their ancestors, which according to experts are the Spanish Braco and the ancient Epagneul. Another theory states that the Irish Setter was born after crossing the Red Irish Setters and the Bloodhound.

What is certain is that the standard for this breed was made official in 1886 and, since then, it has spread widely all around Europe.

Nowadays, the Irish Setter is recognized by the AKC and classified as a show dog and belongs to group 7 section 2.2 of the FCI, along with the English Setter and the red and white Irish Setter. They also belong to group 7, the German Hound and the Weimaraner.

Irish Setter: Appearance

This fluffy toy has a determined and energetic character, its mouth is long, its ears are fine, triangular, and a coat that generally is mahogany.
It has a distinctive and elegant bearing, thanks to its body’s harmonious proportions.

• Male Irish Setter specimens stand at 24-27 inches (61-70 cm) at the withers and weigh 60-88 lbs (27-40 kg).
• Females, however, may stand at 23-24 inches (58-61 cm), and weigh around 55-70 lbs (25-32 kg).

Despite it is a medium-to-large dog, it is quite dry and slim, especially when fed correctly. Its trot is galloping, loose, and fast.

Its snout is black and its eyes are of a dark hazelnut color. Its tail is carried horizontally, and it is thin, ornamented with long fringes of hair. All its hair is long and with fringes, except for the head.

The coat’s color is generally mahogany red or reddish and golden, with really shiny shades, It is a long-lived and healthy dog that can go over 15 years of life easily.

Irish Setter: Temperament

The Irish Setter, undoubtedly, stands out due to its docile, gentle, and energetic temperament. This is shown when it has the freedom to run. These features make it an extremely dynamic dog, but also an incurable sweetheart.

When it comes to its character, it exhibits great intelligence and a unique skill when it has to listen to its owner, although it tends to be more cautious with strangers. For this reason, it is essential to start socializing it from its first months of life with strangers and other dog breeds.

It is equipped with an overflowing vivacity, sometimes over-the-top, which makes it a bit of a stubborn dog. These behavior traits may be negative, but they derive from poor socialization since puppyhood.

Certainly, the Irish Setter is not a fan of solitude, and surely it will expect to be cared for. It will be anxious to have daily walks to be able to move as much as it wants.

Given its natural calling as a hunting dog, the Irish Setter has an exceptional sense of smell. It shows great and stoic firmness. If, for one side, it has kept these qualities throughout the years, for another, it shows a great capacity to adapt to live even in an apartment. There it is quite territorial and jealous of its space and not at all invasive. For these reasons, it is a quite affectionate companion dog for most families, included those with older people and children.

Irish Setter: Care and Training

As we have mentioned, the Irish Setter is a dog that, when cared for, its life expectancy is quite long. It also tends to remain in a perfect health state throughout its life. The most basic rules are to make sure it has plenty of exercise and to help it socializes since early puppyhood.

This dog breed, in fact, needs to move a lot and suffers enormously when left alone. It does not like to be at home alone for too long, although it may adapt really well to live in an apartment. To release all its energy it needs to run or walk for a long time in open spaces and dedicate its time to find adventures following real or imaginary trails.

If we have to mention a defect in the Irish Setter is its tendency to gain weight (we should bear this in mind). Feeding must be simple and light, easy to assimilate for the dog. Diet must adapt to the dog’s age and lifestyle. This must be done especially during its first 3 years of life. It is also advisable to take your Irish Setter to the vet regularly, since these puppies may grow particularly slowly.

The most frequent condition in this breed is hip dysplasia. It may also suffer from retinal progressive atrophy (hereditary).

Hygiene and cleanliness are important to keep its hair soft and silky. In particular, clean its ears and eyes after going outdoors.

Irish Setter: Price, Breeders, and Puppies for Sale

After reading this article, we are sure you have also fallen in love with this breed and that you would love to have one Irish Setter. Well, we can tell you surely that there are specialized breeders in England and Ireland. You will also be able to find breeding establishments in the US, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, and Scotland.

Generally, an Irish Setter puppy may cost no less than 900 dollars or 800 English pounds. As always, we recommend that you visit a reliable and certified breeder. It is essential that you buy a dog from a reliable breeder so that you can be sure that your puppy has been:

• Bred for good health and temperament;
• Well-selected (this means that its parents were chosen without genetic diseases);
• Properly socialized, so that it is not too fearful or too aggressive;
• Vaccinated and well-groomed.

In addition, if you adopt a puppy, the reliable breeder will provide you with a veterinary certificate which states that the animal has been dewormed and is completely healthy.

You can always ask for the pedigree, which is essential: it allows you to check the purity of the dog’s breed. An animal with a pedigree has certain characteristics of its breed that differentiate it from the rest.

Now that we have clarified all the most important aspects, you can go in search of your new 4-legged friend, who is surely waiting for you.