English Setter

Origin & history

The English Setter is one of the older British gundogs, developed over several centuries from land spaniel and setting-dog stock used to find game birds. Early setters would locate birds and then crouch, or set, so a net could be drawn over them, and with the rise of shooting the dogs were refined to point instead. The breed as known today owes a great deal to nineteenth-century English breeders, with Edward Laverack and later Purcell Llewellin developing the strains that still underpin the modern dog, one line bred more for the show ring and another, lighter type for field work. The distinctive flecked coat pattern is traditionally called belton. English Setters are well established in Australia, kept both as gundogs and as gentle family companions, though they are less numerous than the more common spaniels and retrievers.

Temperament

English Setters are famously mild, friendly and affectionate, often gentle enough to be excellent with children and content to be a quiet companion once their exercise is done. They are sociable with strangers rather than wary, so they make hopeless guard dogs but very pleasant housemates, and they generally get along well with other dogs and can share a home with other pets, though the bird-dog instinct means feathered or small animals may tempt them. They are intelligent and willing but a little soft and sometimes dreamy, so they do best with patient, encouraging, reward-based training and react badly to heavy correction. As a working breed they need a genuine outlet for their energy, and a bored or lonely Setter can become destructive or noisy. The key needs are real daily exercise, gentle consistent training, and plenty of human company.

Appearance

A medium to large, elegant gundog, the English Setter stands roughly 61 to 69 cm at the shoulder, with bitches smaller, and weighs about 20 to 36 kg depending on type and sex. The build is athletic and clean-lined, made for covering ground at a steady gallop. The coat is medium to long, flat and silky, with feathering on the ears, chest, underside, legs and tail. The hallmark colouring is belton, fine speckling or roan of colour through a white base, and it comes in blue belton (black and white), orange belton, lemon, liver, and tricolour. The head is long and refined with a soft, kind expression and long, low-set ears. The whole impression is of quiet elegance and easy movement.

Suitability

This breed suits an active person or family with a house and yard, ideally someone who enjoys long walks or country outings and wants a calm, affectionate dog indoors. They can adapt to suburban living if their exercise needs are properly met, but they are not suited to apartment life with a sedentary owner, nor to being left alone for long days, as they are deeply people-oriented and can fret. They are reasonably forgiving for a first-time owner given their gentle nature, provided the exercise and grooming are kept up. For the Australian climate the long coat means heat should be respected: provide shade and water, walk in the cooler hours in summer, and check the feathering for grass seeds after time in long grass.

Health

English Setters are generally a sound breed and often live around eleven to thirteen years. The most important established conditions to be aware of are congenital deafness, which is linked to the breed's coat pattern and can be present from birth, and hip dysplasia. The breed also carries a recognised form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL), a serious inherited neurodegenerative disease for which a DNA test exists, and hypothyroidism and certain inherited eye disorders are seen as well. Allergies and ear infections from the long, hairy ears are fairly common too. Buy from breeders who BAER hearing test their puppies, hip score their stock, eye test, and DNA test for NCL. Routine ear cleaning, keeping the dog at a healthy weight, and regular vet checks complete sensible care for the breed.