Gordon Setter puppies

About the Gordon Setter

The Gordon Setter is the black and tan setter of Scotland, built to quarter open moorland all day and hold a point until the guns caught up. They are the heaviest and slowest of the setters, standing 58 to 69 cm with a flat silky coat, long ear feathering and rich mahogany markings on a coal black ground. At home they are a different animal: affectionate, faintly comic and inclined to lean on the nearest person. They bond hard to their family and can be cautious with strangers.

This is a very high energy dog that needs long daily exercise from an owner who walks, runs or works them in the field. Brush at least weekly or the feathering mats, and tidy the feet, ears and tail area monthly. Training goes well, though Gordons mature slowly and take a few years to settle. Because bloat occurs in the breed, leave half an hour either side of a meal before exercise. Suburban walks will not satisfy a Gordon, however good they look.

What to expect at eight weeks

At eight weeks a Gordon Setter puppy is sleeping around 18 to 20 hours a day, is not house trained, and cannot hold on for more than an hour or two at a stretch. A large breed puppy at eight weeks looks deceptively normal sized and will roughly double every few weeks for a while. Keep exercise short and low impact, the growth plates are wide open. This is a very high energy breed. The mistake owners make is trying to tire them out physically. Training, scentwork and puzzles will do more than distance ever will. Grooming needs are moderate, so build the brushing habit now while the coat is still short and easy. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything they meet calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of their life.

Health worth knowing about

Conditions this breed is reported to be predisposed to. Predisposed does not mean inevitable, it means ask about it.

• Hip and elbow dysplasia, screened by hip and elbow evaluation of breeding stock
• Progressive retinal atrophy, rod cone dysplasia 4 (PRA-rcd4), detectable by DNA test
• Other inherited eye disease, screened by an ophthalmologist evaluation
• Bloat and gastric torsion, a sudden and life threatening stomach emergency
• Cancer, the most common cause of death in older dogs of the breed

Your Gordon Setter puppy's first six months

• Vaccination schedule, dated for your country.
• Worming and parasite schedule.
• Feeding calculator. Set expected adult size to Large for a Gordon Setter.
• Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 20.4 to 36.3 kg adult range.
• Puppy names and the first week checklist.

Kit sizes: crate 42 inch (42 x 28 x 30 in, 107 x 71 x 76 cm) for an adult of up to 36.3 kg; chew toys made for large breeds. Worked out the same way as the crate size calculator. PetMD bases a crate on the dog's own measurements, not weight or breed alone, so measure once the puppy is home.

Buying guides for this

• Do slow feeder bowls work? Choosing one for a puppy that gulps
• Best crate for a puppy: wire, plastic or soft, and how to size one with a divider

Other large breeds

More on the Gordon Setter

Previous: Goldendoodle · Next: Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen

Sources

• akc.org for adult weight and height, life expectancy, energy, grooming, shedding and the temperament ratings, coat type and health notes
• fci.be for country of origin
• Health notes from Gordon Setter breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/gordon-setter/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.

Photo: Radosław Drożdżewski (Zwiadowca21), CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped. All photographers are listed on the photo credits page.