Breeds / Large
Irish Red and White Setter puppies
The Irish Red and White Setter is a sturdy Irish gundog, sociable and biddable with a very high work drive. It needs substantial daily exercise and careful, low impact activity while it is still growing.
The facts
- Size class Large
- Country of origin Ireland
- Adult weight 15.9 to 27.2 kg
- Adult weight in pounds 35 to 60 lb
- Adult height 57 to 66 cm
- Energy level Very high
- Grooming Low
- Coat type Medium silky and double
- Typical lifespan 11 to 15 years
- Good with children Reliably good
- Good with other dogs Reliably good
Where these come from:
About the Irish Red and White Setter
The Irish Red and White Setter is the older of Ireland's two setters and very nearly disappeared in the early twentieth century before a determined revival brought it back. It is a strongly built gundog of 57 to 66 cm, a little stockier than its solid red relative, in a pearl white coat broken by solid red patches with silky feathering. The working character shows at home as constant good humour: sociable, biddable and demonstrative, rated 5 out of 5 with children and other pets given supervision.
Energy is very high and this dog is miserable without an outlet, whether that is field work, long hikes or canine sport. While it is growing, up to about eighteen months, keep exercise low impact and let a puppy set its own pace in a fenced field rather than jogging or cycling with it. Grooming is a weekly brush and comb through the feathering. The gene pool is small, so health testing on both parents matters more than usual. The mistake is under exercising an adult and calling it hyperactive.
What to expect at eight weeks
At eight weeks a Irish Red and White 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 it out physically. Training, scentwork and puzzles will do more than distance ever will. Grooming is straightforward, but start handling the coat, feet and ears in week one anyway so it is never a fight later. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything it meets calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of its life.
Health worth knowing about
Conditions this breed is reported to be predisposed to. Predisposed does not mean inevitable, it means ask about it.
- Posterior polar cataract, screened by an ophthalmologist evaluation
- Progressive retinal atrophy (rcd1), detectable by DNA test on both parents
- Canine leukocyte adhesion deficiency (CLAD), detectable by DNA test
- Hip dysplasia, screened by hip evaluation of breeding stock
- von Willebrand disease, a clotting disorder detectable by DNA test
- Hypothyroidism, detected by a blood test of thyroid hormone levels
From Irish Red and White Setter breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/irish-red-and-white-setter/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.
Your Irish Red and White 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 Irish Red and White Setter.
- Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 15.9 to 27.2 kg adult range.
- Puppy names and the first week checklist.
Other large breeds
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Not veterinary advice. Breed information is general. Your own dog, and your own vet, always win.