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                                 IRISH SETTERS
                                       
Author

   Holly Kruse, 2 January 1995 [hkruse@philly.infi.net]
   Copyright 1995-1996 by Holly Kruse.
   
   Revisions
     * Jul 11 96
       
   
     _________________________________________________________________
   
Table of Contents

     * Table of Contents
     * Characteristics and Temperament
     * Frequently Asked Questions
     * Breed History
     * Standard
     * Special Medical Problems
     * Other Resources
       
   
     _________________________________________________________________
   
Characteristics and Temperament

   Many observers find Irish Setters to be among the most beautiful of
   all dog breeds. Their dark red color, profuse feathering, and
   happy-go-lucky nature make them quite attractive to many dog lovers.
   However, Irish Setters are not the breed for everyone! They are very
   energetic dogs who require plenty of exercise, attention and
   affection.
   
   Irish Setters were originally bred to hunt upland game, and they are
   still proficient hunters. The breed today is essentially split into
   two varieties: the larger, darker, more heavily-coated dogs who come
   from conformation bloodlines, and the much smaller, lighter dogs
   descended from field trial lines, often called "Red Setters." With the
   institution of AKC Hunting Tests and the Irish Setter Club of
   America's Versatility Certificate program, many owners of
   non-field-bred Irish Setters in the United States have been delighted
   to learn that their dogs still possess a strong hunting instinct.
   
   Irish Setters are among the largest of the sporting breeds, with males
   ideally measuring 27 inches at the withers and weighing about 70
   pounds, and females measuring 25 inches at the withers and weighing
   about 60 pounds. The Irish Setter is characterized by its
   "brick-on-brick" head and its silky coat, which is short on the body
   and longer on the chest, ears, backs of legs, tail, and undercarriage,
   and which ranges in color from chestnut to mahogany.
   
   Although its potential is often not fully developed, the Irish Setter
   is a very versatile breed. Not only are Irish Setters beautiful
   companions and able hunters, they also possess the ability to excel at
   competitive obedience, tracking, and agility. There are several Irish
   Setters with advanced obedience degrees, and many Irish Setters are
   now pursuing agility titles.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
Frequently Asked Questions

   "Are Irish Setters high-strung and hyperactive?"
   
     Irish Setters are extremely active, energetic dogs, as are most
     sporting breeds. If they do not get adequate exercise and training,
     they can be difficult to live with. Their reputation as "hyper" dogs
     seems to have emerged when Irish Setters became extremely popular in
     the 1970s. The combination of irresponsible breeding without
     selection for sound temperaments and placement in homes which were
     not up to the demands of an active, sporting breed undoubtedly
     contributed to the perception that Irish Setters are "hyper." With
     the decreased popularity of the breed in the 1980s and 1990s, the
     quality of the Irish Setter temperaments being produced is uniformly
     much higher.
     
   "Are Irish Setters stupider than most other breeds?"
   
     Anyone who has lived with them knows that these dogs are experts at
     getting their way! Irish Setters present a training challenge
     because they are stubborn, easily distracted, and quick to bore, but
     most of them are quite intelligent. It takes a great deal of
     patience and commitment to train an Irish Setter; however, such
     training is an absolute necessity, and it usually proves to be fun
     and rewarding for both dog and owner. Training must start early, and
     the trainer should keep in mind that most Irish Setters aren't
     mentally mature until they are at least 2 years old.
     
   "How much grooming does an Irish Setter need?"
   
     Their long feathering requires quite a bit of attention, otherwise
     it will quickly become matted. Daily brushing is the MINIMUM Irish
     Setter grooming requirement.
     
   "Would an Irish Setter make a good guard dog?"
   
     No. Many Irish Setters will alert you to the presence of strangers
     on your property, but for the most part they are more likely to
     happily greet intruders (or to hide behind the sofa) than wrestle
     the family silver from burglars.
     
   "Are Irish Setters good with children?"
   
     Yes, though since both Irish Setters and children often have a
     tendency to play rough, interactions between them should be
     supervised.
     
   "Since Irish Setters are no longer near the top of the AKC popularity
   list, are they hard to find?"
   
     Quality Irish Setters from reputable breeders can be hard to find,
     so there is usually a wait for a puppy. Also, in some places the
     demand for older rescue dogs is far greater than the supply. Whether
     you are dealing with a breeder or a rescue representative, expect to
     be questioned thoroughly about your expectations and your ability to
     cope with the breed's maintenance demands.
     
   
     _________________________________________________________________
   
Breed History

   As with most of the sporting breeds that developed in the British
   Isles and Ireland, there is much speculation about the origins of the
   Irish Setter. The breed's formative years were in the eighteenth
   century, and the breed was clearly established by 1800. Its ancestry
   can be traced to a dog known as the setting spaniel, and crosses were
   undoubtedly made with Pointers, English Setters, Gordon Setters, and
   other spaniels. Some breed historians have suggested that early
   crosses were made with Bloodhounds, Irish Water Spaniels, and Irish
   Terriers, though there is no documentation to support such conjecture.
   
   
   Among setters in Ireland, red and white coloring was dominant well
   into the nineteenth century; even today many Irish Setters are marked
   with small areas of white on the chest, neck, or between the toes
   despite the long-standing official division of Irish Setters and Irish
   Red and White Setters (not AKC-recognized) into separate breeds.
   Nineteenth century descriptions of Irish Setters with black or, more
   rarely, orange coloring or markings point to the probability of
   cross-breeding with English and Gordon Setters.
   
   Modern Irish Setter type can be traced to a British dog of the 1870s
   named Ch. Palmerston. Palmerston has been described as large for his
   time -- he weighed 64 pounds and measured 23.5 inches at the shoulder
   -- with an unusually long and narrow head, heavy bone, and dark red
   coloring. Because of the impact of the few of Palmerston's daughters
   who were imported to the United States, there is little doubt that all
   American Irish Setters can trace their ancestry to Palmerston.
   
   During the first half of the twentieth century, there was very little
   difference in "type" between Irish Setters who competed in field
   trials and Irish Setters who competed in conformation competition. In
   recent decades, however, as field trial competitors sought to breed
   dogs that were competitive against other pointing breeds in field
   trials, and as conformation-minded breeders produced larger,
   heavily-coated dogs that were more competitive in the show ring, the
   breed has split into two distinct types.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
Standard

   The Standard is the physical "blueprint" of the breed. It describes
   the physical appearance and other desired qualities of the breed
   otherwise known as type. Some characteristics, such as size, coat
   quality, and movement, are based on the original (or current) function
   for the dog. Other characteristics are more cosmetic such as eye
   color; but taken together they set this breed apart from all others.
   The Standard describes an ideal representive of the breed. No
   individual dog is perfect, but the Standard provides an ideal for the
   breeder to strive towards.
   
   Because of copyright concerns over the collection of all the Standards
   at any single site storing all the faqs, AKC Standards are not
   typically included in the Breed faqs. The reader is referred to the
   publications at the end of this document or to the National Breed Club
   for a copy of the Standard.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
Special Medical Problems

   Irish Setters are generally a hearty breed, often reaching 13 or 14
   years of age; still, they are prone to health problems of varying
   degrees of severity:
   
  EPILEPSY
  
   Epilepsy is also present in Irish Setters. The Irish Setter Club of
   America has recently launched a closed database, managed through the
   Genetic Disease Control Institute, which will be used to attempt to
   determine if there is a hereditary component to idiopathic epilepsy in
   Irish Setters. With seizure disorders, and with all the conditions
   mentioned above, it is important that Irish Setter puppy buyers ask
   breeders about the frequency of occurrence of such disorders in the
   pedigree.
   
  GASTRIC DILATION VOVULUS (GDV)
  
   Often also called gastric torsion (or bloat, a misnomer, because in
   bloat the stomach does not rotate), afflicts Irish Setters more often
   than most other breeds. In this condition, the stomach twists and
   distends, acutely affecting key veins in the abdominal cavity and
   causing the failure of body systems. Precautions should be taken by
   Irish Setter owners to lessen the likelihood that their dogs develop
   this acute and life-threatening condition. These precautions include
   1) feeding two or more smaller meals per day rather than one large
   meal, 2) wetting dry food and allowing it to soak before feeding, 3)
   not allowing vigorous exercise for one hour before and two hours after
   feeding, 4) elevating food dishes, and 5) using a high quality food
   that doesn't contain soy.
   
   GDV can be quickly fatal, but if caught in time a prodedure called
   gastropexy, in which the stomach is surgically tacked to the abdominal
   wall, can be performed. This surgery radically decreases the
   possibilty of GDV recurrence.
   
  HIP DYSPLASIA
  
   Also somewhat common in Irish Setters. All breeding stock should be
   radiographically cleared of hip dysplasia at two years of age before
   being bred.
   
  HYPOTHYROIDISM
  
   Hypothyroidism is fairly common in Irish Setters. Proper diagnosis of
   low thyroid activity requires a thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH)
   response test in addition to the standard T4 test.
   
  PROGRESSIVE RETINAL ATROPHY (PRA)
  
   PRA, a form of hereditary blindness, was once a serious problem in
   Irish Setters. Recently, however, a DNA test was made available to
   determine which Irish Setters are PRA carriers and which are not. In
   Irish Setters, PRA is a simple recessive and can therefore be
   eliminated from breeding programs by breeding known non-carriers to
   known non-carriers. Unlike some other forms of PRA, in Irish Setters
   the condition has an early onset (before one year of age, and usually
   several months earlier); combined with the simple recessive nature of
   its inheritance, the early onset of the disease enabled some Irish
   Setter breeders to implement an effective, if controversial and not
   widely adopted, program of test-breeding to eliminate PRA from their
   breeding programs in the decades before the DNA test became available.
   
  HYPERTROPHIC OSTEODYSTROPHY (HOD)
  
   HOD afflicts some Irish Setter puppies (primarily between four and
   eight months of age) and is sometimes fatal. Symptoms can include
   fever, lethargy, swelling of joints, and lameness. Many veterinarians
   are not experienced in diagnosing and treating this condition, so it
   is important that puppy owners be aware of HOD's existence.
   Oversupplementation of puppies and high levels of protein in puppies'
   diets have been linked to the development of this condition.
   
  SPONDYLOSIS
  
   Elderly Irish Setters often develop spondylosis, an arthritic
   condition of the vertebrae which decreases mobility. This condition
   often responds well to treatment with Adequan or its oral forms (such
   as Cosequin and Glycoflex), and/or acupuncture.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
Other Resources

  BOOKS, PERIODICALS, AND ARTICLES
  
   E. Irving Eldredge and Connie Vanacore, The New Complete Irish Setter,
   Howell Book House, 1983. (In print)
   
   Luz Holvenstot, Irish Setters, T.F.H. Publications, 1979. (In print)
   
   William C. Thompson, The New Irish Setter, Howell Book House, 1968.
   (Out of print)
   
   Patricia Gallagher, Irish Setters Today, 1977. (Out of print)
   
   Joan McDonald Brearley, This is the Irish Setter, T.F.H. Publications,
   1975. (Out of print)
   
   Walter Hutchinson, Hutchinson on Setters, Donald R. Hoflin Publishing,
   1980 (Out of print)
   
   Rowland Johns, Our Friend the Irish Setter, E. P. Dutton & Co., 1933.
   (Out of print)
   
   Irish Setter Club of America Memo to Members. Bi-monthly magazine
   available to ISCA members. For membership application, contact:
   
     Karen Holmes
     969 Randy Way
     Brentwood, CA 94513
     510/634-4541
     
  BREEDERS
  
   For the Irish Setter Club of America Breeders Directory and other ISCA
   pamphlets:
   
     Sam MacDonald
     10901 Ives
     Fort Worth, TX 76108
     817/246-4342
     
  RESCUE (NATIONAL) 
  
     Marilee Larson
     27371 Whitmor
     Pioneer, CA
     209/295-1666
     Fax: 209/295-1656
     
  BREED CLUBS
  
   Irish Setter Club of America
   
     Mrs. Marion Pahy, Corresponding Secretary
     16717 Ledge Falls
     San Antonio, TX 78232
     210/494-0389
     (Founded 1891)
     
   Irish Setter Association of England
   
     Mr. W. Bryden
     Hill Farmhouse
     Church End
     Renhold, Bedford
     MK41 OLU
     
   Belfast and District Irish Setter Club
   
     Mr. P. Nolan
     16 Clifton Crescent
     Belfast 14
     
   Irish Setter Club of Wales
   
     Mr. P. Rowlands
     11 Ffordd Lerry
     Wrexham, Clwyd
     LL12 8JB
     
  ONLINE RESOURCES
     * Mailing list for Setter owners and fanciers. To join, send

        SUBSCRIBE SETTERS-L yourfirstname yourlastname
   to listserv@mail.eworld.com. This list is open to all setter breeds.
     * Garland Kimmer's Irish Setter Homepage, at
       http://help.unc.edu/~kimmer/setter.htm
     * More information on Irish Setters, particularly Irish Setters in
       the United Kingdom, is available at
       http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/square/tac61/isetter.htm
     * Information on the DNA test for PRA (rod-cone dysplasia 1) in
       Irish setters is available at
       http://mendel.berkeley.edu/dogs/diseases/pra/blood.html
     * The American breed standard is available on the AKC's homepage,
       http://www.akc.org/akc/irishset.htm
       
   
     _________________________________________________________________
   
   
    Irish Setter FAQ
    Holly Kruse, hkruse@philly.infi.net
