Has anyone ever owned setters?

[black_cat]

Yes I'm already thinking about dogs that I want as an adult, lol


All the other breeds that I'm seriously looking at ('seriously' lol) I have a degree of experience with (retrievers, collies, bernese mountain dogs, GSDs) but not with setters. I love their look and the fact that they're an active, athletic dog that bond well with people, but does anyone have experience with them? I'd like to hear from people that have them.
I'm looking most at irish, irish red and white, and gordon.

 

[neo71665]

You know they are a bird hunting breed. Might be an issue around fowl.

 

[black_cat]

You know they are a bird hunting breed. Might be an issue around fowl.

I do know that! However, I know several people with pointers (german shorthaired is the one that I know best) that have been trained and won't eat chickens (but will catch chipmunks and hunt other things), and most sporting dogs are very easily trained, to my knowledge, because they're bred to work closely with a person.

 

[RiverOtter]

I love setters.
There is a HUGE difference between pet, show and working lines. Do not get pet line ones. If someone doesn't do SOMETHING with them, run. At best, you'll end up with a friendly idiot with hip dysplasia and/or a dickey heart, who will break your heart when it passes at 8 years old. At worst, epilepsy, cancer and spaniel rage syndrome, with a coat heavy enough to breed fungal infections.

Show line ones tend to be handsome, sweet and mellow. Just nice animals to be around. And show doesn't have to be conformation - it can be obedience, agility, tracking, any of it.

Working line ones have amazing drive, endurance and enthusiasm. They can be a bit hard to live with if you don't channel it, but usually in a sweet tempered way that makes you smile even when they make you crazy. If I could find a nice, affordable working line English setter or spaniel (not long ago, the same breed save for height) I'd snag one as a companion/service dog for my son. The price is generally out of my reach, but maybe one day.

 

[black_cat]

I love setters.
There is a HUGE difference between pet, show and working lines. Do not get pet line ones. If someone doesn't do SOMETHING with them, run.

I didn't know that 'pet line' dogs were a thing- it sounds to me like that would be a term used for marketing by irreputable breeders? I always assumed that there were show line dogs or working line dogs

At best, you'll end up with a friendly idiot with hip dysplasia and/or a dickey heart, who will break your heart when it passes at 8 years old. At worst, epilepsy, cancer and spaniel rage syndrome, with a coat heavy enough to breed fungal infections.

That sounds,,, not good

Show line ones tend to be handsome, sweet and mellow. Just nice animals to be around. And show doesn't have to be conformation, obedience - it can be agility, tracking, any of it.

That sounds great!! just wondering, but wouldn't you want a working line dog (by that I mean the higher drive and the like) for agility or tracking? Or no?

Working line ones have amazing drive, endurance and enthusiasm. They can be a bit hard to live with if you don't channel it, but usually in a sweet tempered way that makes you smile even when they make you crazy.

Oh yeah, from what I know, any working line dog without properly channeled energy will make your life miserable (through no fault of the dog). I prefer higher energy dog breeds (I love most dogs in the sporting group, if that gives you an idea) but I'd probably stick to who lines.

If I could find a nice, affordable working line English setter or spaniel (not long ago, the same breed save for height) I'd snag one as a companion/service dog for my son. The price is generally out of my reach, but maybe one day.

Which setters are your favorite? I prefer the coloring on the Irish Red and White, and the size of the Gordon. A dog forum has told me that Gordons are also the most settled?

 

[RiverOtter]

Pet line dogs are not an official thing, but if they don't work or show, and they're from a few generations that don't work or show ... then that's a pet line. People breeding their pets to make more pets.

Show line dogs in some breeds are wildly different, and in some, the same dog tearing up the field trials. But regardless, they are ALL bred for a certain degree of trainablity/handleability. There is not a breed out there that doesn't get disqualified for being nasty to the judge or uncontrollable around other dogs, and they can't freak out at a crowd or new places. Even terriers, who are allowed to bark or growl a bit at the other dogs in the ring, can't be lunging or snarling. Basically, they all HAVE to pass a "good dog" minimum, no excuses. So if you get something from a mother who showed, she has to have been at the least a proven good dog - this is a good thing for your future pup, exact ear set or white toenails aside. And they are very likely to be all you'd need to happily compete in agility or obedience.

Field trial dogs ... do you have any idea how many miles they cover? That's a lot of energy to channel. Energy and intelligence in any animal is exactly like dynamite. No substitute for it if you can properly channel it. Otherwise, just a destructive force.