Not sure of the extent of the term "native breed" but I completely understand the need to re-introduce vigor/field attributes back to the Irish setter that was virtually ruined by tree-hugging owner/breeders whose Irish setters look more like Afghans. That said, there is a healthy amount of white through-out the Irish setters portrayed in this video. I appreciate that there may well have been crosses centuries ago, but today...? Again, I get it. By-the-way, those dogs were lovely to watch! Thank you!!
@@shug2795 They are indeed our native breed,developed over hundreds of years in Ireland to hunt for grouse and partridge on the great moors and bogs.They,as you rightly pointed out were almost destroyed by the fur baby brigade,fortunately they were rescued by some very dedicated people,again here in Ireland.But for those people,the Irish Setter would no longer be the wonderful hunting dog it is.Great credit due to them for one of the most important interventions in the history of hunting dogs.
Very interesting,when you think of England you don't usualy associate it with such large tracts of wild countryside. I know this isn't relative to video George,but do you use a clippers on your Springers coats? I give mine a good shearing in the summer but not in winter so they'll have a bit if warmth and protection from thorns.
George, I have lately seen some youtube videos on cottages in Irie. Rural rundown ones. Are there any good hunting areas I should look at. This would need to be rural. It surprized me at how easy it is to immigrate to Ireland,
We must always remember that openmoorland is for what the red setters were bred ,That said in heavy cover theyostlyblike the English will not enter .Therefore they aren't suitable for dense rough shooting.We had a good one yrs ago ,but german shorthairs now , because they are better retreivers on water and land and will hunt cover such as bramble and heavy gorse ,This is where pheasants and woodcock,s hide up once they get used to being hunted .So you need a dog that'll go into such places and flush them up .Red setters are definitely superb in open moorland though .The breeds should be crossed with the intentions of making the red setters more of a h,p,r, type of dog .and then it would appeal to serious rough shooters that hunt .mallard duck x snipe x pheasant X rabbits ,You can work g,s,p,s on all that game as they were designed for it x as we're many if not all of the European gundogs ,such as Brittany spaniels x italion spinones x brac francais x hungarian vistulas x poodle pointers x munsterlanders x German wirehaired,.Selected breeding by English and Irish breeders has bred the retreiving ability out of english pointers x setters x Irish setters .A lot of good th3y are when you shoot a mallard across a gadt runnimg river or 40yds out in a lake .The very reasons ,seyyers and pointers arent being used much is because these abilities are gone .Also a fit h,p,r, well trained dog will. hunt grouse while not as fast as the setters or pointers ,they keep up a relentless gallop all day long in wet weather.
It would be akin to a crime to do as you suggest with our own native dog the Irish Red Setter, to cross them with something else, quote "with the intentions of making the red setters more of a h,p,r, type of dog". I for one wouldn't take a German pointer as a present, I've never seen a good one, any I've seen would hardly run out of your way, a boring dog if ever there was one.
I had the pleasure of witnessing a field trial host working a brace of pointers on a grouse moor near Aberdeen - my wife being Scottish.... As a dog trainer here in North America, I understand the origins of the various breeds and the reverence Europeans in general, have for tradition. We here in North America have a tendency to bastardize dog breeds, in general. That said, I fail to understand the dependency "you" have with whistles, albeit that dependency exists here as well. Whistles/yelling/arms flailing are completely unnecessary where the dog is concerned - be it a flusher or a pointer - and remains a HUMAN dependency to-this-day in 2022!?!?!? Whistles - to me - are an overt reflection of misunderstanding dogs. Dogs - unlike humans - don't carry many of our frailties. They know their world and they know it very well minus all the human complexities we relentlessly impose on them. My E. setter and E. pointer both handle to me-the gun, whether in super dense northern grouse/woodcock woods or on prairies even more expansive than your grouse moors. They understand what gets them what THEY most want - a bird in the mouth or in the least, positive recognition. Therefore, they also know that finding birds independent of me, gets them a rye look and, no reward. I haven't owned a whistle in 15+ years. Today, I develop various breeds of gun dogs for gentlemen/ladies that enjoy the peace and tranquility of our God-given outdoors. They walk at a comfortable pace QUIETLY with their double-gun over their arm knowing their canine partner will hold point reliably until the gun arrives AND flushes. They are then sent to retrieve to hand. ALL....sans whistle, yelling and arms flailing! There is another dynamic that most whistlers ACT unaware of. That is, whistles can be heard by birds too! ;) This puts the dogs at a distinct disadvantage when hunting wild bird species, regardless of the excuses offered. I thank you for bringing back the memory of how breath-taking a grouse moor is, and for letting us observe your stunning Irish setters!
Trialling and hunting are different diciplines,the dogs featured in the video are trialling dogs and will likely never have "a bird in their mouths".They are never shot over as in the type of hunting you describe.The whistle is necessary to turn and stop the dog to comply with trial regulations.The "arm flailing" as you refer to it is also necessary to direct the dog as per trialling rules.Glad you enjoyed the video.
@@springerspanielful I have developed FTCh's in three venues. I've also judged many horseback trials and 2 Championships. I no longer trial these days. I'm not sure why there has to be 2 different disciplines? It doesn't serve the dog, nor does it serve the owner so....why? The rules are the rules and dogs are MOST comfortable understand that - no grey areas. I'm curious. Why do folk that "hunt" think there is no need to have an entry level trained dog?
