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Irish (Red) Setter

Tell most hunters that you hunt with an Irish Setter and you're likely to get a few chuckles. Tell them you hunt with a Red Setter, and you'll likely get a few questions. Many of the sporting breeds have undergone a split into show and field lines, and it would be fair to say that the Irish Setter as a field dog was destroyed by this split and resurrected as the Red Setter in the field and Irish Setter on the bench.

Quite possibly one of the most beautiful of the sporting dogs, the Irish Setter is known for its flowing, beautiful red coat. Couple this with its fun-loving, playful and affectionate personality, and it is no surprise that this breed enjoyed huge popularity in this country. Around the turn of the century, the Irish became very popular in the show ring, and as is too often the case, became less and less successful in the field. A small group of loyalists continued to pursue the Irish as a field dog and continued registration in the Field Dog Stud Book.

It wasn't long before these FDSB dogs began to dominate AKC-affiliated Irish Setter Trials, which led the predominately-show oriented AKC owners to ban the FDSB dogs from being recognized in Irish Setter Trials. Thus an arrangement for reciprocal registration was ended and three groups were formed: FDSB-registered dogs, AKC-registered dogs and those still registered by both. Though they are still Irish Setters, the FDSB dogs are often referred to as Red Setters to set them apart from their AKC counterparts.

There are still those within the AKC ranks that campaign their setters as dual dogs, but to get a hunting Irish Setter, your best bet would be to go with the FDSB-registered dogs. Numerous attempts have been made to reconcile the differences between the two groups, and to date, the split remains.

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