How does the English Setter work in the field?
The English setter is a bird dog that ranges open ground to find game and holds it on point. It is not normally used to retrieve.
The English setter is a bird dog, bred to find game on open ground. It quarters wide at a gallop with its head high, catching scent on the wind, and when it finds birds it sets: freezing on point, often low and intense, until the guns are in position. Unlike an HPR such as the German shorthaired pointer, a setter is not normally expected to retrieve; its job is to find game and hold it for the guns. In Britain English setters are worked mainly on grouse moors and in the spring and summer pointer and setter field trials. Working-bred setters differ greatly from show-bred dogs, so look for parents with field trial or moor experience.
What is the English Setter like to live and work with?
Gentle, friendly and affectionate, and pleasant to live with. It can be independent when it catches a scent.
English setters are gentle, friendly and affectionate, with a sweet nature that makes them pleasant to live with. They are usually good with children and other dogs. They can be independent and easily distracted by scent, and some are sensitive, so they respond best to calm, patient handling. Working setters have huge stamina and need a great deal of free running, but at home they are usually calm once that need is met. Look for parents that are confident and friendly, and that run with drive while still responding to their handler at a distance.
Which health tests matter for the English Setter?
Both parents should have hip and elbow scores and a current eye certificate. Ask about BAER hearing tests and the DNA test for NCL.
Ask for both parents' hip scores and elbow grades under the BVA/KC schemes, and a current eye certificate under the BVA/KC/ISDS Eye Scheme. Congenital deafness occurs in the breed, so ask whether the parents, and ideally the litter, have been hearing tested with a BAER test. A DNA test is available for neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis, a fatal neurological disease; it is inherited recessively, so a puppy is not expected to be affected by the tested variant when at least one parent has a reliable clear result. The breed clubs keep an up-to-date list of recommended tests, so ask which have been done and see the certificates. Results for Kennel Club registered dogs can be checked on the Kennel Club's Health Test Results Finder. Our guide to buying a working gundog covers the other checks to make.
How much training and exercise does the English Setter need?
Control at a distance: the stop and turn whistles, steadiness on point and dropping to flush. An adult needs a great deal of free running.
Setter training centres on control at a distance: a reliable stop whistle and turn whistle, steadiness on point, and dropping to flush and shot. Many handlers teach the basics at home and then bring young dogs on with experienced setter handlers on the moor, where there is room to run and birds to find. Setters mature slowly and should not be rushed, and a calm, patient approach works far better than pressure. An adult working setter needs a great deal of free running each day. The feathered coat needs brushing several times a week, and ears, legs and feet should be checked for burrs and seeds after work.
How long does it take to train the English Setter?
For the English Setter, readiness for the intended role matters more than a birthday. Check demonstrated foundations, physical suitability and the support needed for the next stage.
Early learning includes socialisation, recall and an introduction to open ground. After comfortable everyday foundations, the young setter learns the stop and turn whistles and begins to range and quarter, and its natural set is allowed to develop on birds. With reliable foundations, it is steadied on point and taught to drop to flush and shot, often alongside experienced dogs on the moor in spring and summer. To start at the beginning, look at the English setter puppies for sale. Use the training progression guide to discuss readiness with a reward-based trainer. Ask your vet about physical demands, and plan game, water and gunfire introductions with competent help.