English Setter

Gentle, cheerful and attentive, faithful and very friendly- be it to members of his own social group or even towards his fellow canines- the English Setter is a dog that could easily be deemed perfect, such is the extent to which his character is good and held in high esteem.

Enthusiastic and active, playtime will be a great source of joy to this dog who loves spending time with members of his social group, and with children in particular.

Be careful to play fetching games in moderation with this dog, so as not to overly reinforce the dog's retrieving instinct- especially if he only ever functions as a family dog and never as a hunter.

His calm demeanour conceals, in reality, a very active and athletic dog who requires heaps of exercise and attention to remain fully content.

This english dog is intelligent, whether it be while hunting or in training. He quickly grasps what is required from him and takes huge pride in pleasing his owners.

This dog has a very sharpened sense for hunting, he is an outstanding pointing dog who can be a precious asset to his leader.

His advanced skills places him amongst the most commonly used Pointers in England. Moreover, he represents more than half of the workforce involved in field-trial (trials aimed at selecting the best hunting dogs).

Very sociable, the English Setter has a rather balanced personality which allows him to sniff the difference out between guests and trespassers remarkably well. Never resorting to aggressivity, if he is suspicious towards someone, he will just ignore them and avoid contact. On the flipside, once he starts trusting, it is very easy to get along with him.

Certain more suspicious breed selections produce very wary dogs. The latter personality trait is absolutely not desirable.

This dog is generally completely devoted to his owner and family. He needs attention and affection to feel good in his skin. The Laverack Setter (its breeder's namesake) would be particularly miserable if he were to be excluded from family and social life.

At times very sensitive, and exceptionally attached to his social group, the setter is not a big loner, he tends to be rather miserable during his owners' absences.

A gradual and positive conditioning to staying alone is necessary and must be implemented at home from the Setter pup's youngest age.

The absences must never be extended as this active dog could become explicit about his disapproval of the situation (barking, destruction, etc.).

Therefore, both prior to and right after his owners' absences, this English dog has to be well spent (outdoor walks) in order to have his fun and expend the large stores of energy he has. Actually, when he is home alone, some toys could be provided to keep him busy and stop him from getting bored.

As with all good work dogs, the training process is pleasant if it has been initiated early enough, so as to stop any bad habits from developing, and in order to maintain a degree of coherence throughout the dog’s life.

Particularly sensitive, positive reinforcement must be prioritised as this dog will not tolerate any form of brutality or unfounded reprimands, which would only serve to sully the master-dog relationship.

In addition to being precocious, coherent and fair, the training will have to be coupled with an approach that is as firm as it is gentle. This will ensure the best results with this pooch.

The priority is to train hailing which, contrary to what might be expected, will not be that difficult to implement with this English hunting dog. In fact, pointers are often more malleable and docile than hounds, for instance.

The English Setter's vocal manifestations are indeed present but remain nevertheless moderate, easily reined in if need be.

He can prove to be loud if he perceives imminent danger, if he is overly excited, if he does not receive all the attention that he solicits or if he is left alone for too long, for example.

At any rate, these are situations that can easily be solved if a coherent attitude is adopted by the owners, and if they meet all the dog's needs.

A born tracker, if he detects an interesting scent, this wonderful English hunting dog could in fact run away without much consideration for his owner. In this sense, teaching the dog how to be hailed as well as learning to say no to him are essential. 
              
If he lives in a garden, the fencing will have to be foolproof in order to guarantee the dog's security and stop him from being tempted to escape. Hunting dogs who run away often put themselves in dangerous situations because, hypnotically drawn towards smells and tracking, they are sometimes oblivious to their surroundings (roads, cars, etc.).

A medallion/tag with the contact details of the owner will facilitate searching for the dog if ever he goes missing.