Home Forums Birds & Dogs Hunting Dogs Any English/Llewellin setter owners here?

Just wondering. I have a few questions.

Yep.

'nother one here.

Got a pair of litter mates, male & female.

Not directly, but my uncle has about 20 and a cousin about 50 of them. If the others can't help you I can get you in touch with them...

Thanks for the responses, gentlemen.

What I'm going to be looking for (after my current aging Lab passes on) is a very easy-going, fairly close-hunting dog. I do NOT want a high-strung one, even when hunting. I like 'em to trot and sniff and work out ahead of me, not boomerang back and forth from one side of the field to the other. Will be used mostly on southern quail.
What I want is a family pet and everyday companion that likes to hunt now and then.
So, would an English Setter be a good dog for me, and, are there any particular breeders/kennels that are known for the kind of dog that I'm looking for.

You have a variety of options available given that you want a close working dog. These range from pups to fully trained dogs and from the ridiculously expensive to free to a good home. I can tell you that the free to a good home are often very serviceable trained dogs that just couldn't cut the range requirements of their owners. Most of the time, these dogs won't be sold, they'll be sterilized and given away. I'll PM you with a couple of options that I know of if you have any interest in that.

As far as English Setters go, you will not find a more easy going family companion. They are loving, gentle creatures. I highly recommend them.

I have first-hand experience with 1 (one) Llewellin. I have been happy with her in the field. I paid to have her trained as I didn't have the time / experience to do it myself, and didn't want her screwed up beyond repair. I will buy another when she's gone. That said, my wife refers to her as the 'psycho setter.' She's been good with family members but more than a little skittish around strangers and seems to have a hard time learning to chill out at home (she's now 4). She periodically becomes un-house-trained for 2 to 3 days at a time at random times. According to my trainer, this is not unusual (or usual) with this breed. With respect to a previous post...I periodically (say, once a year) see English Setters listed as 'free to good hunting home' from folks who wanted a field trial dog but got one that's not quite good enough after 3 or 4 years. A couple of people I know who have gotten dogs like this were very happy with them - they're generally well trained and good hunters but aren't stylish enough or don't have the right range for field trialers (the dogs - not the people).

Yep...

I now have 5 Llewellins...one very old and grand Ms. Scarlet, her son and daughter, and her grandson and grandaughter, now 6 1/2 months old.







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Hmmmm, I don't like the sounds of that at all. I certainly don't want a skittish dog....and becoming un-house-trained on occasion would get us both thrown out.
Is the "skittishness" a typical breed characteristic?

Nice crew you've got there, safari.

Huntaria, PM sent.

I don't claim to have all the answers, but the unhouse training thing is a new one on me. I've owned/bred well over 100 setters and I've never heard of one becoming unhouse trained unless there is 1) a dog is going well over 8 hours without getting out, 2) there is a health issue or 3) another, strange dog, has marked its territory. Doesn't mean there aren't other issues, but that's been my experience.

Most house dogs are a bit skittish of strangers. The same dogs I've seen bark and back up upon entry of my childrens' NEW friends are bold in the field. (And, this barking is not the aggressive baring teeth kind either.) Having said that, once these kids come over a few times, the dogs are very friendly.

But, dogs aren't robots either. They all have their own personalities and quirks. Some dogs are more bold than others. Some are more intelligent than others too. That's why its important to examine the blood lines of any dog you would buy. But even then, if the parents were the Einsteins of dogdom, you could wind up with Albert's slower brother. And, that is why that occasionally you get a close working dog from a grouse or horseback line.

If I was not a waterfowling nut job that would be the dog I would have.. Great looking mutts....

In 50+ years of bird dogs and training them I find the Llewellins about the most tractable and easy to train. The males have been easier than the females, however. I have no answer for that.

These dogs are the most loving I have ever encountered, and they are usually very social and sociable. They are sometimes shy of strangers, but none have ever been aggressive. They make good pets who hunt, but carry scissors. They pick up burs and weeds in their coats.

Ms. Scarlet was giving me a welcome kiss after my surgery and hospital stay...woke me up and NEEDED attention.

I had one for 12 years (passed away now). My wife said "not another setter" after that. They are great around kids and good dogs, but it took ours 12 years to calm down. We have a lab now, but I still want another setter.

I've never had that problem. I suppose it depends on the bloodline, but I've seen more nervous Labs than Setters. In fact, IME, Setters and Pointers are more agreeable dogs than any other bird dog. And, I do love all bird dogs and have owned nearly every breed (this side of Clumbers).

Besides, I posted this in another thread, but, well. . .

Love mine but they are not close working.

They are a fine looking pair. Do you know their bloodlines?

I'm looking for that "calm" bloodline. Any tips?

Well, I guess we need to define "calm". I would be the first to admit that what I call calm, some might call hyper. I've lived with bird dogs (and always a Setter in the group) for 47 years now, so I'm pretty used to their behavior. Having said that, I have seen some dogs that I genuinely believe to be ADD/ADHD. The worst I ever saw was a Weimaraner and the second worst was a Lab. Both these dogs would literally foam at the mouth to go out.

You might as well expect your pups to chew everything they can for the first 12 to 18 months. Make sure they have plenty of excerise daily. So long as they are excercised, I've not had too many problems. Keep any hunting dog cooped up too long, they will get hyper. I will also tell you that I have great places for my dogs to run, so keeping them excerised is not a problem for me. I own a farm that adjoins several thousand acres of state forest.

Most bird dogs will bark at a mouse fart. They have highly tuned senses, so you need to be able know the difference between when they're barking at a two or four legged critter. Other times its just a weird sound. I get on my dogs pretty hard when they're barking at the wind.

All my dogs are out of field trial lines. They are largely Ghost Train/Jet Train/Grouse Ridge stock. I think the Grouse Ridge stock helps in the very sweet temperment of the dogs I own. The dog in the picture above is a son of Super B and grandson of Star's Misty Ghost both National Grouse Champions and his uncle Huntaria's Niklas Ghost was a NSTRA winner. He's as nice a dog as they come. He'll jump in your truck and lay down until you reach your destination. He minds like a baby too. On the other hand, my avatar is the granddaughter of John's Miss Mollie, a horseback setter. She's very no nonsense and is very biddable. While she's not excitable or hyper, she'll be the last to want to sit in your lap.

Interesting. I agree with you that these are hunting dogs and they need exercise. I just don't want CRAZY.

Grouse Ridge out of Oxford, NY is near by, but I have never investigated the dogs. If this is the same breeder, I think that I will stop by.

Thanks.