Health Issues Concerning Irish Setters

PRA - Or Progressive Retinal Atrophy is blindness in dogs. This is a very rare genetic condition. In dogs, it will show up well before the puppy is 6 weeks old. While there is a lot of hype being generated by those who make a lot of money pushing these tests, the condition is so rare that it is a waste of money having your dog tested for this condition. Most breeders do not let there puppies go before they reach 8 weeks of age anyway, by that time the condition would have manifested itself. Don't bother to have your dog tested if it over 6 weeks of age because this test is total waste of money. The best advice is to stick with such Irish Setter lines as the Wendover Irish Setter line, a British line or the Smyth line, the famous American line and you can be assured that the dogs from these bloodlines are free of this disorder. These breeders have been breeding Irish Setters for many years and their bloodlines are known to free from this genetic condition. Reports from new owners purchasing from these well established bloodlines have run tests on their dogs and found them to be free from this condition. So no need for you to worry about PRA when dealing with these famous bloodlines.

Hip Dysplasia & OFA - This stands for Orthopedic Foundation for Animals. When someone says that their dog is OFA, it means that they had the hips x-rayed for arthritis. Some breeders imply that since their breeding stock was examined for arthritis and received a good rating that the offspring will in some way be free of the disorder. Because the parents of your puppy have a good OFA rating does not guarantee that your puppy will not come down with hip Dysplasia or arthritis of the hips. Dogs, used for breeding, that pass the OFA standards when they are 2 years old may come down with hip Dysplasia when they are old and no longer producing puppies.
The condition is believed to be brought on by poor health styles such as improper exercise, improper proper nutrition and improper calorie intake. There are many instances where dogs fail the OFA standards, but do not show any signs of hip dysplasia and can run jump and carry on as usual. While other dogs that "pass" the OFA standards have severe arthritis and are lame and unable to run and jump and play.
If you dog doesn't show any signs of lameness, save yourself a few hundred dollars and don't bother with this test. With the money you save buy your dog some proper nutritious food and perhaps put up a fence in you backyard so your dog has a place to exercise since improper exercise can lead to hip problems. Also avoid having your dog do jumping feats over a height of 2 feet before the dog is 2 years of age to avoid injury to the hip joints, which can lead to hip problems when the dog gets older.

Bloat - Sometimes called Gastric Dilation Volvulus or GDV is a very serious medical condition in larger deep chested dogs including Irish Setters, German Shepherds, Great Danes, Doberman, Afghan Hounds, Akita, Collie, Golden Retrievers, Labrador Retrievers, Dachshund, Rottweiler, Boxer, German Short haired Pointer, Bloodhounds, Pekingese, Newfoundland, Bull mastiff, Chesapeake Bay Retriever, Airedale Terrier and others. Bloat can kill you pet in less than an hour. In GVD the stomach twists and distends, often rotating 90° to 360°. This condition acutely affects key veins in the abdomen and will cause the failure of essential body systems. Symptoms include distended abdomen, unproductive attempts to vomit, extreme restlessness or anxious, hunched up appearance, heavy drooling, foamy mucous around the mouth or vomiting of foamy mucous, whining, heavy panting, collapse, weak pulse, and other symptoms may be present as well. If you feel that your dog is coming down with bloat get your dog to a veterinarian as soon as possible. A veterinarian can perform a gastropexy, where he will stitch the stomach to the abdominal wall.

Finding An Irish Setter Puppy

Looking for a Irish Setter puppy for Sale? A good place to start would be at a Irish Setter club such as ISCNW AKC Irish Setter Breeders. This Irish Setter Club lists members with Irish Setters puppies for sale at the current time. Other clubs include clubs like Irish Setter Club of America.

Finding a good breeder with quality hunting AKC Irish Setter Puppies for sale can be quite a task.

One of the country's oldest and most experienced professional Irish Setter breeder is Traditional Irish Setters ~ Bird Dog Breeders . This breeder is known world wide for their excellent line of hunting dogs. They also carry a line of show dogs. They have been in business for many years and produce top quality Irish Setters. Their Irish Setters are know for their hunting ability and they also make good pets because of their mild disposition.

American Irish Setter Breeders

Below is a list of Irish Setter breeders in the United States, who will deal with the general public. These breeders have Irish Setter puppies for hunting, pets, or show. Check with individual breeders for more information on their dogs.
Cavour Show Irish Setters Home Page A New York breeder of the show variety of Irish Setters - used for pets and show purposes. Located New York, Ny. Also Serving Pennsylvania Pa, Maryland, Ohio, Kentucky, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Virgina, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Indiana, and Michigan. Sunnydale Irish Setters A California breeder. Aaron Irish Setters - AKC Irish Setter Breeder A Illinois breeder of field Irish Setters located at Chicago, Ill.

Pricing Irish Setters

Most Irish Setter show dogs sell for about $1200 and up, while the AKC registered hunting variety usually sell for between $600 to $800. Prices also depend on the time of year, the age of the dogs, and its blood line. Many breeders have Irish Setters for sale usually in the spring, larger more established breeders have Irish Setter puppies for sale most of the year. If the puppies are not AKC registered they are worth no more than $50. and are often advertised for free. One breeder, located in Tennessee, implied that their puppies were AKC, but buyers found that when their puppy arrived, it had no registration papers and the litter was not registered at all. They use deceptive language that implies that they will send you "copies of the parents pedigrees and AKC registration" but NOT of the Puppies'. Check with AKC (American Kennel Clug) if the breeder won't give you a straight answer on the puppy 's registration that you are buying.

When a breeder does not have their litter AKC registered it is probably because they were not given breeding rights from the AKC registration papers that they have. Often when there is a genetic defect and the dog is not intended for breeding purposes the buyer will not be given breeding rights. Puppies from such litters will often be advertised for free in local newspapers. Don't get deceived by deceptive breeders if the LITTER is not AKC registered, simply don't buy.

A good AKC registered hunting line is the Smyth line. They are excellent hunting dogs and have been reported by owner as having a very mellow temperament. This line makes for good pets as well as for hunting bird dogs.

Irish Red Setters

When you see prices of $250 to $350, these dogs usually are the Irish RED Setters, which are a crossbreed between English Setters and Irish Setters, these dogs are not purebred Irish Setters. A true Irish Setter will appear as the pictures on this site.

Pictures of Irish Setters - What a Purebred Looks Like

Irish Setters Just Playing

The Irish Setters pictured above are owned by: Smyth Irish Setters & Irish Setter Puppies. This world famous American breeder produces top quality hunting dogs for pets as well as for retrievers for the sportsman game bird hunter. This kennel is located in the USA.

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Irish Setter Health Issues - Veterinarian Information Online


Are you having medical problems with your Irish Setter puppy and need to look for answers? Perhaps its the weekend and your Veterinarian is out of town and you have a medical problem with you dog. Now the Merck Veterinarian's Manual is on line. Here is our link to the Merck Vets manual .
The Merck Veterinarian's Manual


Other Websites with Information on Irish Setters

The Energetic Irish Setter A general site about hunting and show Irish Setters explains the two lines. Irish Setters are often called bird dogs and are used for hunting. The show dog variety of Irish Setters are not usually used for hunting purposes. When you see the word "Champion Irish Setters", this usually means that the have been entered into show competitions.



We will add more information on this site about issues of health in Irish Setters sometime in the future.

Pictures on this site are copyrighted and are used by permission from the Irish Setter Breeders who own them.

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