# Is that an Irish Setter?



## Tailer'sFolks (Feb 27, 2007)

Today Tailer met 3 Irish Setters...The pic makes me think of "Which One Does Not Match the Others?"


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## GeorgiaOnMyMind (May 4, 2010)

My Georgia often gets confused with an Irish Setter. She is tall, skinny and red, I forgive the people ;-)


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## Claire's Friend (Feb 26, 2007)

Well it does kind of show why people who don't know any better, mix them up. I had Goldens for over 20 years before I ever knew of the "Field Golden".


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## Tayla's Mom (Apr 20, 2012)

That will be my Tayla.


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## GoldenCamper (Dec 21, 2009)

Easy-peasy to spot as a Golden owner. Love the old Setter in the front


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## GoldenMum (Mar 15, 2010)

Easily told by the ears!


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## Willow52 (Aug 14, 2009)

Yep, the ears give them away everytime! My Maggie was often mistaken for an Irish Setter.


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## Tayla's Mom (Apr 20, 2012)

People often as if Tayla is either a mix or an Irish Setter. They are surprised when I say pure Golden.


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## Golden999 (Jun 29, 2010)

For the past few years, I've had a zillion people come up to me while I'm walking my golden and ask if he's an Irish Setter (Actually, usually "she"- most people seem to think my dog is a girl, even though he's unaltered and loves to mark things outdoors). I was pretty surprised, because I figured I'd get a lot of "Oh, is that a Yellow Labrador?" type comments (Only actually happened once that I recall), but I never thought anyone would confuse him with an Irish Setter.

However, looking at the pictures in the OP of this thread, I get it now.  I always thought Irish Setters had much smaller heads than what I'm seeing in the photos. Seeing that their heads aren't actually that small explains a lot. A golden with reddish fur (as my golden is) could practically be considered a kissing cousin to an Irish Setter.

I've heard that an Irish Setter was one of about half a dozen breeds of dogs that were interbred to create the first golden retrievers in the 19th century. It shows! 

How's the temperament of an Irish Setter relative to a golden? Would you guys who've had experience with both consider an Irish Setter the ideal fallback if you were looking for a golden and there was a shortage or you were priced out or whatever? I remember when I was looking for my dog, I thought of Yellow Labrador as being a possible fallback option, but from that picture, maybe an Irish Setter is closer to our favorite breed.


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## Wendi (Jul 2, 2012)

Gosh, Jorgee was mistaken for an Irish Setter so often it was crazy! We would just smile and say, no Golden. They would say, I've never seen a Golden that color, to which I would reply, I'm sure you have, you just didn't know it. They run from super light to very dark red.

Funny how I use to think she was almost too dark red when she was younger and now, I think Roxxi is awfully light..lol! Jorgee was a beautiful color when she passed and because she was so red, her white face really stood out.


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

GoldenCamper said:


> Easy-peasy to spot as a Golden owner. Love the old Setter in the front


 
I agree with you, I think it's very easy to see the difference between an Irish Setter and a Red Golden. But if you aren't familiar with either breed that much, I can also see how people would get them mixed up. If you see them side by side, you definitely can the difference.

Beautiful Setters, especially the Sr., but my favorite is the Golden of course.


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## AlanK (Jun 28, 2008)

Well this is a good example why the untrained eye of the average person could possibly make a mistake. Ears are a give away. The setters legs seem to be longer. The greatest difference is the Golden is off leash....LOL


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## GinnyinPA (Oct 31, 2010)

Golden999 - my experience (limited) is that Irish setters aren't as intelligent as goldens. I think a better fallback to a golden in terms of personality is a laborador retriever. Sweet, friendly, family dogs, easily trained and a bit more mellow than goldens. 

I ran into an Irish Setter a few weeks ago that I thought must be a golden mix. The ones I remember had narrower faces. Maybe the breeding style changed over the years? 

People also often assume our Ben is female. I think it's because he is such a good looking dog, with long fluffy tail and leg feathers. He's too pretty to be male. But he most assuredly is.


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## TheZ's (Jun 13, 2011)

One of the handsomest dogs I've seen in the last few years is an Irish Setter - Golden cross (an "accidental breeding" according to it's owner). The dog is a real working therapy dog with an impressive temperament, a little more reserved than your average Golden but not high strung like many Irish Setters. 

Our Zeke was from field lines and we used to get the occasional "Is that an Irish Setter" or "Isn't _she_ pretty." Some people just don't know that much about dogs.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

I know people (through class) who own Irish Setters. IMO, a golden should NEVER be mistaken for Irish Setters or the reverse. They don't look at all alike in person. 

Setters are taller, leaner, have the longer ears and silkier coats... and at least the show ones have their heads and necks clipped. Their skulls are shaped differently. And their noses are way longer. 

And when they are heeling with their owners - they have an absolutely breathtaking movement. They float effortlessly. 

I think the only reason why people get them confused is purebred and wellbred Irish Setters are pretty rare. I never see them outside of shows and obedience comp.

And even there...

















Irish Setters = Average weight is 60-70 lbs. Lighter, the better. 25-27" tall. That would be 70lbs for a 27" dog. 

Our collie has a similar body structure under his coat. He's usually between 55 and 60 lbs. Which our vet says is perfect for him. He is also 25" and a bit taller than his little blond bro. 

















^ Those are well-bred field goldens. Two are from Topbrass. The other is from High Times. I believe their coats have been clipped for fieldwork, but I doubt their coats could ever get close to an IS coat length!

Our Sammy was most often mistaken for a IS because of his silky coat and pointy noggin and long nose, but he would have been a short and fat setter! He was barely 23" at the shoulder and between 65 and 75 lbs all his life. IF he had the Irish Setter structure, he probably should have been closer to 45 lbs!


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## Luccagr (Feb 25, 2011)

Lucca often gets mistaken for an irish setter too, cos' of the color of his coat. But I just politely tell them that no, he's a pure golden. And they usually go "Ohhh I hardly see goldens in this color. Aren't they supposed to be golden in color??"


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## Hannah's Mommy (Mar 13, 2012)

I get the "beautiful Irish Setter" thing pretty regularly, too... But Hannah is really the classic "golden" Golden. One of her dog park buddies is gorgeous old (13) red Golden, but even he doesn't really have IS features. I could see him being mistaken for one sooner than Hannah, though.

This morning we went to a different park and there was an IS playing side-by-side with Hannah for the first time. They looked nothing alike.


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## My Big Kahuna (Dec 14, 2011)

We had a red golden who was kind of tall and lanky in my doggy day care and all of my coworkers insisted he was an Irish Setter, but I knew he was a golden lol


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## MercyMom (Dec 19, 2011)

That is so cute! My Basic Obedience instructor at Mount Vernon Dog Training Club has an Irish Setter named Liam.


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