Do we have an Irish red and white Setter???

[Anna PIllans]

Can anyone help, we adopted Rhoan out in Gibraltar, she was originally a stray from Spain. Can you please let me know if you think she is an irish setter as we were lead to believe she is a brittany spaniel.

Many thanks

[Dee Rance]

Brittanies are all 'up front' they are heavy at the front and very small compared with setters and as Margaret said more of a brownie red/orange than the deep red of the setters, she doesn't look like an English X doesn't really have that look, too much like an IRWS..Margaret knows the colouring but perhaps she was just discarded because of being miss-marked???? She looks a real sweet heart though...so miss-marked or not YOU still love her

[Margaret Sierakowski]

IRWS are also longer in the back than Brittanys. and this bitch has more the length of a setter

[Dee Rance]

I agree, and looking at the pictures that are posted here, this is definitely a setter and NOT a Brittany as I said before maybe a miss-marked IRWS but I am SURE she IS a Setter, whatever she is she is NOT a Brittany.

[Johanna Blacklake]

Looks more like a setter than a brittany to me. BUT as long as she has no pedigree... she can be just anything. :-))

[Danica Morarova]

She is nice young lady,it doesn´t matter if IRWS or Brittanys..:)))

[Henk ten Klooster]

From looks I'd say: Irish setter.

On the basis of looks, pedigree missing a lot of our foundation stock in both varieties of Irish setters were "identified" as "pure" and entered registry like Kennel Club (UK) and Irish Kennel Club. This was the case before registries closed. Like the shower of hail Bloompat behind most of our Irish setters now. So Rhoan could enter registry in those times.

Could be Rhoan is a pup of red parents and was discarded by the breeder, just like so many must have been culled, given away non registered etc. during times people forgot about their roots.... So one of many Harry's of whom only a few were saved some becoming famous. And there are other options of course.

Maybe Anna can do some research for Rhoans origin???

[Carmel Murphy]

She is a lovely girl! Perhaps IRWS x E.Pointer? But definately not Brittany!

[Katariina Roiha]

I´d say it is an englishsetter. I´ve seen englishsetters looking like that in Norway, even the head goes for an english setter. The red patches are not so deep in colour as I would assume red and whites have.

This is an interesting discussion :)) and we never will know the truth :)

[Silvia Lindner-Rae]

She looks very cute - any idea of her age?

[Jo Ottinger]

Lovely girl

[Anna PIllans]

HI People, well thank you for all taking the time out to talk about our wee pooch. I don't think we will ever know where she came from, we lived in Gibraltar and she ran into Gb from Spain and was taken in by the RAF police dog section, we were friendly with them and after they tried to train her as a sniffer dog they gave her to us, she had ni interest whatsoever in tennis balls therfore would not make a good sniffer dog. She loves cats and rabbits though!! Apparently she was bought by someone to be used for hunting but after they found she was no good they let her go. This is what we head but we don't know if it's true. We think she is maybe two and a half as when we got her 18 months ago she has changed alot, she has developed spots and her feathering on tail and legs has come in.

I'll keep you all updated on her progress. Thanks again for all the comments.
xx

[Margaret Sierakowski]

I dont know of any IRWS breeders in Spain, or heard of any being exported to Spain. But have you spoken to Pedro Completo who breeds IRWS in Portugal? He is on Exclusively setters. He would probably know of any IRWS in Spain better than anybody else