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Anybody have a Llewellin Setter?

9.4K views 16 replies 11 participants last post by  StarfishSaving  
#1 ·
I was wondering if anyone on this forum owns, has experience with or has seen Llewellin Setters. If so, please share :)

After an exhaustive research process we have decided this is the dog breed for us and in a few months we are getting a puppy (after the craziness of the holidays). I have a six-year-old son and a two-and- a-half year-old daughter. I already reserved our puppy, female, and have made sure we are dealing with a responsible, conscientious breeder.

My husband is also on board and everyone wants the dog, and we are excited. We want to know as much as we can about this breed. We do know the one thing this breed needs is a good amount of exercise.
 
#6 ·
A Llewellin Setter is basically a pure line of field English Setter. The split between field and show lines (Lavarack type) of the ES is fairly dramatic. A Lew/field ES may not be the very best choice for a "pet" household.

They tend to be on the soft side, but that is not always true. They can have mighty big wheels. They go like the wind and can cover great distances in a day. Then, they can wake up and do it again the next day. They are bird finding machines, and they will do that without you if they are not given an outlet for that drive.

Field bred hunting dogs typically have impossible amounts of stamina compared to their show/pet bred cousins. If the drive and energy are not accounted for, they can be hyper (in the extreme) and frequently destructive.

If somebody in the family intends to hunt with the dog--it doesn't have to be birds, but it should be somthing--then the ES is a fine choice. If you just want a sweet tempered house pet, there are better choices than a Lew.
 
#7 ·
If somebody in the family intends to hunt with the dog--it doesn't have to be birds, but it should be somthing--then the ES is a fine choice.
I agree with Marsh Muppet, but you could substitute hunting with agility, fllyball, tracking, hiking... point is, plan on doing a fair bit of exercise. Especially as a pup, 2 walks a day just won't cut it.

However, do think about joining a local pointing dog club. You don't even have to actually hunt (ie shoot birds) but your dog will get the chance to find birds in the field. It's a beautiful thing to see!
 
#8 ·
The LS we know at our dog park are already middle aged so they are very mellow. I agree that the dog will need off leash exercise in a field daily. I am a irish setter owner and I spend at least two hours a day hiking off leash in the dog park with my dog. I just spoke to a show english setter breeder recently and the show variety while bigger, is a mellow dog. Her's were just couch potatos compared to the field type. A nice thing would be to find a mix of the two. Some breeders have mixed both for a bird dog with less hyperness. Llewellin's are beautiful dogs and if your up for a few years of extensive exercising the dog daily, then it's going to be a good active family dog. The key to all setters is OFF LEASH running. Just a walk a few times a day won't cut it.
 
#9 ·
I have rescued and owned English setters for over 5 years. I have had a dozen in my house, and known a hundred more personally.

As stated, Llewellins ARE English setters, but they are a specific bloodline. Sometimes the name Llewellin is used interchangeably to mean any field bred ES, but that is a bit misleading. ONLY dogs that are registered with FDSB as Llewellins are *actually* Llewellin setters, and they must have one of the original dogs in their bloodline for that privilege.

Llewellins are not physically that much different than any other field bred setter, but because their bloodline has been kept pure they do usually have a more consistent type, whereas other field setters can come in any shape and size, really. I've know 25 lb field setters and I've known 70 lb field setters, and all of these are okay, but Llewellin setters are expected to be more or less between 35 (low end female) to 60 (high end male) range.

There is no reason that you cannot have a field bred English setter as a pet; I've done it successfully with three, several fosters, and have worked with two rescues for this breed that have successful placements all the time. There are some members of the breed that are very "birdy" and drivey, and they need a job. Substituting Flyball and the like does not always work, some of them are just BRED for birds, and that's what they want to do. My George is absolute proof of this. The dog lives, breathes, and dreams of birds. No interest whatsoever in any other activity. He can run for hours and hours without stopping. Like many setters, he doesn't know how to turn off in the field and can and will work himself to exhaustion if I don't stay on top of him.

That being said, even most of the more driven field setters have a very defined "off" switch when in the house. They are wonderful with people, exceptionally friendly, and seem to understand that there is a time and a place for work. HOWEVER, if you do not exercise these dogs at all, they are more likely to take up activity in the house, usually pacing from window to window and worrying over toys. I have seen many dogs of this breed who were underexercised come into rescue with Canine Compulsive Disorder to some degree because their drive and energy was wasted or ignored.

If you are planning to exercise and train your puppy from the get-go, I can see no reason for you to NOT have this dog. :) They *are* very soft dogs as someone mentioned but I don't see that as being a problem for most people. If you're used to GSDs or the like, you might not like a setter so much but otherwise, they're easy to work with.

Two of my friends have rescued Llewellins traced straight back to Dashing Bondhu, and related to "Hank" from the TV show "Hunting with Hank." They ended up in rescue because they were both deaf. Deafness is extremely common in English setters because of their white spotting gene (think of dalmatians) and so be prepared for unilateral or bilateral deafness, which manifests itself after the pup is a few weeks old. Many breeders have done well by not breeding dams that throw deaf pups but truthfully, it is relative to the lack of pigmentation that may appear inside their ears and that can happen with any piebald dog, regardless of family history. My Dover (who lacks pigment over most of his body) is deaf.

There are great setter mailing lists (Setters-L listserv is the biggest that I know of) and lots of great sites about Llewellin bloodlines specifically. Good luck! Welcome to setter madness ;)
 
#10 ·
That's good info, Starfish. As with any breed thread, you can see that there are no statements that are 100% true. There is only more likely, and less likely.

When I think of field Englsh Setters, I think of Grouse Ridge lines and similar types. They are smaller, lighter built, and as drivey as you'd ever want a dog to be. I tend to gravitate toward the insaniacs, though.

There are also the "dual type" setters that are very nice. They have the classic ES profile but less profuse coat than the show dogs. For the bird hunter, they don't require that you own a horse to keep up with them. Yes, I know that's not entirely fair, but we are talking in broad generalities.

Be cautious about the "Dual Setter" label. That is sometimes used by breeders as cover for the fact their dogs don't do anything particularly well. DeCoverly Kennels builds a nice one. They took over the Ryman line.

I'm a believer in the notion that the best dogs from "working" breeds are the ones that can do the work. Dogs who are tested on work don't get bred if they are stupid, skittish, hyper, or lack focus. They have to be mentally balanced and trainable or they fail. They generally need to do something like the work they were bred to do, though.

That doesn't always have to be bird hunting (in the case of the ES), but some reasonable facsimile. Some highly bred setters will not be satisfied with anything less than birds, but (as Sqeaker said) there are trials that engage the dog's drive without requiring that you slaughter gentle woodland creatures. Personally, I'm a huge fan of bird hunting and, to my way of thinking, a bloodless version of the sport seriously misses the point. Different strokes, etc.......
 
#11 · (Edited)
Wow, Starfish Saving, that was a great post! Thank you. Thank you to all who replied as well. I researched very carefully and I'm aware of the need to exercise. We actually want to go biking with our dog (with a bike attachment and of course only after our pup is 18 months so as not to stress the joints), and have a mid-sized fenced backyard, plenty of parks, including a dog park in the semi-rural area we live in. We are a fairly active family and would like to include our dog in hiking, biking, walking, tennis (fetch the ball!), fetch, bird-watching, camping, etc. Our kids are energetic and it's not unusual for me to spend three hours at the park working out THEIR energy :D

That said, I have informed the breeder (who's a great example of a good breeder -- performs all the genetic testing, took in a number of dogs back from people who couldn't keep them after losing their house, has an extensive socialization program, etc. etc.) that I wanted a pet, and to help me pick the laziest, calmest pup in the litter. I trust her, as she has a lot of experience and I've been in touch with her for over a year now regarding her dogs. She has also given me references of people who own her dogs as pets, not as hunters, and I was able to contact them and received very favorable reviews. Yes, they need to run, but other than that, they're wonderful. I'm sure she knows to pick one out of the litter who would not be such a good hunter.

Yes, our puppy is going to be FSDB registered and I, too, am in the opinion that a dog bred for work would have to be highly trainable, docile and not overly hyper.

Thanks for all the insight! I can't read enough about this breed. English Setter kept coming up constantly after all my research, but I can't deal with the excessive hair on the Laverack, the increased size and the exaggerated flews.. drooling is not my thing. No dog is perfect, but I know I can deal with only one thing: providing daily exercise. After all, it's what I do with my own boy and girl dynamos :)
 
#13 ·
I used to dog-sit for two Llewellins a few years ago. I really enjoyed them, they were great dogs. Their owner uses them to hunt but most the time they are pets and they to me seemed pretty typical of a sporting type dog. Sure, they had energy to burn but they were very friendly and weren't nearly as hyper as some of the labs I've had to deal with. They're one of very few sporting breeds I'd consider in the future.
 
#14 · (Edited)
Thanks, guys. I'm just happy I can actually contribute somewhat of a unique, informed perspective on a subject for a change, lol.

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George is my most "birdy" setter:
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Dover is deaf with CCD to a very serious degree:
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Sammy is my main man! Very laid back and mellow, as soft as they come. He was TDI but I didn't go and let his certification expire without renewal.
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#17 · (Edited)
It's called fencing: 5-6 ft welded wire, buried chicken wire attached to it, around a 3 acre fenced property owned by a coonhound showperson and hunter that she used to work her dogs. I worked for her and one of the perks of the job was being able to take my dogs who I can't trust off leash so they can run and get ample exercise :)

George has no recall once he gets more than 20 feet away and will run for miles or hours (whichever is most harrowing) if unrestrained. Sammy took 4 classes and 3.5 years of bonding and training before I could trust him off leash. He was good for two and recently he started running off again and can only be trusted in very few scenarios. Sammy came to me at 4+ years, George was 2 and is the birdiest setter I've known.