SETTER DOGS. 
229 
Each of these breeds possesses its particular excellences, which are combined in experienced 
and skillful hands by careful admixtures of one breed with another. 
The Russian Setter is a curious animal in appearance, the fur being so long and woolly in 
texture, and so thoroughly matted together, that the form of the Dog is rendered quite indis- 
tinct. It is by no means a common animal, and is but seldom seen. It is an admirable 
worker, quartering its ground very closely, seldom starting game without first marking them ; 
and possessed of a singularly delicate nose. In spite of its heavy coat, it bears heat as well as 
the lighter-clad pointer, and better than the ordinary English Setters, with their curly locks. 
When crossed with the English Setter it produces a mixed breed, which seems to be as near 
perfection as can be expected in a Dog, and which unites the good properties of both parents. , 
A well-known sportsman, when trying these Dogs against his own animal, which he fondly 
thought to be unrivalled, found that the Russian animals obtained three points where his own 
Dog only made one, and that from their quiet way of getting over the ground they did not 
put up the birds out of gun-range, as was too often the case with his own swifter-footed Dogs. 
The muzzle of this animal is bearded almost as much as that of the deerhound and the 
Scotch terrier, and the overhanging hair about the eyes gives it a look of self -relying intelli- 
gence that is very suggestive of the expression of a Skye terrier’s countenance. The soles of 
the feet are well covered with hair, so that the Dog is able to bear plenty of hard work among 
heather or other rough substances. 
The Irish Setter is very similar to the English animal, but has larger legs in proportion to 
the size of the body, and is distinguished from its English relative by a certain Hibernian air 
that characterizes it, and which, although conspicuous enough to a practised eye, is not easy 
of description. 
Taking as our authority the author above quoted, in the history of the pointer, the points 
of the Setter are shortly as follows : — ‘ ‘ A moderately heavy head, but not so much so as in the 
pointer ; the muzzle not so broad nor so square in profile, the lower angle being rounded off, 
but the upper being still nearly a right angle. The eye is similar to that of the pointer, but 
not so soft, being more sparkling and full of spirit. The ear long, but thin, and covered with 
soft, silky hair, slightly waved. The neck is long, but straighter than that of the pointer, 
being also lighter and very flexible. The back and loins are hardly so strong as those of the 
pointer, the latter also being rather longer ; the hips also are more ragged, and the ribs not so 
round and barrel-like. The tail or ‘ flag ’ is usually set on a little lower, is furnished with a 
fan-like brush of long hair, and is slightly curled upwards towards the tip, but it should never 
be carried over the back or raised above the level of its root, excepting while standing, and 
then a slight elevation is admired, every hair standing down with a stiff and regular appear- 
ance. The elbow, when in perfection, is placed so low as to be fully an inch below the brisket, 
making the fore-arm appear very short. The hind-feet and legs are clothed with hair or 
‘feathered,’ as it is called, in the same way as the fore-legs, and the amount of this beautiful 
provision is taken into consideration in selecting the Dog for his points.” 
This description applies equally to the English and the Irish Setters. 
While at work, the Setter has a strange predilection for water, and this fancy is carried 
so far in some Dogs that they will not go on with their work unless they can wet the whole of 
their coats once at least in every half-hour. If deprived of this luxury they pant and puff with 
heat and exertion, and are quite useless for the time. 
It seems that the Setter is a less tractable pupil than the pointer, and even when taught is 
apt to forget its instructions, and requires a second course of lessons before it will behave 
properly in the field. Owing to the rough coat and hair-defended feet of the Setter, it is able 
to go through more rough work than the pointer, and is therefore used in preference to that 
animal, where the rough stem of the heather would work much woe to a tender-footed Dog, 
and where the vicissitudes of the climate are so rapid and so fierce that they would injure the 
constitution of any but a most powerfully built animal. 
This Dog, as well as the foxhound and harrier, is guided to its game by the odor that 
proceeds from the bird or beast winch it is following ; but the scent reaches its notrils in a 
different manner. 
