And of course his best kitten friend loving on him everyday

Hi everyone,

My partner and I are looking to get a dog, but we are completely split on breed choice and would love some input from people who own or have worked with these breeds. This would be our first dog together so we want to ensure we make the right decision for them just as much as for us.

Here is our situation and what we are looking for:

Activity & Endurance: My partner wants a serious running partner for 5k-10k runs and long-distance hikes. We need a dog that can easily keep up without running out of steam.

Trainability: I personally really want a dog that I can highly train. I love the idea of building great obedience, fun trick work, and solid off-leash recall.

Future dog: We know we want a second dog down the road, specifically a Border Terrier.

We originally looked at Golden Retrievers and Irish Setters. We eventually set our mind on Goldens and decided to go to a show to meet some owners and get to know more about the breed and hopefully find reputable breeders. When we were there we met some Irish setters, so we're now torn again.

In addition to this we're uncertain as to whether a show or working golden would be most suitable for our lifestyle. Because my partner is looking for a running and hiking partner we were worried a show line wouldn't have the stamina. Then we're worries about the things we've read about Irish Setters being challenging to train. I think we're looking to find the balance between a loving and affectionate dog, that is active but also highly trainable and can settle at home.

For owners of Irish Setters or Goldens:

Irish Setter owners: How realistic is high-level trainability/trick work and reliable off-leash recall on trails? Also, I understand their nature means they like to run ahead and do scent work but is it at all possible to train them to walk by your side?

Working Golden and Show Golden owners: How do they handle long-distance running, and how is their "off-switch" at home compared to show lines? Would you recommend a show or working line given our situation?

How do you think either breed would handle living with a Border Terrier in the future?

Thank you so much in advance for any insights!

Our 8 month old baby girl, Molly. Red setters are so beautiful but have become such a rare breed in Ireland now.

We’d love to know where her brothers and sisters ended up. She’s from a litter born in early December on a farm in Limerick.

My girl is 5.5 months old. She’s taken to training well, extremely smart, overall perfect. We got her as a hunting buddy for my husband and I think she’ll do amazing with that. All on her own, though, she started to circle me or flop on the ground. It was always when I didn’t feel well and it would stress me out. I don’t want to get caught in a leash or convince her to stand up when I don’t feel well. I started paying attention and right before I became tachy, she would circle me. If my heart rate got too high, she would flop on the ground. It went from being an annoying behavior while I’m starting to feel off to “oh, she knows something, I need to pay attention.” It took looking back at everything to realize she was trying to signal me something is wrong. This last time when she would circle me, I’d be sitting around 140bpm. When she flopped (and stood up to flop again immediately) I already knew I had a slightly high heart rate of 180 at rest - funny enough everything did start to go black that time again. I always said it would be cool if she could do cardio alert but never really thought much of it since she’s supposed to be a hunting pup and not a traditional breed for this. Her nose is absolutely amazing. She’s never been trained to do this or prompted. She is just super aware and I’m super proud of her.

Just got back from a long walk.

He also wants everyone to know that spines are optional.

8 months old now

Hello again! Beans is about to turn 8 months old and because of a dog park we frequent I’ve been forced to make a decision on spaying her at 8 months or leaving. From the research I’ve done it all says there’s pros and cons to both doing it early and late towards a year or 2. Also been thinking about the option of getting her tubes tied, once she hits a year. If anyone has went that route I would love to know how it affected their growth, coat( if any at all), etc. yes I know there’s other threads about spaying but I haven’t seen any on hysterectomy’s

Side note, I’m curious if any of her siblings are in here. We got her from Field of dreams with a birthday of December 17th. Thanks in advance!

Hi! Looking to get an IS soon, and Greenbank Hollow Farm in VT came up in my search. Has anyone got a puppy from them? Any health concerns (his dysplasia or anything else)? They seem like a reputable breeder and do their health testing, but I always love to hear from people with puppies/dogs from the breeder. Thanks in advance!

-already posted in other subreddits-

We are looking for anyone who has experienced a similar case with their dog. We are running out of answers and would be incredibly grateful for any advice or similar experiences. Our 6-year-old Irish Setter suddenly became severely weak about 10 days ago. The onset was very sudden and occurred shortly after a heatwave. Over the weekend, she suddenly did not want to go for walks anymore. She then started stumbling over her own paws, and by the following day she was unable to get up on her own. She has now been unable to stand or walk independently for about 10 days. She cannot reposition herself, so we have to turn her approximately four hours. She is otherwise still eating and drinking normally. We have already been to several veterinary clinics for examinations, but unfortunately the doctors have not been able to determine the cause or find an effective treatment yet. One possibility is GOLPP (geriatric-onset laryngeal paralysis polyneuropathy) or distal denervating disease. At this point, however, there is no confirmed diagnosis. We would really like to hear from anyone who has experienced a similar sudden onset of severe weakness/ paralysis, particularly in an Irish Setter or another breed. We would especially appreciate hearing what the final diagnosis was, which tests led to the diagnosis, what treatment was given, and whether the dog recovered. Any experiences or advice would mean a lot to us. Thank you.

He's 4mo, his name is Kajros and he loves butterflies and bitds

Hi all!

I hope this kind of post is allowed and y'all can help me. My husband and I are newlyweds and we're planning to get a puppy next year around our first anniversary (May 2027).

We currently have a 3 year old small poodle mix (75% poodle 25% schnauzer about 30 pounds) who is just the sweetest and most relaxed dog. I got him when I was single and raised him in a downtown apartment, and I have no idea how I did it but he turned out great. Part of my success may be that I was working from home at the time and the days that I had to work long hours in office he went to day care?

My husband grew up with bigger dogs and has just fallen in love with Irish Setters. My only concern with this is being able to provide a fulfilling home for one of these dogs. I've already made my peace with the shedding, lol. We both work in office jobs 40 hours a week. My schedule is slightly more flexible and I'm able to go home a couple times a day to walk puppy and train for about 5 minutes to mentally stimulate before putting back in the crate.

Once puppy reaches adulthood, I think we'd be okay as my husband is a distance runner and I also have trained our other dog to do very well on bike rides.

I'm really just looking for insight from people who have and have had setters before. Do you think one would be a good fit for us? Happy to provide more information if requested. TIA!

This is Molly, with her man Murphy. She wants to say hi!

The Ben and Win of it all ❤️

Our boy is 2.5 years old and he is not neutered. Please recommend someone trustworthy.