The English Setter

In 1576, Johannes Caius wrote in his treatise of "English Dogges" about a breed called the setter that originated from spaniel stock and that was used for hunting partridges and quail.  This long legged breed, unlike the spaniels of the day that sprung game for the net or the falcon, crouched or set on game to indicate its location.  The setter was born.

The English setter as we know it is attributed to Edward Laverack who bred the line true for thirty-five years, from 1790 until 1825.  This constant line breeding produced a dog that had a colour described as “blue or red belton.”  This was a white background colour flecked with black and lemon.  It is said that Laverack used the Irish setter in his bloodline but such secrets were guarded well be Laverack as with those who were to follow him.

American sportsmen favoured the English setters at the turn of the 20^th century and used them for bob white quail and prairie chickens.  Purcell Llewllin had a hand in the American breeding having claimed that Laverack, breeding so pure had created “a breed of heaviness and feather brains.”  After Llewllin’s death in 1925, thirty-three of his American strain were brought back to Britain and, as the lineage flourished it was registered as the Llewllin setter.