Llewellin Setter History

In a nutshell... The Llewellin Setter is a very specific and pure line of English Setter where the earliest references to the breed's origin can be traced back to the 1500's.

In the early nineteenth century a man named Mr. Edward Laverack began breeding a line of English Setters for use specifically in the field. Over five decades, Mr. Laverack maintained his lines of Setters which became quite famous and also carried his name.

Mr. R. L. Purcell Llewellin was drawn to Mr. Laverack's dogs and so he bought some of his best stock, crossed them with the lines he had been working on and began his own highly specific breeding program of the dogs that we have come to know today as "Llewellin Setters".

Llewellin bloodlines include:

• Dashing Bondhu (= Scinn Amach = Luathas)

• Wind'em (= Machad = Cloncurragh = Advie (but >90% Dashing))

• Bomber

• Gladstone 

• Royacelle

• Blizzard

Edward Laverack

(1797 - 1877)

R. L. Purcell Llewellin

(1840 - 1925)

DNA Proof:
 

One cannot merely glance at a Llewellin Setter and tell definitively that the dog is indeed a “Llewellin” like you can with most other breeds. The proof can be acquired only through DNA testing which shows parentage by dogs that are known to be Llewellins and so forth down the line. All dogs in the pedigree must show direct ancestry to Mr. Purcell Llewellin's line of dogs with no outcrossings (pairings with anything other than a Llewellin).

Proof of ancestry is accomplished through DNA testing of the dog's cheek cells and is done at the MMI Genomics, Inc. laboratory (MMI = MetaMorphix Inc.).

"This accurate and reliable test uses state-of-the-art DNA technology, allowing canine genetic identity to be certified with a confidence of greater than 99.9%"   --MMI Genomics, Inc.

How does DNA Parentage analysis work? Click here to find out!

MMI Genomics houses the entire DNA database for all American Field FDSB registered dogs so that when a particular dog is tested, they can confirm that the sire and dam are indeed DNA matches to that offspring. This “DNA proof” is required in order to register the dog as a Llewellin. A Llewellin may “look” exactly like an English Setter, but the difference is in the breed’s history, the bloodline and the dog’s superior performance in the field.

Disposition:

Anyone who has ever owned, trained or hunted Llewellin Setters can verify that they are tops in the gun dog world. We have yet to encounter a breed which approaches the Llewellin for efficiency in the field, disposition in the home and for overall performance and temperament and here's why:

• Llewellin Setters are very possibly the best of all breeds for bird hunting. They are close working gun dogs loaded with natural instincts to hunt and point birds. After hunting with different types of setters and pointers, many foot hunting sportsmen will agree that this breed has the greatest nose of any hunting breed.

• Llewellins embody the ideal blend of strength, stamina, grace and style that together comprise the best all-around sporting breed. They seem to effortlessly leap and bound about, covering an amazing amount of ground at equally amazing speed and they don't tire easily. This breed will literally hunt until they drop, so it is extremely imperative to know your dog's limits and enforce time-outs at appropriate intervals.

• They are excellent family dogs. Unlike many other high-strung and/or aloof hunting dog breeds, these dogs are more laid back, want to be in your company and do very well around small children and in the home. They can be excitable at times, but tend to quiet down and settle in very quickly.

• Quirks: Llewellins like to chew on their feet!
• Faults:  Llewellins can tend to be incessant barkers if left outside unattended for long periods of time (also another good reason not to banish them to outdoor kennels for their entire lives). They also like to chew, so be careful about what items you leave in their company.

If you are looking for a top notch bird dog, then the Llewellin Setter deserves a long, hard look because whether you bird hunt or just need a wonderful family companion, this breed will not disappoint! 

Breed Standards:

• Height (at shoulder) - This measurement is usually between 22 and 24 inches. The Llewellin Setter bloodlines tend to be somewhat smaller than their English Setter counterparts. For comparison, English Setters bred for show should be around 24 to 25 inches in height.

• Weight - Females run between 35 to 50 pounds. Males from 45 to 60 pounds on average.

• Coat - Single-coated (no undercoat) with hairs that are soft, fine, silky, and medium to long in length. Feathering should be present on the chest, on the back of all legs, on the ears and most noticeably on the tail. Llewellin bloodlines have produced coat textures that are both smooth (flat without curl) like Duchess and also wavy like Bristol.  Shedding does occur continually, but the coat generally does not go through "seasonal" shedding periods resulting in large clumps of hair coming out all at once like you see in the double-coated breeds. More hair loss may be evident after several days out hunting in the fields as their coats are designed to pull out when running through the tall grasses so as not to capture as many seed pods, etc.

• Colors - There is a wide variety of color variations in this breed that should please just about every Setter lover out there.

Color-Type Descriptions:   Non-Belton: Usually predominantly white with colored body patches and ticking. These dogs are born mostly white and any patches of coloring will be present at birth. As the dog ages the white areas become spotted, growing darker colored hairs called ticking. Ticking begins to develop shortly after birth and the dog is usually fully ticked by the time they are 6 months of age. Heavily ticked dogs may not end up being predominantly white as adults due to the large amount of ticking present, but are still considered non-belton types due to the body patches of color which were present at birth.     Belton: Predominantly white with no body patches, only ticking.   These dogs are born completely white, but then as the dog ages the ticking begins to come in. Ticking intermingles with the white all over the body sometimes giving a roan appearance. True belton dogs have no body patches of color, only ticking.  Heavy ticking may give the appearance of more color than white.     Blanketed: Predominant body color other than white. These dogs are born mostly black or chestnut with patches of white, the exact opposite of the non-belton type. Ticking will develop within the white patches shortly after birth and will be fully colored by the time they are 6 months of age. Do not be fooled by adult dogs that appear to be blanketed, but are rather only "heavily ticked". Heavily ticked dogs were still born predominantly white, so should not be considered "blanketed", rather they are non-belton types (see an example below in the Color-Type Examples section).   Color-Type Examples: The color listed first is the predominant body color. Non Belton: (most typical) White and Black White and Orange White and Chestnut White and Lemon (Tan) Tri-colored – two varieties, white/black/tan, or white/chestnut/tan. White & Black White & Orange White & Chestnut TRI-colored TRI-Chestnut    Belton: (more rare) Blue Belton (white with black ticking) Orange Belton (white with orange ticking) Chestnut Belton (white with chestnut ticking) Tri-Belton (white with black and tan ticking) Chestnut Tri-Belton (white with chestnut and tan ticking) Blue Belton Orange Belton Chestnut Belton TRI-Belton Chestnut TRI-Belton no photo available no photo available no photo available no photo available    Blanketed: (most rare) Tri-Colored – black/white/tan Tri-Chestnut - chestnut/white/tan.   Notice the two tri-colored dogs to the left show the predominant black or chestnut markings as young pups and look relatively the same as adults other than the ticking that has filled in the white areas. These are true blanketed dogs. <==== Lucy Llew is a perfect example of a heavily ticked dog that should NOT be considered "blanketed". Both photos below are of the same dog, photo on the left is at 1 week old, photo on the right is at about 4 months old. As you can see Lucy was born predominantly white, but now looks mostly black due to the amount of ticking that she has. Blanketed TRI-Color Blanketed TRI-Chestnut

• Other traits: You will notice that most Llewellins have low-set ears which attach to the head at the level of the eyes, have "spoon" shaped feet and carry a high tail posture when pointing. When on the move, they carry their heads high and have lively tails. They are quick and swift on their feet and leap like Gazelles through tall grasses or when on the chase after small prey (namely chipmonks or ground squirrels and other small rodents.)

Health:

Overall, Llewellin Setters are a pretty healthy breed with very few genetic problems. They do not have any known specific types of cancer or eye diseases, etcetera that run through these bloodlines such as are linked specifically to other breeds.  However .

Like each individual breed of canine, Llewellins do have some known health issues which are described below:

• Canine Hip Dysplasia (CHD) – This hereditary condition in larger breed dogs has not escaped the Llewellin, but due to diligent breeding standards by the founders of the early American Llewellin lines, this disease has been greatly reduced in some bloodlines and is not as common of an occurrence as is displayed in their English Setter counterparts.  

PennHIP does differentiate between the Llewellin Setter and English Setter breeds when evaluating hip scores whereas OFA does not. For OFA, all Llewellins are grouped together with the English Setters, so it is impossible to use their collected data to accurately evaluate the overall status of rates of occurrence of the disease in Llewellin Setters. Hopefully soon, PennHIP will have a large enough database of Llewellin statistics that can illustrate the prevalence of the disease in this breed.

• Deafness – Llewellins, being part of the English Setter breed are prone to hereditary deafness. Deafness can occur unilaterally (in only one ear) or bilaterally (in both ears). The way deafness is inherited is not exactly known other than there is an association to color types. Belton dogs with less pigmentation and no body patches are more prone to deafness than non-belton and blanketed types of dogs. Deafness occurs in about 14% of the English Setter population and is even lower in the Llewellin strains. I believe this can be attributed to the fact that more English Setters are belton-type dogs because that is what they are bred for to be in the show ring and to meet AKC standards. Llewellins, being field setters and far removed from the AKC standards, are more apt to have body patches. English Setters share this health issue with Dalmations for obvious reasons.

• Atopic Eczema – Llewellins tend to have somewhat thin and sensitive skin as puppies and young adults. They seem to be more prone to skin related allergies at this age which can cause little red bumps all over the skin, intense itching and redness. The dog will usually lick and nibble on the infected areas causing larger sores. Sometimes a medicated bath will be all it will take to clear up the skin problem, others may need oral or topical medication but always consult and follow the recommendations of your veterinarian. The good news is that Llewellins do seemingly tend to grow out of this problematic skin stage, but problems may still develop infrequently in adult dogs as well.

• Ear Infections – Since Llewellin Setters have floppy ears, the ear canal does not get air flow to it like erect-eared breeds (ie: German Shepherds or Siberian Huskies).  The lack of air circulation and the warm environment of the ear canal readily aids in the growth of yeast infections which can be a common occurrence. 

TIP:  USE CAUTION when giving your puppy or adult dog a bath. Any water that should get down into the ear canal during bathing or swimming will most likely develop into a yeast infection.

Healthy ear canals will be light pink in color (the natural color of the skin)  and have relatively little to no odor and may have very minimal waxy substance.

Infected ear canals will have a lot of dark greyish or black gunk, the skin may be red and swollen, possibly warm to the touch and will give off a foul smelling odor. If you notice any of these symptoms, get your dog to the vet for a check-up right away. The infected ear canals should initially be cleaned by a professional (so as not to puncture the ear drum) and should be treated with medicated drops for a few days. Your vet may also show you how to clean your dog’s ear canals and provide you with a liquid cleaning solution in case you should notice another problem in the future.

 

Training:

Llewellin Setters can be trained to hunt any kind of upland game bird, including, but not limited to, pheasant, quail, grouse, ptarmigan, chuckkar and other partridge. Once they get the "birdy" knack, they will transition very quickly and easily to all different types of game birds making them very versatile in the field as hunters. They can also be trained to range at any distance, and this range is based purely upon an individual's preference for the type of hunting they like to do.

Llewellins are very smart and are easy to train, but it can be a tricky task due to their natural birdy instincts, because they can be very distracted in an outdoor environment. They are also a very sensitive breed and will not do well with harsh reprimand, so training must take a soft and positive approach. This breed can be easily discouraged and could suffer training setbacks due to fear if the wrong tactics are used. Therefore we highly recommend using a professional trainer that specializes in the Llewellin Setter breed.

The following are the types of training that we recommend:

• Basic Obedience - The term "basic" is used to indicate that the dog will obey simple commands such as "come", "sit", "down", "stay", etc., which are usually desired as general house manners. Attending a structured obedience class to help you to teach and your to dog learn these commands is a great way to spend time and bond with your dog. This preliminary training will serve as a great foundation for any future field training you plan to do as by that time your dog will have already been conditioned to learning.

• Gun Dog / Field Training - Even though Llewellins possess a very strong natural instinct to hunt and point birds, in order to get the perfect hunting companion, the dog must first learn to be obedient in the field, then be conditioned to the gun, and also learn the desired responses to our field commands to ultimately perform the way they are asked to. The Llewellin does not need to be taught “how to hunt”, they only need to be taught “how to respond” to the owner’s commands. Once that perfect blend of natural instinct and obedience is achieved, hunting with a Llewellin will be a highly enjoyable experience.