The English Setter is a medium size breed of dog. It is part of the Setter family, which includes the red Irish Setters, Irish Red and White Setters, and black-and-tan Gordon Setters. The mainly white body Coat is of medium length with long silky fringes on the back of the legs, under the belly and on the tail. The coat features flecks of colour, and the different colour varieties are referred to as belton.A gentle but at times strong-willed, mischievous gun dog, bred for a mix of endurance and athleticism, it is used to hunt for game such as quail, pheasant, and grouse. When working, the dog will hunt methodically seeking the airborne scent of its prey. It is sometimes referred to as the Laverack or Llewellin Setter as these were famous strains of the breed during the major development period in the 19th-century. Those from hunting stock are generally of a finer build and with less coat than those bred for conformation show exhibition. Generally reasonably healthy, they have an average life span of 11 to 12 years. The Kennel Club advise UK breeders to screen for Hip dysplasia (canine).

The English Shepherd is an extremely versatile breed of working dog of the collie lineage, developed in the United States from farm dogs brought by English and Scottish settlers in the 18th and 19th centuries before fancy pedigrees became fashionable around the end of the 19th century. Many farmers appreciated the breed for their versatility and not for their flash or strict conformation to a standard of appearance. These dogs were bred to do various tasks around the farm and not for show.Unlike some other herding dogs, as a breed English Shepherds have not been specialized to work one species of livestock. English Shepherds have primarily been used on small diversified farms that have a number of different livestock species, including cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, and fowl. English shepherds both herd and protect livestock.

History

Originating in northern England and Scotland, these dogs came with the first settlers to reach the American colonies. American farmers appreciated this versatile breed and used dogs to protect their farms and livestock. Quoting from Leon F. Whitney early in the 20th century (“How to Breed Dogs”, 1937, no ISBN) “It is known variously as the farm shepherd, the barnyard collie, the old fashioned shepherd, the cow dog, the English Shepherd, and other colloquial names. And while I doubt there is a more alert, trustworthy or American dog, still no breed specialty clubs have organized to push it. It is the ordinary shepherd that one sees on farm after farm throughout the country.” ( Despite the publication date of 1937 given here English Shepherds were registered as a breed before that time through UKC (1927)) and probably the defunct Southeastern Kennel Club before then. UKC also apparently had another registration going on for a type of “farm shepherd” that was separate from the English Shepherd. Many times the names were confused but at other times they were distinguished as different breeds.) All of these names as well as Farm Collie were applied to the farm shepherds of the era. As there was no breed club or registry until later, there is some dispute over exactly which name applies to which dogs. The
Australian Shepherd developed in the Western United States and may be related to the English Shepherd, as well as to herding dogs from Germany and Spain, The English Shepherd on the other hand was more common in the Midwest and East. These dogs are primarily descendants of the working farm dogs of England.As the small diversified farms in the mid-western and eastern United States dwindled in numbers, many of them replaced by larger and less diversified operations, the English Shepherd became a rare breed.

Working Life

English Shepherds are very quick to learn farm routines and will work independently with little training, but will benefit from some training and guidance. More than just a specialty herding breed, the English Shepherd is also a guardian of property and livestock, and a hunter of game and vermin on their territory. English Shepherds are also known for their ability to track and ‘tree’ raccoons and squirrels.The modern English Shepherd is best suited for farm work, but they are used for hunting, search and rescue (SAR), therapy, and as competitors in dog agility, obedience training, Rally obedience, tracking, and flyball. English Shepherds are often larger than Border Collies, but the quickest way to tell the two apart is to put them on stock. Border Collies tend to herd with a distinctive strong eye contact and a crouching stance, while English Shepherds have an upright, loose-eyed herding style. English Shepherds can work all types of stock—from the meanest bull to baby chickens. Compared to others, they are prized above specialty herding breeds for being as gentle as possible or as tough as necessary with the stock.This ability to rate their stock stems from the great empathy they have for their family and livestock. With the right upbringing, this empathy makes the English Shepherd a wonderful family dog. However, the same bossy nature which this breed excels at in keeping order on the farm can cause havoc in the local dog park where the English Shepherd often appoints himself as the leader.

Activities

English Shepherds can compete in dog agility trials, obedience training, Dog showmanship, flyball, tracking, and herding events. Herding instincts and trainability can be measured at noncompetitive herding tests. English Shepherds exhibiting basic herding instincts can be trained to compete in herding trials.

Health

Because of their medium size and the fact that they have not been aggressively over-bred, English Shepherds are generally healthy dogs, typically avoiding problems (like Hip dysplasia (canine)) that are more common in some other breeds. However, anyone contemplating getting an English Shepherd would be well advised to research the hip ratings ( or ) of the breeder’s stock as with any other breed.Recent research at indicates that, in addition to many other herding breeds, approximately 15% of the English Shepherd population is subject to the MDR1 gene mutation. Dogs that are tested positive have increased sensitivity and adverse reactions to a number of common canine drugs. A simple cheek swab is all that is needed to if the dog has this potentially life threatening condition.

The English Springer Spaniel is a breed of gun dog in the Spaniel family traditionally used for flushing and retrieving game. It is an affectionate, excitable breed with an average lifespan of twelve to fourteen years. They are used as sniffer dogs on a widespread basis. The term springer comes from the historic hunting role, where the dog would “spring” (flush) birds into the air.

The English Toy Terrier – Black and Tan is a small breed of terrier in the toy dog group.

History

The English Toy Terrier (ETT) developed from the Old English Black and Tan Terrier and is closely related to the larger Manchester Terrier. Extremely fast and agile, the origins of this alert terrier are in the world of the rat baiting, a sport popular in the cities of Victorian England where terriers were placed in a circle or pit with a number of rats and bets were taken as to which dog would kill its quota of rats in the fastest time. Small dogs were highly prized with the ideal being to produce the smallest dog still capable of killing its quota of rats in as short a time as possible. In 1848 a black and tan terrier weighing just 2.3kg named Tiny is recorded to have killed 300 rats in less than an hour. The outlawing of this sport coincided with the formation of the Kennel Club. With its elegant appearance the Black and Tan Terrier moved effortlessly into the conformation show ring. At the first ever all breeds dog show there was a very respectable entry of Black and Tan Terriers divided by weight. This weight division continued with two varieties of Black and Tan Terrier until the 1920s when they were split into two breeds, the larger Manchester Terrier and the smaller Black and Tan Terrier (Miniature). The name English Toy Terrier (Black and Tan) was adopted in 1962. Black and Tan Terriers of all sizes were exported to Canada and the USA, founding a population which was largely isolated from the European one until very recently. In North America the two sizes were also split into two breeds until 1958 when declining numbers of the Standard Manchester Terrier prompted the American Kennel Club to re-defined them as a single breed with two varieties; Standard and Toy.

The English Water Spaniel is a breed of dog that has been extinct since the first part of the 20th century, with the last specimen seen in the 1930s. It was best known for its use in hunting waterfowl and for being able to dive as well as a duck. It is described as similar to a Collie or to a cross between a Poodle and a English Springer Spaniel with curly fur and typically in a white and liver/tan pattern.Pre-dating the Irish Water Spaniel and thought to have been referred to by William Shakespeare in Macbeth, it is believed to have genetically influenced several modern breeds of dog, including the American Water Spaniel, Curly Coated Retriever and the modern variety of Field Spaniel. It is unknown if the breed was involved in the creation of the Irish Water Spaniel.

History

In 1570, Dr John Caius described the Water Spaniel. It has been suggested that William Shakespeare also knew the breed “for he mentions the `water rug’ in Macbeth. ” Furthermore, Shakespeare specifically mentions the breed in Act III Scene 1 of The Two Gentlemen of Verona when Launce says of his love, “She hath more qualities than a water-spaniel.”The breed is mentioned specifically by name as early as 1802, in Sportsman’s Cabinet, where it is described as having “hair long and naturally curled, not loose and shaggy”; the description accompanied an engraving of a liver and white curly coated spaniel. This shows that they pre-date the Irish Water Spaniel which was not developed as a breed until the 1830s. Unfortunately as the person credited with developing the Irish Water Spaniel, Justin McCarthy, left no written records, it is unknown if the English Water Spaniel was involved in its development. During the first half of the 18th century, the English Water Spaniel was used for duck hunting in East Anglia.The Kennel Club initially had a class for “Water spaniels other than Irish” as no standard was specifically set up for the English Water Spaniel and the judging of this class was described as “chaos” by Hugh Dalziel in British Dogs: Their Varieties, History, Characteristics, Breeding, Management, And Exhibition. Writing in 1897, Dalziel said of the breed, “I do not believe the breed is lost, but that scattered throughout the country there are many specimens of the old English water spaniel, which it only requires that amount of encouragement to breeding which it is in the power of show committees to give to perpetuate the variety and improve its form.” Writing in 1967, author John F. Gordon stated, “After two centuries of breeding it is now extinct. None have been seen for over thirty years.” The Curly Coated Retriever is considered to have descended from the Poodle, the retrieving setter, the St. John’s water dog and the English Water Spaniel. Records for the origin of the modern Field Spaniel are more precise and show that one of the four progenitor dogs used in creating the breed was an English Water Spaniel-English Cocker Spaniel Mixed breed dog which was registered at the time as a Sussex Spaniel due to his liver colour.

The English white terrier (also known as the English white terrier or Old English terrier) is an extinct dog breed of dog. The English White terrier is the failed show ring name of a pricked-ear version of the white fox-working terriers that have existed in the U.K. since the late 18th Century. The name “English white terrier” was invented and embraced in the early 1860s by a handful of breeders anxious to create a new breed from a prick-eared version of the small white working terriers that were later developed into the Fox Terrier, the Jack Russell Terrier, the Sealyham Terrier and later in America – the Boston Terrier and the Rat Terrier. In the end, however, the Kennel Club hierarchy decided the “English white terrier” was a distinction without a difference, while the dog’s genetic problems made it unpopular with the public. Within 30 years of appearing on the Kennel Club scene, the English white terrier had slipped into extinction. It was, however, crossbred with the English Bulldog giving rise to the Boston Terrier and Bull Terrier.

The Entlebucher Sennenhund or Entlebucher Mountain Dog is the smallest of the four Sennenhunds, a dog type that includes four regional breeds. The name Sennenhund refers to people called Senn, herders in the Swiss Alps. Entlebuch is a municipality in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. The breed is also known in English as the Entelbuch Mountain Dog, Entelbucher Cattle Dog, and similar combinations.

Health issues

Inbreeding due to the small foundation stock numbers has led to Entlebuchers suffering from congenital defects, the most common of which is Hip dysplasia (canine). Hemolytic anemia also is known to occur. Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) is also present in the breed. The National Entlebucher Mountain Dog Association (NEMDA), in collaboration with other organizations, is working to eliminate these issues from the breed through responsible breeding, genetic testing, and fact dissemination.

The Estonian Hound (Estonian language: eesti hagijas) is a scent hound-like dog breed which is the only dog breed developed in Estonia. It was bred in 1947 when the Soviet Union’s national economy ministry decided that every country in the Union must have its own dog breed.
The Estonian Kennel Union is presently working on the recognition of the breed by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale.

History

The Estonian Hound is relatively young breed that is already highly valued in Estonia, its country of origin. This breed resulted from the crossbreeding of several foreign dog breeds with local hunting dogs. The Estonian Hound’s development was announced by an ultimatum issued by the Soviet Union’s Ministry of Agriculture and Economy in 1947, which ordered every Soviet Republic to establish a local breed of hunting dogs to replace the large breeds of hunting dogs bred at that moment. These large dogs were blamed for the rapid decline of Estonia’s wildlife population; it was established that only dogs with a maximum height of 17 inches were allowed to hunt. The result was a very agile and hard driven breed that has enjoyed tremendous popularity since then: the modern Estonian Hound. After Estonia proclaimed its independence the Estonian Hound was proclaimed the country’s national dog by the new government.

The Estrela Mountain Dog is a breed of dog that has been used to Livestock guardian dog and homesteads in the Serra da Estrela of Portugal for centuries.

The Eurasier, sometimes referred to as Eurasian, is a breed of dog of spitz type that originated in Germany. It is widely known as a wonderful companion that maintains its own personality, has a dignified reserve to strangers, a strong bond to its family and that is relatively easy to train.

History

Eurasiers originated in Germany in 1960, when the founder, Julius Wipfel, set out together with Charlotte Baldamus and a small group of enthusiasts to create a breed with the best qualities of the Chow Chow and the Wolfspitz. The initial combination of the breeds resulted in what was first called “Wolf-Chow” and then, twelve years later, after crossing with a Samoyed, was renamed “[Eurasier]” (Eurasian) and recognized by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale in 1973. Nobel Laureate Konrad Lorenz obtained a Eurasier puppy from Charlotte Baldamus, Nanette vom Jaegerhof, whom he called “Babett”. He thought her character was the best he had ever known in a dog.Today, unethical breeders sometimes try to pass off a Keeshond/Chow Chow mix as a Eurasier. While they are genetically similar, these mixes cannot be classified as Eurasiers.Eurasiers are still a comparably young breed. The three Eurasier Clubs are in the German Kennel Club VDH / FCI —EKW, KZG, and ZG—therefore strongly direct and supervise breeding in Germany. A group of very dedicated Eurasier Clubs have joined together in the International Federation for Eurasier Breeding (IFEZ) in the FCI. Eurasier puppies bred according to these sound IFEZ guidelines receive an IFEZ certificate.The Eurasier breed was recognized by the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC) in 1995 as a member of Group 3 (Working Dogs).The Kennel Club announced in December 2012 that with effect from April 1, 2013, the Eurasier breed will transfer from the imported register to the breed register.

Health

Eurasiers are generally healthy dogs, though a small gene pool in the breed’s early years has led to some hereditary diseases being seen occasionally. Known issues include hip dysplasia, luxating patella, and hypothyroidism, as well as eyelid and lash disorders such as distichiae, entropion, and ectropion.