Post by DogGoneGood on Mar 9, 2009 17:26:00 GMT -5
Group: I - Sporting
Origin: Ireland
Date of Origin: 1800s
Purpose: Water Retrieval
Other Name(s): Parti-colored Setter
General Appearance:
That of a smart, upstanding, strongly built but not leggy dog, combining great intelligence and rugged endurance with a bold dashing eagerness of temperament.
Size:
Height:
Dogs, 22-24 inches (56-61 cm);
Bitches, 21-23 inches (53-58 cm).
Weight:
Dogs, 55-65 lb. (25-29 kg);
Bitches, 45-58 lb. (20-26 kg).
Coat and Colour:
Proper coat is of vital importance. The neck, back, and sides should be densely covered with tight crisp ringlets entirely free from woolliness. Underneath the ribs the hair should be longer. The hair on lower throat should be short. The forelegs should be covered all around with abundant hair falling in curls or waves, but shorter in front than behind. The hind legs should also be abundantly covered by hair falling in curls or waves, but the hair should be short on the front of the legs below the hocks. Colour solid liver; white on chest objectionable.
Head:
Skull rather large and high in dome with prominent occiput; muzzle square and rather long with deep mouth opening and lips fine in texture. The head should be cleanly chiseled, not cheeky, and should not present a short wedge-shaped appearance. Hair on face should be short and smooth. Topknot, a characteristic of the true breed, should consist of long loose curls growing down into a well-defined peak between the eyes and should not be in the form of a wig, i.e., growing straight across. The nose should be large with open nostrils and liver in colour. Teeth strong and level. Eyes medium in size and set almost flush, without eyebrows. Colour of eyes hazel, preferably a dark shade. Expression of the eyes should be keenly alert, intelligent, direct, and quizzical. Ears long, lobular, set low with leathers reaching to about the end of the nose when extended forward. The ears should be abundantly covered with curls becoming longer towards the tips and extending two or more inches below the ends of the leathers.
Neck:
The neck should be long, arching, strong, and muscular, smoothly set into sloping shoulders.
Forequarters:
The entire front should give the impression of strength without heaviness. Shoulders should be sloping and clean. Forelegs medium in length, well boned, straight, and muscular with elbows close set. Both fore and hind feet should be large, thick, and somewhat spreading, well-clothed with hair both over and between the toes, but free from superfluous feather.
Hindquarters:
The hindquarters should be as high as or a trifle higher than the shoulders and should be very powerful and muscular with well-developed upper and second thighs. Hips should be wide; stifles should not be too straight; and hocks low set and moderately bent. Tail should be set low enough to give a rather rounded appearance to the hindquarters and should be carried nearly level with the back. Sound hindquarters are of great importance to provide swimming power and drive.
Body:
Body should be of medium length, with ribs well sprung, pear-shaped at the brisket, and rounder towards the hindquarters. Chest deep but not too wide between the legs. Ribs should be carried well back. Loins should be short, wide and muscular. The body should not present a tucked-up appearance.
Tail:
The so-called “rat tail” is a striking characteristic of the breed. At the root it is thick and covered for 2-3 inches (5-8 cm) with short curls. It tapers to a fine point at the end, and from the root-curls is covered with short, smooth hair so as to look as if the tail had been clipped. The tail should not be long enough to reach the hock joint.
Gait:
Should be square, true, precise and not slurring.
Temperment:
Althought this is a gentle, faithful, attentive companion, as well as an excellent gundog, it has never become a popular house dog. It is an ideal pet for country hikers.
Life Expectancy:
12 - 14 Years
History:
Portuguese fishermen might have introduced their Water Dog to Ireland while visiting Galway. Ancestors could, however, include the poodle.
The Irish Water Spaniel is a dog of very ancient lineage, and there is evidence of Irish Water Spaniel-type remains going back as far as the 7th and 8th centuries AD. In the late 1100’s, dogs found in southern Ireland below the River Shannon were called Shannon Spaniels or Irish Water Spaniels, among other things. Specimens were given to royalty, and records document the "Water Spagnel" with "long, rough, curled hair and a tail somewhat bare and naked."
"Boatswain," the famous sire of many outstanding gun and show dogs, is often credited as having been the first of the breed as it is known today. Bred by Justin McCarthy in the 1830s, Boatswain lived to be almost 20 years old and left a clear type that was bred, exhibited, and accepted by kennel club officialdom. In 1849, the first special class for the breed was provided, and the first Westminster Kennel Club show in American shows an entry of four Irish Water Spaniels in 1877.
Sources:
Canadian Kennel Club Official Breed Standards - Irish Water Spaniel
The New Encyclopedia of the DOG by Bruce Fogle DVM page 207
AKC- Breed History
Origin: Ireland
Date of Origin: 1800s
Purpose: Water Retrieval
Other Name(s): Parti-colored Setter
General Appearance:
That of a smart, upstanding, strongly built but not leggy dog, combining great intelligence and rugged endurance with a bold dashing eagerness of temperament.
Size:
Height:
Dogs, 22-24 inches (56-61 cm);
Bitches, 21-23 inches (53-58 cm).
Weight:
Dogs, 55-65 lb. (25-29 kg);
Bitches, 45-58 lb. (20-26 kg).
Coat and Colour:
Proper coat is of vital importance. The neck, back, and sides should be densely covered with tight crisp ringlets entirely free from woolliness. Underneath the ribs the hair should be longer. The hair on lower throat should be short. The forelegs should be covered all around with abundant hair falling in curls or waves, but shorter in front than behind. The hind legs should also be abundantly covered by hair falling in curls or waves, but the hair should be short on the front of the legs below the hocks. Colour solid liver; white on chest objectionable.
Head:
Skull rather large and high in dome with prominent occiput; muzzle square and rather long with deep mouth opening and lips fine in texture. The head should be cleanly chiseled, not cheeky, and should not present a short wedge-shaped appearance. Hair on face should be short and smooth. Topknot, a characteristic of the true breed, should consist of long loose curls growing down into a well-defined peak between the eyes and should not be in the form of a wig, i.e., growing straight across. The nose should be large with open nostrils and liver in colour. Teeth strong and level. Eyes medium in size and set almost flush, without eyebrows. Colour of eyes hazel, preferably a dark shade. Expression of the eyes should be keenly alert, intelligent, direct, and quizzical. Ears long, lobular, set low with leathers reaching to about the end of the nose when extended forward. The ears should be abundantly covered with curls becoming longer towards the tips and extending two or more inches below the ends of the leathers.
Neck:
The neck should be long, arching, strong, and muscular, smoothly set into sloping shoulders.
Forequarters:
The entire front should give the impression of strength without heaviness. Shoulders should be sloping and clean. Forelegs medium in length, well boned, straight, and muscular with elbows close set. Both fore and hind feet should be large, thick, and somewhat spreading, well-clothed with hair both over and between the toes, but free from superfluous feather.
Hindquarters:
The hindquarters should be as high as or a trifle higher than the shoulders and should be very powerful and muscular with well-developed upper and second thighs. Hips should be wide; stifles should not be too straight; and hocks low set and moderately bent. Tail should be set low enough to give a rather rounded appearance to the hindquarters and should be carried nearly level with the back. Sound hindquarters are of great importance to provide swimming power and drive.
Body:
Body should be of medium length, with ribs well sprung, pear-shaped at the brisket, and rounder towards the hindquarters. Chest deep but not too wide between the legs. Ribs should be carried well back. Loins should be short, wide and muscular. The body should not present a tucked-up appearance.
Tail:
The so-called “rat tail” is a striking characteristic of the breed. At the root it is thick and covered for 2-3 inches (5-8 cm) with short curls. It tapers to a fine point at the end, and from the root-curls is covered with short, smooth hair so as to look as if the tail had been clipped. The tail should not be long enough to reach the hock joint.
Gait:
Should be square, true, precise and not slurring.
Temperment:
Althought this is a gentle, faithful, attentive companion, as well as an excellent gundog, it has never become a popular house dog. It is an ideal pet for country hikers.
Life Expectancy:
12 - 14 Years
History:
Portuguese fishermen might have introduced their Water Dog to Ireland while visiting Galway. Ancestors could, however, include the poodle.
The Irish Water Spaniel is a dog of very ancient lineage, and there is evidence of Irish Water Spaniel-type remains going back as far as the 7th and 8th centuries AD. In the late 1100’s, dogs found in southern Ireland below the River Shannon were called Shannon Spaniels or Irish Water Spaniels, among other things. Specimens were given to royalty, and records document the "Water Spagnel" with "long, rough, curled hair and a tail somewhat bare and naked."
"Boatswain," the famous sire of many outstanding gun and show dogs, is often credited as having been the first of the breed as it is known today. Bred by Justin McCarthy in the 1830s, Boatswain lived to be almost 20 years old and left a clear type that was bred, exhibited, and accepted by kennel club officialdom. In 1849, the first special class for the breed was provided, and the first Westminster Kennel Club show in American shows an entry of four Irish Water Spaniels in 1877.
Sources:
Canadian Kennel Club Official Breed Standards - Irish Water Spaniel
The New Encyclopedia of the DOG by Bruce Fogle DVM page 207
AKC- Breed History
