Rocky (Affinity I Love Rock N Roll), one of Robin Sonsteby's Irish Red and White Setters, demonstrates that the breed's color makes them stand out from the background whether there is snow on the ground or fall color on the trees. Photo by Richard Westley Wong

If you ask the owners of Irish Red and White Setters, the latest sporting breed to receive full recognition from the American Kennel Club, what makes these dogs special, almost uniformly the answer is, "They are natural pointers." Many say their dogs have earned a junior hunter title with absolutely no training at all and never having had any exposure to birds prior to the time they started running in the tests.

Anyone who has ever trained a pointing dog for the hunt test program would probably agree that yes, indeed, a dog that can successfully pass a junior hunter test with absolutely no prior training on birds is pretty special. "This is a breed that lives to hunt," says Lee Robinson, who is a member of the Irish Red and White Setter Association board of directors and also edits the club newsletter.

"They have great ability to naturally adjust to new hunting conditions and terrain, quartering and hunting deeper in open country and staying close in heavy, thick cover.

They are also capable of hunting other types of game besides upland birds," Robinson continues. "Some of mine are great water dogs, willing to swim long distances to retrieve ducks or geese. However, you have to keep in mind that they do not have the kind of 'insulation' that a Lab or a Chesapeake has for extended severe weather hunts.

"Their white color with red markings makes them easy to track in the field. I live in New England and you need something that stands out from the natural background in the fall with all the color on the leaves or conversely, when there is snow on the ground. The only problem I've ever encountered with this breed is that they have an enormous prey drive that has to be channeled and this generally proves to be the most difficult and challenging aspect of training an IRWS."

Int. Ch. Waidman's Caoilfhion JH ("Caolin" [pronounced "Kee-lin"]), an IRWS owned by Christina Phillips, on point. The somewhat lower posture is typical of the breed.

These are "gentleman's hunting dogs," according to Judy Baumgartner, who owns Ch. O'Dobhailien Cailin Alainn JH. "This means they hunt for you, not for themselves and it makes them easy to train for field work. They have so much natural instinct, all you really have to do is control that instinct with commands. They are natural to point so teaching commands like 'whoa' to make them stay until you flush the bird is fairly simple. You just have to be consistent so they know what you are trying to teach.

"They are pretty soft and they don't like to be made to do anything. You get further with this breed with gentle persuasion. They are very intelligent and they catch on fast. They get a lot of pleasure finding game for you. You can see it in the way they look at you when a bird is flushed. They are very proud of themselves."

Bob Devlin, who is vice president of the IRWSA, adds, "This breed has an amazingly high and intense bird instinct. Their intelligence allows them to quickly adapt to all types of upland birds and to hunt the terrain wisely. They are easily trainable even by the most novice trainer if that trainer has a solid, positive connection with the dog.

"They respond to changing voice inflections and positive reinforcement for behavior.