Those smiling Irish eyes… what’s behind them? Why do they engage us with their charm and enticing sense of humour? That intriguing look is the same one we see in the beautiful dogs of Ireland. But who are they? What is their homeland history and when did they come to Canada?

Nine breeds are recognized as the Dogs of Ireland: the Irish Wolfhound, Irish Red and White Setter, Irish Red Setter, Irish Water Spaniel, Kerry Beagle, Irish Terrier, Kerry Blue Terrier, Glen of Imaal Terrier and Soft-coated Wheaten Terrier.

The Irish Wolfhound can be said to embody the history of the dogs of Ireland. While Irish dogs have made history, history has made the Irish Wolfhound. This breed is closely connected with the Celts. Hunting and fighting filled the lives of these early Irish, and master and hound alike excelled on the hunting ground and battlefield. In 1863, an Englishman, Capt. George Augustus Graham, is said to have saved the breed from oblivion and created international interest. Graham is reported to have collected the pedigrees of 300 Wolfhounds. He founded the Irish Wolfhound Club and is credited with inducing The Kennel Club to recognize the breed. In 1902 the Irish Guards adopted the Wolfhound, Rajay of Kindna, as their mascot and from then on have never been without one. The first Irish Wolfhound registered in Canada was Leprichaun (sic), in 1889. He was bred and owned by a Miss Hendrie of Hamilton, Ont.

The Irish Red and White Setter is probably the ancestor of the Red Setter. There were few whole-coloured setters when Ireland once boasted a number of kennels of Red and Whites, which were considered more hardy than their red progeny, and more clearly visible in the bogs of the Irish countryside. However, popularity of red setters eventually overcame the Red and White. The breed was revived in the 20th century thanks to the efforts of the Rev. Nobel Huston of Ballynahinch, Country Down, who mated his half red/half Red and White-bred bitch ‘Gyp’ to ‘Johnnie,’ and later to Glen of Rossmore. Most of the Red and Whites today can be traced back to those dogs.

Gail Harrison of Caniscaeli Reg’d in Ontario brought the breed to Canada in 1992 with her U.K. import, Hawklawn Silver Sixpence. The Irish Red and White Setter was recognized by The Canadian Kennel Club in 1999.

The Irish (or Red) Setter is without a doubt the most recognizable of the Irish breeds. The theory that this good-natured dog is descended from the Red and White Setter is convincing, although some people believe that red and red-and-white dogs existed side by side throughout Ireland. One of the oldest strains of Red Setters belonged to the O’Connor family, founded by Nugent O’Connor at the end of the 18th century. The Earl of Enniskillen bred Red Setters as far back as 1796, and according to Rural Sports, published at that time, “A gentleman in the North of Ireland, had given for a dog and a bitch of this kind, the renewal of a lease of a farm for 999 years.”

The Irish lines came to America in the late 1800s, mostly via Dr. Wm. Jarvis of Claremont, N.H., who brought in bitches from the Palmerston line. An outstanding feature of ‘Palmerston,’ who was bred by Cecil Moore in County Tyrone about 1864, is what is known today as the “Palmerston snip.” This small white line of hair on the head crops up in almost any line today. Palmerston’s mounted head was a fixture in the lobby of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York until 1918 when it was given to the Irish Setter Club of America. In 1889, ‘Bones,’ bred by Thos. J. Egan of Halifax and owned by J.S. Robertson of Montreal, became the first Irish Setter registered with The Canadian Kennel Club.

The Irish Water Spaniel, often called a “Whiptail,” evolved with great mystery in its native Ireland. The view generally held by canine historians is that an Irishman by the name of Justin McCarthy was responsible for developing the now-recognized breed type in the 1830s. His own famous dog ‘Boatswain,’ who lived to be 18, is thought to be the key stud dog that defined the IWS as we know it today. I subscribe to the theory that prior to 1830, ships of the Spanish Armada that sailed against England in 1588 had Spanish and Portuguese Water Dogs on board. At the breaking up of the Armada off the west cost of Ireland, some of those dogs swam ashore and crossed with the local breeds, and I speculate that these crosses led to the dog developed by McCarthy and the Irish Water Spaniel today.

The Fynder Kennels in the U.K. belong to Pepi Barrington, whose family has been breeding Irish Water Spaniels in Ireland since the 1830s. Her grandfather, Sir C. Burton Barrington Bt., kept a well-known kennel on his Glenstal Castle estate, County Limerick.

An Irish Water Spaniel named ‘Drake’ was one of the first dogs registered by the CKC in 1889. He was owned by J.W. Winnett of London, Ont., and bred by “Leys,” also of London, Ont.

The foxhound-sized Kerry Beagle is said to have evolved from the Celtic Beagle, which started the hunt by locating game by scent, before the more powerful hounds were released for the final chase and kill. The first recorded pack was listed at a kennel at Scarteen, and dates from 1798. The famous “Tha ryan” (1760-1843) left pedigrees dating back to 1794. The black-and-tan Scarteen pack of Kerry Beagles is therefore the oldest recorded pack in Ireland and represents the backbone of the breed. The Kerry Beagle almost became extinct in Ireland; however, with interest in native breeds growing, there are now a good number of fine packs of Kerry Beagles hunted throughout rural Ireland.

Many specimens came with Irish immigrants to the U.S., where they contributed to the Trigg strain of American Foxhounds, as well as the Black and Tan Coonhound. The breed is unsponsored by any formal dog organization, even in its homeland.

Welsh, Scottish and Irish Terriers had their foundation in the wire-haired black-and-tan working terriers found throughout the British Isles, according to F.M. Jowett in The Irish Terrier. Some believe that the Irish Wolfhound helped give the breed its long legs.

Generations of Irish families kept terriers as gun dogs and to destroy vermin. However, dog writer “Stonehenge” (J.H. Walsh), writing in 1887, showed his contempt for all things not inherently British with his refusal to believe that the Irish Terrier was distinct from the “old Scotch terrier.”

The Irish Terrier, also called the “Daredevil,” was first shown in Dublin in 1875 and has since become a recognized breed of worldwide reputation. The first Irish Terrier registered in Canada was ‘Rock,’ in 1889, bred by D. O’Shea of London, Ont., and owned by W.J. Watson, also of London.

The Kerry Blue Terrier has much folklore surrounding its origin. There is rumour that toward the end of the 18th century, a ship was wrecked at Tralee Bay and a blue dog swam ashore, mated with native bitches and became the ancestor of the breed. Others believe that Bedlington Terriers, Irish Wolfhounds, Bull Terriers, Bulldogs and Irish Terriers were used to develop the breed as we know it today. Whatever its origin, this terrier is definitely a jack of all trades.

It’s not surprising that a law imposed by King William III in 1698 – that only persons owning a freehold estate with a yearly value of at least £140 or an independent personal estate of £1,000 “shall keep any hound, beagle, greyhound or land-spaniel” – encouraged Irish farmers to adopt a versatile terrier that could herd sheep, destroy vermin, guard the house, assist in retrieving fowl, and be an excellent family companion.

The Kerry Blue Terrier was first registered in Canada in 1925. Ch. Castletownroche Paulus had been imported by Charles Calhoun of Toronto from a Miss Barry of England.

The small, tough Glen of Imaal Terrier orig-inated in County Wicklow, where they were kept for badger baiting and fox hunting, as well as for fighting other dogs. Many long-time residents of Wicklow today remember their fathers and grandfathers keeping the breed and suggest that their appearance has changed little over the years.

The breed did not gain a foothold on this side of the pond until the early 1980s when several breed pioneers imported foundation stock from the U.K., Ireland and Finland, and founded the Glen of Imaal Terrier Club of America. The breed was recognized by the Irish Kennel Club in 1934, and by the AKC in 2004.

The Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier is closely related to the Irish and Kerry Blue Terriers. Although there is little early data about the breed, wheaten terriers are said to have been kept for generations in Ireland on farms where they were used for droving, herding, guarding, and destroying vermin, and with their master, enjoying a day’s shooting in the field. During the last century, the Wheaten was fairly common in the Munster Counties and many typical specimens were found in Tipperary, Cork, Waterford, Limerick and Kerry.

This breed was first introduced to North America in the early 1960s and gained official recognition by The Canadian Kennel Club in 1979. Most of the early dogs were imported into the United States, then subsequently into Canada. The first Wheaten registered with The Canadian Kennel Club was Briarlyn Allegro, in 1978, imported from the U.S. by Mrs. Lee Link.

Former Prime Minister William Lyon MacKenzie King referred to his Irish Terrier ‘Pat’ as the “truest friend I ever had.” When his dog was dying, he cancelled a cabinet meeting to be at his country estate, Kingsmere, so he could sing to his dog. King wrote, “I sang aloud to him… Safe in the Arms of Jesus… while I kept my arms lovingly around him….”

Some famous Irish-Canadian dogs have paid great tribute to their homeland. The Irish Water Spaniel gained prominence when the late Anne Snelling’s (of Ottawa) Can., Am. and Bda. Ch. Oaktrees Irishtocrat won Best in Show at Westminster in 1979. ‘Dugan’ could boast direct lineage to the aforementioned Barrington IWS of Limerick.

In the Toronto neighbourhood of Cabbagetown, home for many of the first Irish immigrants to Canada, Ch. & OTCh. Cashelmara Irish Boy turned heads in 1999 when he was the first Kerry Blue Terrier in CKC history to be one of the Top 10 Obedience Dogs, all breeds. ‘Roddy’ was a fine gentlemen who was a great ambassador for the breed.

The dogs of Ireland have made a great contribution in Canada. Thanks to the dedication of a number of our breeders, we can look forward to their continued presence and value their important heritage. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!