Gordon Setter puppies for sale from verified breeders

The Gordon Setter is the strongest and most substantial of the setters. Originally bred in Scotland for demanding gamebird hunting in the Highlands, this pointing dog has a fascinating duality: out in the field and across open country, he is bold, confident and physically extremely resilient. At home, by contrast, he reveals a tender, gentle and well-balanced nature and seeks a close bond with his people. With a height at the withers of 64 to 68 cm and a weight of 29 to 36 kg for males, plus a striking, deep black, silky coat with the typical feathering, he turns heads. If you want to buy a Gordon Setter puppy, you are choosing a highly intelligent working partner with a life expectancy of 10 to 12 years, who needs consistent but sensitive handling and demanding daily exercise and stimulation.

For a Gordon Setter puppy, the realistic price range is 1,500 to 2,500 euros. This price reflects the considerable effort that well-planned breeding demands. It includes extensive veterinary health checks on the parent dogs, breeding suitability tests, high-quality food for the dam and puppies, and intensive socialisation during the first weeks of life.

Irresponsible puppy farmers often offer puppies much more cheaply, but they cut corners on exactly these crucial points. An apparent bargain without health certificates quickly leads to high vet bills. Besides the purchase price, budget for ongoing costs such as high-quality food, regular preventive check-ups and grooming the long coat, with its pronounced feathering on the legs and tail.

With good breeding, Gordon Setters are considered robust dogs overall, but the breed does have certain issues affecting the hips, eyes, nerves and thyroid. Reputable breeders have precisely these areas thoroughly tested in the parent dogs before breeding, to reduce avoidable risks in the line. The Gordon-Setter-Club Deutschland e.V., for example, requires tests for hip dysplasia (HD) and progressive retinal atrophy (PRA).

An X-ray examination of the hips markedly reduces the risk of severe HD in the offspring. As far as the eyes are concerned, the late-onset form of retinal degeneration (rod-cone dysplasia 4, rcd4-PRA) is the main concern. Established DNA tests exist in the Gordon Setter for rcd4-PRA and for the neurological disease cerebellar abiotrophy (CA), which affects the cerebellum and leads to coordination problems. Such a DNA test shows whether a parent dog is clear, a carrier or affected; a health-focused breeder mates carriers only with tested clear partners, so that no puppy inherits the tested mutation from both parents.

In addition, other eye conditions occur in the breed, such as cataracts, retinal dysplasia and eyelid abnormalities (ectropion and entropion), which are detected through clinical eye examinations by specialist veterinary ophthalmologists. Hypothyroidism also occurs. Black hair follicular dysplasia has also been described: an inherited disorder of the hair follicles in which the black hairs become dull and fall out as early as puppyhood; there is no DNA test for it. As a large, deep-chested dog, the Gordon Setter also has an anatomical risk of life-threatening gastric torsion (bloat). In everyday life, feed several smaller meals a day, allow rest periods after feeding and, from the start, raise your puppy in a way that is gentle on the joints.