The Irish Water Spaniel is an inquisitive dog that was originally bred in Ireland as a water retrieving dog. They are very alert and have loads of energy needing a lot of exercise in order to keep them happy and not develop destructive habits. They are well suited to an active, outdoorsy family where they are not left for long periods or to a working environment to keep their minds busy as well as fulfilling their exercise requirements.
They are very intelligent and eager to please, which helps to make them easy to train in experienced hands. They can be quite headstrong, and may test their owners a little in order to try to get their own way, therefore perhaps not an ideal first dog for a new dog owner. They are quite sensitive dogs and don’t respond well to being harshly reprimanded for mistakes in training.
Like the American Water Spaniel, the Irish Water Spaniel has a double coat. The coat is liver in colour with dense curls that give it a kind of permed appearance apart from the face, throat, tail and toes which have a smooth coat. They do not shed very much which makes them better types of dogs for people who are usually allergic, but do require regular grooming to ensure that matts don’t form and to help keep the coat clean.
Irish Water Spaniels generally get on well with children and other pets which they have been brought up with from an early age, but being primarily bred for hunting they do have a high prey drive and it is always best to keep an eye on them when around small animals.
Unlike most spaniels they can make a good family guard dog if trained as such, and they are more aloof towards strangers than many spaniel breeds. That said they are not an aggressive breed and will warm to new people after a short period. The Irish Water Spaniel also excels at canine sports such as agility, canicross, flyball or obedience, and are obviously also very good shooting dogs.