The Irish Red and White Setter can be traced back to the 18th century, though it’s possible they existed long before this, as red and white hunting dogs are described in texts as early as the 1500’s.
In common with many sporting dogs, they were popular with the landed gentry and indeed the Irish Red and White was preferred for its colour over the solid red Irish Setter, as it was felt there was less risk of accidentally shooting the brightly marked dog when it was crouching in long grass. This has long been a reason for preferring white or parti-coloured dogs with large white markings in the hunting field.
Originally bred to work with falcons, the Irish Red and White Setters function was to lie down upon spotting game, so hunters could throw nets over the crouching birds. When firearms were introduced to bird hunting, the Irish Red and White transitioned easily into a gundog.
With the advent of dog showing however, the glamorous Irish Setter with their longer coat and slightly taller, racier build, overtook the Irish Red and White in popularity. So much so, the breed nearly died out towards the end of the 19th century. Fortunately, enough survived after the First World War that dedicated breeders could save the breed and while they are still less popular than their red cousins, they have many devoted followers.