Breed # Irish Water Spaniel The Irish Water Spaniel is a sporting breed from Ireland, standing 20–23 in at the withers, weighing 45–65 lb. Recorded lifespan is ~10 yrs. ![A photograph of the Irish Water Spaniel](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/lg/irish-water-spaniel.webp) Breed group Sporting Origin Ireland Height 20–23 in Weight 45–65 lb Lifespan ~10 yrs Among the 500 breeds here with recorded measurements, the Irish Water Spaniel is taller than 51% of the measured breeds, heavier than 56%, one of 32 in the Sporting group, one of 9 from Ireland. Compare the Irish Water Spaniel with another breed ## Living with the Irish Water Spaniel Two breed references score every breed they cover from 1 to 5 on the things an owner lives with day to day. These are the Irish Water Spaniel’s, with what a 1 and a 5 mean on each row. Around people and other dogs Affection with family 5 of 5 1 independent · 5 devoted Good with young children 4 of 5 1 not suited · 5 very good Good with other dogs 4 of 5 1 not suited · 5 very good Openness to strangers 4 of 5 1 reserved · 5 everyone is a friend Watchdog / protective nature 3 of 5 1 unbothered · 5 vigilant What they will ask of you Energy 4 of 5 1 couch potato · 5 busy all day Exercise needs 5 of 5 1 a short walk · 5 a job to do Playfulness 4 of 5 1 only when invited · 5 non-stop Barking 2 of 5 1 only to alert · 5 very vocal Around the house Shedding 1 of 5 1 barely · 5 constantly Drooling 2 of 5 1 a dry mouth · 5 keep a towel What they tolerate Tolerates being alone 3 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Tolerates hot weather 4 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Tolerates cold weather 4 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Rated 1 to 5 by the American Kennel Club and DogTime, averaged where both rate the same thing, and read from their breed pages in 2022. Nobody at Woof & Beyond has met this breed — these are the publishers’ judgments, not ours.[Irish Water Spaniel on AKC](https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/irish-water-spaniel/)[Irish Water Spaniel on DogTime](https://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/irish-water-spaniel) ## Breeds that look like the Irish Water Spaniel A neural network trained to tell breeds apart by sight read all 510 photographs in this reference, and these are the 6 it placed closest to the Irish Water Spaniel. - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/spanish-water-dog.webp)Spanish Water Dog](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/spanish-water-dog/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/barbet.webp)Barbet](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/barbet/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/lagotto-romagnolo.webp)Lagotto Romagnolo](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/lagotto-romagnolo/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/cantabrian-water-dog.webp)Cantabrian Water Dog](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/cantabrian-water-dog/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/portuguese-water-dog.webp)Portuguese Water Dog](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/portuguese-water-dog/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/black-russian-terrier.webp)Black Russian Terrier](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/black-russian-terrier/) Side by side Height 0–38 in 1. Irish Water Spaniel20–23 in 2. Spanish Water Dog17–20 in 3. Barbet23–26 in 4. Lagotto Romagnolo17–19 in 5. Cantabrian Water Dog17–20 in 6. Portuguese Water Dog20–22 in 7. Black Russian Terrier25–29 in Weight 0–220 lb 1. Irish Water Spaniel45–65 lb 2. Spanish Water Dog40–49 lb 3. Barbet40–59.5 lb 4. Lagotto Romagnolo29–35 lb 5. Cantabrian Water Dog40–48.5 lb 6. Portuguese Water Dog42–60 lb 7. Black Russian Terrier110–132 lb Lifespan 0–20 yrs 1. Irish Water Spaniel~10 yrs 2. Spanish Water Dog12–14 yrs 3. Barbet12–14 yrs 4. Lagotto Romagnolo15–17 yrs 5. Cantabrian Water Dog10–14 yrs 6. Portuguese Water Dog10–14 yrs 7. Black Russian Terrier10–12 yrs Nothing here was grouped by hand. The ranking is an opinion about appearance, not about ancestry, which is why it sometimes puts together breeds no kennel club would — and why it is worth looking at the photographs rather than taking the order on trust. See the Irish Water Spaniel on the breed map Read about the Irish Water Spaniel on Wikipedia