23 Dog Breeds That Start With E: A Complete List from Purebreds to Popular Hybrids
October 23, 2026
Ask most dog owners to name a dog breed that starts with E, and they will likely stall out after English Bulldog or English Springer Spaniel. Yet the letter E anchors one of the most geographically scattered groups in the canine world, spanning Siberian taiga hunters, Portuguese mountain guardians, and a rare French water dog found almost nowhere outside its home region.
This list works through all 23 dog breeds that start with E recognized by major kennel clubs or established as modern hybrids, covering size, temperament, working history, and what daily life with each one actually looks like. Some are household names; others are so uncommon that even experienced breeders have never handled one. For a broader look at other letters, the animals that start with E guide covers species well beyond dogs.
1. East Siberian Laika
The East Siberian Laika belongs to the same species as every other dog on this list, Canis lupus familiaris, but few breeds wear their wolf ancestry as visibly. This spitz-type dog was selected for cooperative hunting with people, and it has a medium-to-large, athletic build with a wedge-shaped head, erect triangular ears, and a tail carried in a curve over the back.
The breed designation was established at the All-Union Cynological Congress in 1947, using dogs from the Lake Baikal region, Irkutsk Oblast, and the Amur River basin. It remains a natural hunting dog used for everything from squirrels and grouse to moose, bear, and wild boar, and it can also work as a sled dog.
The breed is territorial and can be aggressive toward dogs of the same sex that come onto its property, though it is not normally aggressive toward people. That combination makes early socialization essential. Owners drawn to the similar spitz temperament of a Norwegian Elkhound will recognize the same independent streak here.
2. English Bulldog
The English Bulldog has a well-muscled and sturdy build with a short-faced head, wide shoulders, and low-slung body that makes it instantly recognizable. According to the American Kennel Club, the breed traces back to 13th-century England, and its numbers declined sharply after bull-baiting was outlawed in 1835.
Breeders used only the even-tempered dogs to reproduce until only the docile remained, which is why today’s Bulldog bears little resemblance in temperament to its combative ancestors. The United Kennel Club recognized the English Bulldog in 1935. Bulldogs form strong bonds with their families, are particularly patient with children, and generally get along well with other pets.
Important Note: English Bulldogs thrive best in temperate climates and readily overheat in hot weather because of their short muzzles, so shade, water, and limited exertion matter more for this breed than for most.
Anyone comparing short-faced companion breeds should also look at the Pug, which shares similar heat sensitivity. For deeper breed-standard detail, the American Kennel Club’s Bulldog profile and the United Kennel Club standard both cover grooming and structure in depth.
3. English Cocker Spaniel
The English Cocker Spaniel is a compact sporting dog built to flush game birds from dense brush, with a silky, moderately long coat that comes in solid colors or flashy particolor patterns. It sits taller and leaner than its American cousin, standing roughly 15 to 17 inches at the shoulder, and it carries the same eager, affectionate temperament that made cocker spaniels popular family companions long before they became show-ring fixtures.
This breed needs regular exercise and mental engagement; a bored Cocker Spaniel can become vocal or destructive. Owners who enjoy the spaniel’s people-pleasing nature often also research the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, a smaller toy relative with a similarly gentle disposition.
4. English Cream Golden Retriever
Despite the marketing around “English Cream” Golden Retrievers, this is not a separate breed recognized by any kennel club. It is simply a Golden Retriever with a pale, cream-to-white coat color typical of European and British breeding lines, as opposed to the richer gold favored by many American breeders.
The temperament, structure, and health profile follow the same Golden Retriever standard: friendly, biddable, and eager to please, with a dense double coat that needs regular brushing to control shedding. Buyers should treat coat color as a cosmetic trait rather than a sign of a different breed, since it says nothing about health testing or breeding quality on its own. Fans of retriever-type temperaments often compare notes with Labrador Retriever owners, since both breeds share a similar eagerness to please.
5. English Foxhound
The English Foxhound is one of the oldest purebred hound lines still in existence, developed in England for mounted pack hunting of foxes across open country. It has a lean, athletic frame built for covering ground for hours, a deep chest, and the classic tricolor or bicolor hound coat.
Despite its long pedigree, the breed remains rare as a household pet in the United States, largely because it was bred to work in packs and struggles with the isolation of typical single-dog homes. Its baying voice and relentless prey drive toward small animals, including the same foxes it once tracked, are not incidental traits but the entire point of the breed. Readers curious about the animal it was bred to chase can browse the animals that start with F list for more on foxes themselves.
Pro Tip: Pack hounds like the English Foxhound generally do best with canine companionship rather than as a solitary pet; a bored, lonely hound will often express frustration through nonstop howling or fence-jumping.
6. English Pointer
Usually called simply the Pointer in AKC circles, this breed was developed in 17th-century England by crossing early foxhounds, greyhounds, and setters to create a dog that could locate birds and freeze in a rigid point, nose and tail extended toward the prey. The result is a lean, muscular sporting dog with a short, dense coat in liver-and-white, black-and-white, or lemon-and-white patterns.
Pointers need serious daily exercise; without it, their intelligence and energy tend to surface as restlessness rather than calm house manners. Hunters weighing a Pointer against a Weimaraner will find both breeds share the same need for a job to do, though their coats and coloring differ substantially.
7. English Setter
The English Setter is a gundog built to “set,” or crouch low, when it locates game birds, a behavior that predates the modern point and gives the breed its name. Its most distinctive feature is the Belton coat pattern, a flecked, roan-like mix of color and white that comes in several recognized combinations:
- Blue Belton (black flecking on white)
- Orange Belton (orange flecking on white)
- Lemon Belton (pale yellow flecking on white)
- Liver Belton (brown flecking on white)
- Tricolor Belton (a mix of two flecking colors plus tan markings)
Beyond the coat, English Setters are known for a gentle, sociable temperament that makes them better family companions than many other bird dogs, provided their moderate-to-high exercise needs are met.
8. English Shepherd
Despite the name, the English Shepherd developed largely in rural America, descended from herding stock that English colonists brought with them and then shaped through generations of practical farm work rather than formal show breeding. It is a true all-purpose farm dog, expected to herd livestock, guard the property, and control vermin, often all in the same afternoon.
The breed is not recognized by the AKC but has a dedicated following among working farmers and is registered by several specialty registries. Coats typically appear in black-and-tan, sable, or tricolor patterns, and the temperament tends toward loyal, watchful, and highly trainable, though English Shepherds can be reserved with strangers if under-socialized.
9. English Springer Spaniel
The English Springer Spaniel gets its name from its job: springing, or flushing, game birds into the air for hunters. It is a medium-sized sporting dog, typically 40 to 50 pounds, with a silky liver-and-white or black-and-white coat and long, feathered ears.
Springer Spaniels rank among the more popular sporting breeds in American households thanks to their affectionate, eager temperament, but that same energy means they need consistent daily exercise and mental stimulation. Left understimulated, a Springer’s natural retrieving and flushing instincts can turn into chewed furniture or obsessive fetching of household items.
10. English Toy Terrier
The English Toy Terrier, sometimes labeled Black and Tan in older references, is a small, sleek terrier developed in England as a miniaturized ratting dog. It has a smooth, glossy black-and-tan coat, a narrow wedge-shaped head, and an alert, elegant carriage that belies its working-terrier origins.
The breed is genuinely rare today, even in the United Kingdom, and it is not commonly seen in the United States outside dedicated terrier circles. Anyone interested in small, feisty terrier types with a similar build might also look into the Toy Fox Terrier, which shares a comparable ratting heritage on a slightly different frame.
11. English Toy Spaniel
Known in the United Kingdom as the King Charles Spaniel, the English Toy Spaniel is a small companion breed with a domed head, large dark eyes, and a plush, silky coat. The breed comes in four recognized color varieties, each historically tied to different royal households:
- King Charles: solid black-and-tan
- Ruby: solid rich red
- Blenheim: red-and-white patches
- Prince Charles: tricolor (black, tan, and white)
Weighing only 8 to 14 pounds, the English Toy Spaniel was bred purely for companionship rather than work, and it retains a calm, affectionate disposition suited to apartment living and quieter households.
12. English Mastiff
Usually registered simply as the Mastiff, the English Mastiff is among the most massive dog breeds by body weight, with males commonly exceeding 200 pounds. Its build is all bulk and muscle: a broad skull, deep chest, and a short coat in apricot, fawn, or brindle, almost always paired with a black mask.
Despite its size, the breed’s reputation for gentleness with family members is well earned, which is why it is often described as a “gentle giant.” Historically used for guarding property and, in earlier centuries, in war and blood sports, the modern English Mastiff is far better suited to calm companionship than to any of its ancestors’ original jobs.
13. Entlebucher Mountain Dog
The Entlebucher Mountain Dog is the smallest of Switzerland’s four Sennenhund, or mountain dog, breeds, standing roughly 16 to 21 inches at the shoulder. It carries the classic tricolor Sennenhund pattern of black, white, and rust, and many are born with a naturally short or bobbed tail.
Bred to herd cattle in the Swiss Alps, the Entlebucher is energetic, quick, and prone to nipping at heels when herding instincts aren’t given an outlet. It needs an active household and consistent training, since its intelligence and drive can turn into stubbornness without a clear job to do.
14. Epagneul Pont Audemer
The Epagneul Pont-Audemer is a French gundog breed so rare that even dedicated spaniel enthusiasts rarely encounter one outside Normandy, where it originated. Its most distinctive feature is a wavy or curly liver-colored coat topped with a curly tuft on the head, sometimes called a “topknot,” that sets it apart from every other spaniel type.
Developed to both point and retrieve, particularly in wetland and marsh conditions, the breed combines water-dog stamina with a pointing dog’s field sense. It has never been recognized by the AKC and exists in such small numbers that reliable population figures are hard to come by even within France.
15. Eskipoo
The Eskipoo is a designer hybrid combining the American Eskimo Dog with the Poodle, aiming to blend the Eskimo’s fluffy spitz appearance with the Poodle’s lower-shedding coat and sharp intelligence. Size and coat texture vary considerably depending on which parent breed dominates in a given litter, since hybrids like this one are not bred to a fixed standard.
Most Eskipoos land in the small-to-medium range and inherit an alert, people-oriented temperament from both sides of their ancestry. Because the cross is relatively recent and unregulated by any major kennel club, prospective owners should meet the actual puppy rather than rely solely on generation labels.
16. Estrela Mountain Dog
The Estrela Mountain Dog is widely considered Portugal’s oldest native breed, developed in the Estrela mountain range to guard sheep flocks against wolves. It is a large, powerful dog with either a long or short double coat in fawn, wolf-gray, or brindle, built for enduring harsh mountain weather.
Temperament-wise, the Estrela is calm and even-tempered around its own family but naturally protective and wary of strangers, a trait bred into it for generations of livestock guarding work. The breed remains uncommon outside Portugal, though it has a small but growing following among owners seeking a traditional livestock guardian.
Key Insight: Several breeds on this list, including the Estrela Mountain Dog, Epagneul Pont-Audemer, and Estonian Hound, are so rare outside their home countries that finding a reputable breeder in the United States can take years of waiting and travel.
17. Eurasier
The Eurasier is a comparatively young breed, developed in Germany during the 1960s by crossing the Wolfspitz, Chow Chow, and Samoyed to produce a medium-sized companion spitz. Unlike most spitz breeds, the Eurasier was never bred for hunting, herding, or guarding; it was purpose-built to be a calm, loyal family dog.
Its thick double coat comes in nearly every color except white or particolor patterns, and its temperament tends toward reserved with strangers but deeply attached to its own household. Owners drawn to this calmer spitz temperament sometimes also look at the Keeshond, a related Wolfspitz-type breed with a similarly plush coat.
18. East European Shepherd
The East European Shepherd, sometimes called the Vostochno Evropeiskaya Ovcharka, was developed in the Soviet Union by breeding German Shepherd stock for greater size, heavier coats, and hardiness suited to harsh continental winters and military service. It is larger and more heavily built than the modern Western German Shepherd, with a thicker double coat built for cold climates.
The breed carries strong protective and territorial instincts, a direct legacy of its use in border patrol and guard work during the Soviet era. Owners considering an East European Shepherd should have prior experience with strong working breeds, since the drive and size that made it effective for military work also demand serious training. Those researching herding-breed relatives might also compare it to the Dutch Shepherd, another European working breed with comparable intensity.
19. Estonian Hound
The Estonian Hound is the national dog breed of Estonia, developed during the Soviet era specifically as a medium-sized scent hound after regulations restricted the size of hunting dogs to preserve smaller game populations. It carries a tricolor coat of black, tan, and white, and a build closer to a beagle than to a large pack hound.
Bred primarily for hunting hare and fox by scent, the Estonian Hound has a strong nose and steady stamina despite its modest frame. It remains recognized by the FCI but is rarely seen outside the Baltic region and Russia. For a comparison with a similarly scent-driven American hound, the Redbone Coonhound offers an interesting contrast in size and hunting style.
20. Ecuadorian Hairless Dog
The Ecuadorian Hairless Dog is one of the least documented breeds on this list, part of a broader family of hairless dogs found across Latin America that includes better-known relatives like the Peruvian Hairless Dog and the Xoloitzcuintli. It typically has smooth, warm skin and may carry a small tuft of hair on the head, tail, or feet.
Historically associated with indigenous coastal communities in Ecuador, the breed has never been standardized by a major international kennel club, and reliable population or health data is difficult to find. Anyone encountering a dog marketed under this name should treat breed claims with some caution, since documentation is thin compared to its hairless cousins.
21. Eskapoo
The Eskapoo name is used interchangeably by many breeders with the Eskipoo, referring to the same American Eskimo Dog and Poodle cross, though some use “Eskapoo” specifically for litters with a stronger Poodle influence in coat texture. As with most designer hybrids, naming conventions vary by breeder rather than following a fixed registry standard.
Prospective owners should expect the same range of outcomes as the Eskipoo: a small-to-medium, intelligent, people-focused dog whose coat and shedding tendencies depend heavily on which parent breed’s genes are more dominant in that particular litter.
Common Mistake: Assuming any Poodle-mix hybrid, including the Eskipoo, Eskapoo, or English Boodle, is guaranteed hypoallergenic. Coat outcomes in first-generation crosses vary, and no dog breed is truly 100% allergen-free.
22. English Boodle
The English Boodle crosses the English Bulldog with the Poodle, an unlikely pairing aimed at softening some of the Bulldog’s structural health issues while keeping its compact, affectionate nature. The result is typically a stocky dog with a wavier, lower-shedding coat than a purebred Bulldog and a friendlier build for warm-weather living.
Because both parent breeds carry very different structures, English Boodle puppies within the same litter can vary widely in body shape, coat, and even muzzle length. Buyers should meet the individual puppy in person rather than assume consistent traits across the cross.
23. English Shepador
The English Shepador combines the English Shepherd with the Labrador Retriever, producing a medium-to-large, energetic dog suited to active families or working farms. It typically inherits the English Shepherd’s herding instinct alongside the Labrador’s easygoing, people-pleasing nature, along with a moderate-shedding double coat.
This cross needs substantial daily exercise and benefits from having a job, whether that’s herding, structured play, or long hikes, since both parent breeds were built for sustained physical work. The table below summarizes how the three main “E” hybrids on this list compare for a reader weighing options.
| Hybrid Breed | Parent Breeds | Typical Size | Energy Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eskipoo / Eskapoo | American Eskimo Dog x Poodle | Small to medium | Moderate to high |
| English Boodle | English Bulldog x Poodle | Medium | Low to moderate |
| English Shepador | English Shepherd x Labrador Retriever | Medium to large | High |
Across 23 entries, the letter E covers nearly every corner of the dog world: ancient livestock guardians, colonial-era farm dogs, royal lapdogs, and brand-new designer crosses that did not exist a generation ago. Anyone who enjoyed working through purebreds like the English Setter and rare finds like the Epagneul Pont-Audemer alongside modern hybrids such as the English Shepador has effectively toured the full range of what selective breeding, geography, and centuries of working history can produce from a single letter. For a look at breeds starting elsewhere in the alphabet, the dog breeds that start with U guide picks up where this one leaves off.