Cocker Spaniel owners???

katie_southwest

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Ok so I think we have decided on a dog that the whole family will like - a Cocker Spaniel. Anyone have any experiences or tips with this breed before we take the plunge?!
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_April_

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We had a working cocker and he was a brilliant dog.

He knew his job and was highly trained but was also the sweetest, most adorable family pet you could want.

I miss him!!
 

_April_

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Yes they are very affectionate dogs. We had a lab before him and, whilst he was also a lovely dog, Midge the cocker was just such a sweetheart. Jade (lab) was a lot more independant.



This is him as a pup, how could you resist
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We called him Munchkin as a nickname LOL

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_April_

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I have never heard of that xninax! wow.
I couldn't even imagine that with our old one. I guess you have to be very careful with the breeding.


Severnmiles - Why are you sitting on your hands?
Sounds cryptic lol. If you don't like them just say, there are plenty of dog breeds I don't like too, everyone has different tastes
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xfeex

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our cocker Duke was fantastic also, my mum had four young children and he was a star

I think its down to bad breeding, from puppy farms etc...I am no expert on the subject but have seen with a dog with cocker rage, that was from a puppy farm, some people dont realise that buying cheap will bring problems, poor thing had to be PTS.

as a dog groomer I find the worst ones are shih tzu's, cant even muzzle them properly when they are biting because of there silly flat faces! Give me a rottie to groom any day!
 

_April_

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I bet you have some good stories!

Yeah Midge was a proper pedigree gundog I think and they met his mother (my dad took care of all that, I was only 10 when he was a puppy lol).

I would quite like one again one day but I will definitely remember about cocker rage and make sure I do it properly!
 

xfeex

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Gosh I could go on all day, the dog world is as mad as the horse world!

My OH's friend went out for a pup, It was there first dog and they asked me what breed would be right.
So taking in to consideration there situation and expearience I came up with a list of possibles, including cross breeds. and some good breeders etc...

Did they listen, nooooo

They totally ignored me and bought a Bichon Dog! Lovely dogs but high maintinence coat wise!

They got it from a place that sells pups from puppy farms, I told them to stay well clear of this place as I know it quite well, I used to work in boarding untill I knew the ins and outs of the place. They are DL recistered and not KC which is a load of pants IMHO.
Some time later they got another from the same place!
this time a bitch.
Probably related and it didnt even look like a full Bichon.

Then had loads of phone calls about house training etc... I told them what havind a pup involved!

I had them bot booked in for a groom end of last year (they wanted it cheap as they were "friends") and even though I advised them to groom regularly, how often, what with, how to do it etc... they were in awfull condition coat wise! it came off like a sheep. They had wanted them kept long but there is no way I was putting the poor little things through hours of de-matting so It was all off to start again! The younger bitch was not as bad but god did I have to work miricles to get it to look more like a Bichon!

Anyway it gets worse, I had a phone call saying "they were tied together, mating. is that normal?" (pulling my hair out at this point!)
I advised not to breed them as they was probably related but I think that was there plan all along!

so now they have 7 pups that are prob inbred with loads of problems and he has the cheek to ask me If I will microchip them for cheap!
nope, he can have my usual breeders discount and thats it!

He has them advertised at £575 what a joke, some numpties will buy them though

makes you want to cry!!!!!
 

jen1

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Hi I have a Cocker Spaniel and he is the most wonderful dog ever!!

BUT I did do a lot of research on the breed beforehand. I bought a book, (before Internet days), dog is 10 now! and read up on the breed, can't find the book at the moment but it had a very interesting graph showing the difference in temperament between the colours. Red and black dogs being prone to being more aggressive and the Blue Roan which I have being the most docile. I assume this is to do with interbreeding etc.

About 6 months ago my neighbour went to the Dogs Trust and got a golden Cocker they kept it about 2 weeks then before I realised it had gone, when I asked them where the dog was they had taken it back to the DT as it had bitten one of the kids! OK so I don't know the full circumstances but I also know of someone who ran a local shop and had 2 black ones and they could be snappy.

Maybe I was just lucky with mine, I saw his litter advertised in Horse and Hound and went to see the family and of course the bitch. He was bred in a family home from a wonderful bitch that the owners just wanted a litter from as she was such a lovely dog. All the puppies were happy and healthy and the mum was KC registered. I have full papers for my dog and they showed me pictures of his dad. They loved their dog so much they had a large framed picture of her on the wall!

I took him to puppy classes and then did some evening dog training classes, as they are basically working dogs they like to use their brains and love nothing more than searching for things even just a stick or stone thrown across a field! My dog is currently next-door as my next-door neighbour is suffering from cancer and as his wife is working today the dog has gone to keep him company! He feels very tired from his Chemo but having little Jasper there cheers him up! Everyone I know says what a well-behaved and trained dog he is but it does take time and dedication. I don't train every day but just make sure he keeps up with knowing the basics, sit, stay, stand, lie down, heel etc.

I clip him myself; you have to decide if you want a dog clipped or keep it with a long coat if you do the long coat then you have to be prepared for a lot of daily grooming!! Their coats are surprisingly fine!

Don't go to a puppy farm and even if you have to wait a long time for a good'un then do so, they do exist! I met a woman last summer at a horse show who had a blue roan bitch it was only 18 months old but had the oddest droopy eyes and strange shaped head, she commented on how nice my dog was, when I asked her where hers came from she said she had been waiting a year to get one and couldn't wait any longer so got this one from a puppy farm.

As already mentioned on here, contact the Kennel Club and get a list of reputable breeders, you may have to wait a while for the right dog/bitch to come along but it's worth while if you get a good one, we have had many years of fun with ours and my 2 kids have grown up with him!!
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Hope that's of some help!
 

elsielouise

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My family have had three. Two black and a golden one and I thought it was the roan ones that potentially were more agressive?

Maybe we just got lucky with ours but all of them soft as butter, great with kids and the golden one particularly cushion like!

Lovely dogs all of them.
 

spaniel

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We have two dogs, one is a cocker bitch. She is from working breeding and is possibly the most wonderful dog we have ever owned (and Ive been around dogs for 4O odd years, pet and working).

A good cocker is loyal, loving and up for anything if it involves you! Be aware that they usually have an unhealthy interest in dirty socks and pants - get yourself a laundry basket with a good stout lid!
 

_April_

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LOL thats so true spaniel!! Ours also used to carry around my beany babies as though he was nesting
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Also one other think katie which I didn't make clear before... I don't claim to be very knowledgeable but I do know that the field strain and show strain are very, very different.

Ours was an actual field gundog so didn't have a long coat and also wasn't predisposed to conjunctivitis like the show strain. Infact I would probably go as far as to say I don't like the show strain much at all!

Look at the difference:

Field example

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Show example
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katie_southwest

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What are the differences between the 2 types? Obviously one is meant for working and one for showing
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but are there many differences between them?
 

Patches

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My Cocker Spaniel, Jasper, is 12 1/2 and he has been the most wonderful pet.

My husband is a dairy farmer and has kept working dogs all of his life. Jasper was five when I met Duncan and he still can't get over how much of a soppy baby he is compared to any dog he's ever had before. Very affectionate, great with the kids and a real people person.

Mine is from show stock but my ex husband used to take him "beating" with him. Jasper was known as "the airhead" among the other men who were beating/flushing. He does work, but he's a bit selective about his abilities at times, bless him.

I always thought the show cockers had bigger heads and were generally bigger than working stock.

Incidentally, Jasper is black too.

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jen1

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Ahhhhhh !! my Jasper looks like that! Don’t have any 'electronic' pics to post will try and get some tomorrow on my phone! My Jaspy sounds just the same a complete dope! Lurrrrves attention! I have a string of people wanting to give him a home if anything happens to me! I had better watch out there may be some assassins out there!!

I would think looking at the pics that mine is more from show stock but I keep his coat trimmed as he is at the yard a lot so gets muddy and covered in hay and shavings!!
 

Patches

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Our Jasper is known affectionately as "Jappy".
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They really are amazing dogs. I love him to pieces and would have another Cocker in a shot if it was up to me.

Sadly, hubby is more keen on "real working dogs" and wants to revert back to the typical Border Collie when anything happens to Jasper. He claims he's not good as a "cow dog"....which isn't technically an inaccurate statement I should add.
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Meadon

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I have two cocker spaniels at present and have always grown up with them. They are that placid a dog, my mum said I even cut my first teeth as a baby on our cocker at the time and she never flinced lol.

I have one English cocker spaniel who is 7 and one 18 month old working cocker. Both are gorgeous but I have to admit my working cocker has been alot easier than my English cocker. For exmaple, the working cocker's coat is loads easier, where I'm always having to groom my other dog. They also seem to be alot tougher and more trainable. My english cocker is happy to be a lounge lizard where the other has to be busy. Both are very merry and love people...but be prepared they love their food and will scrounge around. I love them to bits!

This is Tilly, the working cocker!

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And Martha the English Cocker

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And both girls together!

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jen1

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Oh yes the food! I was feeding Jaspy the recommended SMALL amount of food each day, a couple of years ago I took him for his annual jabs and the vet said he was a bit podgy, I said I couldn't understand why as he got lots of exercise and lived on fresh air, went home and mentioned it to hubby who admitted that he was giving him the remains of the kids dinner each night!! AARRRGGHH! and I was battling to keep the dog trim and couldn't figure out what the problem was! Now all sorted and hubby gone so dog healthy! one good thing has come out of it all then!!!.......
 

KatB

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Alot of the solid coloured ones can be prone to "cocker rage" which can make them edgy and a bit snappy. We have a black and white one from working stock who is as soft as grease and a lovely family dog. However, he is also the clingiest dog alive! He follows my mum everywhere and is a bit of a shadow!! They can be a tad demanding....
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Meadon

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Martha is terrible with food! She'll get into the bin when she can. The other day she some how managed to drag down a loaf of bread on the kitchen top (how she did I can't work it out, she must have invisable wings)...she ate the whole lot!!! Tilly is alot heavier than Martha and very stocky...legs that go on forever. Tilly isn't innocent either, she chewed my spare harp strings and I if I leave my horse's numanhs on the side she'll steal them for a bed....sure you a want a cocker still lol? Mischief makers they are!!
 

Patches

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[ QUOTE ]
Alot of the solid coloured ones can be prone to "cocker rage" which can make them edgy and a bit snappy. We have a black and white one from working stock who is as soft as grease and a lovely family dog. However, he is also the clingiest dog alive! He follows my mum everywhere and is a bit of a shadow!! They can be a tad demanding....
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[/ QUOTE ]

I had heard of rage syndrome before I bought Jasper but I wasn't overly concerned at the time and I'm even less concerned about it 12 years later.

I don't personally know of any Cocker Spaniel owner who has owned one with rage syndrome. Is it still commonplace now?
 
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