We
first got a Spaniel because our youngest son wasn't very happy with dogs, and my grandfather
had a Spaniel as a gun dog, and we decided that we would get a Spaniel.
The English Cocker Spaniel, you've got the working side, which are very, very fast dogs
and bred to work in the field, hard going, hate cover.
And then you've got the show type, which are bred to look beautiful.
Both sorts of Cocker Spaniels though, use their nose a lot and they use their mouth
a lot.
So they are definitely going to pick up everything you leave lying around the house.
What's important from a behaviour point of view is what you deal with that.
So if you snatch that article off your Cocker Spaniel, the next time you go to do that some
of them have been known to guard, and they'll growl at you for that.
It's really important that you go and you take something, you do swapses, every single
time you take something off your Spaniel in the house you need to swap it for something
better to prevent that guarding.
Just a nice size for a house.
I mean, we're in a bungalow.
It's a fairly big bungalow, but she's quite happy in there and she doesn't overcrowd it.
And we never have any accidents.
They're very good dogs for in house.
Yes, at the end of the day it's all down to how you train them.
Of course it is.
Incredibly excitable.
Really need an active home.
And if you don't give them a job, particularly the working ones, they will go self-employed.
And a self-employed Spaniel left alone in the kitchen is definitely not a good idea.
They can destroy your home.
They can climb on tables, they can get anywhere.
Think about a sniffer dog looking for drugs.
Well, basically it's going to look all over your kitchen just like that.
So lots and lots of mental stimulation, lots of training, and don't do that well being
left alone for long periods of time.
They can have eye problems, can't they?
Yes, they can.
And that's in the breeding.
So if you're careful with the breeding, then you're okay.
Okay.
Cocker Spaniels are very lively fun type dogs.
They are a working type, so they need to put that energy to good use.
They're usually quite friendly, so for a very active family they can make a good family
pet.
They just need something to occupy them and keep them happy.
If they're running in the grass, which they love to do, grass seeds can get into their
ears and so you've got to be careful with that.
But that's about the only thing.
Well, Spaniels love to smell.
So head down, in a field of corn.
And the ears of corn tend to go straight in and they actually carry on going in.
And I don't think it's just a Spaniel thing, but in the past we have had that problem.
Only once though, in all the dogs.
Yes, yes.
It was one that seemed prone to it.
But that's one thing.
Ears, ears and eyes are about the only thing.
English Cocker Spaniel has silk coat.
This type of dog has short hair on his head and body, front of the front legs, and longer
hair on ears, front legs and the carriage, back legs and tail.
The longer hair has a tendency to make tangles.
This coat should be brushed on a regular basis, at least three times a week.
When people get English Cocker puppy, they should be aware that this breed needs to be
done by professional dog groomer every four to six weeks.
You do have to brush them, because they do tend to get knotted under their ears.
So the more comfortable if you keep brushing them, and if you get started as they're pups,
then they get used to it and they quite enjoy it really.
It must be different between a home environment and living on a farm.
But our dog doesn't really need much grooming.
We just take her to have hair clipped every so often and she doesn't need much.
About every three months, isn't it?
Yeah.
We have her trimmed.
Yeah.
They're a lovely family dog.
And not too big.
Just a nice size for a house we think.