Thinking of getting a Cocker Spaniel - would appreciate some advice ...

[supaspaniel]

The OP was a brilliant sensible question to ask....not one that many ask before leaping into getting a cocker.

Why are you arguing? The thread will be closed and some good advice and help may not get thru

[isla]

Hello (and welcome!!)

I grew up with show type cockers and am currently owned by Jem who was 2 last week. I have had her since she was 9 weeks old. Cockers are fantastic dogs. They love company, are great with people and are happy sleeping on the sofa, digging up the garden or running through the fields!

Is great you are giving this such serious thought. If you are considering a puppy then perhaps trying to find a suitable litter during your wife's summer holidays would be helpful. I know others have given you advice on how to choose a litter so I won't repeat what everyone else has said!

Show cockers do have longer coats but if you aren't up to the grooming they can be clipped. Vocally Jem likes to tell you when the postman is here, that the neighbour is in their garden and that she is excited about her walk. She doesn't bark constantly but can get noisy when she plays.

They can be quite wilful and naughty so it is important to train them from day one and to keep it up. If you give an inch they'll take a mile!!

I have quite a demanding professional job and while my OH loves Jem she is my dog and responsibility. I walk her for 30-40 mins at about 7am and i leave for work at about 8.30am. I have a trusted dogwalker who comes in during the day and gives her at least an hour off lead walk. She is also out in the van for another 30-40 mins. Pre dog I used to work till 7ish but I'm now home before 6 and I take work home with me. I take her out as soon as I get home for 30-40 mins. She then gets another walk before bedtime. This is plenty of excercise for her. I would say that a dog does restrict you. I no longer go out with OH on weeknights. One of us is always home as she has been left during the day. So no more drinks after work for me!!

Having said that I love her. She gives me so much more than I give her. Personally having a dog makes my home a home. There are compromises, racing home from work, the expense of dogwalkers.... but for me its work every penny.

I hope you get the info you need to make your decision. Cockers are great dogs. I wouldn't be without one.

[ali]

I entirely agree with you that they can not go to a, (excuse the example small terraced house in the middle of an estate) and need a home where they will get loads of excercise and be able to run free off lead.

i'm absolutely not getting into this particular debate but just wanted to say that i think it's not entirely true to say that the size of house is an issue- we live in a semi in the middle of an estate, with a small paved over garden. if this was the only place where barkley (who's working type) could get exercise then of course it would be awful, but he simply uses the garden as somewhere to sniff about and stretch his legs. he's currently stalking blackbirds in the bushes as i type.  i then take him out three times a day to local woods, country parks, the south downs and so on for some proper roaming time. if i had a huge garden then maybe i wouldn't need to take him out quite so much but i knew that i would need to take it into account when i got him.

re: not feeling able to have a dog whilst working from home. as long as he gets his walks (which he definitely needs) and stimulation in the form of short training sessions and regular cuddles barkley is more than happy to veg out whilst we work. my OH often spends a day at home working and barkley is no trouble at all.

[Mich]

Hi there, welcome to COL

I have 2 working cockers - purely kept for pets and I think they are wonderful dogs - although I am a little biased

Both of mine are very, very different.  Bailey was an absolute dream pup - never cried, never chewed, was house trained really quickly, but as soon as he hit 6 months his working drive (which is exceptionally high) kicked in and he was hard work on walks, in that his recall was non existent.  Even through that tho, he was really laid back in the house, a real couch potato!!

My next pup Poppy, who probably actually has better working lines, by that I mean more FTCH,  is completely the opposite - she was hard work as a small pup - screamed all night, chewed, or should that be chews (she is only 8 months) and likes to potter around inside.  However outside she is an absolute dream, walks by your side, recall is 100% and she has never chased a thing!

I think that all dogs can be different, whether they are working or show strain and when you take on the commitment of a dog you need to be prepared to work with the dog that you have got, not the one you hoped you would get!!!!

[Billybang]

i'm absolutely not getting into this particular debate but just wanted to say that i think it's not entirely true to say that the size of house is an issue- we live in a semi in the middle of an estate, with a small paved over garden. if this was the only place where barkley (who's working type) could get exercise then of course it would be awful, but he simply uses the garden as somewhere to sniff about and stretch his legs. he's currently stalking blackbirds in the bushes as i type.   i then take him out three times a day to local woods, country parks, the south downs and so on for some proper roaming time. if i had a huge garden then maybe i wouldn't need to take him out quite so much but i knew that i would need to take it into account when i got him.


Not getting into a debate is not saying anything But yes, you are right I was trying to say being in a built up area with nowhere to let your dog have a good run to phrase it better. A small house makes no difference it is the time and surrounding area that is important. 

Glad to see that you also have a pet working Cocker, great dogs aren't they? 

[kb]

All dogs need attention and can not be left alone for long periods of time. They all need feeding, grooming (to varying degrees), exercise, veterinary care and so on.

Some breeds are absoloutley not good with children - some are fantastic, some are in between; but any dog has the potential to bite, so breeding, training and supervision, as well as education of the child about dogs' needs are essential with co-habiting dogs and children.

My cocker is vocal - some are not. My sister talked a lot when we were kids, I did not. They, like us, are individuals with different personalities.

I love my cocker she is intelligent, affectionate, funny, energetic, sleepy, cuddly. She is all those things, but she is also willful at times and has a strong character. She is gorgeous and I adore her, but she has not always been easy - but that can happen with any breed. But imo, cockers do know what they want and can be a little cheeky at times. I like this about them,  but they need time and effort.

No dog is the perfect dog, because I think as much as anything else, this depends very much on you being the perfect owner. That is what a lot of people (including myself at times) forget.

If you get a cocker now, or any time in the future, you will get out of the realtionship, that which you are able to put in. It is fair and reasonable to expect that. If you have time for lots of loving, playing, training, exercise, cuddling (on his terms)  - they will make you a perfect pet - what ever perfect is

[Cob-Web]

Some breeds are absoloutley not good with children -

According to some well known "names" in the dog behaviour world, cocker spaniels fall into this category  I thought I'd mention it as it has been in the media again recently 

 I don't believe it myself - imo the breed has no bearing on their ability to cohabit with children and any dog can successfully live with a family as long as the child (and preferably the dog, too) are trained appropriately 

[Jan/Billy]

I think that all dogs can be different, whether they are working or show strain and when you take on the commitment of a dog you need to be prepared to work with the dog that you have got, not the one you hoped you would get!!!!

I completely agree. Billy is show type yet his drive is so high  & so difficult to tire out. His best friend, Holly, is a show type cocker yet the two couldn't be further apart when it comes to energy levels.
On Monday as an example we took both dogs out for the morning, we were out for around 2 and a half hours, holly collapsed in the car & slept all the way home whereas Billy was wide awake & still raring to go. Holly didn't have another walk for the rest of the day & just slept where as Billy was out again in the evening & didn't sleep until about 7pm. Two totally different dogs yet the same breed!  

[Tommo]

I have read all the posts and like many I am just a little biased towards cockers. I have a dog and a bitch, and Baggins is so laid back he's almost horizontal. I did read on this forum somewhere that cockers are one of the breads where the dogs are more steady, laid back ,affectionate, cant remember the exact wording but you get the picture. That said they are all differant. I think most on here would agree that cockers are generally good with children and make excellent family pets. Just to throw a spanner in the works mine are show strain but I work them. Not to field trial standards but they are just about doing what I want them to do with rabbits/ pigeons.

[workingcockers]

Speaking as a breeder (with no puppies now or in the near future!!) - I would not home a pup of any breed to a family with a child under 7 or 8 - I bent my own self imposed rule only once having met the family and daughter and thought them to be sensible and had done their homework and understood how sore these teeth would be, but had the pup returned to me after a week due to the puppy teeth and a crying child....and puppy teeth are the same in every breed...I'm sorry if some take offence at this but I do remember as a child myself my parents wanting a cocker (show type) and could not get one until I was 8 from a reputatable breeder. This has stuck in my mind and totally understand where they were coming from. Certainly my son grew up with my dogs but he always knew how to behave with them.

Exercise wise, I probably get 2 or 3 hours myself as I take my dogs out in batches. The dogs themselves get 60-90 mins or so but I do have a large garden so that helps. Thinking about it, there is no way that some bigger kennels can give their dogs much more than this - for training it should only be short sessions (even shorter in a pup) and the more dogs you have plus a job albeit p/time, it cuts down available time..Sometimes they dont get out at all - people get ill, things crop up but they are sensible enough to behave and its the human company they like more than anything..

Sorry - think Ive gone off topic - I see question was also dog or bitch - Im one for the boys myself - always found them to be very loyal and 'easy'

[Shelley]

I am glad not all breeders have a rule about under 5's and pups. We had our first Newf when my youngest daughter was just under 3 years old, yep she got bitten and scratched by the pup from hell (which Molly was!), no way were either of the girls allowed to pester Molly in any way, and they didn't. It wasn't long before Molly was knocking both the girls flying in the garden as she grew quickly, she knocked me flying too. But we wouldn't have changed it for the world, if the kids got bitten or knocked over they were told to get over it!  I am not over protective with kids, though I might be with the dogs. For some strange reason though friends with kids stopped coming to visit.... There loss not mine!

[PennyB]

Actually I think you'll probably find if you really look at the stastics that there are tenfold as many Show Cockers in rescue, and even more labs, springers and staffies, Working Cockers are very low statistically for the breed to end up in rescue.

This doesn't take into account the number of dogs that are just sold on by their owners and never make it to rescue

[Nicola]

Actually I think you'll probably find if you really look at the stastics that there are tenfold as many Show Cockers in rescue, and even more labs, springers and staffies, Working Cockers are very low statistically for the breed to end up in rescue.

This doesn't take into account the number of dogs that are just sold on by their owners and never make it to rescue

Yes, and I think a lot of show cockers which end up in rescue are also ex breeding dogs as well rather than ones which have been given up by their owners for whatever reason.