CockersOnline Forum

My first Cocker I Bought from a puppy years ago. He lived only two months. It cost over 2000 in vet fees, and he was so severely bred that he died. I then learned the correct way to buy a dog. All those lovely people who get those dogs and give them a beautiful home are fantastic. I would be so afraid—such a heartbreak.

Came home from vet check with Miss Molly weighing in at 7.2 kg. Also came home with a dreaded "pooh collection" bottle. Please pray for me as I have to scoop for 3days. Just can not get her belly sorted. The digestive plus helped ( would recommend) then put her on their daily digestive tablets.
Can just about put up with the poop but the farts are terrible.

Lots of trainers (and other people too) claim they hate retractable leads, but used properly I find them most useful .

I think the "used properly" bit is key too. First rule don't grab the cord with your other hand, if you want to keep all your fingers! I don't just let her run wherever I maintain contact when using the lead and am learning judicious use of the lock/unlock button, certainly at the football matches where she's really distracted by the ball and I have to avoid pitch invasions. She never wants to just sit and watch the matches we always head over to the perimeters and bushes undergrowth etc to "hunt" here again with the retractable lead it's useful in forcing me to use body language and hand signals to avoid tangling and winding it around trees with the stop whistle and clear hand direction a lot of time I can get her to untangle herself. Doing the perimeter hunt at the match last Sunday something the gun dog trainer told me clicked in place, as we were going round at one point she really wanted to pull in one direction and I was wondering why then it hit me, wind direction, she was really wanting to head into the wind where all the smells were coming from!

The leader of our puppy group was dead against retractable leads, but I have used the. For years with no problems. The ones with the 'tape, type lead are better than the thing cord type, less chance of a leg burn! I really can't see why some trainers don,t like them. If you are in a strange new place the dog can sniff about and you know they won't go off piste.

Hi Pete and a welcome to you and Poppy. Spaniels are a breed to themselves. Busy, full of love, keen as mustard and so much fun. When we got our first working girl at 10 months old, we also were uninitiated into their world.  We wanted her to work in the field with us and trained her ourselves, by gleaning information from everyone and from all sources. We are a great fan of country shows, amazing how much help you can get from them. Gun dog training is a good way go go. It will get you the basics and control. You can also do the exercises in the home. Keep the training to short periods, they get overtired and lose concentration. Do not get cross or shouty, they are sensitive dogs.
We lost our Gemma in July, but next week Miss Molly will join the family at 10weeks old. Its over 30years since we went to puppyhood, so you are not alone in this new lifestyle.

I have to admit now we're a couple of months into ownership I'm not seeing "over tired" unless I'm not recognising it. Poppy has energy for days and weeks. I have heard that they become what you train them to be. The gun dog trainer told me to reel in the running and ball chasing over open ground as basically I'm training her to be an ultra-marathon runner and I would need to try to keep up! Also, as she gets greater confidence, she would be more likely to bolt and go missing, so I stick to hunt simulation in undergrowth, keeping her close by with whistle control. The gun dog trainer hates retractable leads and told me to bin mine, but I have found it useful when going to my son's football matches and when near roads, I'm hoping that in time Poppy and I will develop the type of connection that can replace the lead entirely, we're getting there I can see she watches me intently and my body language and where I'm looking and follows hand signals quite well but for now it lets her run close by and "quarter" and gives me the control failsafe. Now at 7 months she is really bulking up and being quite short haired with minimal feathering I can see she's all muscle, she's becoming quite a "unit".