Why you have the cocker type you do

[debbie321]

the next one is bound to have 666 tattooed under his tuft

Sorry Helen - that one's mine 

ben has been a *challenge* but i reckon you and ben are starting to work things out nicely  (it will get easier  ) When all's said and done he's still a damn handsome boy 

Aww shucks    Ben has been a  ............. tonight he made me and Becky laugh and then 10 minutes later had me cursing!

Becky discovered the choclates I'd hidden in the fridge and found the only 'purple one' .............. she started unwrapping it ............ I tried to grab it .............. choc fell to the floor ............. in a split second we had a dog with a waggy bum and toffee stuck to his teeth! 

10 minutes later I had my one glass of wine (only allowed one on a weekday) and he did a sweep of the coffee table for more chocolate and sent my wine flying!  All over me, the sofa and the carpet ............... that's when the cursing crept in 

Gotta love him though 

[Helen]

I have show type cockers because I wouldn't have got very far in the show ring with a working cocker 

oh michele - i think you would have gone quite a long way

you'd be going MILES as they hauled you around the ring sniffing everthing and everyone keeping busy.....  (not that i have a working cocker lead puller of course )

[Jeano]

I know I am a bit biased here, but if you are not specifically after a cocker from working stock why not look for a rescue one, like the ones from Many Tears (where our very own Parker came from!!)

These dogs are desperate for a loving home and can become real treasures.  We could not wish for a better dog.

I do witter on about rescue dogs but I genuinely feel that if you are not fussed about showing or working them, they are a really good option!

We have Mitzi through Cocker Rescue from Sue Pudney-couldn't wish for a better girl.So HERE HEAR says I.Jeano(hope this works)

[Nicola]

I have show type cockers because I wouldn't have got very far in the show ring with a working cocker 

oh michele - i think you would have gone quite a long way

you'd be going MILES as they hauled you around the ring sniffing everthing and everyone keeping busy.....  (not that i have a working cocker lead puller of course )

Took the words right out of my mouth! I can't imagine Alfie standing still to let the judge inspect him, he'd be too busy "inspecting" their ears! 

[Maria]

Another one whose answer won't really 'count'.
Both our families only ever had rescue dogs, so when we were in a position to have a dog we went to the local RSPCA, with no particular breed in mind. Boysie chose us. On his first visit to the vet it was suggested that he 'might' have some working cocker in him - (he was bouncing round the room at the time).He is tall and long, and we met someone on a walk who suggested he could be a field spaniel (he does have similar dimentions and is all black), but we've always assumed that he's a large cocker.
3 years on, and we decided that it was time for another cocker . So Smudge joined us from Many Tears - a darling little lady, who is now fully housetrained, but still a bit nervous of people and the big wide world.

[Nicola]

i'm not entirely convinced i can describe jarv as wired, intelligent, and physically robust - and i can definitely not describe myself as having those attributes (if you thought i was striding across miles of forest and field and stream in an attempt to wear out this boy, you'd be sadly mistaken, although we do have 2 very good outings a day!)  I'm think i have a particularly laid back worker version (we have ascertained today he is fairly much a midget gem!), and i guess from my experience with him i find it hard to relate to some perceptions of workers.

This all applies equally to Alfie (and to me) except for the midget part cos Alfie just keeps getting bigger and bigger at the moment  

He is a bright and active dog but really no more than Jack the show cocker who lives up the street from us (and considerably less than Honey the mad goldie who lives four doors down!) and a lot of his "mad" behaviour I still put down to his age and puppy exuberance rather than a trait of his breeding. He does jump around like a loony when he meets new people or dogs but he soon calms down. I have to admit that he is a very laid back dog and many times OH and I have said how lucky we've been with him as he really is such a good dog around the house. Like Helen I'm certainly not out tramping across field and dale with him 10 hours a day, he gets two good runs and one on lead walk every day and they do him just fine... put it this way, by 9pm every night he'll invariably be found sprawled on top of me on the sofa out for the count!

He is the star of his obedience class (we've been invited to a working trial by the instructor), he is not the brightest dog I've had but then my last dog was a German Shepherd so I may be making unfair comparisons there. He is bright and focused, he'd do anything for a piece of cheese and he really does want to do his best to please me and I can't ask for more than that  

The main reason I wanted a working cocker is that a friend of mine has one and I completely fell for her, she was the most loving, cuddly and affectionate dog I'd ever met (well, until I got Alfie!) and after doing my research on the breed I also liked the idea of the shorter coat and because I'm realistically never going to compete in showing, I liked the idea of being able to do some gun and fieldwork training with the dog. He's a natural sniffer, swimmer and retriever and despite not having had any field training yet will happily work a patch of long grass for ages. However, he's also equally happy with an on-lead walk or a good play in the garden. He's energetic but he's definitely not a "bouncing off the walls" dog.

My next cocker will be a rescue so I won't really have a choice in its breeding and tbh I don't mind if it's a worker, a show or a mixture of the two. I would hate for people to discount working cockers because of some misconception that they all need to be out running across mountains and moorland 24/7.. I'm sure they would be happy to do this on occasion but all the workers I know are equally happy with a good run and then a nice sofa to lie on. If anyone would like to test my theories by borrowing Alfie for a few days you're more than welcome  

[lyn]

i can't really answer this question easily.i had always loved cockers and always wanted one.after losing our beloved oes in july last year we decided to get another dog asap.so i got paddy who i thought was a show type when i bought him.turns out he was showxworker and boy was i mad at first.paddy was hard work.originally he was to be called either murphy or stevie(after steven gerrard)but within about 2 hours of having him home we decided on paddy coz of his tantrums
in december we got millie.she was a show type cocker with the sweetest nature but no brains!!though i have to admit she had been through a lot when we got her and i do wonder if she actually did have some brain damage or if it was her spirit that was broken.after losing millie i wanted to get another rescue coz tbh i am sooo crap at choosing breeders and i still felt i had been ripped off when we got pads.
helen(choccydrop)came to my rescue with my beatiful ellie,a half sister to the great jarvis.ellie is full worker.
so i have had in a year some experience with a show x worker a show type and a full worker and tbh the working strain is my fave.i don't think i will ever own another breed of dog except maybe another oes one day.looks wise then the x is handsome not to much heavy feathering and a sleek coat. for truly stunning looks then the show type wins hands down.i love the black and whites(especially gracie )for true companionship then the ful worker gets top marks from me.they will be most eager to please(except for ellie who thinks my furniture is her personal teething toy but she is only a baby and she has eaten mostly only my side tables which i have turned around so the chunks are out of sight
so i now own a worker x show and a full worker and i couldn't say a favorite has come out on top.they are very different yet very alike iykwim.
at the end of the day everyone will have personal preferences but one thing is sure and that is that we all love cockers

[ali]

i could pretty much put helen and nicola's comments about jarvis and alfie into quotation marks and you'd have barkley.

at 7 months old he has found his place in our home and fits perfectly. we go out for two 'proper' walks each day, which i'd imagine will end up being about an hour each once he's full grown. when he's out in the fields and woodland, he's incredibly active- head down, tail up, charging all over the place. as soon as he's back in the car, he's out like a light and then will happily mooch around the house for the rest of the day, sleeping on and off. granted, by six he's ready to go out again (especially if it's been too hot for a short run in the local field in the afternoon) and makes it clear by repeatedly pawing our legs and dropping balls at our feet, all accompanied with little grunts and mumbles. but after another exploration, he'll veg out with us in the lounge and be asleep by 9:30pm.

we know we've taken on a responsibility in choosing a dog bred for intelligence more than looks. he has a good ftch pedigree and his mum was worked and out and about full time on her owner's farm. we are inexperienced in all of this and know that barkley will probably never quite reach his full potential with us, but we are trying our hardest and plan to get him involved in all sorts of activities, whether agility or gun dog, once he's old enough. my biggest concern was whether we'd be able to keep him stimulated and happy in our chosen lifestyle but he really does seem to be.

on the rescue dog issue- we really, really wanted to give a rescue dog a home but weren't able to as we plan to start a family in the next few years and no-one would home a dog with (potential) young children. if we have another dog in later life, i have no doubt that it will be a rescue dog.

[DennyK]

Didn't know working cockers existed....but I'd always wanted what I thought of as a "Golden cocker" - i.e. a gold show cocker.  Got a black show cocker because Paddy chose me. 

Because of my prior ignorance and indoctrination that "Cocker = show cocker appearance", I still struggle with the idea that two sets of dogs which look so different count as the same breed....Even if I'd fully understood the difference, I'd still have gone for the show type because (don't all beat me up!!!) they look like "proper cockers" (yikes - hope you know what I mean) to me - that is, what I grew up believing a cocker to look like and that's what I'd fallen in love with. 

Love their loopy lugs, their long coats (although some of the full-on show skirt stuff scares me.... ).  Oh and Paddy's paws - wowee.  Big Paw.  Little Dog.  Yummmmmmeeeeeee.  If he was here right now, I'd give him a kiss between the eyes....

[Poppy W]

I'm much the same as some of the others I guess. When I chose my first cocker it was because the size suited me, I didn't want a breed that moulted loads and I loved the appearance of what I assumed was a typical cocker (i.e. a show cocker). I had no idea that working cockers even existed! Prior to my cocker I'd previously had a show springer and - now don't all shout at me for this - thought that some of the other dogs I'd seen were 'weedier' versions of a working springer.  No offence to working cocker owners...I know that they are lovely, I was just ignorant! 

When we looked for a replacement dog after Jasper died I was under no doubt that I wanted a Cocker...and that I wanted a show cocker again. However this time I have gone for a golden (Jasper was solid black) and Percy has a very different personality - he is livelier, seems to have better hearing, and dare I say it...be slightly brighter in some ways. However, he has also been more difficult to toilet train, chewed a lot more and been more anxious when left.

Just shows that even two dogs of the same type and breed can be very different. Love them both though!!!! 

[Jenny & Soppy Poppy]

Well when I went to the breeder I thought Id be getting a hairy 'show' type cocker, It wasnt until I saw mum and dad that I thought they dont look like the ones in the book!!!!

It was the first and last litter I looked at.... Collected Poppy 3 weeks later and am now aware she is what everyone call 'working' although she is not doing much working now.... fast asleep on my sofa!!!  

There have been times where as she has so much of a desire to chase birds and look for anything that moves under hedges that I might have been better off with a show type. I wouldnt change Poppy for the world though.... maybe my second dog will be a show type then I would be able to compare a bit more!!

[Poppy W]

Well when I went to the breeder I thought Id be getting a hairy 'show' type cocker, It wasnt until I saw mum and dad that I thought they dont look like the ones in the book!!!!

It was the first and last litter I looked at.... Collected Poppy 3 weeks later and am now aware she is what everyone call 'working' although she is not doing much working now.... fast asleep on my sofa!!!  

There have been times where as she has so much of a desire to chase birds and look for anything that moves under hedges that I might have been better off with a show type.

Errr, sorry to disillusion but show cockers do this too!!!! 

Percy has just found a way under our decking (!!) and now feels that it is his duty in life to harrass the poor hedgehog who was quite happily iving under there.

He also patrols the hedge, seeing birds off...chases moths...batters daddy long legs and generally pounces on anything that moves.

Plus when we take him for walks he permanently has his little nose stuck to the ground!!!! Common traits I feel!!!!

[Cob-Web]

Well when I went to the breeder I thought Id be getting a hairy 'show' type cocker, It wasnt until I saw mum and dad that I thought they dont look like the ones in the book!!!!

It was the first and last litter I looked at.... Collected Poppy 3 weeks later and am now aware she is what everyone call 'working' although she is not doing much working now.... fast asleep on my sofa!!! 

There have been times where as she has so much of a desire to chase birds and look for anything that moves under hedges that I might have been better off with a show type.

Errr, sorry to disillusion but show cockers do this too!!!! 

I agree - when all is said and done the two strains are decended from the same lines and so will show very similar traits 

To me, the decision was taken based on the traits that were specifically selected for: when a litter of working pupies are bred, the desire of the breeder is that they all have characteristics of a successful working dog; of course show litters might also show these traits, but by accident rather than selection 

[crazyspaniels]

mine chose me, I was just told they were cockers when asked to take them in, but I suppose out of the foster dogs I have had, I have kept 2 of the working cockers and none of the show strain. I love the workers, they are more like my beloved springers, but with attitiude and some devilment  

[Jenny & Soppy Poppy]

Now I am confused.... If Poppy is a 'working' one and they are all pretty much the same... If I get a second dog which one to choose? worker or show?!?!?

Or maybe I should just let the second dog find me!!