colour and intelligence

[Gilly]

Well I've got 3 all related and they are all very different.
Buttons - Liver Roan, is independent, clever, likes to do things in her own time on her terms  has a very gentle disposition, bit of a barker
Gracie (daughter) - B&W, is loving, not particularly clever but wants to please, never really barks
Lola (half sister) - Blue Roan, playful, bossy, loving, gentle, VERY LOAD annoying barker

All completely different personalities 

[winewood]

Thanks for replies, my first response was also what a load of rubbish!!!!
My Indi,( F)  Blue, bit of a loon, but sharp as a tack, quick to learn, bossy, hyperactive, independent, barker, real personality, at the Obed club everyone's comments about her, a real worker if only we could harness her enthusiasm she will be brilliant.  Kody, (m) Black not the sharpest tool in the shed, but eager to please, quiet boy, his ideal day, to sleep on my lap then have a run around then back to snooze but, he has 1 obedience pass 89 / 100 which he got at 18 months none after that but Indi now nearly 4 yrs is just managing to stand still for the SFE but she can do the dumbell work, scent discrimination, and seek back (tracking) and out of sight stays. He can do dumbell, takes to long and has to pick up all the articles in scent discrimination, and seek back I'm not sure, wouldn't let me go out of sight. Her mother is his grandmother, so both from the same breeder, I think as seems the general senses here it depends on gender, and individual dog  and parents, he has a much lower energy level than her. At our last trial a friend's friend who is an animal behaviourist, was watching us in the ring ( I think that made me so nervous, we completely stuffed up big time) made the comment that my two are so different completely opposite ends of the spectrum this makes it harder for me with training, I know that he just can't handle me when I get nervous in the ring and completely closes down. You'd swear he never been taught anything, where Indi can handle me better and doesn't freak out. Great dogs shame about the owner

[Terri Carpenter]

Well

Holly orange roan 4 1/2 yrs old - scatty but starting to calm down but very clever and stubborn
Sadie blue roan - 2 yrs old - very laid back and a bit dim
Pippa tri colour - 2 yrs old - scatty and clever
Dixie orange roan - 6 months - scatty very clever and devious
Paddy orange roan - very laid back and very dim

[kalem]

Hmmmm
Lucy - Blue Roan -  Very Very Loud,  Hyper, completely manic, fast, Alert, highly strung, loving when she wants to be, intelligent but can act dim, defo a pork pie short of a picnic hamper  (But I love her)
Lemmy - Orange Roan - Calm, Loving and very laid back 

[elaine.e]

I don't think colour has anything to do with intelligence or personality traits - all Cockers are individuals & while they may get some traits from their parents & other relatives further back, it's got nowt to do with colour other than in a coincidental way. I'm hearing quite often now (most recently in Martin Clune's book) that oranges are different to blues & are hyper loonies bordering on the unbalanced Nothing could be further from the truth with my own oranges who are happy little souls but very easy going and placid to live with (we've certainly had blues which were way more challenging ). If someone is saying all their oranges are hyper, then that's more to do with their breeding than their colour, in my experience.

I'm with you on this Jane S.

My orange roan William is the most laid back, easy going and willing to please dog that I've ever known. He's also quick to learn and is very focused when we do agility. His orange roan dad is just as placid. Wills had 2 orange roan siblings and 2 blue roan. I still see one of the blue roans and he's a very confident dog, but more excitable than Wills. I used to see the orange roan sister occasionally and she was very lively and excitable, exactly like their blue roan mum.

My golden dog was intelligent, lively and very stubborn. I didn't meet his dad but apparently he was quite excitable and a bit of a handful.

My black dog, half brother to the golden, was much quieter and slightly shy with strangers, very loyal to me. His dad was quite reserved with strangers too.

[KellyS]

This thread has reminded me of something I read in a Springer Spaniel book recently written by a breeder who shows and works springers.  He said that it is widely thought in springer circles that springers which are coarse in head are much harder to train...he goes onto say he has not found this himself as he has never kept a springer with a coarse head

[supergirl]

Have to agree with the Blue Roan bit.  My 1st CS was blue roan, and was definitely brighter that the two I have now.  By 4 months she's finished her bronze KC training.  Was a typical mad spaniel, but when it was time to work was ultra serious, sometimes seemed to read my mind.  She was pure show but had really good working instincts to the extent that our dog trainer said that we should work her.  Quite often you only had to show her something once and she'd remember it forever.  By contrast my current dogs (choc/tan & choc/tan/white) are definitely not as quick to catch on.  However, Roly is proving to be a good puzzle solver and seems to manage to get by most barriers that I put up stop him going where he shouldn't.  Misha is a scatty airhead but love her to bits.