Very worried we got a working cocker puppy - will we cope?

[ejp]

I think Min has summed it up perfectly, don't get hung up on the worker label, just enjoy your dog. They are all different, just like people, and I think you have quite a busy routine so I think you will be fine. Just enjoy.

[JohnK]

In truth, there is no such thing as a working cocker spaniel according to KC rules, they are working type, but they are all gorgeous. What is in a name lol

[Redked]

I think the key is not to get too hung up on "can we do this". I too had serious doubts about our worker as we did not want to work Bonnie but knew she needed more 'brain' work than our last dogs.

If you adapt your walking time rather than lengthen it then I'm sure you will be fine. Bonnie never has just a walk; we take treats, balls and toys to use on all walks. We hide them so she can find them, which she loves. We do lots of training on every walk; sit/stay, remote sit and lie down, recall, touch etc. This just keeps her brain thinking but takes no more time than a normal walk. We do whistle commands too on every walk and hand signals. OH tends to do longer walks in woods as well with places she can swim but he also trains and gives her things to do on these walks. Finding things is her favourite. She has flushed birds and rabbits on many occasions without ever being taught to do so.

As long as they are given things to think about, we have found that she is quite content. She is a gorgeous natured family dog, higher energy than some but also more intelligent and easier to train than some too. I think they make a great all round dog to be honest. They can adapt and are indeed very happy to be part of the family as well as being happy to be worked. You just need to keep their minds active with whatever suits your dog and your lifestyle xx

[rubybella]

DON'T PANIC - it will be fine.

I have a working type lab and a wcs too!

The only difference between my 2 dogs is that the spaniel spends more time with her nose to the ground. They have/need the same amount of exercise, which is about 1.5 hr walk every day and 90% off lead. Her energy levels at home are the same as my lab. She isn't in my face all the time and wanting to do stuff. We are lucky enough to have a large garden and fenced paddock and the back door is open pretty much all the time but where is Bella most of the time - sleeping as close to where I am as possible!!

I would suggest that you have a go at either agility or gundog training with her because it is good for them to use their biddable nature and enthusiasm for life for something other than just walks. I do both with Bella but only for fun, not in a competitive nature.

They do not need hours of walks and I believe if you start this sort of routine then you will struggle to fit them into family life as a pet. The more exercise you give them, the more they come to expect! Having said that wcs are not suitable as a pet for lead only walks plodding around the streets, these are usually the ones that end up in rescues because they do not have enough stimulation and end up causing mayhem to the owner.

Hope this helps.

[Miriam]

Thank you so much to everyone for the very encouraging and helpful replies.  I knew that there must be other people with wcs who've made it work in a pet home.

I always find having two dogs really helps, especially if one of them has common sense and a nice nature, and our lab does!

Having said that I can tell already that we are going to have a busy year!  It's also clear that Dizzy will probably be 'my' dog since he really does follow me everywhere.  Django is a loyal soul and he loves me and my husband but he definitely loves David more.  When the puppy comes to me Django watches but doesn't do anything but when the puppy goes to David for a pet Django is immediately on his feet pushing himself into the cuddle.  One of the things I enjoy a lot about dog ownership is watching dogs and their interactions, they are so intelligent and sensitive yet open!

Well, it doesn't seem that I'm being told to take Dizzy back (which I half thought I might) so here he stays.  I'll keep you posted.

[Natty P]

Hi, I must admit I made the same error when purchasing our cocker and panicked alot as I  have 2 children to look after aswell, but it turns out there was no need for all the worry.  The biggest problem we had, as you mention, was her energy but after a few months we had our routine and she was happy some days to have shorter lead walks so long as in between she gets to run wild on a big field and have a swim in the local stream.  She is 20 months now and a beautiful, happy and loving WCS and has never so much as growled at the children or another dog.  I must say we had her spayed when she was around 14 months which seemed to help alot, but obviously that's down to personal preference.  I wouldn't worry unless problems arised 

[its.sme]

Hi Miriam,

Glad to hear you are feeling more encouraged, that's the beauty of CoL we are all here to help as we are all Mad Cocker Owners.

I look forward to your future post, we would love to see some photo's 

Sharon

[Miriam]

I will post photographs but I don't know how to!  If anyone can direct me I'll give it a go.

[Joules]

This thread tells you all you need to know about posting photos 

http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=15703.0

[Redked]

As the wife(redked40) already stated the workers are more active than the show type but still make fantastic pets,bonnie is not worked as a gun dog but is entertained on walks in the woods with finding her ball and training exercises sit,say touch,wait etc. She will walk/run all day but will also settle and relax in the home cuddles are aplenty.They are more intelligent and easier to train than my previous working breed lab,so if you can offer some off lead exercise and mind games all will be good!!

[Murphys Law]

Just to echo what Redked says above.

Even though Murphy is not a full worker he is incredibly easy to train. Today we tried the sit/stay command for the first time and after three goes I was able to walk 50 yards and then call him to me. It took less than 10 minutes for him to nail it.

I think that workers respond superbly to training and really enjoy it too.

[Cockertime Blues]

HI and welcome.  I agree with Min.  We have 2 workers and are a pet home (though since ours are rescue we didn't go through puppyhood).  I think the main thing is that you are at home all day (though I know you have to work).  You will deal with whatever the cocker throws at you and it sounds like you're giving him a great home.  Keep us posted.  Oh, and the main thing - recall recall recall training.

[cadbury]

Hi I have a worker who is 2 this year and a show type who is 8 and I know where you are coming from
Ellaween our worker was sold as a show type so I was worried that she would be too much for me
But yes she can be a little whirlwind but so can Bailey and they both get the same exercise but ella
Also loves nothing more than snoozing and cuddling on my knee or anywhere.  And
 I also think that keeping them entertained helps like hiding treats training them keeping their brains
Entertained goes a long way into calming them down hope this helps .

[LurcherGirl]

I think that nearly two hours exercise a day is more than enough, even for a working cocker. And I reckon if you have had a typical terrier, you will probably be ok with the temperament of a working cocker too (both can be a bit mad at times). 

I have a cocker which is half show, half working. I never planned to have her, she was an emergency foster that stayed. She struggled a lot with self control when she was younger and I had to put a lot of work in. And if I had let her, she would have demanded hours and hours of exercise too. However, my dogs get one to 1.5 hours a day (that's one walk a day) and she is perfectly fine with that now and is very settled and relaxed at home.

The one thing you have to remember which working type breeds is that they usually need more mental stimulation than show types. In other words, you will have to come up with some training opportunities, be that pet classes or once she is older, agility, fly ball etc. Yes, working types need a decent amount of exercise re walks, but they need just as importantly the mental exercise! You keep that in mind, I am sure you will be ok. 

[Miriam]

Thank you all so much, I have really found all these comments so helpful because I was actually scared when I started reading about wcs and their needs.  I think we are a good average pet home.  We love our animals and pay for their health care and good food and they never ever go without walks off-lead but they do have to be on their own while we work (even though I am in the house) and to fit in with busy lives.

But so far, so good!  Dizzy is fitting in very well and I think he's the brightest puppy I've had yet, he seems to learn extremely quickly.  He's also affectionate and very physically robust, also a first for me.  My previous pups have all had sloppy tums and been rushed to the vets a couple of times in their first weeks.  The only issue is that Dizzy bosses and play-fights (I assume it's play!) my lovely lab a bit too much.  But nonetheless they seem to be friends.  I'll keep you posted on his progress and thanks again.