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The English Cocker Spaniel is a breed of gun dog. It is one of several varieties of spaniel and somewhat resembles its American cousin, the American Cocker Spaniel, although it's closer to the working-dog form of the Field Spaniel and the Springer Spaniel. Outside the US, the breed is usually known simply as the Cocker Spaniel, as is the American Cocker Spaniel within the US. Due to the breed's happy disposition and continuously wagging tail, it has been given the nickname "merry cocker".
Appearance: The Cocker is a sturdy, compact,
well-balanced dog. It has a characteristic expression showing
intelligence and alertness. Its eyes should be dark and its
lobular ears should reach the tip of the nose when pulled
forward.
The breed's slightly loose skin and feathered coat allow it
to fight through any brush unharmed. The Cocker's tail is
customarily docked in North America. The tail is generally
docked at about 4 or 5 inches in field-bred dogs.
Height at withers:
Dogs: 15-17 inches (3843 cm)
Bitches: 15-16 inches (3841 cm)
Weight:
Dogs: 2834 lb (1315 kg)
Bitches: 2732 lb (12-15 kg)
Colour: Show dogs are restricted to certain colours
dependent on country, whereas working Cockers can be any of a
wide variety of colours. They come in solid (or
"self") colours, where white is restricted to only
the chest in show dogs, parti-colour, roan, and merle.
Many hunters prefer to have some white in the coat to make
the dog more visible to gunners.
Temperament: Cockers are renowned for their
friendly, faithful, playful, and affectionate natures. They
are easily trained and make a good medium-sized family pet.
Very few Cockers have temperament problems; in a 2002 survey
consisting of 487 cockers, only 1% of the dogs were aggressive
to people and 2% were aggressive to other dogs.
Health: The Cocker is generally a healthy breed. Its
main health problems are progressive retinal atrophy, kidney
disease, and hip dysplasia. They are also often prone to ear
infections because of their pendulous ears. They live for
approximately 13 to 14 years on average.
History: Spaniel type dogs are have been found in
art and literature for almost 500 years. (Kolehouse).
Initially, spaniels in England were divided among land
spaniels and water spaniels. The differentiation among the
spaniels that led to the breeds that we see today did not
begin until the mid 1800s. During this time, the land
spaniels became a bit more specialized and divisions among the
types were made based upon weight.
According to the 1840 Encyclopedia of Rural Sports, cockers
were between 12 and 20 lb. (Kolehouse). At this time it was
not uncommon for cockers and springers to come from the same
litter. Even a puppy from a Toy sized lineage could grow
to be a springer (Kolehouse).
There is no indication from these early sources that
spaniels were used to retrieve game. Rather they were use to
drive the game toward the guns. (Kolehouse)
During the 1850s and 60s other dogs types of cockers
were recorded. There were Welsh Cockers and Devonshire
Cockers. Additionally, small dogs from Sussex Spaniel litters
were called cockers. (Kolehouse) In 1874 the first stud books
were published by the newly formed kennel club. Any spaniel
under 25 lb was placed in the cocker breeding pool, however
the Welsh Cocker was reclassified as a springer in 1903 due to
its larger size and shorter ear (Kolehouse). "...in those
days only those dogs up to a hard days work and sensible
specimens were allowed to live, as absolute sporting purposes
were about their only enjoyment and dog shows were hardly
heard of..." (Kolehouse)
The hobby of dog showing began in earnest among spaniels
after the Spaniel Club was formed in 1885. When showing, the
new Springer and Cocker, both were in the same class until The
Spaniel Club created breed standards for each of the types.
The Kennel Club separated the two types eight years later.
Since then, the Springer and Cocker enthusiasts have bred in
the separate traits that they desired. Today, the breed differ
in more ways than weight alone.
In America, the American Cocker type was forming. As a
result, the English Cocker lost favor. The two Cocker Spaniels
were shown together until 1936, when the English Cocker
received status as a separate breed. The American Kennel Club
granted a separate breed designation for the English Cocker
Spaniel in 1946.
Working Cockers: This breed, like many others with
origins as working dogs, has some genetic lines that focus on
working-dog skills and other lines that focus on ensuring that
the dog's appearance conforms to a breed standard; these are
referred to as the "working" (or
"field-bred") and "show" strains,
respectively.
After World War II, the show-bred Cocker Spaniel increased
enormously in popular appeal and, for a while, was the most
numerous Kennel Club registered breed. This popularity
increased the view that all Cockers were useless as working
dogs. However, for many dogs this is untrue, as even some
show-bred Cockers have retained their working instinct.
Today, this breed is experiencing a resurgence in usage as
a working and hunting dog. Their happy and inquisitive
personality makes them ideal assistance or detection dogs.
Dogs from working lines are noticeably distinct in appearance.
As is the case with the English Springer Spaniel, the working
type has been bred exclusively to perform in the field as a
hunting companion.
Their coat is shorter and ears less pendulous than the
show-bred type. Although registered as the same breed, the two
strains have diverged significantly enough that they are
rarely crossed. The dogs that have dominated the hunt test,
field trial and hunting scene in the United States are
Field-Bred dogs from recently imported British lines. (Thoms
2002).
Working-dog lines often have physical characteristics that
would prevent them from winning in the show ring, such as
heads that are more domed than desired or other traits. This
is a result of selecting for different traits than those
selected by show breeders. The longer coat and ears, selected
for the show ring, are an impediment in the field.
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