Origin
The name "Cocker" was taken from the woodcock, a
game bird the dogs were known for flushing. This dog breed was brought to United
States which was originally bred from English Cocker Spaniels. The Spaniels
were bred down in size and given the name American Cocker Spaniels, which later
officially called simply the "Cocker Spaniel" by the AKC. The
American Cocker Spaniel was first recognized by the AKC in 1873. Some of the
noted talents of Cocker Spaniel are hunting, tracking, retrieving, watchdog,
agility and competitive obedience.
Description
The Cocker Spaniel is a medium sized and a tough dog breed.
Its head is easily noticed as rounded and having a pronounced stop. Cocker
Spaniel dogs have broad muzzle and squared deep. Its teeth resemble scissors
bites. These dogs usually have dark eyeballs with almond shaped eye rims. Blue eyes
can be noticed in Merle Cocker Spaniel breeds. Its long and hanging ears are
fairly feathered. The direction of its hair from top front to the back down to
its legs is straight. Cocker Spaniels normally have docked tails. It also has
short and fine hair on the head and medium length on the body. The ears, chest,
abdomen and legs have feathering on its hair. These dogs usually are wrapped
with mixed coats that come in any solid color mixed with dark and tan combinations.
Commonly noticed mixes are white with black and tan points, white with red or
white with black. Coats in both field lines and show lines normally differed
depending on the breed.
Weight
Males usually stand at 15.5 inches or approximately 38 cm.
and Females at 14.5 or 36.8 cm. Both weigh around 15-30 pounds or 7-14
kilograms.
Temperament
These dogs are commonly bred as household pets because of
its sweet, obedient, charming and cheerful attitude towards its master. They
love to walk, run and play outside since it has active characteristics. When
walking, take note to avoid brushy thickets that can tangle the coat. While young, Cocker Spaniel dogs
should be exposed along with other dogs to avoid the tendency of being shy and distant
to other things around them. These dogs also love to play with children, so
there’s no risk of them being hard to train because they have friendly attitude
once shown with care and acceptance from its master. One thing to avoid these
dogs to develop is the so called Small Dog Syndrome, this usually happens when
you allow your dog to be your master. This should be controlled in order to
observe a good master-pet relationship. Once you become its master, you should be the
power to do the orders, not the other way around that’s why you have to ensure to
have the dog heeling beside or behind you while holding the lead so that in a
dog's mind the leader always leads the way, and that leader is you, not the
dog. Another thing that is commonly noticed with these dogs is when they
get vicious which is a result of combined fear and superiority. Over-excitement
of these dogs will also result to excessive urinating which will later become
the owner’s problem. They should also be taught on proper places to dispose
that’s why mental and physical exercise should be done with them to make them remember
things that you as an owner want them to do. Some noted negative behaviors of
this breed are hyperactivity, obsessive barking, roaming, littering and
aggressiveness in comes to new encounters. In the two types, show lines are
more suited for people living in the woods area and field lines are mostly used
for working and hunting but both of them are appropriate household pets.
Grooming
Wipe gently under the eyes often to remove the dried liquid as
they tend to tear. Some owners prefer to leave the coat long, brushing daily
and shampooing frequently with quarterly scissoring and clipping. Many also
prefer to clip the coat to medium length to be more functional. Either way, always
keep in mind that the dog will need regular trimming. When brushing its hair,
be careful not to pull out the silky ones. This breed is an average
shedder.
Environment
Since they are not suited to be left alone outside, they
will be okay in a small yard where they can play. They are also active indoors
so even in a small apartment they can be held securely.
Life Span
Cocker Spaniel can live for 12-15 years approximately. They
can also deliver litters for 1-7 but with average of 5.
Health Problems
Most of the major encountered Cocker Spaniel health problems
includes cataracts, glaucoma and patellar luxation. Some minor concerns are hip
dysplasia, ectropion, entropion, PRA, allergies, cherry eye,
seborrhea, lip fold pyoderma, otitis externa, liver disease, urolithiasis,
prolapse of nictitans gland, CHF, phosphofructokinase deficiency and
cardiomyopathy. There are also occasionally noticed problems such as gastric
torsion, elbow dysplasia and so with IMHA (Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia).
In order to avoid these problems, they should be taken on daily,
long walks as their exercise since they have plenty of stamina and regular exercise
is essential to them.
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