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What can I say about the
cocker spaniel? I love them and they do make very good
agility dogs. You have to keep them slim and this isn't
always easy with a spaniel as they love their food.
The cocker should be 15-16ins (38-41cm) in height and this puts
them into the medium category for agility. The weight is
28-32lb (12.75-14.5kg). This sounds a bit heavy for an
agility dog but the breed dogs do tend to be fatter than dogs
competing in agility. Some cockers are smaller than this
and they can creep into the small category if they are under
13.75 ins.
As a breed they are joyful,
energetic and full of life and the tail never stops wagging.
Spaniels are usually into everything including the dustbin,
muddy puddles and all the places where you can't follow.
I've always found them to be
friendly and non-aggressive, however, a badly brought up spaniel
will bite just as hard as any other dog. The breed
standard says that they should
be gentle and affectionate and this is how I've found them. If you have a cocker you will
need a good grooming kit. Their coats tend to tangle
easily and they need regular thinning with a good pair of
thinning scissors. (Get someone to show you how to do
this.) I spent some time with a breeder learning how to
groom cockers but I found it wasn't so easy when I got home and
had to do a whole dog by myself.
As agility dogs, cockers are
fast and accurate. The survey respondents found them
fairly easy to train and would recommend them for agility. |
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Comments:
Juliet:
I have one 13 year old English cocker called Jim, sadly he won't be with us much
longer.
I will, however be getting at least one if not two cocker puppies, probably working
English working ones, I was glad to hear of their good reputation with agility. Jim
is a bit past that now but I can't wait to try it with the puppies!
Pat adds: There's lots of groundwork you
can do with puppies until they are old
enough to start jumping at around 12 months. As well as
obedience you can put poles on the ground between jump wings to
get them used to the equipment and they can go through tunnels.
The weave is stressful to the spine so leave that alone but you
could do some very small contacts.
(Definitely not the full sized ones.) Look after Jim
first, though. There will only ever be one Jim and he is
precious to you.
Dani
Burgess:
We have got two English Cocker Spaniels at home and they are both beautiful dogs
with a calm yet energetic when they want to be temperaments. I would recommend them
to any family looking for a dog they are great with children and other dogs. They
are easy to train because there so clever and their love of treats. I'm only 13 and
I have taught them both lots of tricks including agility. They're so loving and if
you get one you'll see for yourself.
Jess:
Cocker Spaniels have a lovly temperament and are active dogs. Because they are
greedy dogs they will do anything for a treat. So this means they are pretty easy
to train!
Carol
Barnes:
Maya is a working cocker, we didn't know there were two different types when we got
her. She's 16 months old and on a waiting list for agility. If offered a treat
she will sit, do down, flat, twist and paw all in one go in the hope that one of
them is the right one. She only has to see me go to back door and is there before
me and waiting to see if I'm going up the garden or to the garage and always gets
there first!!
Margaret Craner
(Working cocker - field trial breeding):
Our Flash is very, very bright, and needs careful
handling to prevent him
anticipating what we want. Calmness always from the
handler. Very athletic dog,
ready and happy to work all day and to please us.
Kirsty
Campbell:
I have a working cocker spaniel and it's true the tail never
stops wagging. She is
also into every tussock of grass and every hole in the ground. They learn very
quickly, it's sometimes hard to keep up with them.
Margaret Craner:
Don't forget that there are two very different
types of cocker spaniels (not counting
the American) - the show cocker and
the working cocker, which is often
mistaken for an undersized springer. The workers are bred
purely to work and for their
temperament, and just live to investigate every twig and leaf.
They are fast, keen to please and
learn VERY quickly. Having tried ours (who is only 10
months, so cannot start agility
proper), we are now looking for a suitable club
close to us. By the way, no-one told him he was too
young to jump - trying to stop
him on a romp with friends in the fields is impossible.
Having had a show type
cocker before, I can vouch for the fact that the workers
are faster and more agile, and learn
quicker.
Colin Budd
(cocker/cavalier cross):
By
crossing these two breeds (done specifically for pets) you do
not run a great risk of getting any of the inherent problems
from either breed ie heart problems from the cavalier or
liver/kidney problems from the cocker. Also the
temperament is loving and quick to learn (and fast). Will
run around around all day then cuddle up on your lap.
Colin would recommend this cross for agility and would choose
this type of dog again.
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