Springer spaniel pup? -advice please

[vigglewiggle]

we were considering getting a dog now that bouth our DD's will be at school full time and I will have loads of time on my hands .

We were planning to do the sensible thing and do lots of research etc, but I have been made aware of 2 bitches for sale. They are the last two from a litter of working dogs.

They are Kennel Club registered and have been legally docked and dew clawed. They are microchipped and have a vets certificate for all of this. They are 11 weeks old.

We are tempted to go for it, but any advice you can offer would be welcome.

Hi thunderbolt yes I'd wondered about that myself having read too much exercise isn't good for their growing joints etc,but I spoke to the vet at his 6 month check & she said as long as he isn't flagging it's fine. Plus it's only once a week that we go that far & now that it's dark so much earlier it's at a slower pace with less leaping around like a lunatic! good point to raise though :)

Have you considered adopting an adult Springer? We adopted a 2 year old working-type springer a few months ago and he is absolutely wonderful! I was a bit concerned about Springer "nuttiness", but he is remarkably calm and gentle. Mind you, my other dog is a border collie so I have high tolerance levels for - ahem - excitable canine behaviour!

I think adopting a Springer is an excellent idea, they are cute at any age, not just as a little pup and it would take away the stress of getting them nurtured as rescued dogs are already nuetered.

I'm so tempted to get a rescue one but circumstances aren't right for me at the moment. In a few years, that is likely to change so who knows :)

We passed our home check with Springer Rescue Scotland,and were impressed with the amount of vetting they do - they are usually able to tell you if a dog is good with cats/kids/livestock etc,so that you have a reasonable idea of what you're getting involved with.

I know the Springer resecues in England are split down into areas,would be worth looking for their local website & getting an idea of what kind of dogs they have in foster homes at the moment that they would be looking to regime. Sometimes really young ones do come up...

Springer rescue is excellent actually (the kennel club registered one - they are split into areas as the poster above said). Getting an adult dog 'second hand' is an excellent idea as you will already know his/her finished personality. So have a much better idea what you are letting yourself in for.

To answer your other question I would choose a bitch overall as I think they tend to be better house dogs. They need to be spayed if you arent breeding so no need to worry about seasons. But its the individual thats important really so hence why getting an adult can work better for some.