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If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

Best place to look for a Cocker Spaniel puppy?

58 replies

eandh · 17/11/2015 08:09

After 4 years of discussing, debating and finally settling that this is the right time to add to our family and we would like to get a cocker spaniel puppy after Christmas/New year (dd2 birthday 5th January and she has been the one who has been the instigator so will be part of he birthday present)

We have spoken to local vets to register interest in puppy parties, puppy club and having him (must be a boy) registered with them and they have been so helpful with us choosing the right breed for our family (DH and DD2 huge runners so once he is old enough he'll be going on long walk/runs every day) The vets have given us a list of things to check when we go to looks for him (such as must be with mum, age, if tails been docked make sure they have the official paperwork and checks etc) however I am now stuck where to start looking as I do not want to get sucked into a puppy farm ?

OP posts:
tabulahrasa · 17/11/2015 12:45

Oh and...re running, if you can run somewhere that you'd normally have a dog offlead, just run with it offlead, it'll sniff and catch you up - or with most dogs sniff while it's waiting to catch you up.

If it has to be onlead because of location, most dogs enjoy it, no they can't sniff, but running with you is a fun game anyway.

But, you don't want to have a puppy out running, ideally it'd be 18 months or so before you can start that.

BirdintheWings · 17/11/2015 13:06

Agree with the above! Good friends of ours interviewed us, hard, then turned us down for one of their puppies, saying 'Yes, you do want a dog, but not one of these.'

Original poster
eandh · 17/11/2015 14:11

Fantastic call from the vets, the nurse has a cocker and a springer, her cocker's parents are expecting their second litter early December, she has offered that we as a family can go and meet her cocker (and then she will take us to meet his mum and dad). The family were only breeding as they want 2 more working dogs for their farm, the Mum is expecting 4 puppies and they are willing to sell the other 2 to the right home (if they feel that they can't find the right home then they are happy to keep all 4 puppies as they have the room to do so). The vets nurse is very much aware of our situation and will recommend us to them obviously they can't come home till February time but that is still doable with work schedule and means we know their exact line (they will be more expensive than other puppies but to be honest I am happy to pay to ensure we get the right dog for our family)

OP posts:
NigelLikesSalad · 17/11/2015 18:19

Excellent! We ended up with ours through similar, farmer had a litter wanting two, had homes for another 3/4 depending on size of litter - they had 8! I think their mum had the last one.

Original poster
eandh · 17/11/2015 20:23

so excited now I am hoping they like us!

OP posts:
MsAdorabelleDearheartVonLipwig · 17/11/2015 21:01

Aww bless. Hope you get on ok. Pictures of puppies as soon as possible please! Grin

banff82 · 17/11/2015 22:43

I may be reading your post the wrong way, sorry if so, but are you thinking about buying both of the available pups from that litter? If you are I would strongly urge you to reconsider, two pups at the same time is really not recommended and responsible breeders will not sell two pups to the same home. I'm a vet and have owned and trained working spaniels my entire life, I currently have 2 working Cockers. They are amazing dogs but generally not the easiest or most suitable family pets; I have helped to find new homes for a lot of working strain spaniels in my 9 years in practice. I run with mine all the time but only ever off lead, spaniels are not made for running on the lead, far too much dashing around and sniffing to do!

sparechange · 17/11/2015 22:49

Is this breeder going to be docking them?

If so, please can you run in the opposite direction? It is totally unnecessary and utterly cruel. If they have done that to the puppies, I wouldn't consider them responsible enough to do other things right.

And yes, I have had working spaniels, which have worked and don't remotely believe there is any merit in docking them.

sparechange · 17/11/2015 22:52

Sorry, just re-read your update.

This litter has been bred for working, so the lines are strong working lines. That doesn't strike me as making them particular suitable for inexperienced families who will be relying on vet puppy classes for training. These dogs will be hard work to train. Fine if you are a working home. Not fine if you are a family home.

What in particular is attracting you to this litter? Any KC registered puppy will have 'lines' going back 6 generations, btw

MsAdorabelleDearheartVonLipwig · 17/11/2015 23:10

Rubbish. Our working cocker was a dream to train. It's not a given that a working strain will be harder to train. Our current dog is a lab from working lines and is one of the most chilled out puppies I've ever had. And one of the cleverest, he gets stuff really quickly. I think a lot of it is about how you bring them up and train them.

If they are proper working dogs they might well have had their tails docked, but I think you're supposed to show that they will be used as working dogs in order to do so, so they might not have yet.

I don't necessarily think it's s bad thing for working dogs to have docked tails. I have had working dogs for years and worked a lot of shoots and seen many ripped tongues, ears and tails. The tail is the only one you can reasonably prevent from injury though.

Noitsnotteatimeyet · 17/11/2015 23:39

Don't get two littermates! That's asking for trouble... And no reputable breeder would let you take two at once

Unless you have time to train and exercise the puppies separately they will end up bonding with each other, not you

Look up littermate syndrome

One puppy will be delightful, two will be more than double trouble...

Floralnomad · 18/11/2015 00:00

I don't think the OP is implying that she will take the 2 pups ,just that they will have 2 to sell . I can't see any reason why these pups should be more expensive than others though .

Original poster
eandh · 18/11/2015 05:21

No no no just one puppy for us (sorry it may have read incorrectly but the are keeping at least 2 of the puppies if they can't find the right homes then they'll keep them all) no tails will not be docked (was one of my questions) and both parents are free if eye problems so will be heirdatory PRN free too.

We have different friends who have all had different types of puppies this year (staf, cocker, 2x labs, German shepherd (they took a brother and sister together!) beagle and a sprocker) all have used training and all have children so we have seen how much hard work and dedication this will take but truly believe a cocker is the right breed.

We live near lots of open space and when he is old enough and trained enough he would certainly be able to be off lead (dh friends cocker is 18 months old and incredibly well behaved off lead and he runs and she follows sniffing and exploring but catching him up)

OP posts:
tabulahrasa · 18/11/2015 07:38

PRA can happen when both parents are completely healthy - that's why you'd be wanting a clear DNA test on one parent, in case they're both carriers of the gene,

NigelLikesSalad · 18/11/2015 08:23

Cockers are very strong willed and do need firm boundaries but they very intelligent and eager to learn and train. They are not a hard breed to train. Ours had excellent recall by 6/7 months and is good as gold. Great with children, taught the 'gentle' command and not to snatch very early on with no problems whatsoever. They are not hard to train

needastrongone · 18/11/2015 08:52

Few thoughts.

Our working cocker has been a dream to train. He is the least strong willed dog that I have ever met Smile Our Springer is far more stubborn.

I would have your puppy off lead immediately, from the first walk. They will be too scared to go more than a few feet away from you, honest.

Ours has a docked tail, I also don't think its a bad thing. Saying that, he has at least 2/3rds of his tail intact, not a little stump. I think that's common these days.

I just personally wouldn't run with my spaniels. I again, personally use the time spent walking to train as well. So, lots of waits, recall, sniffing out treats, down stays, scent trails etc. They are focussed on me then, not other distractions.

I think you would definitely need more that vet based training classes.

Have a look into the KC Good Citizen Awards. They have a bronze, silver and gold award. We did these with ours, you end up with a well mannered, well trained dog if you put the work in.

Also, clicker training is great fun and spaniels do respond well to any kind of training. Google clicker training or search it on YouTube. Kikopup is a good place to start, but there are many others.

Our cocker was a dream, but in fairness to other comments above, I have known folk really struggle too.

ThatsNotMyRabbit · 18/11/2015 09:07

Check out the credentials of whoever does the trainng class.

Our local vets puppy parties are shit. Run by a vet nurse who knows fuck all about training.

MsAdorabelleDearheartVonLipwig · 18/11/2015 11:37

Also don't pay too much attention to the naysayers. They forget that they were once new owners too and wouldn't be where they are now if they hadn't been.

tabulahrasa · 18/11/2015 11:58

"I just personally wouldn't run with my spaniels. I again, personally use the time spent walking to train as well. So, lots of waits, recall, sniffing out treats, down stays, scent trails etc. They are focussed on me then, not other distractions."

I don't see how it's one or the other though, there's nothing to stop someone training and interacting while running and unless literally the only time a dog went outside was to run, there are still plenty of walks to do other things anyway.

Most people run 3 or 4 times a week, you're still looking at at least 10 walks a week with no running.

CrabbyCockwomble · 18/11/2015 11:58

Another big recommendation here for Cockers Online. Brilliant forum, full of very knowledgeable cocker owners, breeders and trainers, all of whom recommend positive based methods (not pack theory dominance bollocks). It was invaluable when our cocker was a puppy. Cockers can be very bitey puppies (ours wasn't, luckily) and can reduce new owners to desperation, so it's good to have a source of advice and support from people who've done it all before.

Some misconceptions and bullshit about cockers on this thread, presumably from people who don't know or own the breed.

needastrongone · 18/11/2015 12:34

That's fine, like I said twice, it's just personal choice on my part.

I don't mind running and walking the dogs, I don't do sitting down very wellSmile

tabulahrasa · 18/11/2015 12:38

"I don't mind running and walking the dogs, I don't do sitting down very well"

I multi task, I'd not use my legs at all if I didn't take the dog, lol.

I don't currently take the dog running because he's broken, but, he loved it and it's nice to do something more energetic with them...and you can do things like get a better reaction time on commands because if they don't listen you run off and freak them out Grin

needastrongone · 18/11/2015 12:55

I hide to freak mine out. Behind a tree or something. They come hurtling back panicking as they can't see meSmile

Good job I walk them in secluded areas, I must look like a plonker to be fair Grin

Is he broken again Tab?Sad

tabulahrasa · 18/11/2015 13:02

He's pretty much permanently broken now Sad

His 'good' elbow is no longer good and he's out of surgical options because of all his other stuff.

He's currently being weaned off all his painkillers to work out what dosage he actually needs as he was on so many...and then I get to decide whether what he does need is an acceptable level for me to keep giving him, because I think it's a bit unfair to keep pumping him full of drugs when he isn't going to get any better.

Though he's been such a git since he stopped gabapentin that I told someone last week I was having him PTS if he sneezed once, that'd be enough, lol.

needastrongone · 18/11/2015 15:36

Oh poor love. I wonder if the 'good' elbow has over compensated so much over time?

I had gabapentin for some time when I had a bad back. It's for nerve pain no?

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