working cocker friendly

[Fifer2020]

hello
researching cocker spaniels I would prefer the working one as I like its coat and its a smaller dog. However I am aware it requires much much more stimulation both mentally and physically which is fine

however from my research it appears that the show one is a nicer dog to have in the house and is better company

I would welcome your thoughts

In my experience, show cockers are often snappy and reactive and guardy and not at all nice.
I’d go for a worker.

And smelly.
I think because people tend to clip them rather than hand strip or just brush, their coat goes quite ‘wooly’ and holds stink.

Our working cocker puppy that we have had for 6 weeks now is the friendliest dog ever. She greets strangers in the street as her long lost best friend! It does all come down to temperament though, although cockers are known to be very friendly. If you see a puppy who is friendly and curious but not anxious around people and other dogs then you probably have a good one. No experience of show cockers to compare to though.

I own a working cocker. If you exercised him lots all that would happen is he would get fitter and fitter and you would need to keep going further to tire him out.

'Working his nose' tires him out far more then exercise.

I didn't like the look of the show cocker.

Not sure what you mean by nicer to have in the home. Mine is very much a people dog and loves to snuggle up on the sofa and bed.

What do you mean by “nicer to have in the house and better company “?
Some show cockers suffer from rage syndrome, which working cockers don’t.

I would not go for a working cocker on the basis of its coat and size. The coat still needs clipping, and I don’t think they are any smaller than a show cocker. I had a working cocker who was the size of a small springer, but there are others who are tiny - there’s quite a variation in size.

Working cockers are very high energy and don’t seem to grow up until they are around five to seven years old, ime. They are great if you enjoy being outdoors and have holidays that involve hiking. They are very intelligent and need careful training as they can also be quite sensitive. It’s best if you do gundog training with them or some other kind of activity such as ability. I have had three working cockers and their temperaments were all entirely different. They were all lovely, but I find it difficult to generalise about their character (other than “lively”). But definitely do not go for the liveliest in the litter, bred from a long line of field trial champions unless you intend to work your dog. That makes for a very stressful pet.

My working cocker is super friendly!!

I've got two working cockers who are pets and not working dogs. Couldn't find more family friendly dogs. They love a good walk but are also happy just being at home. Don't think I'd ever have a different breed.

agility not ability

firstly

thanks so much I went and put in soup in the pressure cooker and came back to so many replies

yes I meant snuggly on the sofa. Super helpful thanks

I have worked full time for 39 years and now I am moving to part time and OH is retired we are going for our dog and caravan. Covid has put a hiccup in both as everyone is buying dogs and caravans. Putting the price and availability up

Lucky I am patient and happy to wait until I get the correct dog and caravan

I much prefer working cockers. They do require a fair amount of attention but I don't think any more than other working breeds.

Every single show cocker I know have issues with resource guarding. I currently sit a 6 month old with bad resource guarding problems. The owners are working with a behaviourist but it hasn't made a difference. He's a lovely dog unless he has something he shouldn't. He will snarl, bite, growl and it's like a Jekyll and Hyde personality swap.

Puts me right off the breed.

I have a show cocker. She is the best dog ever, literally can't fault her. Great with the kids, cat, other dogs and people. Happy cuddling up on the sofa or out all day on the mountains. No issues with guarding or anything. You can have the coat however you like, so it doesn't have to be long. I worried about cocker rage but after much research I came to the conclusion that true cocker rage is extremely rare. We found an excellent breeder who breed for temperament as well as 'looks'. The working cocker seems a lot more 'lively' to me.

We have a working Sprocker and he's a nightmare! All he wants to do is hunt, and the second he's off the lead he runs off. We underestimted the training required, so it is our fault for not training him properly in the first place.

The gundog trainer we use has him trained perfectly, but we are still struggling.
Around the house and garden he's fab, but as soon as the goes out (without the trainer) his nose goes down and he's off.

Have you had a working spaniel before? If not, I would get going with a gundog trainer from the very beginning.
I do love him though - he's crazy and very affectionate!

This thread might be useful to read for working cockers

Please tell me about your working cocker spaniel www.mumsnet.com/Talk/the_doghouse/4041814-please-tell-me-about-your-working-cocker-spaniel

Working cockers live to work. Never had a show type to compare but i do not find working cockers an easy dog to live with in a family setting and would not have another after having two. They have no chill and some lines seem to have an aggressive streak.

I grew up with a show cocker who was the friendliest, cuddliest, happiest dog.

And then owned a working cocker who sadly died last December, he was 16. He was also very friendly and cuddly but also daft and puppy like until almost his last day.

Sorry not much help as I loved them both.

Met the most gorgeous show cocker yesterday. Friends dog, super friendly, cuddly, no issues, v well trained, great temperament. And beautiful.

My working cocker is the soppiest, daftest dog in the universe. As a PP said, he is still basically a puppy at 3.5 years old but he's the best at cuddles and is absolutely wonderful with my 2.5 year old DS ❤️

Before our working cocker, we had only had large breeds (Great Danes, Rhodesian ridgeback, Labrador GS cross).

The big dogs were definitely more chilled and in a sense, easier to train as they were totally food obsessed.

Our cocker is scent obsessed. He will run into things as he's so busy with his nose on the ground. Which can mean he's v hard to distract. I never had a problem with recall with the big dogs but I can see already that if the cocker can smell something that he wants to go after, I'm going to have to train him v well to not be distracted by it!

But he is adorable - and wonderful with people. I don't think I would have him with a small garden though or somewhere he couldn't run a lot off lead.

We have a working cocker, 9 years old now and the BEST dog ever :) She is very clever and was incredibly easy to train. Super-obedient and mostly calm - occasional wild bursts of puppy-like playfulness even now but then make life fun, which for us is the point of a dog!

Great with kids, cats, safe off the lead around livestock. Impeccable recall to heel and we didn't do a single puppy class, just basic at-home training based on a couple of books we read. She's friendly to a fault and safe around our son even when he was a tiny newborn. Loves to cuddle!

For me the benefit of a good working line is intelligence, loyalty and train-ability. I can't compare to a show cocker but my hunch is that there's good and bad examples of every breed, which mostly comes down (let's be honest) to bad training more than bad dogs! Essential to see with the mum and the other puppies and to check the mum's temperament and how they're living before you commit. Ours was living a dream life on a farm with a very clever, calm working mum and similar puppy siblings so was very easy for us.

Best of luck!

We have a show cocker. He's an absolute teddy-bear, no temperament issues, really funny and cuddly and talkative and just an amazing character. He's brilliant with other dogs and with our son and all his friends. His coat does get woolly (he'd been clipped really short before we adopted him) but it's easy to groom as long as we keep on top of it and he genuinely doesn't smell.

Oowww to add something to the mix
a breeder who gave me the third degree has a springer show which the person who has booked the pup might not get up for covid so shes put in in second place

a springer show

didnt expect that today , wont know for a couple of weeks , the pups due in the next few days

DH wants a jack russell , i have said no - was going to get a minature poodle and contacted breeders but waiting lists full until 2022 at the earliest up in scotland

happy to wait until next year but not until 2022 for a maybe you might get something

not going near other sites where prices are £2k upwards

thanks for all the replies

i dont like the skirt in a show spaniel but that could be trimmed , not clipping my spaniel , at least I say this now

I have two working cockers, brother and sister, they are absolutely delightful, full of energy. I have trained them/(super easy) independently of each other and they are by far the easiest breed of dog I have had so far. They need lots and lots of exercise off lead. Very loving and charming, plus v v gorgeous!!

I had a show cocker he was delightful, cuddly and friendly tail always wagging, loved everyone, strangers were like long lost friends and children were his favourite.

But

Catch a scent and you needed binoculars to walk that damn dog. He would be gone! Also loved to roll in fox shit and dive in to bushes (many a vet bill from splinters/grass seeds) Very possessive over things he shouldn't have like foil or a shoe 🤦🏻‍♀️ Would snarl and growl.

He wasn't my choice of breed, I'm not a fan of the flushers and working dogs because they just go with a scent. It's natural for them. They need a lot of excercise and a lot of obedience training show or working.