Beagle v cocker spaniel

[Flowers2020bloom]

Looking at these two breeds for our first family dog - have obviously read up on both and either seem like a good fit but would be grateful for any first hand thoughts or experiences

Neither for a first dog. Beagles are stubborn and hard to train. They can howl as well. Cocker spaniels are barky and hyper.

Get a Golden Retriever. They are kind, trainable, gentle, biddable and very easy to train. Goldies are born to please.

Thanks everyone, will have a Google of the other suggestions

We have a 6mo WCS as our first dog. He's so sweet with our 3 year old, he's not got an aggressive bone in his body, and he's tons of fun. He's pretty much toilet trained and sleeps really well. BUT he is a lot. Very high energy, loves running, jumping, very bouncy. Some training he's picked up very quickly and other things he's very obstinate about. Honestly, I call him a dick about 10 times a day but he's also a gem.

Spaniel over a Hound any time! Spaniels are just sweethearts whereas hounds whilst very lovable, will do their own thing when it suits them and it can be very frustrating ...

I would also say the Cocker, Beagles really can be trouble - they have their own mind. The Spaniel, like others have said isn't really a first dog either - that said it depends how committed you are.

Beagles... NEVER. You have got to have skills to handle a beagle.

German pointer, chocolate or yellow lab, golden retriever, vizsla, or Weimaraner... go big or go home.
Gorgeous family breeds, all of them.
Mine's a lab-vizsla cross.

No one has mentioned the spaniel moulting problem! I love mine to bits but the hair drives me insane. Plus they are quite prone to ear problems. My vet nurse friend recommends a border terrier.

I've owned a fair few dogs, collies, Staffies, spaniels, and my easiest dog by far is my working springer.
She gets 45 mins running and sniffing through woods/fields each day and then sleeps or chills the entire rest of the day.
She doesn't resource guard, she doesn't have separation anxiety so is left for 4 hours while I work.
She is clever, house trained quickly, cuddly, affectionate. Her recall is spot on. She doesn't raid bins or steal food. She's not dog or human aggressive.
And she's only 2 years old.
We did 6 months of intense training when we got her, so obedience classes once a week and then 30 minutes training every single day.
Yes she's nuts when out on a walk, like a dog possessed, just exploring and sniffing, but at home she's the perfect dog.
My only tiny gripe is that she pulls on the lead like a train.

In 2 years she's had one ear infection and conjunctivitis once too.
She has been to the vet a few times with injuries, so snapped off nail, cut paw pad, split tail. But these are all due to running around the woods like a maniac!

I'd go cocker spaniel, but definitely show rather than working.

Show cocker owner here - four year old, now very chilled and relaxed. can walk upto 8 to 10 miles and also happy with half an hour if the weather is rubbish. Recall is ok - probably more reflective of me being a first time dog owner - and does not resource quard at all. However greedy - really greedy - and its like having a toddler in the house who you have to thing ahead on regarding where food is. Makes training easier though! Will bark if visitor come but not particularly barky otherwise.

If you want smaller than a lab, try a toller

I'd say most terriers aren't first-time family dogs (stubborn as hell, obedience optional unless very assisduously trained) with exception of some of the toy breeds (though some of those bark/yap a lot), border terriers, Norfolks and the rarer Norwiches, and maybe soft-coated wheatens.

What are your views on drool? Clumber spaniels are lovely and much less high-octane than cockers. Maybe one of the water spaniels? Also there are the lesser known retriever breeds such as the flat coated

Why not adopt a mutt? They are grenerally easy to train if you get them tiny and have less health hang ups. I have 2 x GSD but they definitely are not a beginners dog. Beagles are a bit of a nightmare from friends experiences. Spaniels you can be lucky and get a relatively chilled out one or get a wired to the moon model..... I would not choose either - I'd look at crossbred or a labrador for first time. Retrievers take ages to grow up and can be really annoying until they do so and are more scatty than labradors.

@TheVanguardSix

Beagles... NEVER. You have got to have skills to handle a beagle.

German pointer, chocolate or yellow lab, golden retriever, vizsla, or Weimaraner... go big or go home.
Gorgeous family breeds, all of them.
Mine's a lab-vizsla cross.

German pointer actually is a great choice as this poster mentioned. Forgot about them. Lovely.

Pointers are crackers without loads of training.

Show cockers are easier. I have a show/working cross so he's a bit less intense than most working cockers but he is energetic and bouncy. He's also the sweetest, most affectionate boy who is great with the kids. We train tricks, do loads of sniffy work, recall/fetch, food games and starting gundog training soon too. Busy brain stuff.

Had kids around earlier in life, he's my first dog as an adult. Take the training seriously and practice loads. Cockers are super dogs.

I think any dog for the OP will be great but training is a must with all. Good obedience classes from after vaccinations. You get out what you put in. Good luck OP.

Spaniel definitely. Mine has been very easy to train and despite everyone saying they are never calm, she is! She's 9 months old working/show cross and as long as she has 45min walk in morning she chills all day while I work from home. Sure she does a bark to go out for toilet or to remind me it's lunchtime but then she will settle with a goats ear or something. Then another 20/30 min walk late afternoon/early evening and she mostly chills the rest of the evening. All her meals are fed in kongs/puzzle toys/snuffle mats etc which are enriching and tiring so I think that helps. A little bit of training and playing as and when and she's a dream. Very friendly with the kids and other dogs/people. If you put a lot of effort in with training and socialisation when young, different experiences etc you will have a happy pup.

Friends beagle never seems to tire and barks a lot and has been destructive so much harder work in my experience.

@Aria20 didn't realise yours was wcs/SCS cross! Ours is just like yours. He's an absolute sweetheart.

@GuyFawkesDay I actually think given her long legs there could be some springer/sprocker in there somewhere as she seems bit taller than most cockers we see!!

I do love hearing about all the lovely bits of your dogs - makes me very excited

To be honest, I don't think it matters so much whether a dog is a person's "first dog", so much as how prepared and knowledgeable you are (or are willing to quickly become).

A friend of mine had never had a dog before, but she's brilliant with her Husky mix. On the other hand, an ex of mine had dogs for years, but she was absolutely crap with them and didn't train them at all.

I have a working Cocker. He's super fizzy, bouncy, awesome, fun, loving, madly affectionate, insanely clever. He learns tricks within minutes. He understands actual sentences. He knows the names of different toys - even down to the colour of specific balls. He's not necessarily "easy" to train - because he's mischievous and gets over-excited - but he's so great to communicate with. He's like a little person, with a massive personality, and sooooo so sweet.

I didn't want a Cocker, but now that I have him, I honestly feel like any other breed might disappoint me, because he's just SO excited about everything, and that's infectious. He's just so special.

I think you'd be fine with a Cocker! Show line, if you want a bit less work. Working line if you're up for wild energy and a challenge. You'd want to allow about 2-3hrs a day for walking, training, grooming, activities, games, etc.

Friend of mine got a springer earlier this year. She's been an absolute dream, friend reports.

As others have said, I absolutely recommend a goldie. They are so easy to train, live to please and are amazing with children. A great first dog even though they are a larger breed. Here is our old girl ♥️

Being a German Pointer owner, I would definitely not recommend them to first time dog owners! Their prey drive and (lack of) recall unless serious training is undertaken, would outweigh a beagle, and they are fast enough to catch what they are chasing (from experience ). Beautifully loyal and loving dogs though.

I would 100% recommend cocker spaniels. Have had 3 of them. Each individual personalities but all loving and loyal.