Which dog breeds should we consider?

[Earthmummy07]

Spaniels are high energy and kind of crazy, so I'd bear that in mind even in getting a cross. We have a 1yo springer so who completely insane she's loving and sweet but a lot of work to keep busy. I've heard cocker spaniels are the same just smaller.

Not trying to put you off, but I did a lot of research before getting Sky and none of the books warned me of exactly what I was getting into. I would never get rid of her, but if I had the choice again, I'd pick something lower energy

[AngelaVA]

Interesting, we adopted a cocker spaniel puppy when I was 15 and I would not have considered him a high energy dog. Just kind of average.

[domesticzookeeper]

Cockers are pretty energetic, but tbh I would be more concerned about their inclination to be nippy It's possible that the genes from a Golden might mellow out that behavior, and it's possible that these aren't Cocker mixes at all - no matter the breed "there's no such thing as a dog that doesn't bite, just a dog that hasn't bitten yet" - but with Cockers being so consistently ranked high on the list of breeds that bite people it would make me very cautious to have one around children.

[CelticJourney]

Dh was a dog handler, so I often got questions. I once had a friend ask me "why is it when my cocker spaniel is in his crate (small) and my son sticks his head in there, the dog nips at him?" She gave me a funny look when I said 'Because he is a small dog feeling threatened. Tell your son to stop sticking his head in there!'

[bananacake]

My cocker was 8 when we adopted him (Emily, you might remember him!), so he's probably not representative of the breed They statistically bite more than any other dog, but my dog never bit anyone and was fine around children. He was definitely more low energy than my neighbor's springer spaniel.

[Earthmummy07]

I never heard about cockers biting We almost went for one of those instead, so maybe bat-poop crazy isn't so bad after all

[Victorious]

My sister just got a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. He is a doll. He gets up and runs around if you're up and about, but is happy to sit in your lap when you're resting. They're bred for companionship and you can really tell.

[CelticJourney]

Originally Posted by Earthmummy07

I never heard about cockers biting We almost went for one of those instead, so maybe bat-poop crazy isn't so bad after all

I think the definition of nippy is more accurate - defensive kind thing rather than aggressive. And honestly, sometimes it has to do with them being excited and kids getting excited and the cycle ramping up.

[HadassahSukkot]

I vote CKC Spaniel, but I'm extremely biased. She's energetic, but any time I've been sick or too tired to be busy, she's happy to lay down with me or in her crate and sleep and rest for when I feel better.

The good thing is that they're great for 2-3 walks a day, play rather well with kids (especially if brought up with them) and will be happy to do/go where you want to. If you can't do more than 1 regular walk, having a yard helps get that energy off.

A brother of my pup is in agility training, another does daily hikes, and most of the girls have various little things they get into or do a couple times a week. We're on the go much of the week, so any activity she can sit and watch, or play off to the side with or ride in the car for, she does. She loves going in the mornings to drop the boys off, and driving to get my husband from work, even if she never once steps outside of the car.

This isn't the most recent photo I have, but is from September-ish and she won't be getting much bigger. (Maybe an inch. she'll fill out more in the coming year or two)

Here's one with her sister and her mom (ruby) and one of her and her dad (tricolor)

You can really see by size (her sister from the same litter is the same exact size as her) that there isn't much more growing happening.

I just love how she'll pop up when I'm feeling really blue, go find a toy and initiate play that is quite respectful and takes into mind that I might not want to play as wild, or if I accidentally drop the toy (ataxia) she will put it back in my hand nicely and wait until I have a good grip to play again.



The only drawback is that potty training can take up to 2 years, but if you leave a towel down in a specified area, they're really good at remembering "Oh hey, I can't hold it until the usual time, but my towel's down! I'll go use that!" and be really good about remembering their towel. I've heard of others using kitty litter to get the same point across. I would think that'd work fine with a puppy box like what you put their pee pads in.

We don't have a yard per-se, but we do have use of a side yard that's about like a regular suburban fenced in back yard. During warmer weather, we get out her field leash (5 meters) and use it a lot.

Had we not gotten our CKC Spaniel, I was gunning for a Tsvetnaya Bolonka. I know a Tsvetnaya breeder and they are gorgeous and their temperament is a lot like a CKC Spaniel. They're lap/companion dogs and like to go or stay as much as you and don't need a huge yard as long as you're willing to go walkies and play a good bit indoors.

There is a big adoption agency that looks to place CKC Spaniels in the US and Canada, if one doesn't want to get a dog from a breeder. They place young, old, and mix breed CKCs.


Again, super biased. Love my fuzzy pet.

[Johns_Gal]

While I love CKCs, in the US they are not healthy little dogs at all.

I consideredone, but the heart issues stopped me.

Apart from that, I don't like American Cockers. English Cockers (which we also have here) aren't as overbred. I'm quite sure there are nice ones, but they can be aggressive. They donn't tend to hide it, though, and oe day snap. They are upfront about their cranky.

Shelties can be yippy. I have had four in my life, and all were easily trained to "Quiet" or "Shh". One was in an apartment, even.

Course you ave to get a puppy suited to your eeds. In each litter of any breed, you might have a super mellow, quiet pup, and a crazy hyper go go go GO one. That's where good breeders come in, and your ow common sense.

Must go, bbl.

[Soliloquy]

We have two dogs, a German Shepherd and a lab. The lab fits your needs in your first post. She is a family dog, fun & cuddly. Happy to sit, happy to run, happy to be on a leash. She's just content to be with any one of us.

Golden retrievers are also like this.

An experienced breeder can usually pick out which puppies are happy & content, laid-back types.

I grew up with terriers. Although they were small enough for me to handle, they were SO stubborn. And they could be nippy with children they didn't know. And they were yappy.

[HadassahSukkot]

Originally Posted by Johns_Gal

While I love CKCs, in the US they are not healthy little dogs at all.

I consideredone, but the heart issues stopped me.

The pups don't have to be proven MVD free when they're sold in the US/Canada? That seems extremely unethical. So sad.

[Codi]

Originally Posted by Soliloquy

We have two dogs, a German Shepherd and a lab. The lab fits your needs in your first post. She is a family dog, fun & cuddly. Happy to sit, happy to run, happy to be on a leash. She's just content to be with any one of us.

Golden retrievers are also like this.

An experienced breeder can usually pick out which puppies are happy & content, laid-back types, though still learning good leash manners. She's so smart though. Can come, sit, shake, down, getting really good at stay.

I grew up with terriers. Although they were small enough for me to handle, they were SO stubborn. And they could be nippy with children they didn't know. And they were yappy.

We just got a lab pup. She's 13 weeks and while yes, a very young pup and very much a puppy, she's honestly just like this already. Content to chill when we chill, up and about when we are.

Have you ever had a puppy before or only had rescues? (Rescue puppy is a possibility too)

[Johns_Gal]

Originally Posted by HadassahSukkot

The pups don't have to be proven MVD free when they're sold in the US/Canada? That seems extremely unethical. So sad.

They do not. We don't regulate pet sales/breeding. People are perfectly free to breed and sell dogs regardless of health issue.

[AngelaVA]

Originally Posted by Codi

We just got a lab pup. She's 13 weeks and while yes, a very young pup and very much a puppy, she's honestly just like this already. Content to chill when we chill, up and about when we are.

Have you ever had a puppy before or only had rescues? (Rescue puppy is a possibility too)

I had that puppy I mentioned as a teenager that's my main puppy training experience. Our current dog is a hound mix we got from a rescue when he was 2 years old.

We are going to take a little road trip to a shelter that has several puppies this weekend. They are all golden mixes or lab mixes. (The Goldens are the ones I am guessing are mixed with spaniel mainly because of the white forehead marking and a slight curliness to their ear fur)