Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
History:

Country/Date of Origin: England/20th Century

The history of this breed and the English Toy Spaniel are inexorably intertwined. It is thought that the original toy spaniel, so favored by the English kings and queens, was a long muzzled variety similar to the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. However, in the 19th century breeders began to fancy a more pushed in muzzle and domed head and the old type disappeared. In 1926 an American fancier, Roswell Eldridge, offered cash prizes for any Toy Spaniel breeders who could produce the old "nosey" type dog again. Through selective breeding , using only Toy Spaniel stock, the original dog was recreated. It was carefully guarded and stabilized by the Cavalier Club in England and the United States. For many years they refused to relinquish control of the stud book to the American Kennel Club. However, in 1995, the breed was included.

 Other Names Body Type Personality Coat Health Concerns

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Ruby Spaniel, Blenheim Spaniel

AKC Group: Toy

Breed Club: American Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club, Inc.

Rescue Club: Carol Bond, American Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club Rescue

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Body Type:

  • A small spaniel of soft demeanor
  • Height: 12-13 inches (at shoulder)
  • Weight: 13-18 pounds
  • Hanging ears are heavily fringed and not altered
  • Long tail is not altered

Personality:

  • A merry, upbeat personality
  • Friendly and affectionate even to strangers
  • Great with gentle children
  • Good with other pets
  • Craves attention to the point of being pesty

Coat:

  • Moderately long, very thick, and wavy but not curly
  • Ears and feet are especially heavily coated
  • Four color variations are allowed: Ruby - a solid ruby red; Black and Tan - a black body with tan points; Blenheim - a white ground coat with patches of red chestnut. A blaze of white extending up the forehead and ending in a loop with a chestnut dot in the center is required for this color; and Tricolor -which is a white ground dog with black patches and tan spots over the eyes, on the muzzle, chest and legs. The ears and vent should also be lined with tan
  • Moderate grooming

Health Concerns:

  • Relatively healthy breed
  • Large prominent eyes are subject to injury and infection
  • Ear infections caused by lack of air circulating around the heavily fringed hanging ear leather
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Tasty Tidbits:
  • The most popular color is the red and white known as the Blenheim. Tricolors closely rival it
  • The Black and Tan and the Ruby varieties are hard to find
  • Prices are high for good specimens
  • A "born again" breed. It has been restored to its original type through careful selective breeding of English Toy Spaniels. The breed type became fixed again in the 1930s