American Canine Association

Breeds

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel


History

The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel originated by crossing the King Charles Spaniel with the Pug, creating a more compact King Charles Spaniel. Due to the popularity of this breed when it came to King Charles II, who never had less than 2 trotting at his feet or along side of his horses, the breed took the great honor of being named the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. This breed was honored so much by King Charles II, that he made sure this breed was even allowed inside of the Houses of Parliament where no other pets were allowed. This royalty breed was only kept as a companion and still is treated as royalty today by many families.

Appearance

Short, round legs hold up this compact toy breed, as males and females typically weigh in 10-18 pounds and measure in at 12-13 inches in height. A small round head tapers down to a medium length round neck and into a small chest. Their ears are very long and pendant shaped resting easily along side of their face. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel have the most adorable round eyes that center their face, only ever a dark brown or black. This breed has a very light coat that feels almost like silk to the touch and is available in black and tan, bi color, red and white, and a mahogany color.

Temperament

The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel generally does very well in all competitive obedience courses due to being such an excellent listener by nature. This breed is known to pick up on his or her owners patterns and recognize the expectations prior to being asked. A lovely addition to any family with children of all ages, elderly and pets of all walks of life, the Cavalier generally gets along with everyone! Because the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel enjoys being a part of the family and being included in activities, it is very important to socialize your pup young so it is able to do so without hesitation as he or she grows. Suited for both apartment and country living situations, they require a regular walk daily as well as playtime indoors to maintain a healthy being both physically and mentally. As all small dogs have the possibility of gaining, the Cavalier is included when it comes to the "small dog syndrome" list of dog breeds only if rules and boundaries in the home aren't given and stay consistent. For this reason, the breed requires a friendly and firm confident owner who is consistent with rules and boundaries in the home but only uses positive reinforcement training methods at all times.

Grooming

Sporting a silky coat similar to human hair, the Cavalier requires daily combing and special attention to their ears, tail and paws to eliminate the chance of knots and mats from forming. Bathe when needed. This is considered an average shedder.

Special Notes

This breed is prone to hearing issues, deafness, cherry eye, back issues and weight gain. Please fully research the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel prior to adding one to your family to ensure that this is the right breed of choice for you. It is important not to add a Cavalier to your family unless you are able to promise a life long commitment to your new addition and provide for him or her financially and physically. Please fully educate yourself about this breed. All dogs originate from wolves (Canis Lupus). Each breed of dog was originally created by mixing different breeds together in an effort to bring forth certain characteristics. Once a breeder has created acceptable “breed characteristics” within their bloodline and these “breed characteristics” have shown to be reliably reproduced in the offspring for three (3) generations, the bloodline may be upgraded from the category of “foundation stock” to “pure-bred”. The same “pure-bred” breed standards vary from different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders. Dog DNA testing companies can have accurate results for a specific bloodline of a small colony of dogs. However, there are tens of thousands of different bloodlines in the world which have not yet been tested for marker baseline results by Dog DNA testing companies as of 2017. For this reason Dog DNA testing companies do not guarantee the 100% accuracy of their breed lineage results and will also show different marker results for the same pure-bred breed in different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders.

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