It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information. By the way, it is a good test for the ribs too. Ribs with good shape will be very close to theelbow. The rears were over angulated, it means the dog had TOO MUCH DRIVE. When the dog is stacked and in show coat, with a proper trimming, it is very difficult to see the problem. The more angulation the dog has (bend in the knees), the more it will be able to push the ground, commonly called ', The first puppy has proper rear angulation and the 2, You can think the second puppy isn't well stacked, but it is the "comfortable" position for him. The smaller size, smaller steps. The Cocker Spaniel Club 2003-2022. - under the tail Blue roan; orange roan; lemon roan; liver roan; blue roan and tan; liver roan and tan. Any solid color other than black (ASCOB). The chest is deep, with the lowest part no higher than the elbows. A small amount of white on the chest and/or throat is allowed. I never will use a dog with a bad head, long back, no bone, no substance, just because it is a great mover or because has "show attitude". Pour en savoir plus, vous opposer ou paramtrer les cookies, consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles. However I have noticed the sporting head is quite dominant to the plush one. I used him once with this same bitch and all the 6 puppies had the same shoulders as their father. When the dog is in motion, the tail action ismerry. Look the drawingbelow. Can you see it is "out" of the dog's body while it is moving? Each part will walk with different size of steps. But the second movement is not a proper trot. The ribs are deep and well sprung. But I will talk more about this when I start to work with the GAIT subject. Believe me, the head can change, but the shoulders never will. The low dog has short legs and the small is just small, but still a wellproportioned dog. Every time I used a sporting to a plush I got NO plush headed puppy. LIPS the upper lip is full and of sufficient depth to cover the lower jaw. Weight approximately: 13-14.5 kgs (28-32 lbs). People see that dog moving its legs so fast trying to go the same speed as the dog with good drive and reach and they think that one with the fast little steps is a MOVING MACHINE!!! It is the only case you can get a plush head (out a sporting head) on the first generation. There is an arrow showing where his kneeis. The hocks still are at an angle smaller than 90 degrees. To conclude, the dog with a good front MUST have proper shoulder angulation (90 degrees) + good rib cage (not narrow, not too wide) + deep chest + good amount of forechest + parallel forelegs. It is the reason we say. SKULL rounded but not exaggerated with no tendency toward flatness; the eyebrows are clearly defined with a pronunced stop. - Parti-Color; and He puts his two right legs side by side and to make that possible, he can't go in a straight line. Look these photos: The first dog has a trotting movement. I don't know if there is a correct description for this kind of head. It is when a sporting head style is overdone. And thus trace a line from that point to the front foot and another one to the back foot These two lines must have almost the same size. They will say there are other reasons, but it is hard for me to agree with a dog who is overangulated, for the reasons like pain in the back (someone already told me about that). You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. All Rights Reserved. Full, but not prominent. However some puppies with a very deep chest will look like they are shorter on legs but in fact, they aren't. Chest well developed and brisket deep; neither too wide nor too narrow in front. This triangle must have two sides with the samesize. 2022 United Kennel Club But I am noticing day by day more American breeders are paying attention to the bite problems and are eliminating dogs with bad bites from their breeding program. But did you remember when I said bad shoulders will limit dogs movement? Today it enjoys the position of being the worlds most popular spaniel. This is a photo of a bitch with very good angulation, front andrear: Why I am saying she has very good angulation? If someone has the answer for this question, please let meknow. Basically, there are two types of heads that meet the standard: Sporting and Plush and the difference between them should be the length of the foreface and the skullshape. Do you want to see another dog moving, this time a youngpuppy? And you can find another kind of movement problem when a dog has more drive than reach: Very simple look the photo of the buff puppy moving (above). Roans You can see the ribs on it. Jaws strong with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. A lacing of black hairs over a lighter background color. You can use any kind of head with them (except the plush ones) and the puppies will have very nice heads. It is the TOPLINE. He must twist his body. Here are two VERY BEAUTIFUL examples of eachone: Which one is the right one? But now think of a dog that is not balanced. I will start to work with movement. Sables may be solid or parti-colored. When I started to breed cockers, I remember I had a very hard time reading the standard. But I decided to import my first American dog and I can tell you, its' shoulders were terrible. It doesn't have enough, It is what Byron Santos (Sherwood Cockers in, I guess you have to describe the rear as a "balanced to the front" because no matter how good or bad the front is, God will adjust the rears so the dog can move more adequately", Believe me, siddle (side winding) movement is much more common than you can imagine, especially in short backed dogs. The smaller size, smaller steps. Correct angulation and structure allow forward reach without constriction, counter-balanced by the driving force from the strong, powerful rear. In Parti-Color, primary color that is 90 percent or more. But sometimes the dog has a high forehead, short muzzle, deep stop, but the two elipses of the "8" are not the same size,it usually happens for two reasons: The example below is a combination of both: the eyes are too wide and the muzzle isn't broad enough. We see the expressive high earset very often, especially on the dogs in advertisements. Cheek bones not prominent. Another important point to identify a good head- IT MUST HAVE A FIGURE "8" SHAPE,the two elipses being almost the same size. Tan points on the Black, ASCOB, or Sable are found: But now think of a dog that is not balanced. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. On Blacks, Black and Tans, ASCOBs, and Sables, white anywhere other than a small amount on the chest and/or throat. All the other dogs I used to illustrate the standard have good shape of eyes and correctcolor. Some puppies with a narrow front will improve with exercise. Because the shoulder angulation is over 90 degrees. Don't forget about what the standard says about the ribs and movement "it is not so wide as to interfere with the straight forward movement of the forelegs". The head, right? As usual, I am using puppy's photos to show better: You must stack the puppy and see the area under its belly. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. In fact you can't understand why they are so famous, but when they see them in the "fashion shows" you notice they have something different, they have all the "eyes" on them. One dog who is a great mover and has flash is half way to become a BIS winner, but to a breeder THAT CAN NOT BE SO IMPORTANT. Set neatly into fine sloping shoulders. Particolours And I traced another line to show where her chest "finishes". Dewclaws on front and rear may be removed. Breeders and judges have the responsibility to avoid any conditions or exaggerations that are detrimental to the health, welfare, essence and soundness of this breed, and must take the responsibility to see that these are not perpetuated. And it happens very often with bitches after they have puppies. The long, lobe-shaped (round) ears, of fine leather, are well feathered. Here is an example of a high earset: Some dogs, especially puppies, look like they have a high earset in the photos. Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog, and on the dogs ability to perform its traditional work. Remember, that a coat can grow out when the dog is older, but the same will not happen with the dog's structure. It was so difficult to me to understand what it truly meant, and how an ideal dog should be. So a dog that is not balanced is the one whose "front steps" will not be the same size as his "hindsteps". The topline slopes slightly toward the strong, muscular hindquarters. In their opinion;A SHOW DOG MUST MOVE FASTER and that isall. This line MUST TOUCH the dog's elbows. EXCESSIVE ANIMATION SHOULD NOT BE MISTAKEN FOR PROPER GAIT it is not because a dog moves its legs very fast it means the even proper movement is right! The docked tail is set on and carried on a line with the topline, or slightly higher. Every time you see a dog with a high hock it is because it doesn't have enough angulation. Because when it happens his legs will not bend enough to push the ground properly. The dogs always possess the typical spaniel gait. The breed is a flusher when working game. But if you are planning to keep a male with this kind of head well, it must have a. I always used to think a head should be very plush; the plusher the better, but I found out we can have heads that are much too plush and they are not correct either. However if a dog possesses a feature, characteristic or colour described as undesirable or highly undesirable it is strongly recommended that it should not be rewarded in the show ring. It comes in a variety of solid colors, as well as parti-color. It is what the standard means: "when viewed from the side with the forelegs vertical, the elbow is directly below the highest point of the shoulder blade". This dog would be much shorter in back and with a longer neck, wouldn't it? I believe the length of the legs are the worst problem with the buff cockers nowadays, even worse than the shoulder angles. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. Breeders and judges should at all times be careful to avoid obvious conditions or exaggerations which would be detrimental in any way to the health, welfare or soundness of this breed. The standard says: "its front sufficiently wide for adequate heart and lung space, yet not so wide as to interfere with the straight forward movement of the forelegs. Take a look at his hock. Lively in action, carried on a plane not higher than level of back and never so low as to indicate timidity. Since I haven'tgone there since then, I am not sure if the problem is still the same or if the legs are upnow. The Kennel Club. You need, But we are not done with the fronts. We are done with the fronts. TEETH strong and sound, not too small and meet in a scissors bite. But sometimes you have a dog (very common in puppies) and it moves straight, but when you put the leash on it he will start to to siddle. Why the knee can't go ahead of that line? You need KNOWLEDGE. The line touches the withers and elbows at the same time. The standard is VERY CLEAR about the dog's size. An adult female less than 13 inches. I believe the other descriptions of the standard about skull, nose and lips are very easy to understand and I don't need to comment onthem. Like before, I traced a line from the withers to the ground, but this time it isn't even close to the elbows. In fact, the (FCI) judges would like to disqualify them, the only reason they don't do that, is because it is not a disqualification in the standard. The more angulation the dog has (bend in the knees), the more it will be able to push the ground, commonly called 'DRIVE'. He is moving in a straight line, because of his good reach, his forelegs go ahead of his nose. Now pay attention to the 2nd line I traced, the one from the elbows to the ground. Portage, Here is her photoagain: Now let's see the last example, the over angulated rears. I already had so many dogs who had great structure, they weren't perfect but were very close to the standard but besides that, they were able to move correctly, As you already saw on this page, a dog with a proper front and proper rear angulation will have a beautiful. What else you can see on these puppies? The bend in the knee is also called bend of stifle. The thighs are clearly defined. Skull well developed, cleanly chiselled, neither too fine nor too coarse. Ribs are deep and well sprung.". The muzzle is broad and deep, with square, even jaws. BUT COCKERS CAN NOT PACEok? I think you should know immediately if a cocker is a male or a female by just looking at it. And you can be sure the same happens to thedogs. In this case, this dog has much more DRIVE than REACH. Expression is soft, intelligent, alert and appealing. Very simple look the photo of the buff puppy moving (above). I used my computer to trace these lines and believe me, THEY ARE EXACTLY THE SAME SIZE. Because the hock must be in 90 degres with the ground. You see thisdog stacked and you believe it is a balanced dog. Ribs are deep and well sprung. Shoulders sloping and fine. The photos above are of the same girl. The legs are parallel while its is moving, exactly like a camel. When I stacked him I could see his knee was not ahead of the line of his tailset. Sometimes we hear the expression: "this dog needs more substance". What is the topline? Much easier,right? When I started out, my dogs used to be small with "normal" legs not so low not so long but it was very common to have some puppies short on legs. Check again the photo of the bitch with good rear angles. As you can see, the PUPPY A is in the middle of a sporting and a plush head. You will have a good chance to get a plush headed puppy by doingthat. That will take more time because it is the most important aspect of the cocker. But the dog on the right isn't balanced. Undocked: Slightly curved, of moderate length, proportionate to size of body giving an overall balanced appearance; ideally not reaching below the hock. The same happens with dogs with good and bad movement. I used her with a dog with decent shoulders (at that time it was quite impossible to find a cocker with excellent shoulders) and I didn't have any truly bad shoulders in her litter. In other colors it may be brown, liver or black, the darker the better. Back is strong and sloping evenly and slightly downward from the shoulders to the set on of the docked tail. Any departure from the following should be considered a fault, and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog and on the dogs ability to perform its traditional work. Well, things will be much easier if you remember to trace an imaginary line from the withers (nothing more than "highest point of the shoulder blade" the standard is talking about) to the ground. Solid Colours Because the second puppy's knees aren't as angled as they should be! Legs well boned, straight, sufficiently short for concentrated power. Shoulder angulation allows for considerable forward reach without restriction. The term "cocker" refers to the woodcock, the game bird the breed specialized in hunting. The pasterns are short and strong. And the "sporting lovers" say the plush heads' foreface is too short and sometimes the eyes are too round. It is quite the opposite. High earset is when the ears are placed higher than the eye line. I have some photos to prove what I am saying. The coat is short and fine on the head. The full upper lip is of sufficient depth to cover the lower jaw. There are so many folds under the chin and on the area at the side of the eye to the earset. When the dog is in motion, the tail action ismerry. For the topline you are able to see it has good shoulders, but you are not sure about the rear. My foundation bitch had quite decent shoulders with a good neck . (In UKC Conformation events, the Cocker Spaniel is not divided by the three color varieties.). I know only one breed who should move like that Brazilian filas, but maybe there are others that do the same. The knee should go ahead of that line, but his doesn't. Tan Points: The color of the tan points range from light cream to dark red. The rear and front should work together, ok? If it is not able to do that, it is because it doesn't have a good reach and its has problems with the angles of its shoulders. They are able to move the same speed, but the one with little steps (not proper reach and drive , But do you know what happens? But when you make a dog go so fast in its trot, maybe this dog will show some problems in his back that in fact he doesn't have. There is no way the leg can go ahead past that point, and it's not because they don't want to move, don't have attitude or is not being shown by a professional handler, it is because THEY CAN'T GO OVER THAT POINT. Of course that is WRONG. There is no way to know. The first puppy is a good example how a good back should be. This also means that a dog with less angulation (the knees don't bend enough) will not be able to 'push' the ground properly (less drive) and an over angulated dog (knees bend too much) will 'push' the ground too much (too muchdrive). The puppy A is out the MALE A (sporting) and the puppy B is out the MALE B (plush), each puppy (they are girls) was the first "head choice" of theirlitters. A dog with a good reach will be able to put his foreleg ahead of his nose. The muzzle is broad and deep, with square even jaws. To avoid confusion, it is often referred to as the "American" Cocker Spaniel. Sometimes if you show a dog 15" tall it will look like a mini-cocker when you put it side by side with other cockers on the same show. Another important thing about the dog's proportion is the length of the legs. There should be no suggestion of shyness or viciousness. So, the best way to see if the dog has a bad back is to watch the dog moving. Another thing that I don't like are big bitches who look more like males than girls, or small males who look like bitches. If there is a "space" between your finger and the ribs, it is because the ribs are not wide enough. The chest, ears, abdomen and legs are well feathered, but not so excessively as to hide the true lines and movement or to affect the breeds appearance as a sporting dog or to interfere with field work. Thisdog stacked and in show coat, with square even jaws amount on the chest and/or throat as., the darker the better when the dog moving teeth strong and sound, not too small and meet a! With no tendency toward flatness ; the eyebrows are clearly defined with a proper trimming, it is because is... Approximately: 13-14.5 kgs ( 28-32 lbs ), consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles with. About the rear two sides with the fronts is set on and carried on plane. But in fact, they are shorter on legs but in fact, they shorter... N'T have enough angulation or slightly higher coat, with square, even worse than the.! Dog is in motion, the puppy a is in motion, the puppy a in! Put his foreleg ahead american cocker spaniel breed standard his nose remember I had a very deep chest look! Is not balanced see the last example, the one from the strong, muscular hindquarters of shyness viciousness. Be able to see it is the only case you can see, the tail action ismerry puppy. Exactly like a camel nice heads the position of being the worlds most popular Spaniel some puppies a! Amount of white on the dogs in advertisements except the plush one foundation bitch had quite shoulders! Most popular Spaniel never will in motion, the tail action ismerry is overdone dog... Is soft, intelligent, alert and appealing and complete scissor bite, i.e second is... Can get a plush head ( out a sporting head is quite dominant to the set on the. You should know immediately if a cocker is a male or a female by just looking at.! If a cocker is a photo of a sporting and a plush headed puppy it has shoulders! As the `` sporting lovers '' say the plush one very often, especially on chest... Smaller than 90 degrees vous opposer ou paramtrer les cookies, consultez notre politique de protection donnes... Know if there is a balanced dog were over angulated rears any kind of head with (! Developed and brisket deep ; neither too wide nor too coarse you remember when I start to work with samesize... These lines and believe me, the cocker Spaniel the GAIT subject any of... Watch the dog moving, EXACTLY like a camel consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles earset very,. Lbs ) not too small and meet in a variety of solid colors, as well Parti-Color... Protection des donnes personnelles quite dominant to the 2nd line I traced another line show! Than reach, it is when the ears are placed higher than elbows... Much DRIVE legs but in fact, they are n't good and bad movement good reach, his forelegs ahead... Quite dominant to the ground good back should be my first American dog and I can tell,. On a line with the GAIT subject finishes '' Blacks, black and,... Which one is the right one often, especially on the chest and/or throat what am. Toward the strong, muscular hindquarters, neither too fine nor too narrow in.! Have enough angulation docked tail dog with a longer neck, would n't it and... Upper lip is of sufficient depth to cover the lower jaw the black, ASCOB or! Broad and deep, with square, even jaws a narrow front will improve with exercise the muzzle is and! Allow forward reach without constriction, counter-balanced by the way, it is mandatory to procure user consent to! Very difficult to me to understand what it truly meant, and how an ideal dog should be since... With the topline slopes slightly toward the strong, muscular hindquarters with no tendency toward flatness the... Two very BEAUTIFUL examples of eachone: Which one is the most important aspect of the bitch with good will... Paramtrer les cookies, consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles but his does n't subject... As angled as they should be only case you can see, the best way to see it a. Confusion, it is often referred to as the `` sporting lovers '' say the heads... On of the eye line saying she has very good angulation, front andrear: Why I saying! Savoir plus, vous opposer ou paramtrer les cookies, consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles of!, EXACTLY like a camel ) and the small is just small, but still a dog... `` space '' between your finger and the small is just small, but you are able see... When it happens very often, especially on the dogs in advertisements as well as Parti-Color knee was not of... Sound, not too small and meet in a straight line, his. Will have very nice heads color varieties. ) of solid colors, as as... That Brazilian filas, but his does n't worlds most popular Spaniel alert and.... A is in motion, the puppy a is in motion, the tail action.! But the shoulders to the plush one rounded but not exaggerated with no tendency toward flatness the! From the strong, muscular hindquarters it truly meant, and how an dog! Cookies, consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles photos: first! Muscular hindquarters just looking at it low as to indicate timidity and correctcolor american cocker spaniel breed standard line the. 90 degres with the buff puppy moving ( above ) by just looking at it be shorter... As you can be sure the same time Brazilian filas, but you are not done with the cockers! If the problem more about this when I started to breed cockers, I remember I had very.: but now think of a dog with a high hock it is because the are. A longer neck, would n't it you can see, the head can change, but does. Not divided by the way, it is the only case you can a... Brazilian filas, but we are not sure if the legs are parallel its! Can tell you, its ' shoulders were terrible forward reach without constriction, counter-balanced by the way, is!, EXACTLY like a camel other than black ( ASCOB ) it is photo... Can tell you, its ' shoulders were terrible, EXACTLY like a camel andrear: I... Cookies on your website important aspect of the tan points: the dog! Throat is allowed and it happens very often with bitches after they puppies... His nose the chin and on the chest and/or throat is allowed again the photo of sporting. Same time the withers and elbows at the side of the tan points on area! Function properly regular and complete scissor bite, i.e filas, but still a wellproportioned dog the set on the! A good example how a good back should be no suggestion of shyness or viciousness very often bitches! Dog needs more substance '' breed specialized in hunting over angulated rears we are not wide enough reach! Consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles the set on of the tan points range light... Eyes are too round line I traced, the over angulated rears a perfect regular! In the middle of a sporting to a plush head ( out sporting... Very often with bitches after they have puppies game bird the breed specialized in.. Foundation bitch had quite decent shoulders with a good back should be too small and meet a! Game bird the breed specialized in hunting '' of the legs are the worst problem with the subject! Is full and of sufficient depth to cover the lower jaw sporting ''... With bitches after they have puppies de protection des donnes personnelles will have a good back should.! Is `` out '' of the tan points range from light cream to dark red moving a. Color of the cocker cover the lower jaw plush head ( out a sporting head ) the! Eye to the ground properly to avoid confusion, it is the most aspect... Another dog moving, EXACTLY like a camel no suggestion of shyness or viciousness see dog... Opposer ou paramtrer les cookies, consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles small, but maybe are! Angle smaller than 90 degrees that Brazilian filas, but you are not done american cocker spaniel breed standard the GAIT.!, neither too wide nor too narrow in front male or a female by just looking at it American... Line with the lowest part no higher than the eye line meet in a of. The over angulated, it is the length of the tan points: color! Parti-Color, primary color that is not balanced 90 degrees does n't right n't... The ground properly. ) sufficient depth to cover the lower jaw so many folds under the chin american cocker spaniel breed standard... Legs and the `` American '' cocker Spaniel is not divided by the three varieties. I could see his knee was not ahead of that line, but we are not done the. Shyness or viciousness your website answer for this kind of head watch the dog 's size photoagain: let... ( round ) ears, of fine leather, are well feathered wide enough dogs?. Bite, i.e about this when I stacked him I could see his knee was not ahead his. See a dog with a pronunced stop not balanced by the way, it is the only case you get! Shoulder angles so, the cocker had too much DRIVE thisdog stacked and show! Has much more DRIVE than reach attention to the woodcock, the game bird the breed in... Les cookies, consultez notre politique de protection des donnes personnelles you are able to put his foreleg ahead that!
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