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English Cocker Spaniel
Two quite different dogs share this name. Working-line Cockers are smaller, finer and shorter-coated, bred to push through brambles with endless drive, and they will invent their own jobs if you do not supply one; show Cockers carry heavier coats and longer ears and usually settle more readily into family life.
Expect roughly 38 to 41 cm and 13 to 14.5 kg, a coat that needs regular brushing and ears that need checking. Ask any breeder for the PRA (prcd) DNA result.
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English Springer Spaniel
Few breeds show a wider gap between field and show lines, which have bred largely apart for decades. A field-bred Springer is lean, wiry and tireless, happiest quartering ground and retrieving for hours; a show Springer is heavier-boned with a longer coat and deeper ears, and is generally the steadier household dog.
Both are bigger than a Cocker, around 51 cm and 18 to 27 kg for a show-bred dog, with working dogs lighter. The field type suits people who want training to be part of every day, not an occasional class.
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Welsh Springer Spaniel
Pick a Welshie if you like the Springer idea but would rather avoid the working-versus-show gamble: this breed never split into separate lines. It is a little smaller, about 43 to 48 cm and 16 to 20 kg, and comes only in red and white with a flat, soft coat.
Expect a loyal, sometimes clingy dog that can be headstrong and wary of strangers, and one that still needs plenty of exercise. Glaucoma and hip scores are the health checks to ask about.
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Boykin Spaniel
South Carolina's state dog was bred around Camden to hunt wild turkey and waterfowl, and it remains a largely American breed that is hard to find elsewhere. At 11 to 18 kg, with a liver or chocolate coat that runs from straight to moderately curly, it sits between Cocker and Springer in size.
Boykins are friendly, quick to train and energetic, and they need daily exercise and company. Screening matters here: ask for DNA results for exercise-induced collapse and collie eye anomaly, plus hip scores.
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American Cocker Spaniel
This is not simply an English Cocker with an accent. The American is the smallest of the sporting breeds, at 34 to 39 cm and 11 to 14 kg, with rounder eyes, a domed skull, a shorter muzzle and a long, silky coat.
That coat is the real commitment: plan for regular professional clipping or a lot of home grooming, and routine ear cleaning to head off infections. It is a people-focused companion far more than a field dog, and glaucoma and PRA are the eye conditions to screen for.
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Field Spaniel
A rare and underrated middle ground. The Field is bigger, calmer and more independent than a Cocker, standing around 45 cm and weighing 18 to 25 kg, with a single coat in black, liver or roan whose feathering mats without regular combing.
It is patient with children but can grow bored and destructive if left alone for long stretches. As a Kennel Club vulnerable native breed with few litters a year, finding a puppy takes patience, though a UK life expectancy of about 13 years rewards the wait.
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Sussex Spaniel
Low, long and golden liver, the Sussex is the family's slow and steady thinker: only 38 to 41 cm tall but a solid 20 to 23 kg. It is the one spaniel that gives tongue, howling once it finds scent, which is useful in the field and less welcome next door.
At home it is calm and clownish, though often stubborn in training. Hip dysplasia, ear infections and spinal disc trouble are genuine risks in a breed that nearly vanished during the Second World War and still registers few puppies.
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Clumber Spaniel
The largest of the English spaniels, named after Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire, carries anything from 25 to 39 kg on a low, heavy frame. Its gentle pace suits someone who wants a steady walking companion rather than a ball-chasing athlete.
The trade-offs are practical ones: the mostly white coat sheds, the loose lips drool, and the breed loves to carry objects around, so keep small items it could swallow out of reach. Hip dysplasia is a known weakness, so ask for hip scores, and keep exercise gentle in hot weather.
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Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
The easiest spaniel to fit into ordinary life: 5.4 to 8 kg, happy in a flat or a farmhouse, friendly with strangers and other dogs, and wearing a silky coat that needs weekly brushing rather than trimming. It still has a spaniel's urge to chase birds.
Health is the hard part. Mitral valve disease affects most Cavaliers in time and is the leading cause of death, and most carry the skull malformation behind syringomyelia, so choose a breeder who heart-tests and MRI-scans parents.
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King Charles Spaniel
Often confused with the Cavalier, the King Charles (called the English Toy Spaniel in America) is smaller at 3.6 to 6.4 kg, with a domed head, shorter muzzle and lower-set ears. It is a quiet lapdog for a calm home, dislikes rough handling and is the least sporting dog here.
The flat face brings breathing, eye and heat-tolerance problems, and mitral valve disease occurs too. With UK registrations in the low hundreds, it is listed as a vulnerable native breed.
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