[Closed] Springer Spaniel help.....

[IMG] [/IMG]Alfie is 6 now and hasnt really slowed, i def give him the op if you dont want pups as this did make a bit of a difference, very clever and a loads of energy, train him to ride with you and they will keep going for a nice ride or will walk all day - but if you dont walk him for a few days then he is nuts. Wouldnt have him any different though and he is a real pleasure - Very good with children as well, we have an 18 month and he is very well behaved with her.

You will go through bad patches but when they are trained and kept active they are brilliant dogs. It all comes down to keeping the entertained.

ours is now 11 weeks old and doing great

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we do walking which is one reason we got her but also we are going to train her to work - beating and picking up

We had a family springer and my sister has one at the mo. They are mad and females relatively soppy. Her bitch is liver and white and is a bit of a jelous baby 😉 Anyway she is a nice dog but requires a lot of exercise. Very easy to train from a puppy - as a breed they can suffer with bad ear hygiene and clipping abd brushing is important if exercised in muddy water, brush etc - they love chasing aminals esp rabbit ans birds and are very good swimmers 😉

another alfie, he is 2 and nuts, really nice dog, he opens the post, eats the letter and leaves the envelope

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Nog,

Have you had dogs / a springer before ?

I know this is easier said than done but if you could borrow one for a weekend or invite friends over that have one you would learn a lot.

I remember a quote from our dog training teacher, "having a springer as your first dog is like learning to drive in a ferrari"

They are not mad, just enthusiastic, energetic, intelligent and very happy. Keep them execised, mentally stimulated and trained in the essential commands and you have a great friend. In fact you will have lots of new friends as strangers will want to talk to you about your dog.

You are clearly going into this with your eyes open by asking other people's opinion and you will get plenty here, mountain biking and springer ownership appear to go together.

i just broke my springer this weekend at cwm carn he's had a back spasm so he's on house arrest/no walks for three days which means he's getting ready to explode with energy if a don't take him out soon.
love him to bits, great with our two youngsters and all their friends that come round.
he needs a fair bit of entertaining to keep him from destroying stuff but a new doggy toy will last a matter of minutes.

second the borrowing of one.
you have to be firm with them though and everything will be fine.

Will chew everything, crap on your floor, bite kids that tease it, worry sheep, smell, moult

And yes we used to have one

I had one & it ate my kitchen! Actually that should read, 'my wife (now ex)got one against my wishes & it ate the kitchen'. Even though it had more toys than Toy R Us to chew on. It was obviously totally mad cos it jumped off a cliff chasing something.
My cousin's been getting a 'sprollie', now that sounds like it could be a mad thing!

Always wanted a springer - but we were mindful of first dog experience etc and went for a cocker spaniel instead.

Not quite as energetic as a springer, but still very intelligent, active and a good family pet.

Springers are great dogs if you train them from a very young age. Sometimes this means feeling like you are being harsh when they are pups but they thrive on discipline. They are quite greedy which makes them easy to train with dog treats.

You really need to get them out at least half an hour a day. If you have a good open space to exercise them, get them trained to return on instruction they will run around constantly and get a lot of exercise in a short space of time.

Cages are great. When they are young it stops them chewing/messing everywhere when not supervised.

Gooner that pup is so cute it nearly made me cry!

Shandy,

Agree with you totally on the train to return point.
We went through the basic training and ours will return on command to my feet 99.9% of the time. For the other .1% we have a dog whistle.

Don't know how you get awat with half an hours run a day, we are on a two walk a day regime, no set times but a short day is an hours exercise and a long day ..............well that can be all day, without exaggeration.

just been reading this thread and giggling to myself
glad we are not alone as they all seem to be the same 😆

get a crate from an early age ,easy to toilet train and wont destroy your house
kong
food cube
mentally stimulate them or they will drive you mad
oh yeh and exercise did I mention exercise

and they are lovely dogs

check this site www.itsaspringthing.co.uk

nah mate you want a lurcher can walk all day or sprint like a nutter for 10 mins, no hereditary problems and no worries about her being savaged by the chav pit bulls in the park as they cant catch her.

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Yeah, it will be our first dog, thats why we have been thinking about it for a long time and wont just dive in thinking its all a doddle.
We have looked after mates dogs but niether of them are very energetic one being a staff, loverly dog but she cant be of the lead as she is a bit snappy with other dogs, would hate to get something like that as we want to see them run around having fun, both for us and the dog.
I could take it to work with me but would be worried it would get used to that attention and just go mad on days i had to leave it at home.
The springer does seem to fit what we want just hope we fit what it wants too.

We've a sporting cocker, so mid-way between a springer and a cocker in size, but same mentality...

Agree will all the comments, plus we bought a full-size cage for the garden and he lives in there if we are out. He's a dog, so we had the op, but left his tail. We don't clip him, and his fur sorts itself out (vet says no problem).

Exercise is the key, plus we throw his (dry) food into the garden and let him find it (the puppy trainers suggestion). He will run all day, and is great running with the bike (I've a 12 mile loop that I take him on).

Today we (son and I on bikes, wife on horse), went out for the day - he just ran - sleeping now ;-).

As its your first dog, don't overfeed him - and like children, discipline is the answer.

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Couldn't resist posting a couple of pictures of our springer. We were told once that a springer spaniel is the worst pet you could ever own, and that thought has crossed my mind a few times when I have chased her round and round the garden trying to get the tea towel back! I think you just have to give them loads of exercise and be calm assertive (disciplined) and they will give you loads of fun back!

discipline is the answer . yes
get a crate from an early age . yes
You need to get them out at least half an hour a day. yes but you don't need to walk it any more than half an hour if you don't have the time.
springer is more reliable than cockers .
my oldest springer just recently tore a ligament on his back leg i had to keep him in the house for 4 weeks no further than the back garden ,he was desperate to get out but he managed fine .
train with dog treats.this is a mistake it better to train with out food it make them a beter dog and it a waiste of time trying to train you springer if it younger than 6 months other than it name and potty traning
http://www.mordorgundogs.com/
http://www.eshielsgundogs.com/

We've had springers both English & Welsh for over 20 years & they are just great fun. Always had bitches.

Very good with kids (can be very protective to be warned)

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Need loads of excercise

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& cute

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All in all, need plenty of exercise, mentally challenged, clear boundaries, good training, & they don't really do the dog home alone bit. If you are out at work all day, they aren't the dog for you. They crave company, & if they get it they'll respond for you loyal, biddable & above all else fun dog.

I'll try the good with kids bit again

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Got a 5 month old rodison ridgeback and up to now training is going OK.Recalls to a whistle and responds to voice comands well.Agree with one of the posters said about a dog crate.Great for stopping them distroying the house and also toilet training.If you get a dog start basic training as soon as you get it because what you do with it when it first comes into the house will set the standard for the rest of it's life.You get out what you put in. 😉

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roundwheels

springer is more reliable than cockers

In what way ?

cockers are great dogs but tend to be unreliable from time to time (when working them ) also there abit more crazy mental than springer's i know hard to imagine, not just my opintion but of all the dog handelers that i know

train with dog treats.this is a mistake it better to train with out food it make them a beter dog and it a waiste of time trying to train you springer if it younger than 6 months other than it name and potty traning

Dont agree with this.

roundwheels

Ok, just wondered what you meant by unrelieable

also there abit more crazy mental than springer's

Yup, can go with that, i have one at home !!

I grew up with a cocker spaniel and would dearly love to get one or a Springer (isn't there something called an American Spaniel too?)

At the moment though I don't think we have time to walk/train it properly so it will have to wait until the kids are a bit older. We'll definately get one eventually though and it will drive my Mrs crazy 😆

cockers are great dogs but tend to be unreliable from time to time (when working them ) also there abit more crazy mental than springer's i know hard to imagine, not just my opintion but of all the dog handelers that i know

Hmmmm. Can't say I've ever seen an 'unreliable' cocker when working - but a lot is down to the pedigree.
We've got two working cockers (and you should know that working cockers are almost a completely different breed to the little show dogs you see) and they've been great but both came from very good working backgrounds i.e. pedigree is full of field trial winners and champions.

Overall I'd say that cockers are a marginally better family dog but I'd still like a springer some day, although it would have to be worked.

Not sure about a springer as your first dog. Although I;ve never owned one I had a mate who had one as his first dog and it ate through the kitchen wall (literally). I can't say much as my first dog was a border collie who was mental. He was also very difficult to train but eventually I got him on side. Then we had a kid, the dog lost and attacked the doctor and hand to make the long trip to the vet.

I now have two golden retrievers which are great dogs but still need exercise and mental stimulation. I;ve had them on a ten mile ride with no problems but equally they can sit in the kitchen for a couple of days without too much trouble.

We have 2 springers and they are both nuts in their own way.
Brilliant dogs.
One is a rescue dog and still running about like a pup at 11 years old. We got him at 2, and needed one of them there doggy psychologists to help get him over separation anxiety.
The other is a little lady and she has the sharpest most painful and earsplitting bark in the world.

Love 'em to bits.

We did the crate thing for them both, too.

I would holy disagree with not being able to train them under 6 months old, though. Our little lady dog was doing "Dead", sit, stand, stay, walk, heel, please totally ignore me if next door neighbours alsation is about and flash your bits at him, and speak.

edit: and a few of those are to hand signals, which I still find mightily impressive!

oddjob

(isn't there something called an American Spaniel too?)

There is but they are as far away from a cocker as a springer is, we have a half show half working cocker, he can run all day and is a maniac, he's brilliant !!

Forgot add my vote for crate training. Unless you want sh*t everywhere its a no brainer.

Yup, go with crates all the time. Ours learned very quickly with a crate.

We have a Springer (mental, but a trained gundog) and a 7 month old Cocker (mental and starting training in a couple of weeks). Both never seem to get tired when out and about, but get quiet after long walks when they are on their beds.

They are good with kids generally, but tend to fight when they are on their own. Both are boys, so it's not surprising.

You thought about going to a rescue centre and getting a rescue dog? There's hundreds of homeless dogs in this country that are beautiful and loving and need a home. it seems a bit unnecessary to spend a lot on a pedigree type.

Just my two penneth. Check out the dogs trust website.

Alfie and Charley. Both rescues and capable of walking all day up mountains. Lovely characters, get on well with each other, children and other dogs.

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If you do bite the bullet, training is all.
Use a whistle, it beats the crap out of shouting.
Keep em stimulated & on the "invisible lead".

We've got Welsh springers now which are not quite as physical as an English, but great temperaments.
Even if you just want one as a pet, work em with dummies in the undergrowth & stuff. They really enjoy it, it's what there bread for. They'll be interested in you then & not charge off on there own which is when the problem starts if they range too far.

quick Q to all you springer owners
How is your dog on the lead ????

if you've got kids i'd reccomend springers over cocker's, as they normally take more stick before they snap.
If you only have 30 mins a day to excersise a dog, personally i wouldn't have a springer from personal experience.
I'd like a clumber for my next dog, after having springers, cav king charles, amd field spaniels in the past.

Our 12yo Springer passed a month or so back. He was a fantastic dog, full of energy but super obedient at the same time.

How was he on the lead? Pulled like a nutter with me, though the SO could get him to walk at heel.

Got a GWP puppy now, still working on the training.

Cheers for all the replies,
I had a good read through the "its a springer thing" web site and i am now scared....they seem to be crackers, but in a good way, quite a few people with training issues on there but i guess thats the same as all dogs if done wrong.
Can they be calm in any way? I just seems like everyone says they need absolute constant stimulation, not sure how anyone manages to do that unless they have no job or other responsibilities.
Its a hard one because thats what we want but would also want it to be calm and collected too. Maybe im asking a bit much or just naive as a first time dog owner.
Sounds like kids may be easier.... 😯

oggoonthen.
meet meg:

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when she was about 10 weeks IIRC, and a year or so later:

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she's half field spaniel, half welsh springer. has her funny five minutes from time to time, but generally she's pretty mellow, believe it or not. she stays at home with the GF or if the GF has to go away with work she comes into work with me. she'll manage by herself now if she has to. doesn't like to be alone though, of course. she does agility training, and did all the kc puppy training.
she's two and a half now, and we wouldn't be without her.

We have a 4yr springer and he's a ideal for all occasions. Was a bit neurotic with people coming to the house to begin with, but usually only if they weren't really "dog people."

Will happily have a lie in for a few hours or chill in the garden. Will also accompany me on 10-15 mile runs without any problem (so long as he has water).

Good with most other dogs (and cats), but does have his alpha male moments too.

Overall, a very sound dog, and perfect company both at home and out on the trails.

SM

Just don't expect any sense out of them till they are atleast 3 😉

Best dogs ever, fact, so long as you know what you are getting into.

RIP Sparky, sadly missed 🙁

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Spaniels are one of the most high maintenance dogs you can choose IMO.

Not that an excuse is needed but, this is my parents new dog, he's a springer spaniel/poodle cross (springerdoodle) this was at 9 weeks old, apparenrtly the poodle cross makes them a bit calmer, easier to train and they hardly shed any fur.

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after 3, 1...2...3... aaaawhhhh

oh yeah, and he's called Dylan

Cosmo, our 4yr old Springer was pretty typical: bonkers/stark raving nuts and MEGA hard work for his first 2 years.

Then, he 'matured' i.e calmed down a little, and is now a fantastic, obedient dog.

We gave up on ALL the dog training classes we attended - even those specially suited to gun dogs. We could get no sense from him whatsoever until we went to a super expensive (£60 per hour) local trainer. Boy, was it worth it.

Our springer was our first dog.

Would I get another Springer: Yes.

Would I recommend one as a first dog: Absolutely not.
(Unless you are a super-chilled out couple, prepared to put in a lot of hard work and can afford the very best training regimen - and STICK to it!)

Oh - and get good insurance.

Springers are notorious for injuring themselves - cuts, scrapes, barbed wire fences etc.

Ours ate a small foam ball when he was 4 months old - requiring surgery, then was hit by a car when he was 9 months old - requiring surgery, then sliced his chest open at 18 months old.... by the time he was 2yrs old he had racked up over £5.5k in vets bills.

I kid you not.

I have the receipts to prove!

Have you thought of a Cocker instead? A show cocker is a little less full on mental (a working cocker, on the other hand, is a total nutcase). I have a show cocker (steady), a 50/50 (show dad, working mother, needs about 4x the exercise of the first one) and I occasionally dogsit a working cocker (mental, never wears out). Just thought cockers might be a better bet as a first dog / spaniel.

Perhaps I should add - never thought I'd ever have spaniels (always a border fan), now I can't imagine ever having anything else.

Got a Springer and a Cocker and wil always have Spaniels

forgot add my vote for crate training. Unless you want sh*t everywhere its a no brainer.

Agreed. Worked fantastically well with my cocker (not one accident) but honestly thought the Springer would do himself an injury. Gave up and yep took a ruined carpet and many many weeks to train

how is Springer on the lead

TERRIBLE but that is our fault. In every other respect brilliant though.

Nb For those who have had experiences with chewing, then your dog might be bored/ under stimulated?..I work shifts and my Wife is PT so the dogs never have more than 4 hours alone and get good off lead walks every day. (Wouldn't have got them otherwise)

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We have had a golden cocker for the past four years......arrived just before the birth of our first child.........great timing! Agree with the mental bit and needing LOTS of exercise. we only got him knowing that father-in-law would be giving him decent walks every day. Unfortunately over the past year there were a number of incidents when he snapped at the hands of either the 2 or 4 year old when he was provoked...... is brilliant at all other times but we couldn't take the risk with that small degree of unpredictability. Has gone to live with father in law indefinitaley 🙁

Another vote for a springer. We've a Welsh one and have often wondered if she's slightly more bonkers as her lineage is show dog. But maybe not. I'll admit she has her moments - compete ignorance of the whistle when chasing small animals, and yes on the lead she's not the best, which is prob out fault. Though she will walk to heal without. But I wouldn't swap. Springers are very loveable, loyal dogs with bags of personality, who will always bring a smile to the face.

Lead traning is very simple . Best place is take your dog to aplace were there are no distractions ,call it name and say heal if he bolts forward give a sharp tug on it's lead and walk in the other direction and call heal at the same time , if it goes left you go right but allways call heal when you change direction .some dogs learn faster than others ,but it's up to you to inforce it. 20 mins doing this daily the penny finally drops if he kicks of and and it turn into a wresling match grab the scruf of his neck push his head to the ground and give him a big NO never hit your dog and If you lose you cool go home and start again the next day

My brother had a springer and a good friend took him for a walk (the dog), the guy was recovering from a serious leg injury , when man and dog reached the local park their were kids feeding the swans ,dog chases swans swans swim off dog leaps into water and follows .mucho red face man with sore leg "war veteran" limps away
also they are cat killers
I loved that dog

My wife's mate has just told us she's getting a "speagle". A quick google will tell you its a cross beteween a spaniel and a beagle. This is their first dog. Does this sound like insanity?

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This is our 2 year old Sporting Cocker.

Br that is a beautiful dog..Is a Sporting Cocker Different to The Working Cocker then..not heard of that one..

Well and truly Scared now

not a good story from me:

we had a beautiful springer. absolutely beautiful...

rescued her at 4 months, kept her for nine months or so... she had some aggression and health issues from the outset, the health issues cleared up as she gained stength etc from exercising with me, however the aggression got worse and worse with her growing bigger and stronger.

she saw some very experienced trainers, handlers etc but her aggression towards humans was ultimately intolerable and we had to let her go.

saddest day of my life probably. (is that bad?)

did everything we could for her... but symptoms along this line http://www.vetinfo.com/daggressp.html
were just too much.

i have grown up with a good few family and working dogs, and i have never seen one quite as scarey and aggressive as ours.

I have a 7yr old from NESSR.NET a local springer rehoming charity, they have loads of springers as people dont realise the commitment.

They will occasionally drive you insane but mostly they make you laugh and smile.

Mine can be really naughty but normally if we havent had time to give him the exercise he really needs. He normally has about 30 mins in morning - lunchtime let out and early evening 40 - 60 mins. All running round like a nutter. Weekend hikes and leisure walking to the beach etc.

He had his back broken and hip smashed when he was ran over in October - he is now back to full exercise after only 3 months.

They all love Mud, tennis balls, socks, gloves, shoes, lakes and rivers.

Mine only really dislikes fireworks and gunshots being a failed gundog.

Get one they are ace.

[img] http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2653/4194265811_0161ca9da9_b.jpg [/img][img] http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2452/3942352670_3d11065d67_o.jpg [/img][img] http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2037/2372429288_2938b9ff3e_o.jp g" target="_blank">http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2653/4194265811_0161ca9da9_b.jpg [/img][img] http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2452/3942352670_3d11065d67_o.jpg [/img][img] http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2037/2372429288_2938b9ff3e_o.jp g"/> [/img]Its really hard to give a balanced answer on this

We have a springer spaniel. My wife did the choosing. I'd have chosen no dog

We read on a website 2 hours a day of excercise and that works. By the age of 2 with 2 hours a day he is fine.

So her routine

30 min walk with wife at 6 o'clock

left at home at 8:00

1 hour walk we pay for during the day (both companies we use say she is a delight on or off her lead and they find he easy to work with)

my son gets in between 4 and 5

I'll do another 30 mins when i get in

then she'll sleep under the sofa for the rest of the day

she's never damaged anything when we were out

when she was younger it was less walking more playing. If she didn't get her playing she'd steal things

I don' think we were great at training. She chases rabbits and you can't let her off with sheep.

But she never pulls on her lead and always comes back at the places she knows she needs to on her regular walks

she loves following me when I'm cycling

They are a popuar pet and suitable for house dogs. They just need to run around and burn off energy. I think she would make our lives hell on 2 30 min walks every day, but you can do almst no walking now and again and get away with it

any more specicfic questions then please ask

i have a springer and luckily never needed to train her. she is terrified of other dogs, she is terrified of guns, (and shes a gun dog) and whenever a car comes you tell her to come to you and she lays down wherever she is, (including the middles of the road). she never chases sheep, never runs of, always comes to let you put her lead on and is perfect for hiking. she does get alot stuck in her fur though so we have to keep it quite short. apart from that springers are fantastic
dont hestitate to get one

Br that is a beautiful dog..Is a Sporting Cocker Different to The Working Cocker then..not heard of that one..

Agreed....... lovely looking dog. We've got 2 x working cockers and they're absolutely fab but they're getting on now 🙁
I'm tempted to have a springer next time (Dad always had springers, and yes we both shot/shoot), but I think the working cockers combines the best bits of the springer with a little less activity required [sometimes].

Sporting cocker? I presume this is just another name for a working cocker.

NagsNog - both the same I think, very hardy...

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this is a picture of my springer

Meet Dave

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Here are my 2p's worth

First of all get the book the Dog Listener. It has some useful information and tips particularly lead training and understanding how a dog see's itself within a household. Basic common sense that can actually be easy to miss.

What ever dog your getting its best if you can get them young and meet both the parents. If you find the parents are nice calm well adjusted dogs then your puppy will likely grow into the same. If the parents are nightmares then thats what you've got coming. If the parents aren't available to meet then you've got to ask yourself why.

Springer and many other working dogs are bred for 2 reasons

1- as working dogs

2- as show dogs

Springer bred to work tend to be a lot smaller. They are far and a way the best dog to have for someone with an outdoor lifestyle. Breading for showing is about appearence and not for function unfortunately and imo is the cause of most undesirable traits in dogs. Its common sense, a working dog needs to be fit, inteligent, and genetically healthy.

Dave's pretty calm on the whole. He's very much a people dog and is just happy to be part of the gang. He gets riduculously excited when new people turn up but soon calms down. When i worked from home he spent the day at my feet under the desk. When working at outdoor centres he was like having an extra member of staff there.

Decide how you want your dog to fit into your life and be diligent in training then to fit that way. The people who often have the problems are the ones that let the dog dictate the lifestyle or they dont put in the effort in the early phase. Its not rocket science but it is time consuming to start off with. Once the groundwork is laid though its pretty easy.

An out of control springer is one of the worst dogs in the world as they have the intelligence and stamina to rip the world apart

A well trainer happy springer is the perfect dog in my opinion. Small enough not to take over the house, tough as an old boot, will keep up all day on the hill on foot or on bike (Dave has done 90km days in Scotland) and is completley part of the family.

Hope this helps

Ian