I've more or less decided on getting an English Cocker Spaniel as my first hunting dog, assuming that it will do fine in my living condition. I'm basically wanting to know if an ECS will do okay (not be too energetic) for part of the day on certain days of the week in a room/kennel while I am gone? I do have another dog i can leave him with to play. However, due to current living conditions I don't have a back yard i can just let the dog run loose in. Will the dog be okay being left alone assuming it gets a morning walk, evening walk, and plays through the evening with me and other dogs?

I know being a sporting dog, they have a decent amount of energy. I just want to make sure it wouldn't be bouncing off the walls on the times i can't be there with him.

Thanks, matt

Not to deter you, but the handful I have ever seen have been bouncing off the walls. I think that they are cool little dogs, but that's been my observation.

With what you are asking it will probably be fine. Will need longer walks/runs as season gets closer...think of it as training a marathon runner. They can't stay inside and have walks only then go run a marathon.

As far as what you are asking while you are gone. Yeah, they will be fine but you should kennel it while you are gone. That will prevent it from getting into something it shouldn't or tearing something up.

My 2 cents and I am sure some will differ...that is cool there is more than one way to make it work.

I have hunted with a fellow THFer's two english cockers. I think one was less than a year and the other was 2 or 3 years old. On one hunt we stayed in the camper and the other hunt we stayed in tents. I saw nothing wrong with these two dogs during the 7 days I hunted and stayed with them. Honestly they made me with my wife had gotten an english cocker rather than her lap dog.

Thanks Stinkbelly. Quack, you've seen a handful of field bred english cockers, or just cockers? There's a pretty common misconception out there that all cockers are the same. In reality, there really 3 or 4 different "groups" of cockers. There are american cockers, and while they are mostly just bench dogs now, there are few that are bred for the field. Then, there are english cockers. Those that are bred for the bench are an entirely different dog than those that are bred for the field. The lines do not overlap at all, and to judge the field bred english cockers by an american cocker or by a bench bred english cocker would be like judging a Ferrari by a Suzuki (I got my first ride in one the other day...they are awful!). It just isn't fair to the breed at all.

The two field bred english cockers that I own are house dogs. I have a 1400 sq ft home that is occupied by me, my wife, our 18 month old daughter, and our 11 day old son. We have no problems having the dogs in the house, and I'm actually strongly getting another one this fall. They do have energy, but for the most part they are very good about turning it on and shutting it off. Generally, their moments of high energy are first thing in the morning, whenever I take them in the field, and when I get home from work at the end of the day. Other than that they just sleep or mope around the house. I make sure to give them at least a half hour of exercise each day, and I'm sure that it contributes to making them better house dogs.

Honda, where do you live? You'd be more than welcome to come by and see my dogs if you wanted to; I live north of Dallas. If you want recommendations on breeders, let me know.

I don't think you'll regret for a second getting one of these dogs. They're a ton of fun to watch in the field, very personable and smart, and conveniently sized.

They were field bred english cockers. Like I said, I have VERY limited exposure to them, and have heard nothing but good things about them in the field...but they are wound a little tighter than most from what I have seen. If I didn't duck hunt more than anything else, I would seriously consider one...instead I wanted/got something a little bigger(field bred springer and already have a lab). The lady I am getting my springer from has an cocker in for training(purely field bred), and said that she would never own one because of the few she has trained and them being keyed up. She's been breeding springers(and is actually from England/Scotland) for 40-50 years.

That being said, most spaniels are going to be a little more hyper than other dogs, but that's just a spaniel for you. I absolutely love Boykins and Springers, so hyper doesn't bother me much.

This is how any good field bred dog should be...

Thank you all for the responses, i really appreciate it. It sounds like an ECS should be a good fit. Like mentioned, I will be walking it for a decent walk in the morning, then again when i get home, as well as playing for the remainder of the night.

Do you guys suggest training the dog yourself, or go somewhere that specializes in field training for dogs? Keep in mind this is my first hunting dog. I read a little bit on here about a few different DVDs that may be a good solution.

I prefer getting a male, do you suggest leaving them unaltered or have them neutered? Any pros/cons to either?

And Cockerfan, I am in Arlington, off of 287 and I-20. I would love to come out and meet the dogs. Are the breeders you refer to in Texas?

Thanks, Matt

If you're giving the dog plenty of exercise, you shouldn't have a problem leaving it home during the day. When it's still young you might want to make provisions for having it let out at some point during the day though, if possible.

I think you'd be fine training the dog yourself. However, I would recommend that you find someone with some experience that you can train with. You can read all of the books you want, and they are definitely helpful, but you'll learn a lot spending time with someone who has already been there. There is a Spaniel Club that has most of it's members on the west side of Dallas called the North Texas Sporting Spaniel Club (http://ntssc.net/default.aspx) that I'd recommend you get in contact with. They occasionally have training days, and you might be able to hook up with someone who can give you a hand.

As for the altering or not altering; in Spaniels, spaying or neutering a dog before it has fully developed can have negative affects. Often they will gain weight, and it is very difficult to get them back to a "fighting" weight. They also will sometimes change their personality some, and have a change in coat texture. I experienced the first two of these when I had my female spayed right at 1 year of age. I hadn't been made aware of any of the consequences, but research I've done since then has shown that it's a fairly common occurrence amongst Spaniels that go under the knife too early. If you get your dog neutered, I'd recommend that you wait until he's about 2 years of age before you do it. By that time he'll be fully developed physically and mentally.

The breeder that I would recommend the most is located in Florida, although he regularly ships dogs all over the US, so that wouldn't be a problem at all. He's actually planning a litter later this summer from Rocky's breeding, and I would without hesitation recommend one of those pups to anyone. He is just an all around outstanding dog. There are also several breeders in the MN and ND area that have quality dogs that I can give you info on if you'd like. I know of a couple of guys in Texas (one south and one west) that breed Cockers, but I don't have any experience with them. The guy in west texas had some pretty nice looking pedigrees up on his website the last time I looked though.

I live north of Little Elm along 380, so I'm a little drive from you. However, occasionally I train with a guy down in around The Colony. If you're interested, I can let you know when we're training next and maybe you could stop by for a little while?