Features of a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Picture taken from www.dogbreedinfo.com

Picture taken from www.dogbreedinfo.com

From the desk of Sharda Baker

Good day and welcome everyone!

This is Sharda with another Cavalier King Charles Spaniel newsletter.

Let’s check out what makes Cavalier King Charles Spaniel so special.

Here we go!

One of the most endearing features of a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is their natural love of people.

These small spaniels really enjoy being around humans, and delight in spending time with their family.

Although not an aggressive dog, they can be somewhat aloof with new people and a bit cautious until they become familiar.

The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is known for its constant tail wagging.

They seem to be happy about all aspects of life, and show it with a friendly wave of their tail.

They are very affectionate and enjoy sitting on the couch with the family for TV, or sitting quietly in your lap or at your feet. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel requires a lot of human attention and affection.

Training
Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is reported to be one of the easiest of the small breeds of dogs to train. They are very intelligent, and use their natural problem solving abilities (developed as hunting and sporting dogs) to be able to learn new tricks and commands.

Since they love to be around people they are very eager to please and respond very well to positive praise. Many Cavalier King Charles Spaniels will never need to be harshly corrected, as simply not attending to them is punishment enough for any misdeed.

The breed is very accepting of kennel or crate training, and enjoys having his or her own den area to relax and spend time in. Since they do tend to become bored when left alone, crate training is an excellent option for when they have to be left alone for short periods of time.

Exercise
The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is a great breed for smaller spaces such as apartments, provided they have a longer walk once – or ideally twice – a day.

Since the breed originated as a sporting dog they do require daily exercise but are not boisterous or hyperactive like some of the other smaller breeds.

In an apartment or small house the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel will exercise itself somewhat, and will usually follow the family members throughout the house.

Children
This breed does well with older children, although it may not do as well with younger children under the age of five. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is not a rough and tumble dog, and becomes nervous with smaller children if the dog is not familiar with kids.

Since the breed is smaller and very easily trained, they can be a terrific companion dog for older children. The Cavalier listens well to verbal commands and responds to attention, something that children can be easily taught.

In addition Cavalier King Charles Spaniel love to run and play with kids provided the games don’t get too “rough and tumble”. They enjoy retrieving, and games with balls and other toys, and don’t become possessive of items as other smaller breeds are prone to do.

Grooming
The breed does not require any special grooming techniques’ so it makes it easy for individuals to care for on a regular basis. The coat should be groomed several times a week to keep the hair free from tangles and mats.

The hair around the ears and legs can be prone to tangles so keeping this combed out is important on a daily or alternate day basis. The grooming process should only take a few minutes a day if the grooming is done regularly.

They can be easily bathed due to their small size, but can also be dry bathed if there are no odours or stains that need to be removed from the coat. Dry bathing or dusting is easy, and simply requires a powder to be brushed through the coat.

Barking
The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is generally not prone to barking if it is given sufficient attention. They are not a watchdog breed, so often they will just bark to let you know someone is at the door but then will quickly stop. This makes them excellent companion dogs for people in apartments or confined areas, who may have to worry about barking disturbing other people.

Temperament
The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel has a very even disposition, and is happiest when he or she is around family. The dogs do very well when socialized with other dogs, as well as household pets such as cats. Due to their hunting nature they are should be supervised when around rabbits or other small pets, but usually do very well.

They are very docile with other dogs either smaller or larger, and do not tend to be aggressive or possessive of territory or items. They tend to spend time very close to other dogs when family is not available, but their preference is to have human companionship over other dogs.

Overall, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is a sporting and intelligent companion dog, that loves being with people. They are easy to get along with and to train, and are good with both children and other pets.

I hope that you learned a lot from today’s Cavalier King Charles Spaniel newsletter

All the best and take care

Warmly,

Sharda Baker