It is necessary to know how to breed cocker spaniels even without professional knowledge. Breeding cocker spaniels go beyond mating two fertile dogs. As an amateur, you must have in-depth knowledge of this dog breed. Consider the health status of the bitch and the sire. If your dogs have health issues, their progenies will be unhealthy. Taking blood and bone samples of both dogs for lab testing and analysis is an easy way to discover their congenital disorders and diseases.
Although cocker spaniels are generally prone to diseases, you can choose healthy dogs for mating. You have that choice. Usually, you can breed cocker spaniels earlier, but professional breeders suggest two years of age as the best mating time. Before we teach you how to breed cocker spaniels, we will provide some background information.
Cocker Spaniel origin
Cocker Spaniels are currently the best family dogs you can find. They are friendly, beautiful, and affectionate. Like five hundred years ago, Cocker Spaniels was work or gun dogs. Several theories about their actual origin exist. Some suggest that these dogs originated from England, and others say Spain. According to research, Spaniels were Spanish hunting dogs, and Cockers were tiny toy dogs.
Research also reveals that once upon a time, there were water spaniels and land spaniels but the former no longer exist. Modern Cocker Spaniels emerged in the middle of the nineteenth century and were purely gun dogs. Due to all these theories, we cannot clearly define Cocker Spaniel’s origin. However, how to breed cocker spaniels works the same way for two existing breed variants.
Cocker Spaniel breeds and physical appearance
When learning how to breed Cocker Spaniels, you will encounter two breeds. These are the American Cocker Spaniel and the English Cocker Spaniel.
English Cocker Spaniel –
Officially, the English Cocker Spaniel is a gun dog for hunting. It has the American Cocker Spaniel roots. Even if bred from the American variant, the English Cocker Spaniel has a unique body shape. It is a medium-sized dog with a compact and robust body. Although it sheds a lot of furs, its coat is shorter than the American Cocker Spaniel’s coat.
American Cocker Spaniel –
This is a long-haired dog with fluffy balls of fur and a bulky look. Also, with long, floppy ears, the American Cocker Spaniel is a sporting dog. It has a solid black or tan coat, but a few variants have neither of these colors. Unlike their England cousins, the American Cocker Spaniels have big, circular eyes, defined eyebrows, and domed head tops.
Cocker Spaniels are generally medium-sized dogs that adjust to any living conditions. Male dogs are about one and a half feet tall, while females grow slightly over one foot tall. Overall, the American Cocker Spaniel is shorter than the British variant. Both dog breeds weigh about fifteen kilograms in adulthood.
Cocker Spaniel Temperament, Personality, and Training
When considering how to breed Cocker Spaniels, you must focus on the temperament and personality of these dogs. There is a good reason for these dogs appearing in family ads. Their personality is pleasant, making them ideal family dogs. Most people also select these dogs because they do equally well in apartment living.
As working or hunting dogs, Cockers can live in your apartments only if you keep them physically and mentally active. Moreover, a Cocker Spaniel dog can live with single people or families with children because of their friendly nature. They love companionship and activity but hate to be alone. When it comes to training, Cocker Spaniels is easy to deal with because they are intelligent and loving. They require positive training rather than harsh words. Knowing how to breed Cocker Spaniels is therefore an easy task.
How to breed Cocker Spaniels
One of the most vital considerations in planning how to breed Cocker Spaniels is age. Both males and females selected for breeding should have the right age. The correct Cocker Spaniel breeding age is twenty-four months. As you find the best male dog for your female, consider several other factors. These factors include:
Health status –
No dog breeder wants to be responsible for producing unhealthy puppies. As we noted earlier, you should take blood and bone samples of both dogs to the lab for testing. In health again, both dogs need to be adults. A two-year-old dog’s body will have manifested any inborn disorders or disease symptoms. If your dog has health problems, it requires neutering or spaying before it can mate. If learning how to breed Cocker Spaniels now, avoid sick dogs or those with congenital disorders.
Get familiar with the breed standard –
Whether you want to produce American or English Cocker Spaniel puppies, you should know the correct breed standard. If you aim to create purebred dogs, every generation of puppies must meet this standard. To achieve consistency, ensure your sire and bitch is pure breeds themselves. Identifying the breed standard in male and female dogs before mating them is crucial. For instance, mate two solid-colored Cocker Spaniels to produce matching offspring. Moreover, People often get confused with the Cocker Spaniel and other types of dog breeds like Cocker Spaniel with King Charles Spaniel and springer spaniel. Read our blog to find out the differences.
You can ask a professional Cocker Spaniel breeder to assist you or read about this online.
The CERF test –
Cocker Spaniels are prone to genetic eye defects. Test your sire and mother dog for these defects. For that, you need to see a qualified veterinary ophthalmologist. Since they will send the results to the Canine Eye Registry Foundation, this is known as the CERF test. A negative test result means that your dogs might safely mate.
Check genetic hip defects –
When learning how to breed Cocker Spaniels, read about hereditary hip defects. Female and male Cocker Spaniels is vulnerable to genetic hip issues. So, you want to mate two purebred dogs that do not have hip defects. A hip X-ray at the veterinarian clinic is enough to show these defects. Although a veterinarian may read the X-ray results, it is best to get a second opinion from an orthopedic. You can find one at OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals). If there is hip dysplasia, they will reveal which of the two dogs has it.
Do a pedigree comparison –
One thing to focus on when practicing how to breed Cocker Spaniels is inbreeding. You can prevent inbreeding in puppies by comparing the female and male pedigrees. If they share relatives, you should look for another male.
Where will you take newborn puppies? –
How to breed Cocker Spaniels requires a strategy. Ensure you know what to do with the puppies. Will you produce Cocker Spaniel puppies for sale? If you do not want to sell them immediately, do you have a safe place to raise them? Once you understand the basics of selecting the best dogs for mating, you can produce many puppies. If you intend to do this as a business, locate families that can buy your puppies. Not all homes are perfect for your Cocker Spaniel puppies. So, choose the safest homes for them before they are born.
Prepare yourself financially –
Even if you know how to breed Cocker Spaniel dogs, you cannot ignore the money aspect. As soon as the female gives birth to her puppies, preserve their health. You require money for veterinary services, food, grooming, etc. If you plan to sell your Cocker Spaniel puppies, they will require vaccinations and other health checkups to be healthy and safe in their next homes. Save enough money to cater to the medical needs of your dogs. Above all, avoid keeping a crowd of dogs you cannot manage to feed and maintain, or they will suffer.
Focus on the dog’s heat cycle –
Your female dog’s health is crucial when considering how to breed Cocker Spaniels. As a result, you should jump one heat cycle after producing litter puppies. Professional breeders suggest one year as the best Cocker Spaniel breeding cycle. Thus, a female dog should reproduce three to four times in her lifetime. If it cannot get you the anticipated result, the best action is to neuter or spay it. After that, get a new English or American Cocker Spaniel for sale. Ensure it is healthy and old enough to mate with an equally energetic male.
Train your puppies to ensure proper socialization –
If you want to breed puppies for sale, they need to be on their best behavior when you sell them. Once they are born, give them some crucial lessons so they can learn to socialize. It is easier for a dog buyer to train a well-socialized baby dog.
Seek professional knowledge and advice –
Learning how to breed Cocker Spaniels is not an overnight affair. For that reason, you should take the time to practice it as you learn new tips from more experienced dog breeders. Search for detailed information on Cocker Spaniels on blogs, forums, magazines, and other publications. Read about these dogs without ceasing while practicing what you learn. Those who already knowhow to breed Cocker Spaniels would also want to learn from you. That is why you should be part of different dog communities.
Consider Health Issues when breeding cocker Spaniels
An essential factor in how to breed Cocker Spaniels is health issues. Other than genetic issues, this dog breed is prone to diseases. When people began breeding Cocker Spaniels actively, most of them made grave mistakes that led to health issues. Others triggered inbreeding. It is not in your place as a responsible dog breeder to propagate this problem.
That is why you want to familiarize yourself with common diseases affecting the Cocker Spaniels. Note the following health issues to successfully learn how to breed Cocker Spaniels.
1. Eye issues
As we noted earlier, some Cocker Spaniels come to this world with hereditary eye defects. Those who do not have genetic eye defects are not immune from acquired eye issues due to a lack of proper grooming, viruses, and dust particles. Cockers popularly suffer from cataracts when they get old, which can be due to their genetic makeup or a symptom of another disease.
Mild cataracts might get better with medicines while severe cataracts might require surgery. Another eye problem is progressive renal atrophy, which occurs due to excessive inbreeding. It is a lethal problem that might cause permanent blindness. Others are canine glaucoma, conjunctivitis, and distichiasis. If your dog scratches its eyes often, it might have any of these diseases.
2. Hypothyroidism
A female or male Cocker Spaniel for breeding is medium-sized but can suffer from hypothyroidism. It is prevalent in large-bodied dogs but can plague a few Cockers also. Hypothyroidism is a situation where the dog’s thyroid gland is overactive. If you identify symptoms early, your dog can take drugs to control the condition. When considering how to breed Cocker Spaniels, focus on hypothyroidism. Have the sire and bitch checked for this disorder? Doing so will help you prevent siring puppies that could later have the same problem. Taking care of a dog with this condition is costly.
3. Skin diseases
Cocker Spaniels is prone to primary seborrhea, a skin condition that triggers flaky scales all over the body. As Cockers are naturally fluffy, they can have excessive grease on their skin. To prevent this condition, you must bathe them regularly and trim their fur. Primary seborrhea triggers pain if left untreated for a long time. You probably should not worry too much about this treatable condition when planning how to breed Cocker Spaniels.
4. Dysplasia
Cocker Spaniels is vulnerable to hip and elbow dysplasia. The disease causes the dog to have a mal-aligned hip or elbow joint. Hence, the joint does not stay in the socket, which triggers pain in the animal. Limping or dragging the rear feet could suggest that a dog has hip dysplasia. An early diagnosis can help a dog recover. When looking into how to breed Cocker Spaniels, focus on hip and elbow dysplasia.
If a sire or bitch dog is over five years, it could easily have this condition. So, it may be good to mate younger dogs. As you do tests for dysplasia, also have the dogs tested for patellar luxation. It refers to the dislocation of the kneecap, which commonly affects Cocker Spaniels and smaller dogs. Patellar luxation corrects itself without any medical treatment. But since it is a hereditary condition, you might want to skip a dog that has it when planning how to breed Cocker Spaniels.
5. Allergy
Cocker Spaniels is a sensitive dog breed prone to allergies. From food allergies to contact allergies, Cockers are hypersensitive. Some Cocker Spaniels suffers from contact allergies. This occurs when they touch strange plants, pollen grains, or other foreign bodies. These allergies affect the skin, causing red bumps, itch, and similar symptoms.
Inhalant allergies also affect these dogs, and they occur when the dog sniffs airborne allergic elements and germs. Licking, chewing, or scratching the skin are some of the top signs of inhalant allergies. Learning the type of allergies affecting these dogs can help you select the right food and grooming products for them.
Also, when you breed blue roan Cocker Spaniels or any others and sell them, you can help new owners learn about their allergies. You can also teach them how to take care of their new puppies to prevent regular allergies.
6. Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia
Here is another health issue you need to be aware of when considering how to breed Cocker Spaniels. As in humans, a dog’s autoimmune disorder such as Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia occurs when its body attacks its blood cells. As a result, the dog feels tired because it has few red blood cells to transport oxygen.
Also, the disease leads to breathing difficulties, loss of appetite, sudden appetite for dirt, and severe weight loss. A dog suffering from Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia should not mate with another. A thorough diagnosis might reveal a terrible condition like cancer, which can manifest as this type of dog anemia.
FAQ
Are American Cocker Spaniels Good Family Dogs?
Yes, these are polite, intelligent, calm, and adorable family dogs. They suit all types of owners, including families with kids.
Are Cocker Spaniels Easy to Breed?
How to breed Cocker Spaniels is not as easy as it sounds. You need to do more than just give your female dog to a brawny male. As you have seen, Cocker Spaniels is susceptible to many different diseases. Some are congenital disorders and others are just diseases that crop up during the dog’s lifetime. To prevent transferring these diseases to the progeny, run some medical tests on the dogs you want to mate.
What 2 Breeds Make a Cocker Spaniel?
As we said above, the two kinds of Cocker Spaniels are these:
- English Cocker Spaniel
- American Cocker Spaniel.
How Many Puppies Do American Cocker Spaniels Have?
The American Cocker Spaniels can have three to twelve puppies.
What is The Best Age to Breed Cocker Spaniel?
The best age to breed your Cocker Spaniel dog is twenty-four months as they are adults.
By following the guidelines and tips discussed in this blog, aspiring breeders can contribute positively to the health and well-being of the breed.
Breeding Cocker Spaniels requires dedication and responsible practices. For those seeking a furry companion, explore our Cocker Spaniels for sale at Cuttin Blue Farms—a guarantee of healthy and happy additions to your family.
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