Cocker spaniel shedding can make you feel anxious as a first-time dog parent. Before you start to worry, remember that Cocker Spaniel is one of the leading family dogs. History reveals that the American and English Cocker Spaniels were woodcock hunters, which may make you mistake them for aggressive and scary dogs. Surprisingly, Cocker Spaniels are the kindest and friendliest family pets. They boast lustrous flowing coats with feathered ears, legs, tummy, and chest. The affectionate and playful pets are not hypoallergenic, unfortunately. Spaniels can shed small amounts of hair all year around and more seasonally, as you will discover below.

What is Shedding?

Shedding in dogs refers to the loss of damaged or dead hair. Since dogs appear in different breeds, their degree of hair fall varies. Dogs like Golden Retrievers are excessive shedders throughout because of their double coats.
Others like Cocker Spaniels are yearly and seasonal shedders, often losing most hairs in fall or spring. Extreme shedding can sometimes point to a congenital condition like follicular dysplasia, hypothyroidism, or skin allergies.

Cocker Spaniel Coat Characteristics

To understand Cocker Spaniel shedding, first get familiar with their coat. Spaniels boast an outer coat and undercoat. While their outer coat can be straight or wavy, their undercoat is usually thick and insulating.

Their beautiful double coats appear in varying colors and patterns, including solid, parti-colored, and tricolored. Undercoats protect the dog skin from the harshness of the weather elements.
Cocker Spaniels grow hair all year round, meaning they lack the dead phase.

Hence, they can shed hair in all seasons. Frequent hair brushing, regular baths, and occasional professional grooming trips are the key to maintaining their shedding coats.

Do Cocker Spaniels Shed?

Cocker Spaniel shedding occurs because of the double coat. When the outercoat grows beyond a certain length, it sheds to allow a new growth phase. Spaniels shed most hair seasonally and in small amounts throughout the year.

In spring, the undercoat sheds to get lighter for the hot summer months. In fall, it sheds to allow thicker undergrowth for colder winter months.

Factors Affecting Cocker Spaniel Shedding

Cocker Spaniel shedding occurs due to many factors. First, a poor diet can trigger excessive shedding while a balanced one can make the skin and coat healthier. Age largely contributes to shedding, especially in the puppy stage.
Also, dogs of an offspring-bearing age undergo hormonal changes during heat cycles and pregnancies. These can trigger shedding. Seasons like spring and autumn cause excessive hair fall in preparation for hotter or colder months.

Congenital health conditions and allergies trigger itching and hair loss. Lastly, Cocker Spaniels can lose hair due to prolonged stress. For instance, living under mistreatment or missing their owners for months can trigger hair shedding.

How Much Do Cocker Spaniels Shed?

Cocker Spaniel shedding occurs all through the year. However, these dogs shed more hair during spring and autumn. In these two seasons, the dogs shed to adapt their undercoats to the upcoming harsh weather conditions. Additionally, your Cocker Spaniel can shed hair excessively when stressed, sick, or expectant.

Note that these dogs have unique shedding patterns even if they are the same breed. Some can shed more or less hair because of their genes and how you feed and groom them. If you ignore regular brushing and baths, your dog can shed more than a typical Cocker in your locality.

The heavy shedding can be due to a parasite infestation. The same is true with poorly-fed Cocker Spaniels as they can develop itchy skin allergies or nutritional deficiencies that may cause hair loss.

Cocker Spaniels shed small amounts of hair from January to December. However, they shed less hair, on average, compared to Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, and Pekingese.

Types of Shedding in Cocker Spaniels

Normal Shedding

Normal Cocker Spaniel shedding is something you cannot stop. It is a natural occurrence that you can only try to reduce. Depending on the genes that determine your Spaniel’s coat type, it can shed moderately throughout the year. It might also shed more hair in spring or fall. Normal shedding necessitates regular brushing to prevent matting.

Additionally, brushing enables an even distribution of natural oils to enhance the health and appearance of the skin and coat. Bathing can manage normal shedding in the American and English Spaniels. Regular baths can remove dirt and parasites that trigger itching and hair loss.

Do not overdo baths or use the wrong detergents. These actions can worsen the shedding problem. Take your pet to a professional groomer after a few weeks to ensure deep coat cleansing. A groomer will trim the long hairs around the ears to promote airing and reduce the odds of ear infections.

Seasonal Shedding

Cocker Spaniels boast a double coat, which makes them prone to excessive seasonal shedding. Seasonal Cocker Spaniel shedding is an act of nature too. You should only attempt to reduce it rather than fight it. It causes dogs to have more dead hair than any other time of the year.
Use the slicker brush and safe detangling tools to remove these dead hairs and prevent the coat from matting. Brush and bathe your dog more often during spring and fall to reduce the amount of hair it dumps on your furniture and clothes.

Use dog-safe shampoos and conditioners to avoid aggravating the shedding situation. Also, bathe your dog every 4 to 6 weeks to avoid increasing hair shedding. However, you can clean it earlier if it soils its coat during a summer outdoor activity.

Puppy Shedding

Another type of Cocker Spaniel shedding to expect affects puppies. A Cocker Spaniel puppy may shed its baby hair from eight to twelve months old. As the baby hairs fall, the adult coat will begin to appear. That is when you notice that the puppy’s color has changed.

Puppy shedding is a normal phase signifying a shift from childhood to adulthood. Train your puppy to get accustomed to hair brushing at this age to make grooming work easier in adulthood.

Stress-Induced Shedding

Cocker Spaniel shedding is not always natural. Some Cockers tend to shed more hair when they feel stressed. The anxiety can emerge from prolonged separation from their owners. For instance, hospitalized owners might not see their pets for weeks or months. Stress can also arise from bodily pain due to an illness or injury.

Moreover, it can emanate from mistreatment at home or dog shelter or abandonment. If your Cocker Spaniel is shedding more hair and it is neither spring nor fall, it might be going through stress.
Have a veterinarian or a behavioral therapist examine it. If you have been mistreating the pet in any way, stop the bad behavior. After that, keep brushing the coat to remove the loosened hair and trigger more hair growth.

Health-Related Shedding

Cocker Spaniels are more moderate shedders. If you notice excessive shedding out of the spring or autumn seasons, something is wrong. If you clean your pet regularly, chances are that it has no parasites. Furthermore, if you feed your dog healthy meals throughout the day and have dewormed it, then diet is not the cause of shedding.

What then could cause excessive Cocker Spaniel shedding? Perhaps your dog is severely sick or allergic to something that triggers skin allergies. The only way to rule any disease out is to visit the veterinarian. After running various medical tests, they will determine if your Spaniel is sick.

Can Fish Oil Help My Cocker Spaniel Shedding?

Fish oil has many benefits because of its omega-3 fatty acids. For instance, it reduces skin dryness and shedding. Also, fish oil increases the sheen and lowers the odds of an autoimmune disorder. Fish oil can help prevent cancer and manage an epileptic dog that already takes medication.

Grooming Tips for Managing Shedding

Brushing is among the top ways of managing Cocker Spaniel shedding. It collects loosened dead or damaged hairs from the coats. The slicker brush distributes natural oils all over the body to promote a healthier and more lustrous coat.

First, brush the Spaniel’s coat in the reverse direction of hair growth. This is to extract damaged and dead hair. Now comb the coat in the hair growth direction to spread natural oils everywhere. Loosen the hair by massaging the coat in circular movements.

After that, follow the hair growth direction with your comb and repeat. Remove the collected hair and discard it. Note that some shedding tools have blades for cutting mats and tangles. Always pick up the sliced mats with a steel comb.

Brushing to stop Cocker Spaniel shedding should happen daily or at least a few times a week. Brush your pet more during spring or fall, as that is when it will naturally lose more hair. If excessive shedding is due to an illness or stress, do as your veterinarian says. The next thing to do is to wash your canine every four to six weeks.

This is the safest interval between dog showers to avoid increasing skin dryness and more shedding. Nevertheless, you can wash your Spaniel even twice a month during summer when people do most of their favorite outdoor activities with their dogs.

Take the time to find dog-safe and dog-specific grooming shampoos and conditioners. If you ignore this, you might use a product that might aggravate the Cocker Spaniel shedding condition by causing skin irritation, dryness, and itching.

Bathing does not only remove dirt and debris. It also extracts the remaining dead or broken hairs and parasites. As you bathe your pet, look for parasites in their favorite hiding places like ears or between the paws.

Understanding Allergies and Shedding

Cocker Spaniels are affectionate and loving people pleasers. They are ideal for families with kids or without them. Unfortunately, their shedding patterns make them non-hypoallergenic. These dogs shed hair more during spring and fall, and moderately for the rest of the year.

Cocker Spaniels are prone to allergies from food or items they come across. Their coats tend to shed heavily when they have skin allergies. If a Spaniel has a skin allergy, it will keep scratching itself to alleviate the itch. Regular scratching will trigger involuntary shedding. If you are unsure whether your Cocker Spaniel has a skin allergy, take it to a veterinarian.

They will examine your pet, diagnose an allergy, and reveal the allergen. Your veterinarian will suggest dog-specific diets and products to minimize the odds of the allergy returning. Furthermore, they will advise on how to reduce shedding in your dog to prevent allergies in humans.

Myths about Cocker Spaniel Shedding

Some people think that Cockers do not shed hair at all. That’s a myth because shedding in dogs is a natural process. Another myth people have is that Cocker Spaniels shed seasonally only. Surprisingly, these dogs shed hair from January to December.

However, the amount of hair they shed is moderate compared with the Golden Retriever’s. It is a myth to say that Cocker Spaniels are hypoallergenic. These dogs are moderate shedders, meaning they can still affect anyone with a dander allergy.

If you or a family member is hypersensitive, do not buy this dog without spending time with it first. That way, you will know how badly it can trigger your allergic reaction.

FAQs

How much do Cocker Spaniels shed?

Ans: An individual Cocker Spaniel can shed moderate hair throughout the year or more during spring or fall. They shed less than most retrievers.

How do I stop my cocker spaniel from shedding?

Ans: There is nothing you can do to stop your Cocker Spaniel from shedding its hair. Their double coats must shed some hair even if you take measures like brushing, bathing, and offering a balanced diet.

Which spaniel sheds the least?

Ans: The least shedding Spaniel is the Irish Water Spaniel. The dog has a brown, thick, and curly coat. As a result, the Irish Water Spaniel requires regular grooming to keep the coat neat and healthy.

Conclusion

Cocker Spaniel Shedding is a natural process. Nevertheless, you can minimize hair loss by understanding how Cocker Spaniels’ coats shed. The dogs have a shedding double coat. An individual Cocker Spaniel might shed more or less depending on factors like genes, diet, grooming frequency, and health status.

In spring and autumn, your Cocker is likely to shed more heavily to enable its undercoat to adapt itself to the upcoming harsh weather. Unless you suspect your dog is stressed or sick, accept shedding as something that must occur. Brush its coat daily to remove dead hair and bathe it every few weeks.