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AKC Statistics for 1999 & Breed
Standard
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AKC Statistics for titles earned by English Cocker's in 2003:
CH - Champions - 221
CD - Companion Dogs - 25
CDX - Companion Dogs Excellent - 13
UD - Utility Dogs - 2
UDX - Utility Dogs Excellent - 0
TD - Tracking Dogs - 7
TDX - Tracking Dog Excellend - 3
VST - Variable Surface Tracking - 3
CT - Champion Tracker - 2
NA - Novice Agility - 22
OA - Open Agility - 13
AX - Agility Excellent - 9
MX - Master Agility Excellent - 4
NAJ - Novice Agility Jumper - 22
OAJ - Open Agility Jumper - 18
AXJ - Agility Excellent Jumper - 12
MXJ - Master Agility Excellent Jumper - 7
MACH - Master Agility Champion - 3
MACH2 - Reaching MACH status twice - 1
NAP - Novice Agility Preferred - 12
OAP - Open Agility Preferred - 9
AXP - Agility Excellent A Preferred - 3
NJP - Novice Jumpers With Weaves Preferred - 14
OJP - Open Jumpers With Weaves Preferred - 8
AJP - Excellent Jumpers With Weaves A Preferred - 4
JH - Junior Hunter - 22
SH - Senior Hunter - 7
MH - Master Hunter - 3
FC - Field Champion - 12
VCD1 - Versatile Champion Dog 1 - 3
VCD2 - Versatile Champion Dog 2 - 1
BREED STANDARD:
GENERAL APPEARANCE
The English Cocker Spaniel is an active,
merry sporting dog, standing well up at the withers and compactly
built. He is alive with energy; his gait is powerful and frictionless,
capable both of covering ground effortlessly and penetrating dense
cover to flush and retrieve game. His enthusiasm in the field and the
incessant action of his tail while at work indicate how much he enjoys
the hunting for which he was bred. His head is especially
characteristic. He is, above all, a dog of balance, both standing and
moving, without exaggeration in any part, the whole worth more than
the sum of its parts.
SIZE, PROPORTION, SUBSTANCE
SIZE -
Height at withers: males 16 to 17 inches; females 15 to 16 inches.
Deviations to be penalized. The most desirable weights: males, 28 to
34 pounds; females, 26 to 32 pounds. Proper conformation and substance
should be considered more important than weight alone.
PROPORTION
- Compactly built and short-coupled, with height at withers
slightly greater than the distance from withers to set-on of tail.
SUBSTANCE
- The English Cocker
is a solidly built dog with as much bone and substance as is possible
without becoming cloddy or coarse.
HEAD
GENERAL APPEARANCE
- Strong, yet free from coarseness, softly contoured, without sharp
angles. Taken as a whole, the parts combine to produce the expression
distinctive of the breed.
EXPRESSION -
Soft, melting, yet dignified, alert, and intelligent.
EYES
- The eyes are essential to the desired expression. They are medium in
size, full and slightly oval; set wide apart; lids tight. Haws are
inconspicuous; may be pigmented or unpigmented. Eye color dark brown,
except in livers and liver parti-colors where hazel is permitted, but
the darker the hazel the better.
EARS
- Set low, lying close to the head; leather fine, extending to the
nose, well covered with long, silky, straight or slightly wavy hair. SKULL
- Arched and slightly flattened
when seen both from the side and from the front. Viewed in profile,
the brow appears not appreciably higher than the back-skull. Viewed
from above, the sides of the skull are in planes roughly parallel to
those of the muzzle. Stop definite, but moderate, and slightly
grooved.
MUZZLE
- Equal in length to skull; well cushioned; only as much narrower than
the skull as is consistent with a full eye placement; cleanly chiseled
under the eyes. Jaws strong, capable of carrying game. Nostrils wide
for proper development of scenting ability; color black, except in
livers and parti-colors of that shade where they will be brown; reds
and parti-colors of that shade may be brown, but black is preferred.
Lips square, but not pendulous or showing prominent flews.
BITE
- Scissors. A level bite is not preferred. Overshot or undershot to be
severely penalized.
NECK, TOPLINE AND BODY
NECK
- Graceful and muscular, arched toward the head and blending cleanly,
without throatiness, into sloping shoulders; moderate in length and in
balance with the length and height of the dog.
TOPLINE
- The line of the neck blends into the shoulder and backline in a
smooth curve. The backline slopes very slightly toward a gently
rounded croup, and is free from sagging or rumpiness. BODY
- Compact and well-knit, giving the impression of strength without
heaviness. Chest deep; not so wide as to interfere with action of
forelegs, nor so narrow as to allow the front to appear narrow or
pinched. Forechest well developed, prosternum projecting moderately
beyond shoulder points. Brisket reaches to the elbow and slopes
gradually to a moderate tuck-up. Ribs well sprung and springing
gradually to mid-body, tapering to back ribs which are of good depth
and extend well back. Back short and strong. Loin short, broad and
very slightly arched, but not enough to affect the topline
appreciably. Croup gently rounded, without any tendency to fall away
sharply.
TAIL
- Docked. Set on to conform to croup. Ideally, the tail is carried
horizontally and is in constant motion while the dog is in action.
Under excitement, the dog may carry his tail somewhat higher, but not
cocked up.
FOREQUARTERS
The English Cocker is moderately
angulated. Shoulders are sloping, the blade flat and smoothly fitting.
Shoulder blade and upper arm are approximately equal in length. Upper
arm set well back, joining the shoulder with sufficient angulation to
place the elbow beneath the highest point of the shoulder blade when
the dog is standing naturally.
FORELEGS
- Straight, with bone nearly uniform in size from elbow to heel;
elbows set close to the body; pasterns nearly straight, with some
flexibility.
FEET
- Proportionate in size to the legs, firm, round and catlike; toes
arched and tight; pads thick.
HINDQUARTERS
Angulation moderate and, most
importantly, in balance with that of the forequarters. Hips relatively
broad and well rounded. Upper thighs broad, thick and muscular,
providing plenty of propelling power. Second thighs well muscled and
approximately equal in length to the upper. Stifle strong and well
bent. Hock to pad short. Feet as in front.
COAT
On head, short and fine; of
medium length on body; flat or slightly wavy; silky in texture. The
English Cocker is well-feathered, but not so profusely as to interfere
with field work. Trimming is permitted to remove overabundant hair and
to enhance the dog's true lines. It should be done so as to appear as
natural as possible.
COLOR
Various. Parti-colors are either
clearly marked, ticked or roaned, the white appearing in combination
with black, liver or shades of red. In parti-colors it is preferable
that solid markings be broken on the body and more or less evenly
distributed; absence of body markings is acceptable. Solid colors are
black, liver or shades of red. White feet on a solid are undesirable;
a little white on throat is acceptable; but in neither case do these
white markings make the dog a parti-color. Tan markings, clearly
defined and of rich shade, may appear in conjunction with black,
livers and parti-color combinations of those colors. Black and tans
and liver and tans are considered solid colors.
GAIT
The English Cocker is capable of
hunting in dense cover and upland terrain. His gait is accordingly
characterized more by drive and the appearance of power than by great
speed. He covers ground effortlessly and with extension both in front
and in rear, appropriate to his angulation. In the ring, he carries
his head proudly and is able to keep much the same topline while in
action as when standing for examination. Going and coming, he moves in
a straight line without crabbing or rolling, and with width between
both front and rear legs appropriate to his build and gait.
TEMPERAMENT
The English Cocker is merry and
affectionate, of equable disposition, neither sluggish nor
hyperactive, a willing worker and a faithful and engaging companion.
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