The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

The Cavalier was originally a small companion dog, but not a miniature dog. The breed should be small, beautiful and healthy, with the primary purpose of keeping people company and bringing joy and happiness.

The breed is not exaggerated (extreme) in any respect.

In recent years, the breed has received a great deal of media attention in relation to health. A misinterpreted statement in the BBC documentary “Pedigree Dogs Exposed” gave rise to the myth that a particular disease, namely syringomyelia, was caused by breeding dogs with heads that were too small. Breeders are regularly blamed in the media.

Nowhere in the standard does it say that small heads are desirable. The head should be in proportion to the rest of the body. In the meantime, hundreds of MRI scans have shown that there is no link between small heads and syringomyelia. Moreover, the English researcher Dr C. Rusbridge, whose words were misinterpreted, herself wrote in a letter: “However the suggestion that this disease has occurred simply because the breeders have selected for a certain type of head shape is unproven and an over simplification.” Literally translated: “But the suggestion that this disease arose because breeders selected for a certain head shape has not been proven and is an excessive simplification.”

Since the Cavalier is a companion dog, behaviour and temperament are very important. A Cavalier should be absolutely cheerful and friendly. He is a ray of sunshine in the home, even in difficult times.

It is very difficult to trace the exact history of a breed. Several experts claim that the ancestors of the toy spaniels came from the Far East. They were probably brought over by Italian merchants in the 12th and 13th centuries. The oldest paintings are therefore by Italian masters and show white and red spaniels, just like today’s Blenheims.

Several types of toy spaniel developed in Europe, all descended from the small dogs imported from the Far East. The Italian dogs were white and red, just like the Blenheim. In France there was a small black toy spaniel with tan markings around the eyes. This is probably where the Black & Tan genes originated.

In the Netherlands, a small toy spaniel developed that occurred in both black and black and white. This breed, known as the Holland Spaniel, is extinct, but its genes can undoubtedly be found in the modern Cavalier. Later, this breed evolved into the “Toy Trawler Spaniel”, which became extinct around the 1920s. Despite its curly coat and long muzzle, it still bears a resemblance to the tricolour Cavalier.

Small toy spaniels became popular in Europe from the 1500s onwards, especially among the nobility and wealthy merchants. Many of these little dogs were given as gifts to ladies. Toy spaniels can therefore frequently be seen in paintings of noble and royal families.

In 1570, Dr Johannes Caius, the physician of Elizabeth I, wrote a book in Latin entitled “De Canibus Britannicus”. This was the first publication to divide dogs into five categories. One of these five categories was the “Spaniel gentle” or “Comforter Spaniels”. Among other things, he wrote that these little dogs could cure stomach complaints. He also mentioned that they were useful for keeping ladies’ feet warm and for attracting fleas and other insects from the bodies of those ladies.

Charles I loved toy spaniels and Henrietta was absolutely devoted to these little dogs. Their son, Charles II, was the monarch known for his great fondness for toy spaniels. He kept large numbers of them, and it is through him that the breed acquired its name.

Charles II paid more attention to his dogs than to his work. His dogs were allowed to go anywhere and do as they pleased, much to the annoyance of the courtiers. Charles II was succeeded by his brother James II, who, like his brother, was passionate about toy spaniels.

After the death of Charles II, large numbers of French Protestants settled in England. They brought toy spaniels with them from France and, for the first time in history, toy spaniels were kept as companion dogs by the working class.

In 1701, Churchill achieved many successes in battle, the most important of which was the Battle of Blenheim. Blenheim, located in Germany, was the place where the bloodiest battle took place on 18 March 1704. Churchill always had a toy spaniel with him during battles. Legend has it that during the Battle of Blenheim, Churchill’s wife was at home with a pregnant bitch on her lap and, out of nervousness, kept rubbing the bitch’s head with her thumb. When the puppies were born, they all had a “beauty spot” on their heads!

After his return, Churchill was granted the title of “Duke of Marlborough” by the Queen and received a large estate in Oxfordshire together with the palace that was built for him there. The palace was named Blenheim Palace.

For more than 200 years, the various “Dukes of Marlborough” bred toy spaniels at “Blenheim Palace”. The smallest of them became companion dogs for the ladies, while the larger ones were used for hunting. As the foundation for breeding chestnut and white spaniels was laid here, these dogs gradually came to be known as “Blenheim Spaniels”.

When William of Orange ascended the throne, pugs became popular with ladies in the upper classes. Their popularity rose quickly. During the Victorian era, short-muzzled dogs such as the pug and the Japanese Chin became very popular. Long-muzzled toy spaniels were no longer popular.

General John Churchill, a great military commander, was rewarded for his services to the Crown in 1689 with the “Earldom of Marlborough”. Churchill was a great dog lover. He preferred to hunt with small chestnut and white spaniels descended from the toy spaniels that were popular at royal courts throughout Europe. He developed a line of dogs that, besides being companion dogs, were also good retrievers and performed well in the field.

A wealthy American, Roswell Eldridge, who had studied a number of paintings, regularly noticed red and white toy spaniels in them. When he came to England in 1920 and visited Crufts, he asked where the toy spaniels with longer noses were. At that time, most companion dogs shown at dog shows were short-muzzled dogs. Since these dogs could not be found at shows, he placed an advertisement offering, for that time, a very large sum of money (£25) for the best “old type” spaniel at Crufts.

A new class was created at Crufts and these “old type” spaniels were judged after the King Charles by the same judge. These little dogs were still present in large numbers in England but were not popular, which is why they were not present at shows. It is therefore a myth that this breed was rebuilt in 1920 from two foundation bitches.

In the Crufts catalogue they were listed as “Blenheim Spaniels of the old type”. Two years later there were already more than 40 entries at Crufts.

In 1928, the name “Cavalier King Charles Spaniel” was introduced.
The standard was drawn up based on the Crufts winner “Ann’s Son”.

General appearance

Active, graceful and well balanced (harmonious), with a gentle expression.

Behaviour / Temperament

Sporting, affectionate, absolutely fearless.
Cheerful, friendly, non-aggressive; no tendency to nervousness.

Size

Weight: from 5.4 to 8.0 kg. A small, well-proportioned dog within the stated limits is desirable.

Cranial region

Skull: Skull almost flat between the ears.
Stop: Shallow stop.

Face

Nose: Black nose with well-developed nostrils, without flesh-coloured markings.
Muzzle: Length of the foreface is approximately 1.5 inches = 3.8 cm. The muzzle tapers towards the tip. Face well filled under the eyes. Any tendency towards a narrow and pointed muzzle is undesirable.
Lips: Well developed, not pendulous.

Jaws and teeth: Strong jaws, with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. the upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaws.
Eyes: Dark, large and round, but not prominent; set well apart.

Ears: Long and set high, with abundant feathering.

Of moderate length and slightly arched.

Body

Back: straight
Loin: short
Chest: Moderate, with good spring of rib.

Tail

Length of the tail in harmony with the body, well set on. Carried freely and happily, but never much above the topline.
Limbs

Forequarters

General: straight legs of moderate bone.

Shoulders: well laid back.

Hindquarters

General: legs of moderately heavy bone.

Stifle: well angulated.

Hock: no tendency to cow hocks or sickle hocks.

Feet

Compact, with firm pads and well feathered.

Free-moving and elegant in action, with plenty of drive from behind. Legs moving parallel when viewed from the front and rear.

Coat

Long, silky and without curls. A slight wave is permitted. Abundant feathering. Entirely free from trimming.

The recognised colours are:

Black & Tan: raven black with “tan” markings above the eyes, on the cheeks, inside the ears, on the chest and legs and under the tail. The “tan” should be bright. White markings are undesirable.

Ruby: entirely deep red in colour. White markings are undesirable.

Blenheim: rich chestnut markings, well broken up on a pearly white ground. The markings should be evenly divided on the head, leaving room between the ears for the much-valued lozenge-shaped mark or “spot” (a unique breed characteristic).

Tricolour: black and white well spaced and broken up, with “tan” markings above the eyes, on the cheeks, inside the ears, under the tail and possibly on the inside of the legs.

The official name of the breed is “Cavalier King Charles Spaniel”, while most people simply speak of a “Cavalier”. Alongside the Cavalier there is also the “King Charles Spaniel”, usually shortened to “King”.

There is a major difference between the Cavalier and the King. The King is considerably smaller and more lightly built than its larger relative, the Cavalier. The King has a domed head with a very short muzzle, while the Cavalier is rather flat between the ears with a slightly longer muzzle. The temperament of a King is reserved, whereas a Cavalier is friendlier and more sociable. The four colours occur in both breeds. The two breeds must not be crossed with each other. They are two completely different breeds.