Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

The Cavalier King Charles appeared in 1924. It is derived from a very ancient breed, the King Charles Spaniel, traces of which have been found in documents dating back to the sixteenth century. Contrary to popular belief, it is not the dog of kings, but rather represented children afflicted with glass bone disease. It was Charles II (1630-1685) who gave English toy spaniels their letters of nobility. He had such a passion for them that they were named King Charles Spaniels. The king never traveled without his dogs who even had the right to enter parliament. Competition arrived with pugs and Pekingese who possess a flat nose, breeders selected dogs with increasingly shorter muzzles to meet these aesthetic criteria. The breed was so successful that to protect it from unwanted crosses, the Toy Spaniel Club was founded in 1886 to establish various principles and officially recognized the King Charles. It was also decided that its name would be different depending on its colors. Thus solid unicolors were named ruby, black and tan King Charles, tricolors Prince Charles, and orange and white became Blenheim. In 1903, the confusion is such at the Kennel Club that a name had to be given, no longer by color but by morphology. King Edward VII intervened and the historical designation of King Charles was retained. In 1926 in the Crufts exhibition catalog was the following announcement: "Blenheim Spaniels of the old type are sought, as they are represented in engravings and paintings from the time of Charles II, with elongated muzzle, no stop, flat skull with the characteristic spot in its center. The first prize of 25 pounds in categories 947 and 948 will be offered by Roswell Eldridge of New York, USA. This prize will go to whoever recreates the desired ancient type." A reproduction of Landseer's painting, The cavalier's pet, was attached. The first winner was Ferdi of Monham, born November 19, 1923, thus before the announcement was published, which meant that there were still old-model King Charles dogs in existence. But their existence posed a problem because there were two breeds of dogs: short-nosed King Charles and old-style King Charles with longer noses. Thus for several years, at exhibitions, the designation old type King Charles Spaniels was chosen. So in 1928, since Eldridge had used the painting The cavalier's pet for his research, it was decided that the old type would be named Cavalier King Charles. This designation was officially recognized in 1945. However, a dilemma existed: the Cavalier King Charles were physically closest to the dogs so loved by Charles II, hence many naming errors. The Cavalier King Charles was recognized as a breed in 1945.

Even if its origins refer to its hunting qualities, the Cavalier King Charles today much prefers the role of companion to that of hunter. It has become an example of a companion dog, devoted and attached to its masters. It asks them only one thing: to spend time with them. Family companion, it adapts to all situations and is just as happy in an apartment as in the country provided it is given its daily dose of activity. Indeed, it remains a spaniel and must be able to exercise. Thus, agility is a sport that suits it, but the heart disease of which they are virtually all affected and knee dislocation are a handicap, a herniated disc is also genetic.

There are four types of coats:

Regular brushing of its hair is necessary, especially to untangle knots likely to form at the level of the fringes. The eyes can be cleaned with physiological serum or a suitable lotion if they tend to tear and stain the hair.