The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
Toys That Want A Job By M.J. Nelson
“I
like to think of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels as small sporting dogs that happen to compete in the toy group,” said Janet York, who has had two OTCH Cavaliers and four that attained a MACH including one MACH3. “This is a big little dog of many talents that likes to have a job. There is very little that a Cavalier cannot do. I have done conformation, obedience, agility, rally, flyball, pet therapy, nose work, canine freestyle, scent hurdles and lure coursing with my dogs. Others have tried the sport of dock jumping with their Cavaliers. It is a breed that is versatile, talented and multi-faceted.” “I love variety and would be bored only doing one thing. I also love to show everyone all the things that a Cavalier can do. Cavaliers have these sweet little faces and people think they are just lap dogs so they’re not taken seriously but once they start working, people sit up and take notice,” said Ileana Nadal who owns MACH 3 NATCH VersatilityNATCH ATCH PDCH C-ATCH T-ACh U-GRACH Fair Oaks Han Solo XF CGC TDI (“Solo”) who is a multiple champion
Eileen Wilson and Ch Gray Stone Tinker Toy UD NAJ (“Tinker”) on an agility course.
52 Dog News
in seven different agility organizations and MACH St. Jon Rocketman of Bijou CD RE MXB MJS XF EAC EJC OCC TN-E TG-E WV-E CL3 TSAD TG-3 (“Rocketman”). “They can do virtually any of the dog sports,” said Eileen Wilson, who owns Ch Grey Stone Tinker Toy UD NAJ (“Tinker.”) “Even though they are viewed as companion dogs, they are generally very athletic and physically able to do whatever you ask. They want to be with you and because they enjoy your attention, the time you spend training them is enjoyable for both you and the dog as long as there is a positive relationship and the training methods are positive. They are such happy, outgoing dogs that they attract a lot of attention from other exhibitors and the spectators. We need to show that the breed is physically healthy and capable of doing more than sitting on a lap or walking around the show ring. Performance activities provide a great opportunity to share information about the breed with the public which, in light of the negative propaganda by people like HSUS, PETA and other animal rights groups, is part of what we always need to be doing as purebred dog owners. The more we can educate the public about purebred dogs, the better able we are to attract support Ch Cecile VH from the voters when these AR people Lamslag of Picand their legislative sympathizers try to cadil CD AX AXJ slip restrictive covenants into city and (“Cecile”), one state ordinances.” of Janet York’s That does not mean that problems Cavaliers, weaves won’t surface in training a Cavalier. Dee her way through the poles on an Wallis, who owns Ch Roi’L C’est La Vie agility course. RA CFFII (“Celia”), said that many of her dogs have had problems mastering the stand-for-exam in obedience. “Cavaliers tend to be very wiggly and responsive so I have had to put special focus on this exercise. With one particularly wiggly dog, I resorted to carrying around a bag of tuna fish cans and I would stand her on the cans to remind her where her feet were. She and the rest of the class thought it was pretty funny but it brought focus to her work. Fortunately, this is a breed that is by nature sociable and eager to work as part of a team. But, it is not always easy to locate good trainers and supportive colleagues. There are many people who see their success as necessarily built on others’ failure. I find it difficult to avoid having these negative people poison the atmosphere and limit the joy of working with a dog. You have to be careful to limit your association to those with positive attitudes about themselves, the sport and other people participating in that activity. There are also