King Charles

Vanbis

Looking to get a male king charles pup in a couple of months. I'm looking to get any information from boards members on a king charles, from temperment to how easy or hard they are to train. I've heard they can suffer with bad ear infections because of the length of their ears.

Any information would be great.

thank you in advance

portgirl123

ear infections are the least of their worries. they nearly all suffer from heart murmers and lots of them suffer from cant remember prob name but its to do with their brain, spinal cord and skull. my mates suffered from this had a op which cost over €1000 last yr and op has to be done again. She is at the moment deciding if she is going to put her through this again. also the poor thing has just had a knee op as well.
they are a beautiful dog, really lovin and very easy to mind and i would love one but i couldnt go through the heartache my mate is going through

Shanao

King Charles are lovely little dogs, a bit harder to train than some, but loyal and affectionate. Again though, like portgirl said, they have a lot of problems. The King Charles is known as the vet's pet due to the amount of conditions they can suffer; made even worse over the last few years thanks to backyard breeders and puppy farmers out to make a quick buck. The most important thing to do when it comes to a King Charles is to search for an ethical, responsible breeder who has had their dog screened for the most prominent health problems they can suffer. Do not fall into the trap of cheaper pups from bakcyard breeders etc, because they are almost always riddled with problems. Many dont live past five years old.

Lizard Queen

King charlesbcan have problems like All predigree dogs. 80 per cent of them are liking to develope a cardiac problem, they can have a problem called syringomyelia which is a horrible condition and if it os severe the animal could.need surgery or often put a sleep. I disagree that they do not live past 5 years ive seen them live to 17 years. They can have ear problems like all lop.earred dogs and eye problems as they have bulbus eyes. They have many problem but having owning one myself whos 4yrs she has not had any of the typical king charles problems and even if she did i would not give her up for anything in the world. They are good with kids,other dogs and do not have an agressive done in their body.

Shanao

Sorry what I meant was that many puppy farmed King Charles dont live past five

Green Dog

Had a King Charles for 11 years. He did eventually die from heart disease but I suppose was a good age for a pedigree dog. They make great trainable friendly pets, but you need to be aware of certain problems.
Heart murmers and Syringomyelia (pressure on brain spinal cord caused by in breeding to achieve that doomed skull) are two conditions mentioned already.
Dry eye is a disease caused by those large eyes not being lubricated every time the dog blinks (again an inbreeding issue i think).
Some King Charles can also be very shy which may turn to aggression from fear, so make sure your pup is well socialized ie meets strangers, kids, other animals, as much as possible. Make sure the pups parents are clean bright and very friendly.
Please dont buy a pup from any breeder who isnt aware of these problems, if they had any interest in the breed they would know lots about these conditions and hopefully state that your pups parents (and further down the line) never suffered from them.
Aside from health conditions, the usual stuff, they are big shedders so if you like your clothes and carpets think twice. Need daily brush, odd trip to groomers. Toy dogs, but will demand exercise a surprising amount of it!
Hope you aren't put off, make great pets (maybe consider pet insurance)!:)

sotisme

I've a 4 year old K.C. They are one of the top breeds for puppy farmers at the moment so please,please get one from a reputable breeder that carries out health checks to both parents and is not just in it for the money. They turn up in shelters and pounds, but puppies very rarely (if ever!) do.

Luckily my dog is very healthy and the worst thing he has ever had was when he had a kidney infection and we had to call out the emergency vet. Heart mitral valve disease (MVD) is a terminal illness which afflicts over half of all cavalier King Charles spaniels by the age of 5 years and nearly all Cavaliers by age 10 years. It is C.K.C.S's leading cause of death.

Also, Syringomyelia is a huge problem. I heard 1/3 of cavaliers have it (dont know if its true or not). I know a dog that has died from it and another dog suffering from it. Its basically when their brain is too big for their skull and is can range from mild to the dog being in serious pain. Treatments for SM are very limited.

Cavaliers are brilliant with kids! We literally have a waiting list of families with young children that would love to mind ours when we're on holidays. Ours is probably one of the the laziest dog ever; He would sleep all day if allowed :P He enoys his daily stroll on the beach though. He is the most affectionate and gentle dog ever also. If you accidently step on his paw or a young child pulls at his tail he yelps and runs away. He has never shown agression in his whole life (apart from to his squeaky toys:P)

They become obese so easily so it is very important to watch their diet very carefully. It is not fair to let them get overweight, I personally think its cruel as it decreases their length and quality of life. Cavaliers will do absoloutely anything for food so they are easy (once you put in effort,)to train when food is involved. They are not a particulary stubborn breed. Mine can do sit, lie down, roll over, paw, other paw, spin, hi five, stay, leave it/take it, agility, jump through my arms and close the door. He won a little dog show and got a rosette before (im so proud:D) He is neutured so we can't properly show him.

I highly recommend neuturing. Thousand of unwanted dogs are put to sleep every year simply because people don't want them anymore. By introducing more dogs into this world, you would be adding into the problem. It eliminates certain cancers and helps prevent hyperness, agression and terretorial marking.

They are prone to lots of health problems and vets are costly so be prepared. In general they get along well with other dogs altough mine is very timid. They are a fantastic breed and make you laugh everyday. My life wouldn't be the same without my little pal

Good luck and if you have any questions, just ask.

lorebringer

Vanbis - I have sent you a pm

SophieSakura

They're the nicest dogs ever Just make sure you go to a good breeder to try to avoid health problems.

I have 4 and three are old, 10, 9 and 7 years and they're all healthy so far!

Discodog

It's hard to be sure of a breeder. The woman in Pedigree Dogs Exposed (BBC Panorama) continued to use her championship Cavalier for Stud even after being told not to by a vet .

Mollywolly

Molly, my CKC, has been with us for 10 years and apart from having to have an emergency hysterectomy about two years ago, has been healthy and happy and is a joy to have around.

Maybe I've been very lucky, but every person I've spoken to who has a King Charles wouldn't part with them for the world. They have a very gentle temperament and the only time mine barks is when she wants us to get up in the morning (makes a great alarm clock!) or when a cat's walking along the garden wall.

Basically, all I can say is go for it - you won't regret it