Habits of Cocker Spaniels

A cocker spaniel is among the smaller types of spaniels, ranging anywhere from 15 to 30 pounds and coming in a variety of colors. In addition to their looks, cocker spaniels have a series of innate habits and instincts that generally make them a challenging breed for which to properly care.

  1. Sleeping Habits

    • Cocker spaniels, especially as puppies, tend to have sporadic and short sleep cycles that will not last through the night. This is due to their small bladder size as well as their youthful habits as puppies. To help reduce early morning wake up calls, take your dog outside to urinate right before bed, making sure it has gone to the bathroom before sleeping. As your cocker spaniel ages and its bladder grows, it will be able to sleep more regularly through the night.

    Barking

    • Cocker spaniels are a vocal breed of dog that is prone to feelings of separation anxiety as well as excessive barking. Separation anxiety can occur each time you leave the house, causing your cocker spaniel to potentially bark for up to 30 minutes or more. Other destructive behaviors, such as chewing furniture or peeing in the house may occur as well. To remedy the barking, you can purchase a bark limiter and place it on your dog's neck before leaving the house.

    Urination

    • While all puppies will need to be properly house trained, cocker spaniels have a tendency to perform excitable or submissive urination. This habit may result in your dog peeing slightly when someone new comes over to the house or when you are scolding your dog. This habit can be remedied with proper reinforcement training as well as seeking help from a professional dog trainer. This excitable urination is not the same problem as housebreaking your pet and should be addressed with different training techniques.

    Eating Health

    • While some dogs stay naturally slim and fit throughout their lifetimes, cocker spaniels have an insatiable appetite that often leads to obesity after a few years of age. To combat this, purchasing leaner dog food as well as limiting your dogs portions will help keep your cocker spaniel's weight down. In addition, not feeding your dog human food and leftovers will help minimize excessive caloric consumption.