The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is a very graceful and affectionate breed. The breed standard says that they should be "very gay and free in action; fearless and sporting in character, yet at the same time, gentle and affectionate. It is this typical gay temperament, combined with true elegance and royal appearance, which are of paramount importance in the breed." In a nutshell, Cavaliers are beautiful, happy, and friendly love buckets! They will quickly steal your heart and become an important part of your family. They are definitely NOT aloof or dogs that are comfortable spending a lot time alone. Cavaliers want to be where you are and they do require lots of love and attention!
Grooming for Cavaliers is fairly simple. Cavaliers do shed and the coats, especially around the ears, and tail, will mat unless they are kept brushed. I brush my dogs daily and bathe them about every two weeks with a mild shampoo and conditioner. Then, a quick blow dry and they are looking good!
All purebred dogs have one form of health problem or another. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is no different. Major concerns with Cavaliers are Mitral Valve Heart Disease and eye problems such as Retinal Dysplasia and Cataracts.
Mitral Valve Disease (MVD) is, sadly, "in" the breed. Almost 100% of all Cavaliers will develop some degree of the disease by the age of 10. A developmental fault of the heart's mitral valve causes the valve to degenerate over time. This allows blood to leak backward into the heart, which causes the distinctive "heart murmur" associated with MVD. (Note, however, that there are also "innocent" heart murmurs that are not associated with MVD.)
Don't be mislead by people who tell you that Cavaliers from other countries, such as England and Ireland, don't have a problem, or that their own particular lines don't have Mitral Valve Disease in them. If it is a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, it can, and probably will, develop Mitral Valve Disease, at some point, no matter where the dog came from.
Studies suggest that breeders should only use dogs that have been tested clear of Mitral Valve Disease in their breeding programs. All breeding age dogs should be examined by a Board Certified Veterinary Cardiologist yearly, to make sure they have healthy hearts. Testing by a general practice veterinarian is not adequate in this instance. What this means to you is this...BEFORE you by a Cavalier puppy from ANYONE, see the heart clearances on both the puppies parents! Mitral Valve Disease cannot be checked for in a puppy, so it's the parents of that puppy that need to be heart clear. Look the forms over carefully. It should show the name of the dog, the date the test was performed, and the name of the Board Certified Veterinary Cardiologist that performed the test. There is a wealth of information on Mitral Valve Disease on the Internet. Two good places to gather information are the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club, USA, Inc.'s website at www.ckcsc.org and the Premier Cavalier King Charles Spaniel website at www.premiercavalierinfosite.com.
The two most serious eye problems in Cavaliers are Retinal Dysplasia and Cataracts.
With Cataracts, the lenses of the dog's eyes loose their transparancy and, over time, can lead to blindness.
There are three distinct types of Retinal Dysplasia (malformations of the eyes' retinas);
Retinal Folds - a generally harmless form of Dysplasia.
Dogs with Retinal Folds can be bred.
Geographic Dysplasia - a severe form of dysplasia. Dogs with Geographic Dysplasia should NOT be bred!
Retinal Detachment - the severest form of Dysplasia. Dogs with Retinal Detachment should NOT be bred!
Again, eye testing isn't something that that should be done by a veterinarian in general practice. All Cavaliers being bred should have their eyes examined yearly by a Board Certified Veterinary Opthalmologist and be found clear these problems. Many breeders opt to send their test results to the Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF), although it is not mandatory. As with hearts, BEFORE you buy a puppy from ANYONE, see the eye tests on the puppies parents! Puppies can be checked, but many times problems don't develop until the dog is older. The Canine Eye Registration Foundation's website can be accessed at www.vet.purdue.edu/~yshen/cerf.html.
Many breeders also have their dogs checked for hip dysplasia and for luxating patellas. To test for hip dysplasia, (maformation of the hip joint), the dog's hips are xrayed by a veterinarian and those xrays are then sent to the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) or PennHip for "grading." For more information on hip dysplasia, the OFA, or PennHip, visit the following websites:
Luxating Patellas are commonly called "dislocating kneecaps." They can be inherited or caused by an injury. Any veterinarian can check for luxating patellas. Patella information can also be submitted to the OFA to be included on their database.
