Clumber Spaniel

Description:
The Clumber Spaniel is a large, short and heavy dog. It has very marked eyebrows, a deep chest, and strong bones. Generally its color is white or it has lemon or orange colored spots. The male's height is around forty-eight to fifty centimeters and weighs around thirty-five to forty two kilograms and the female's weight is around twenty-six to thirty five kilograms. The head of the Clumber Spaniel is massive with wide ears in the shape of a vine leaf and are lowly inserted. The top part of the head is flat, and the occipital is pronounced, it has a marked stop and the nose is wide and deep. The neck of this dog is long and has somewhat of a jowl. Its back should be straight and firm. Only the lumbar region should be somewhat arched. The front legs are straight and short and the elbows are closed. The feet of this dog have a rectangular shape to them. The coat is straight and thick and has a soft texture. Its hair is longer around the neck, legs, abdomen, tail and ears.

Ideal owner:
The Clumber Spaniel is known to be a very balanced dog, docile and has been blessed with a lot of patience and understanding. Clumber Spaniel are not very popular as a companion dog though despite all of their virtues. This dog is incredibly well behaved, does not get into bad habits, and is not hyper or nervous in the house. Cumber spaniels love children and they take care of them by nature. Some say this dog is lazy and doesn't like to move around much. The owner can stimulate this dog by taking it out so it can run about. Clumber Spaniels are also excellent hunters.

Growth:
Newborn clumbers weigh around 340 to 500 grams on average and the litter is usually around four to six puppies. A puppy Clumber Spaniel grows quite quickly at first and because of this it is important to feed it a healthy diet. Fortunately they like eating and getting it to eat healthy food should not be a problem. Even though it does grow quickly, it matures slowly and does not reach full physical maturity until three years of age. Because of this it is not recommendable to feed it vitamin and mineral supplements because it can cause abnormal growth problems. Young Clumber Spaniels are very curious and active dogs and it is necessary to schedule its exercise time from the time it is young puppy.

General health:
The good thing about Clumber Spaniels is that they do not have a lot of hereditary problems. Ectropion can sometimes occur on a very low degree and needs to be controlled. Hip dysphasia can also occur and it is necessary to get x rays. It is also necessary to check for inferior prognathism and broken teeth. The most important aspect to keep in check though is that it does not eat too much and to make sure it gets plenty of exercise during its whole life. If it does not get enough exercise and becomes overweight it can develop all kinds of articulation problems, and its vital organs can become exposed too a great amount of unnecessary stress. The coat of this dog requires of a small amount of care however it is necessary to brush it several times a week especially after it has been out in the country or on a field. The life span of a Clumber Spaniel is around fourteen years.