My best friends (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel)

Member Name: wearsidelass

Product:	Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
Date:	06/04/04 (3161 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Loving and adorable companions

Disadvantages: None whatsoever

I had always had Jack Russell dogs but when my last dog Beauty died a few years ago I decided I would not buy another dog because it was so painful when they died.

However, my daughter, who had a Springer Spaniel persuaded me to go and look at a litter of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. One puppy, in particular, stood out. She was cowering in the corner whilst the others were jumping up saying ?take me, take me?. I looked at her and my heart just melted. I had this notion that I would leave this house without buying a puppy, I was just going to look, you see. She was the only bitch in a littler of six and her Kennel Club name was ?It?s Raining Men? because she was the only bitch in the litter of six and it was raining heavily at the time of her birth. I immediately fell in love with her. She is the Blenheim variety ? white and tan markings. I called her Molly and took her home. At this time, I had no knowledge whatsoever of CKCS so I bought a book to learn a little bit more.

The CKCS is a small breed of dog and they have become known as a really good companion dog not only by ordinary owners but also by the Aristocracy. Records of these gorgeous, pretty little dogs go back to the mid 1500s.

There are four varieties:

 Blenheim (white with tan markings)
 Ruby (rich red all over colour)
 Black and tan
 Tri-colour (white background with black markings and tan on eyebrows and cheeks)

This breed can be prone to suffering from Mitral Valve Disease (MVD) ? whereby there is a defect or weakness in the mitral valve or the left atrioventricular valve lets some blood move back into the left atrium, and this is known as mitral regurgitation which, in effect, means that the heart is working less efficiently at pumping the blood through the body. However, many dogs who have been diagnosed with MVD live a long and happy life.

Another ailment can be anal glands ? these are g
lands which are found on either side of the anus (under the tail area) and need to squeezed regularly. (My own two dogs have this treatment every time they visit the vets). You can usually tell when the glands need emptying because the dog ?scoots? its bottom along the ground. If you use Drontal worming tablets, like I do, then you know this action means their glands need emptying.

Dry eyes is another ailment from which they, sadly, can suffer from due to their ?bulging? eyes. One of my dogs, Molly, has this and I will tell you about it.

Molly was the "runt" of the litter and she has had health problems. She was diagnosed with dry eye syndrome a couple of years ago. Her eyes kept getting very sticky and I took her to the vets. At first, she was prescribed eye drops but her condition didn't clear up very well. Then the vet gave her a dry eye test (he puts something similar to litmus paper in her eye, closes the eye and counts to 60 seconds. During this time the paper turns blue due to the tear fluid and usually the count of 15 and over means the eye is quite healthy although a good reading should be approximately 17+. If the reading is below 10 then this indicates a very severe problem which, if left untreated, could cause blindness in your dog. I have to give Molly an ointment called Optimmune twice a day. I did have pet insurance with Tescos but have now changed it to Saga. Tescos will only insure one ailment for 12 months so beware! Unfortunately, Saga will not insure Molly for dry eyes and therefore it costs me approximately £61 each time I take her to the vets for this condition (£39 for Optimmune which lasts 6 weeks, vet fee and dry eye test). I visited the vets with Molly yesterday and although her reading was quite good she will, unfortunately, probably be taking Optimmune for the rest of her life. Could any one of us left our pets go blind? I know I couldn't and I would rather "do without" myself
in order to pay for Molly's Optimmune.

Molly also had to have a serious operation for ingrowing hair on the left side of her head. Within just a couple of hours, a massive hard lump appeared on the left side of her head and I had to take her to the vet immediately. She had an operation and he found that a hair had been growing inwards and he showed me the hair and it was massive and full of a horrible smelling gunge. She was very poorly but has made a very good recovery.

Six months after buying Molly I decided that I would like another CKSP but would like a Ruby coloured dog. We looked and looked but they were very difficult to find. One November evening I came home from work and the house was in darkness. Molly came to greet me as usual and I could see something moving around. I shouted to my husband "why is it dark" and then I saw Ruben - a six months old Ruby CKCS. Molly tends to prefer my husband and Ruben is my dog.

Last summer I was ill and Ruben never left my side. Wherever I went in the house, Ruben was right beside me. I knew I was getting better when Ruben started going outside or leaving me for a few minutes. However, he jumps straight on the bed when I go into the bedroom. (Previously, my dogs were not allowed on my bed so I don't know how I can have the heart to chase him off it now because he has been such a faithful, loving companion). Ruben has been in good health, and only goes to the vet for his annual injection

My two dogs are different in character ? Molly is very alert and very agile whilst Ruben is stockier and loves sitting in the garden gazing up at the stars each evening. I call him ?Daydreamer? and I think if he was human he would be a philosopher.

I must admit that my dogs are spoilt, utterly, utterly spoilt. So much so, that I think they think they are humans (wow, that was a mouthful). They are quite fussy eaters (but that is because my husband keeps giving them dog b
iscuits and so they are not hungry when I put their food down to them). Molly will not eat out of her bowl but tips her food over the kitchen floor to eat. Ruben waits for Molly to do this with her bowl, then they both eat the food, then Molly has to do the same (tipping motion) to Ruben?s bowl and then they eat the contents of that!

I can thoroughly recommend this breed to anyone. They are brilliant with children (I have 5 grandchildren) and adults. They are such a loving, caring breed of dog.

I love my two dogs. They are a very gentle, loving breed and love being with people. They would never hurt anyone and are always pleased to see me. In fact, I do not need an alarm clock because they come pawing at my bedroom door just before my alarm goes off! They don?t need a lot of exercise but they do enjoy running around and playing and like the contact with other dogs.

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