| Cooper the English Springer Spaniel | |
| From Cooper's Number One Human, Touchofrain |
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How did you acquire your dog?
After long and tedious months of trying to find the right breeder, we came across a wonderful woman about 12 hours away. Her dog would soon be having puppies, but she also had her show hopeful from the previous litter.
Coop's litter was truly an accident, but not her own. She had a stud that was sent to someone out of state, who was interested in breeding years into the future. The same woman acquired a bitch from California, but had no intentions of breeding her yet. Both dogs were kenneled to keep them away from one another. While the woman was at work, her brother could no longer put up with the howling and let them both out of their kennels. A week before the bitch would have puppies, the woman noticed she as unusually heavy. She brought her dog to the vet, who decided she was either pregnant or had a very large tumor. The dog was sent to California, her stomach black and blue from the vet trying to figure out what it was. She then had her litter, and cooper (at the time Marley) was kept. At four months his owner didn't think he would make breed size, and with another litter coming decided to let us take him. Now, as he is almost a year it's clear he has made size, and will start his showing "career" as soon as I figure out what the heck I’m doing ;)
Why did you choose him/her, if you choose him/her?
He was the only one :)
Why did you decide to have a purebred dog?
He is our first dog, and at the time I didn't know too much on the training side. We wanted a puppy as we have 5 cats that had never lived with a dog, and would likely be too intimidated by a full-grown member of the species. I think the second time around, however, we'll be ready for a rescue.
Were you looking for any specific qualities? If so, what were/are they?
Compatibility with cats.
Where is the best place to find a purebred dog?
From a highly reputable breeder, who will ask you just as many questions as you ask them. Someone who will proudly pull up his or her pedigree for you, and tell stories about each dog on it. They should be able to provide you with health records, and perhaps even tell you a little bit about the breed's health issues. Springers, for instance, are highly prone to epilepsy. We were lucky enough to find a breeder who had not encountered epilepsy in her lines.
What is special about your dog?
He's a goof! He makes everything a game, which makes training so much easier. The play motivation is a great blessing, as he turns training into a game as well. And lets face it, games are more fun than what training usually entails ;)
