Hi

Not sure if I am posting in the correct place, hopefully I am!
I am trying to find a springer spaniel puppy for a family pet. I did own a springer cocker X but sadly, he died during a routine neutering operation that broke my family's hearts.
Our pup was only 7 months old and it would appear he had congenital heart disease, an anuerysm or a stroke. The vet couldn't be certain but felt it was one of those.

I am in London, can travel if needed and ideally am looking for a black and white male springer spaniel.
Does anyone have a litter or could they recommend someone in my area?
I am going on holiday in August so ideally, I would like a pup that is ready towards the end of August. I sound so fussy! I just want this puppy for me and my children to love and cherish as our dear little pup was taken from us far too soon.

thank you

Are you looking for working or show type as the looks and personality can be very different.

to be honest, I'm not sure!
The dog is to be a family pet, we will neither breed or show him.

Our last pup was a working one and was just gorgeous/perfect. He was hyper but that was fine, we have 2 kids that can run forever and the dogs recall was amazing (thanks to my great work with him!)
What are the main differences between the two appearance and personality wise?

The workers are nearly always a rather light Liver and white colour and smaller and very hyper.  the show lines are calmer, taller and you get the black and whites as often as the Liver and white.

You are more likely to find one from show lines from a breeder that belongs to the breed clubs that health tests.  Some of the working fraternity seem to be in denial about the need for health testing.  A Friends Niece has a worker from top working liens who has terrible Hip dysplasia.  Needless to say the breeder doesn't hip score.

http://www.the-kennel-club.org.uk/services/public/documents/breed/2053.pdf
And what health screening is relevant for the English Springer Spaniel?
Kennel Club Accredited Breeders must use, or are strongly recommended to use, the
following screening schemes and/or advice for sires and dams:
* BVA/KC/ISDS Eye Scheme -Gonioscopy only
* BVA/KC Hip Dysplasia Scheme
* DNA Test - Fuco
This list is not necessarily comprehensive and you should still ask breeders and refer to breed
clubs about health issues in the breed.

Breed clubs:
http://www.the-kennel-club.org.uk/services/public/club/breed-list.aspx?id=2053

thank you for your reply and links.
I have sent an email to the relevant club on your link, will see what response I get. I am determined not to just buy one that is available, I really want to go down the route of a health screened pup.
Our old pup was liver and white, but really dark/almost black. Probably not referred to as liver at all! Either way, he was beautiful. Not sure how big he would have got, but he had some hyper moments!

Hi,
Ive had working type springers for over twenty years and wouldn't be without one. They are a breed however that is over bred with not near enough attention paid to the health of the parents or offspring.
My current boy, was from health tested parents and his breeder although a gundog trainer/breeder is fully supportive of health testing, a rareity i know. He now only breeds labs and the occasional litter of lurchers.
I have never owned a show type springer, but have met quite a few and in general they are not as crazy and seem to have a more laid back attitude of course there will always be exceptions.
My current boy is the madest yet most characterfull dog i have ever owned, even by springer standards.
If you do choose to go for a working type, then be prepared to put in alot of effort, giving the dog plenty of mental and physical stimulation is a must.

Ill add that the springer rescue organisations in this country are full of dogs of various ages looking for homes, im pretty sure this year so far the north west organisation has rehomed over 60 already. It may be something to think about, there are many positives to taking on a rescue.

Good Luck

We have looked into rehoming a rescue springer, but to be honest, I am a bit nervous of this as I can't help but think they are there for a reason. No fault of their own, but their owners gave them up for a reason. I would be nervous of my children being around a dog we don't know the full history of.

But, I am still looking at rescue sites as we haven't ruled it out completely. We are focusing out attention on a well bred puppy, but if the right rescue dog stood out, then we would most definitely give it some though.

I notice there is a "show type" litter on here  (in the breeds section)  liver and black and white.  the little is current (June)  so it may be worth you looking there.

Go to  the main site, ,  if you scroll down to the bottom of this page, you will see in capitals   the words  CHAMP DOGS  .CO UK , click on that,find "guided search"  go to gun dogs, them ESS then puppies, they are the last on the list,  in Gloucestershire ,  they seem to have ticked all the boxes,,   so may be worth a look.

I would guess the majority of rescue springers, particularly working ones, would have been given up because of their boundless energy - but if you've already had one, you'll be able to cope with that! Not to say you shouldn't be very careful of course!

but their health status will be pot luck, as it is unlikely their parental health screening will be known, and most likely none done.  this is the OP's main concern because of bad experiences before re health.

http://www.sesss.org/

http://www.englishspringer.org

I love springers, they are gorgeous looking and are so affectionate, intelligent and eager to please.
My huge concern is getting a healthy dog. It totally broke our hearts when our sweetest little pup died so unexpectedly, we really couldn't cope going through that again.
I know no amount of testing will prevent something being wrong, but it will reduce our risk.

Thank you so much for all the help and suggestions, I am going to have a look for the June link now.

I just found the details of the June litter. They are over 100 miles away, probably a bit far sadly. It would take us about 3 hours to get there, so that would be a 6 hour journey if we went there and headed straight home.

Thank you so much for pointing that litter out to me.
Please let me know if any others become available as I really don't think my husband will drive quite that far and I certainly can't (hate driving on motorways!)

It is quite usual to travel for pups in my breed, in fact it is rare to have any go within 50 miles.  A 3 hour journey is nothing. 

One of my pups will be flying to Australia (albeit not until 13 weeks of age).  The stud dogs breeder who is having one of the pups lives in Derbyshire, I live in Bristol, so a 4 - 5 hour journey one way.

Distance within the UK should be no barrier to the right pup.

I agree with Brainless some of my puppies are in the highlands of scotland and as far as southampton ..we live in the NW so travelling can be a must if you want the right pup.
I have PM you.

I would advise not worrying about the journey distance/time, specially not putting that against getting the best possible pup. My pup owners will be spread all around the country, I think only 2 local and by that I mean within 50 miles. Certainly 3 will be going over 300 miles. You may well be able to get a pup much more local to you, but look at what it is you will be buying before looking at the distance ... distance can be covered in a day, the pup will remain with you a lifetime so you want one that is guaranteed to fit in with your lifestyle and be a happy, well adjusted adult dog. You can do an awful lot of research about how a litter is raised through a telephone conversation initially, as a breeder can tell a lot about you through that same conversation! To me 100 miles is easy peasy ... I travel more than that to go to my dog trainer, one way. YIKES!! (No I'm not rich, with unlimited fuel cash, I just want the very best trainer for me and my dogs with a method I agree with and can use ... as I would be wishing a similar quality for any pup I acquire). Good luck in your search.

hi mobes, good luck with finding the puppy/dog that you are looking for--but I couldn't help responding to your concerns about rescue though. It may well be that some rescues don't have the resources or meticulous attention to detail to make sure as much as possible is known about the dog--but I would say that the breed rescues are very different and there are quite a few working with ESS. Have a look on their websites (e.g. NESSR, Springer Spaniel Rescue) and you'll see what I mean--the dogs are fostered out for as long as is needed with trusted, experienced volunteers who can make very accurate assessments of the dog's needs and preferences. Sadly the truth is that so many dogs are rehomed simply because of divorce, or having to move somewhere where dogs aren't allowed (e.g. rented accommodation)--it's no fault of the dog's.

To be fair, mobes is looking for a healthy example of the most popular breeds around to keep as a pet--she should be able to find what she's looking for reasonably nearby.

I say this as someone who has cheerfully done 6-8 hour round trips just to see the dam before the litter was born and several after

Unfortunately some of the most popular breeds have proportionately few breeders that do all the health testing that the OP should expect and requires.

Its early days, but I may have found a suitable litter that has had all the health screening done. These pups are located nearly 70 miles from us (2 hour journey) which is fine. I would really love to go and spend some time with the pups before we homed him.

I was getting really frustrated about not finding a pup straight away, I just assumed I would find one easily but it was proving not to be the case. I really hope this is the pup for me, will keep you updated.

Hi mobes, all the very best and hope it all turns out to be love at first sight! Good on you for holding out for a pup from a responsible breeder, and any breeder I know would expect to see you on the doorstep before agreeing to let a much loved puppy go, so get that visit booked in

Looks like this pup isn't going to be ours after all. The breeder has a few people lined up to view the litter, one of which has been promised one to replace her dog that recently died (dog was from a previous litter)
I really thought these were ideal and I am so sad that it probably isn't going to be after all.
I made the mistake of telling my kids, so now they are sad too. But, I now know not to say anything to them next time until its definite. I'm sure they will be fine, they have good days and bad days when thinking about our puppy. They have begged me not to give up my search though.

I have to wait for the breeder to let me know if the male pup is still available after the other people have viewed them. So, fingers crossed.

I can really sympathise--but keep going mobes, every day that passes you and your family are getting closer to your 'real' dream puppy. Even if this puppy isn't for you in the end, his breeder may know others who have or are expecting litters that they would recommend. You coould take your children to a champ show near you and see what you admire and talk to breeders there? You'll find your pup soon!

Have you checked the Kennel Club list of available puppies? We have bought all three of our dogs that we currently have from there. You can specify the area and the breed.

We have found another litter (didn't take me long!)
This litter are located 100 miles from home. I really didn't want to travel that far, but if its the right pup, then I would travel even further if need be.

I am hopefully going to visit him at the weekend, I really hope so anyway. I have been in touch with the breeder several times and I have some photos of the puppy. Its looking promising, it all depends on some news on Tuesday whether I can get there at the weekend or not. So, fingers crossed X

Fingers crossed. I once spent over a year travelling the country for the right puppy.

Its looking great for us!
I have left a deposit to reserve the pup, just need to make arrangements to get there next weekend now. Really excited after lots of hunting and a lot of false hopes, we have our pup in sight!

I hope everything goes well for you. I do find it strange though that a breeder would take a deposit from someone they have never met. This would worry me. What if she doesn't think you suitable or vice versa? what happens to the deposit? I don't mean to alarm you but can't imagine breeders on here comitting to selling a puppy to someone they have never met. We spend so long ensuring puppies go to the right home. This would make me question if the money is more important than the home. I do however wish you lots of luck with your puppy. It's easy to say and hard to do but if you are not sure don't be scared to walk away and keep looking

It has been agreed that if either of us are unhappy, the deposit will be refunded.
I do hope everything turns out well for all of us. I've spent many hours looking for this pup

Good luck