English Springer Spaniel
Westminster’s quiet overachiever.
Only two breeds have won Best in Show at Westminster more often than the English Springer Spaniel, and both are terriers with a century’s head start. Springers took the top prize six times between 1963 and 2007, including back-to-back wins in 1971 and 1972 by a dog with the splendid registered name Ch. Chinoe’s Adamant James — one of the few dogs ever to repeat. Judges keep arriving at the same verdict families do: a medium-sized dog, beautifully made, with a soft expression and an engine that never quite idles. The show ring only sees the standing-still part.
Springers we love
Weekday pet, weekend professional
The name is the verb: springers were the spaniels that “sprang” game — bursting birds out of cover for the falcon, the net, and eventually the gun. For centuries the same litter could yield both springers and cockers, sorted by size once they grew. The modern breed has split another way, into show and field lines further apart than almost any breed’s — field-bred springers are lighter, sharper, endlessly driven, while show dogs carry the long ears and heavy feathering. Both versions hold the working spaniel’s core belief: the family is a team, and the team has work.
Living with a springer means being accompanied. They trail you room to room, supervise the dishwasher, and greet returning family like a search party that finally got results. The energy is genuine — this is a dog for people who go outside on purpose — and so is the biddability: springers want a job, and will accept fetch, swimming, agility, or carrying the mail from the door as honorable employment. Left alone too long they fray. Meet them halfway on exercise and company, and they are as devoted a dog as the sporting group offers.
Keeping one happy
Grooming
Brush the medium-length coat a couple of times a week, minding the feathering on legs, ears, and belly where burrs and mats collect. A trim every couple of months keeps things sensible. The long ears need weekly checks and a good dry after water — and springers find water.
Training
Among the most willing students in dogdom — springers read faces, learn fast, and genuinely prefer doing things your way. Keep sessions upbeat and reward-based; harshness wounds them out of proportion. Channel the flushing drive early into fetch and recall games, or the local songbirds will run the curriculum instead.
Exercise
Budget an hour or two of real activity daily: walking counts, but springers were built for a full working day and appreciate variety — swimming, hiking, fetch on hills, scent games. A field-bred dog needs the high end of that range. A tired springer is a philosopher; a bored one is a project.
Diet
Two measured meals a day for a dog that burns real fuel and would happily eat imaginary amounts of it. Count training treats against the daily total, and check the waist monthly under the coat. Springers stay sound longest when they stay lean — the joints thank you at ten.
From falconer’s field to family sofa
Land spaniels have flushed game for hunters since the Middle Ages, and the springer type carried the job into the shotgun era as the rough shooter’s all-purpose partner. England’s Kennel Club recognized the breed in 1902; the AKC followed in 1910. The dual career — companion and gundog, often in the same week — has never really stopped.
Questions, answered
Are English Springer Spaniels good family dogs?
One of the classic matches — affectionate, patient, and playful with kids. The trade is exercise: this is an athlete, not an ornament.
Do springers shed?
Moderately, year-round, with feathering that mats without brushing. Not hypoallergenic.
Field-bred or show-bred springer — what’s the difference?
Field lines are lighter and far higher-drive; show lines are calmer with more coat. Choose by your household’s actual energy, not its aspirations.
Can a springer live in an apartment?
Yes, with an owner who treats exercise as non-negotiable. It’s the daily mileage that matters, not the square footage.
