English Springer Spaniel

		English Springer Spaniel
		FCI Standard No. 125


Origin			Great Britain
Group			Group 8 Retrievers-Flushing Dogs-Water Dogs
Section			Section 2 Flushing Dogs
Working			With working trial
Date of acceptance on a definitive basis by the FCI			Wednesday 29 December 1954
Date of publication of the official valid standard			Tuesday 08 September 2026
Date of the last update			Tuesday 06 October 2026
En français, cette race se dit			English Springer Spaniel
Diese Norm ist in deutscher Sprache sichtbar			English Springer Spaniel
En español, esta raza se dice			Springer Spaniel inglés
In het Nederlands, wordt dit ras gezegd			Engels Springer Spaniel

Usage

Flushing dog, Retriever.

Brief historical summary

Breed is of ancient and pure origins, oldest of sporting gundogs; original purpose was finding and springing game for net, falcon or greyhound. Now used to find, flush and retrieve game for gun.

General appearance

Symmetrically built, compact, strong, merry, active. Highest on leg and raciest in build of all British land Spaniels.

Important proportions

Friendly, happy disposition, biddable. Timidity or aggression highly undesirable.

Behaviour / temperament

Friendly, happy disposition, biddable. Timidity or aggression unacceptable.

Head
Cranial region
Skull		Of medium length, fairly broad, slightly rounded, rising from foreface, making a brow or stop, divided by fluting between eyes, dying away along forehead towards occipital bone which should not be prominent.

Facial region
Nose		Nostrils well developed.
Muzzle		Foreface of proportionate length to skull, fairly broad and deep, well chiselled below eyes.
Lips		Fairly deep and square.
Jaws and teeth		Jaws strong, with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. upper teeth closely overlapping lower teeth and set square to the jaws.
Cheeks		Flat.
Eyes		Medium size, almond-shaped, not prominent nor sunken, well set in (not showing haw), alert, kind expression. Dark hazel. Light eyes undesirable.
Ears		Lobular, good length and width, fairly close to head, set in line with eye. Nicely feathered.

Neck

Good length, strong and muscular, free from throatiness, slightly arched, tapering towards head.

Body
Body		Strong, neither too long nor too short.
Loin		Muscular, strong with slight arch and well coupled.
Chest		Deep, well developed. Well sprung ribs.

Tail

Previously customarily docked.
Docked: Set low, never carried above level of back. Well feathered with lively action.
Undocked: Set low, never carried above level of back. Well feathered with lively action. In balance with the rest of the dog.

Limbs

Forequarters
Generality		Forelegs straight and well boned.
Shoulders		Sloping and well laid.
Elbows		Set well to body.
Pastern		Strong, flexible.

Hindquarters
Generality		Hind legs well let down.
Upper thigh		Broad, muscular, well developed.
Stifle		Moderately bent.
Hock		Moderately bent. Coarse hocks undesirable.

Feet

Tight, compact, well rounded, with strong, full pads.

Gait and movement

Strictly his own. Forelegs swing straight forward from shoulder, throwing feet well forward in an easy free manner. Hocks driving well under body, following in line with forelegs. At slow movement may have a pacing stride typical of this breed.

Coat
Hair		Close, straight and weather resisting, never coarse. Moderate feathering on ears, forelegs, body and hinquarters.
Colour		Liver and white, black and white, or either of these colours with tan markings. Any other colour or combination of colours unacceptable.

Size and weight
Height at withers		Approximate height at withers: 51 cm (20 ins).

Faults

• Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog and its ability to perform its traditional work.
• Faults listed should be in degree of seriousness.

Disqualifying faults

Aggressive or overly shy.

NB :

• Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified.
• The above mentioned faults when occurring to a highly marked degree or frequently are disqualifying.
• Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.
• Only functionally and clinically healthy dogs, with breed typical conformation should be used for breeding.

Detailed history

The English Springer Spaniel is probably the oldest representative of the family Spaniels, that is to say, Spaniels reviewed and corrected by the British.

The name Spaniel obviously raises the problem of the Spanish origins of the breed, an issue that has been the subject of much controversy on which there is no question of returning here. What is certain, however, is that the Spaniels were very present in Britain from the end of the Middle Ages. At the end of the 14th century, the poet Chaucer quoted the Spaniel, whom he appreciated for his affectionate behavior. Some two centuries later, in 1570, Dr. Johannes Caius included the Spaniel in his panorama of British dogs by ranking him among gentlemen's dogs. The scientist already expressed his doubts about the Iberian origin of the dog: "The common people generally call them spaniels," he said, as if these dogs were originally from Spain. "

The Spaniels were used very early by the lords in the hunting of game birds, which required abilities that the bloodhounds and other common dogs of Great Britain were far from possessing. And they excelled in various practices, in net hunting as in falconry or hunting with greyhounds, widespread in the country. Gentlemen appreciated the Spaniel's many abilities all the more because they did not always have the means to maintain large and expensive packs of common dogs.

For a long time, Spaniels remained medium-sized dogs, despite, no doubt, some local variations. And of all the current types of Spaniels, it is certainly the Springer that is most faithful to this original stature. He has also preserved the color of the dress, white spotted with brown or red, that already described Dr. Caius. We meet for the first time the mention of the Springer or rather Springing Spaniel in the book Markham, Hunter's Prevention, published in 1621. Since then, the permanence of this canine type has always been attested, especially through the illustrations of Philipp Reinagle , published in 1803 in The Sportsman Cabinet, which show us a dog resembling in every respect the modern Springer Spaniel.

The situation of Spaniels was disrupted in the course of the nineteenth century with the appearance of cynology. Indeed, the specialists began to modify the conformation of these "jack-of-all-trades" dogs, which had hitherto been used in all phases of the hunt, for any type of game and whatever the terrain, because The aim was to adapt them for more specialized use.

However, in the early days, the British lacked much vigilance, or rigor. As Gérard Desjeux, former president of the French Spaniel Club, notes, they did not hesitate to cross the different varieties of Spaniels, which could only be distinguished by their weight or their colors; distinctions that were not necessarily unequivocal, as was the case with the first specimens called Cockers, which were defined as Field Spaniels less than 28 pounds: thus, the puppy classified as Cocker became thereafter a Field Spaniel because his weight and stature no longer matched the characteristics of the Cocker. Subsequently, the size of these dogs was fixed, by crossing with the Toy Spaniels, which made excellent subjects for stalking the woodcock, even the rabbit, and it was thus that we would finally know the authentic Cocker. To satisfy the sporadic hunters, heavy Spaniels were also created, which were very popular with crowned heads.

The English also thought of making Spaniel a pet dog. Her good and affectionate character, her silky dress and her size predestined her for this kind of work, and as for her aesthetic, she was well refined for the exhibitions. However, this selection proved sometimes harmful, as was the case with the Field Spaniel, whose breeding was oriented towards the development of a Spaniel Basset, the heavy body and very long: presented in extension, the belly of the animal touched almost ground. There was, of course, no question of using this dog for hunting; this new type interested only a small circle of enthusiasts, to the point that Field almost disappeared.

The Springer, on the other hand, was going to stop affirming his personality among the Spaniels. His height and weight were hardly changed, and he remained exclusively a practical hunting dog, before becoming, with the advent of field trials, a sport dog. This very original specificity, the source of its immense success, is due to the fact that, curiously, the race was long kept away from the benches of exhibition, which it finally benefited, because it presents itself to us having preserved intact all its hunting qualities. In 1902, the Kennel Club officially recognized the existence of the English Springer, distinguishing it from the Welsh Springer (even the history of the Springers is not so simple.). From then on, the lovers of beautiful dogs finally did him honor, and, today, the English Springer is very present in the exhibitions dog, as he heels the Cocker in the statistics of births across the Channel, which says a lot about his popularity as a pet dog.

In the United States, the Springer made its first appearance in the middle of the 19th century, but its official establishment dates back to 1932. Since then, the breed has made an honorable career in the country, both as a practical hunting dog and as a competitor in field trials or as a pleasure dog.

In France, the English Springer has been better known for thirty years, thanks to the activity of passionate breeders who imported and raised subjects of excellent quality which they neglected neither aesthetics nor education at work.

Whether hunter or not, the proud owner of an English Springer Spaniel can only congratulate himself for choosing a dog with such a pleasant character. Cheerful, active, docile, sociable and cooperative, the Springer is one of the most malleable and easygoing dogs among dogs. He understands quickly and well, just as he immediately approves the wishes of his master. If he seems less coaxing than a Cocker, he is also less teasing and stubborn than he is. Good sportsman, it is not an exuberant animal or subject to a great nervousness, provided that it can profit from a minimum of physical exercise. Excellent companion, calm at home, loving children, his gentle and serene look perfectly expresses the balance of his temperament.

It is obviously as a hunting dog that the Springer is mainly appreciated. Its exceptional endurance is the result of its robust and compact constitution, which however remains free of heaviness, which reflects the fair proportion between its size and weight. Although the Springer is not strictly speaking a specialist, its qualities are nevertheless above average for all phases of the hunt. He is the very good student, who can compete with the best in each subject without ever getting a mediocre or average grade. Only one discipline is foreign to him: like all Spaniels, the Springer is not a dog.

But he excels in particular in relation to game, where he is at the forefront as much by the ease of his training as his ardor or his taste for water. And, if it must be awarded a special mention, it is certainly for his ability to work in difficult and varied terrain. No form of vegetation, be it groves, woods, brambles or wastelands, can stop its going, any more than a torrential rain or an exceptional cold, which it do not care when he's at work.

The English Springer-Spaniel is the flagship of the excellent family of Spaniels, and is best able to support the comparison with the best hunting dogs today. This posed, it may also be suitable for the hunter without much experience of training, who would handle with less ease the incomparable thoroughbred whose specialists would have praised the value. Moreover, this dog has acquired a loyal clientele over the years. The wood-scavengers, especially, hold him in high esteem, his prudence and safety on the emanation being much appreciated.

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English Springer Spaniel