![]() The Cavalier is particularly susceptible to early-onset heart disease, which may be evident in dogs as young as one or two years of age. The "hinge" on the heart's mitral valve loosens and can gradually deteriorate, along with the valve's flaps, causing a heart murmur (as blood seeps through the valve between heartbeats) then congestive heart failure. While heart disease is common in dogs generally – one in 10 of all dogs will eventually have heart problems – mitral valve disease is generally (as in humans) a disease of old age. It is rare for a 10-year-old Cavalier not to have a heart murmur. The condition can begin to emerge at an early age and statistically may be expected to be present in more than half of all Cavalier King Charles Spaniels by age 5. The next most common causes are cancer (12.3%) and old age (12.2%). A survey by The Kennel Club of the United Kingdom showed that 42.8% of Cavalier deaths are cardiac related. It is the leading cause of death in the breed. This condition is polygenic (affected by multiple genes), and therefore all lines of Cavaliers worldwide are susceptible. Nearly all Cavaliers eventually suffer from disease of the mitral valve, with heart murmurs which may progressively worsen, leading to heart failure. ![]() The health problems shared with this breed include mitral valve disease, luxating patella, and hereditary eye issues such as cataracts and retinal dysplasia.Ĭavaliers are also affected by ear problems, a common health problem among spaniels of various types, and they can suffer from such other general maladies as hip dysplasia (canine), which are common across many types of dog breeds. This is known as the founder effect and is the likely cause of the prevalence of MVD in the breed. As today's Cavaliers all descend from only six dogs, any inheritable disease present in at least one of the original founding dogs can be passed on to a significant proportion of future generations. Some serious genetic health problems, including early-onset mitral valve disease (MVD), the potentially severely painful syringomyelia (SM), hip dysplasia (canine), luxating patellas, and certain vision and hearing disorders are health problems for this breed. This appears in most Cavaliers at some point in their lives and is the most common cause of death. HealthĬavaliers can often suffer from, most notably mitral valve disease, which leads to heart failure. In 1926, American Roswell Eldridge offered a dog show class prize of twenty-five pounds each as a prize for the best male and females of "Blenheim Spaniels of the old type, as shown in pictures of Charles II of England's time, long face, no stop, flat skull, not inclined to be domed, with spot in centre of skull." and The Kennel Club recognised the breed as "King Charles Spaniels, Cavalier type". These attempts were documented by Judith Blunt-Lytton, 16th Baroness Wentworth, in the book "Toy Dogs and Their Ancestors Including the History And Management of Toy Spaniels, Pekingese, Japanese and Pomeranians" published under the name of the "Hon. Because of this influence, the red and white variety of the King Charles Spaniel and thus the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel became known as the Blenheim.Attempts were made to recreate the original King Charles Spaniel as early as the turn of the 20th century, using the now extinct Toy Trawler Spaniels. His estate was named Blenheim Palace in honour of his victory at the Battle of Blenheim. The duke recorded that they were able to keep up with a trotting horse. Historyĭuring the early part of the 18th century, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, kept red and white King Charles type spaniels for hunting. Various health issues affect this particular breed. Breeders attempted to recreate what they considered to be the original configuration of the breed, a dog resembling Charles II of England's King Charles Spaniel of the English Restoration. Until the 1920s, the Cavalier shared the same history as the smaller King Charles Spaniel. The breed is generally friendly, affectionate and good with both children and other animals however, they require a lot of human interaction.The King Charles changed drastically in the late 17th century, when it was interbred with flat-nosed breeds. The breed standard recognizes four colours: Blenheim, Tricolour (black/white/tan), Black and Tan, and Ruby. It has a silky, smooth coat and commonly a smooth Docking tail. It is a smaller breed of spaniel, and Cavalier adults are often the same size as adolescent dogs of other spaniel breeds. Since 2000, it has grown in popularity in the United States. It is one of the most popular breeds in the United Kingdom. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is a small spaniel classed as a toy dog by The Kennel Club.
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