Temperament
- Affectionate with the whole family
- Settled alone for a normal working day
- Openly, unashamedly lovey-dovey
Know the Breed
The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
Before a puppy comes home, it helps to know the dog it will grow into. Here is the breed as it really is — the size, the temperament, the grooming, and the health that a good breeder plans around.
At a Glance
The breed in five numbers
Small enough for any home, long-lived when well bred and well cared for, and — as of the most recent AKC registration figures — the fourteenth most popular breed in America.
Toy
AKC Group
12–13 in
Height at Shoulder
13–18 lb
Adult Weight
12–15 yrs
Life Expectancy
No. 14
AKC Popularity
Character
Living with a Cavalier
The Cavalier was bred for one purpose: company. Everything about the temperament follows from that, for better and occasionally for worse.
Training
- Eager to please and quick to learn
- Responds best to gentle, reward-based work
- Early socialisation pays for itself
Adaptability
- Suits an apartment or an acreage
- Happy to hike or to hold the sofa down
- Likes a routine, forgives a change to it
Sociability
- Friendly with strangers on sight
- Good with children, with supervision
- Gets along with other dogs and with cats
Their Care Needs
A little care goes a long way
None of this is difficult, and none of it is optional. A Cavalier asks for very little beyond consistency — and gives back rather more than it costs.
Regular Grooming
A brush two or three times a week keeps the silky coat and its feathering free of mats. Most Cavaliers come to enjoy the ritual.
Routine Vet Care
An annual wellness exam catches the things that are cheap to treat early and expensive to treat late — the heart above all.
A Balanced Diet
Measured meals of a quality food, with treats counted as part of the day. A Cavalier will happily eat well past the point of sense.
Daily Exercise
A walk and a play session covers it. They are athletes when you want them to be and couch dogs the rest of the time.
Mental Stimulation
They are clever dogs and need something to think about — scent games, a puzzle feeder, or ten minutes of training.
Your Company
This is a breed shaped for centuries purely to be with people. Time spent together is not an extra here; it is the care.
Health & Longevity
Healthy habits for a long, happy life
With the right care and a well-tested pedigree behind them, Cavaliers commonly live twelve to fifteen happy years. These are the six things that decide how those years go.
Heart Health
Mitral valve disease is the condition this breed is known for. Yearly cardiac checks, and testing both parents before breeding, is how it is stayed ahead of.
Eye Care
Those large, dark eyes are the breed signature and its weak point. Watch for cloudiness, discharge or rubbing, and have any change looked at.
A Healthy Weight
Extra weight loads the heart and the joints at once. Good nutrition and steady exercise prevent far more than they ever cure.
Joints & Knees
Patellar luxation and hip trouble both run in the toy breeds. Sensible exercise, trimmed nails and a lean frame protect against both.
Preventive Care
Vaccinations on schedule, parasite control year-round, and dental care that begins long before there is a problem to fix.
Love & Attention
A Cavalier left alone for long stretches suffers for it. Emotional well-being is not a separate thing from physical health in this breed.
Health starts long before a puppy is born. Every parent in our program is heart, hip, eye and knee evaluated with a full DNA panel — see exactly what we test for.
Coat Colours
Four patterns, one standard
The AKC standard recognises four colours. All four appear in well-bred litters, and none of them is rarer, better or worth paying more for than another.
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Blenheim
Chestnut markings on pearl white
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Tricolour
Black and white with tan points
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Ruby
Rich, whole-coloured red
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Black & Tan
Raven black with tan markings
The Best Part
Why families fall for them
Ask anyone who owns one what a Cavalier is actually like to live with, and the answers arrive in roughly this order.
Always Glad to See You
Five minutes or five hours, the welcome is the same. It is difficult to come home to a Cavalier and stay in a bad mood.
Deeply Devoted
They bond hard and they bond for life. Most Cavaliers pick a person and then follow them quietly from room to room.
Ready for Anything
A walk, a road trip, or a whole wet Sunday on the sofa — equally pleased with all three, as long as you are there too.
A Big Heart, Small Body
Thirteen to eighteen pounds of dog that loves fiercely, forgives instantly and holds nothing at all against anyone.
Easy with Everyone
Children, grandparents, the neighbour’s labrador, the man with the post. A well-raised Cavalier meets them all the same way.
They Make Life Better
More love, more laughs, more reasons to get outside. Every family we have placed a puppy with says a version of this.
Did You Know
Named for a king who would not be parted from them
The breed takes its name from the Cavaliers — the supporters of King Charles I during the English Civil War. Toy spaniels of this type had already been the companions of English nobility for centuries, and Charles II was said to be so attached to his that they followed him into the council chamber.
The modern Cavalier King Charles Spaniel was bred back toward that older, longer-nosed type in the 1920s. It has been doing the same job ever since: keeping people company, and being remarkably good at it.
Ready When You Are
Think a Cavalier belongs in your home?
Meet the puppies we have available now, or join the waitlist and we will be in touch when the next litter arrives.