A virtually unknown spaniel breed that has been around for over 150 years, the Clumber Spaniel achieved a moment of modern-day fame when “”Brady” won Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show in 1996. When that handsome dog smiled into the TV cameras, many Americans got their first glimpse of this charming companion dog. Named for the Duke of Newcastle’s Clumber Park estate in Nottinghamshire, England, the Clumber Spaniel is prized not only for his skill and acumen as a hunting dog but for his clownlike antics and bubbling personality. Breeder Ricky Blackman has written an excellent introduction to the breed in this Comprehensive Owner’s Guide that retraces the breed’s history in England and America, describes the breed’s many unique characteristics (both physical and personality), and offers potential owners sensible advice about the selection, care, and training of a Clumber Spaniel. New owners will welcome the well-prepared chapter on finding a reputable breeder and selecting a healthy, sound puppy. Chapters on puppy-proofing the home and yard, purchasing the right supplies for the puppy as well as house-training, feeding, and grooming are illustrated with photographs of handsome adults and puppies. In all, there are over 135 full-color photographs in this useful and reliable volume. The author’s advice on obedience training will help the reader better mold and train into the most well-mannered dog in the neighborhood. The extensive and lavishly illustrated chapter on healthcare provides up-to-date detailed information on selecting a qualified veterinarian, vaccinations, preventing and dealing with parasites, infectious diseases, and more. Sidebars throughout the text offer helpful hints, covering topics as diverse as historical dogs, breeders, or kennels, toxic plants, first aid, crate training, carsickness, fussy eaters, and parasite control. Fully indexed.

The Clumber Spaniel - A Complete Anthology of the Dog gathers together all the best early writing on the breed from our library of scarce, out-of-print antiquarian books and documents and reprints it in a quality, modern edition. This anthology includes chapters taken from a comprehensive range of books, many of them now rare and much sought-after works, all of them written by renowned breed experts of their day. These books are treasure troves of information about the breed - The physical points, temperaments, and special abilities are given; celebrated dogs are discussed and pictured; and the history of the breed and pedigrees of famous champions are also provided. The contents were well illustrated with numerous photographs of leading and famous dogs of that era and these are all reproduced to the highest quality. Books used include: My Dog And I by H. W. Huntington (1897), Dogs Of The World by Arthur Craven (1931), The Dog In Sport by J. Wentworth Day (1938) and many others.

The Clumber Spaniel dog breed was originally created to find and retrieve game birds for hunters. Today, there is an effort to re-establish the Clumber Spaniel as an exceptional gundog, and many Clumber Spaniels compete in field trials. They can also be found in the show ring and competing in tracking, obedience, rally, and other dog sports. Last, but definitely not least, they make super family companions. If you're looking for an intelligent, adaptable, and affectionate best friend, this may be the breed for you!

A selection of some of the best feature articles from the magazine Clumbers. The book covers a diverse range of topics, including artists, grooming, working in the field, breeder reflections on the state of the breed, good breeding selection, history of the Clumber Spaniel, computer records, dogs that collect, how puppies develop, postage stamps to feature the breed, and what it is like to live with Clumbers. An excellent resource for a Clumber lover and still very interesting to other dog folk.