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American Cocker Spaniel

American Cocker Spaniel

FCI standard Nº 167
Origin
 U.S.A.
Group
 Group 8 Retrievers, Flushing Dogs, Water Dogs
Section
 Section 2 Flushing Dogs
Working
 Without working trial
Acceptance on a definitive basis by the FCI
 Friday 01 January 1965
Publication of the official valid standard
 Tuesday 27 July 2021
Last update
 Monday 13 September 2021
En français, cette race se dit
 Cocker Spaniel américain
Diese Norm ist in deutscher Sprache sichtbar
 Amerikanischer Cocker Spaniel
En español, esta raza se dice
 Cocker Spaniel americano
In het Nederlands, wordt dit ras gezegd
 Amerikaanse Cockerspaniël

Usage
Flushing dog, companion.

General appearance
The American Cocker Spaniel is the smallest member of the Sporting Group. He has a sturdy, compact body and a cleanly chiselled and refined head, with the overall dog in complete balance and of ideal size. He stands well up at the shoulder on straight forelegs with a topline sloping slightly toward strong, moderately bent, muscular quarters. He is a dog capable of considerable speed, combined with great endurance. Above all, he must be free and merry, sound, well balanced throughout and in action show a keen inclination to work. A dog well balanced in all parts is more desirable than a dog with strongly contrasting good points and faults.

Important proportions
The measurement from the breast bone to back of thigh is slightly longer than the measurement from the highest point of withers to the ground. The body must be of sufficient length to permit a straight and free stride; the dog never appears long and low.

Behaviour / temperament
Equable in temperament with no suggestion of timidity.

Head

Cranial region
Head
 To attain a well proportioned head, which must be in balance with the rest of the dog, it embodies an intelligent, alert, soft and appealing expression.
Skull
 Rounded but not exaggerated with no tendency toward flatness; the eyebrows are clearly defined. The bony structure beneath the eyes is well chiselled. 
Stop
 Pronounced.

Facial region
Nose
 Of sufficient size to balance the muzzle and foreface, with well developed nostrils typical of a sporting dog. It is black in colour in the blacks, black and tans and black and whites; in other colours it may be brown, liver or black, the darker the better. The colour of the nose harmonizes with the colour of the eye rim.
Muzzle
 Broad and deep. To be in correct balance, the distance from the stop to the tip of nose is one half the distance from the stop up over the crown to the base of the skull.
Lips
 The upper lip is full and of sufficient depth to cover the lower jaw.
Jaws and teeth
 Jaws square and even. Teeth strong and sound, not too small and meet in a scissor bite.
Cheeks
 Not prominent.
Eyes
 Eyeballs are round and full and look directly forward. The shape of the eye rims gives a slightly almond-shaped appearance; the eye is not weak or goggled. The colour of the iris is dark brown and in general the darker the better.
Ears
 Lobular, long, of fine leather, well feathered, and placed no higher than a line to the lower part of the eye.

Neck
The neck is sufficiently long to allow the nose to reach the ground easily, muscular and free from pendulous « throatiness ». It rises strongly from the shoulders and arches slightly as it tapers to join the head.

Body
Topline
 Sloping slightly toward muscular quarters.
Back
 Strong and sloping evenly and slightly downward from the shoulders to the set-on of the docked tail.
Chest
 Deep, its lowest point no higher than the elbows, its front sufficiently wide for adequate heart and lung space, yet not so wide as to interfere with the straight forward movement of the forelegs.
Ribs
 Ribs are deep and well sprung.

Tail
The docked tail is set on and carried on a line with the topline of the back, or slightly higher; never straight up like a terrier and never so low as to indicate timidity. When the dog is in motion the tail action is merry.

Limbs

Forequarters
Generality
 Forelegs are parallel, straight, strongly boned, muscular and set close to the body well under the scapulae.
Shoulders
 Well laid back forming an angle with the upper arm of approximately 90° which permits the dog to move his forelegs in an easy manner with forward reach. Shoulders are clean-cut and sloping without protrusion and so set that the upper points of the withers are at an angle which permits a wide spring of rib.
Elbows
 When viewed from the side with the forelegs vertical, the elbow is directly below the highest point of the shoulder blade.
Pastern
 Short and strong. Dewclaws on forelegs may be removed.

Hindquarters
Generality
 When viewed from behind, the hind legs are parallel when in motion and at rest. They are strongly boned and muscled. Hips wide and quarters well rounded and muscular.
Upper thigh
 Powerful and clearly defined.
Stifle
 Moderate angulation of the stifle. Strong and there is no slippage of it in motion or when standing.
Hock
 Strong and well let down. Dewclaws on hind legs may be removed.

Feet
Compact, large, round and firm with horny pads; they turn neither in nor out.

Gait and movement
The American Cocker Spaniel, though the smallest of the sporting dogs, possesses a typical sporting dog gait. Prerequisite to good movement is balance between the front and the rear assemblies. He drives with strong, powerful rear quarters and is properly constructed in the shoulders and forelegs so that he can reach forward without constriction in a full stride to counterbalance the driving force from the rear. Above all, his gait is coordinated, smooth and effortless. The dog must cover ground with his action; excessive animation should not be mistaken for proper gait.

Coat
Hair
 On the head, short and fine; on body, medium length, with enough undercoating to give protection. The ears, chest, abdomen and legs are well feathered, but not so excessively as to hide the Cocker Spaniel’s true lines and movement or affect his appearance and function as a moderately coated sporting dog. The texture is most important. The coat is silky, flat or slightly wavy and of a texture which permits easy care. Excessive coat or curly or cottony textured coat shall be severely penalized. Use of electric clippers on the back coat is not desirable. Trimming to enhance the dog’s true lines should be done to appear as natural as possible.
Colour
 Black variety : Solid colour black, to include black with tan points. The black should be jet; shadings of brown or liver in the coat are not desirable. A small amount of white on the chest and/or throat is allowed; white in any other location shall disqualify.
Any Solid Colour Other Than Black (ASCOB) : Any solid colour other than black, ranging from the lightest cream to darkest red, including brown and brown with tan points. The colour shall be of a uniform shade, but lighter colour of the feathering is permissible. A small amount of white on the chest and/or throat is allowed; white in any other location shall disqualify.
Parti-Colour variety : Two or more solid, well broken colours, one of which must be white; black and white, red and white (the red may range from lightest cream to darkest red), brown and white, and roans, to include any such colour combination with tan points. It is preferable that the tan markings be located in the same pattern as for the tan points in the Black and ASCOB varieties. Roans are classified as Parti-Colours and may be of any of the usual roaning patterns. Primary colour which is ninety percent (90%) or more shall disqualify.
Tan points : The colour of the tan may be from the lightest cream to the darkest red and is restricted to ten percent (10%) or less of the colour of the specimen; tan markings in excess of that amount shall disqualify. In the case of tan points in the Black or ASCOB variety, the markings shall be located as follows :
1) A clear tan spot over each eye;
2) On the sides of the muzzle and on the cheeks;
3) On the underside of the ears;
4) On all feet and/or legs;
5) Under the tail;
6) On the chest, optional : presence or absence shall not be penalized.
Tan markings which are not readily visible or which amount only to traces, shall be penalized. Tan on the muzzle which extends upward, over and joins shall also be penalized. The absence of tan markings in the Black or ASCOB variety in any of the specified locations in any otherwise tan-pointed dog shall disqualify.

Size and weight
Height at withers
 The ideal height at the withers for an adult dog is 15 inches and for an adult bitch, 14 inches. Height may vary one half inch above or below this ideal. A dog whose height exceeds 15 1/2 inches or a bitch whose height exceeds 14 1/2 inches shall be disqualified. An adult dog whose height is less than 14 1/2 inches and an adult bitch whose height is less than 13 1/2 inches shall be penalized. Height is determined by a line perpendicular to the ground from the top of the shoulder blades, the dog standing naturally with its forelegs and lower hind legs parallel to the line of measurement.

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
 Aggresive or overly shy.
 Colour and markings : The aforementioned colours are the only acceptable colours or combination of colours; any other colours or combination of colours to disqualify.
 Black variety : White markings except on chest and throat.
 Any Solid Colour Other Than Black variety : White markings except on chest and throat.
 Parti-Colour variety : Primary colour ninety percent (90%) or more.
 Tan points : (1) Tan markings in excess of ten percent (10%); (2) Absence of tan markings in Black or ASCOB variety in any of the specified locations in an otherwise tan-pointed dog.
 Height : Males over 15 1/2 inches, females over 14 1/2 inches.
 Eyes blue, blue marbled, blue flecked.

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.

Bibliography
http://www.fci.be/
Details
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