Clumbers

[nanney1]

Are these basically companion dogs? I've never seen one outside of the confirmation ring.
Does anyone know much about therm?

[crackerd]

In the US they're "affectionately" referred to as snow pigs. That gives you an idea of their capacious comportment and use (99 percent in the show ring). You'll find more authentic activity amongst the breed (i.e., as working gundog) here. Likewise little working milieu in the US for the Clumber's cousin

but look hard enough and you may find one that does.

MG

[nanney1]

crackerd:

Thanks for the info and the weblink. I must say that the Clumbers on the opening page of that site look a lot different than the show Clumbers I have seen. The dogs on the opening page of that site have less bone, less coat, less weight, less head, and more snout. Compared to the heavy build, heavy coat, heavy bone, mastiff-type head that I've seen in the show ring, those smaller dogs look very athletic in coparison.

[crackerd]

That's the idea. The Working Clumber Spaniel Assn. essentially resurrected the breed as a gundog. Males may go 50 pounds, bitches 40-45, all muscle and fit--whereas you can double those weights for the snow pigs. And make sure they have snoods on the ears at all times so they don't wet.

On the other hand, you can always put something in a spaniel's mouth to keep those long ears from getting wetter.

Sad thing is the Sussex is in even worse shape in the US than the Clumber insofar as retaining working traits--the show fancy breeds for dwarfism (stunted growth) and has succeeded in sawing an inch of leg off the British standard and essentially turned them into canine Cousin Its.

MG

[mountaindogs]

We had a show bred clumber come in for a C-section once. That "little" dog was 85 lbs pregnant.