The Clumber Spaniel - A Complete Anthology of the Dog -

By Read Books Ltd.

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.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Oct 12, 2011
• ISBN: 9781447491682

Book preview

1938

THE CLUMBER.

This is the largest variety of Spaniel, weighing sometimes as much as 30 lbs. He is a low, strong-limbed, broad-backed dog; and is remarkable for never giving tongue. His colour is always either lemon and white, or yellow and white. The coat should be thick, the legs well feathered, and the feet round. The head is square and heavy, the muzzle broad, and the ears long. This dog is highly valued for battue-shooting.

THE CLUMBER SPANIEL.

Since the publication of the article on this spaniel in the year 1865, no change is to be recorded in the opinions on its merits nor have the specimens exhibited shown any improvement in shape or quality. Mr. R. J. Ll. Price’s Bruce may, therefore, still be regarded as a good type of the breed, and I need not replace him by any more modern dog.

The Clumber spaniel takes his name from the seat of the Duke of Newcastle, in Nottinghamshire, where the breed was first established. His distinguishing features are a heavy head, long body, very short legs, and consequent slow pace, and absence of tongue, being entirely mute. Coupled with these qualities, on the other hand, there is a necessity for a team of at least three or four, if sufficient ground is to be gone over even for one gun, as the dog never ranges far from his master, and is very slow in his work. He has, however, an excellent nose, is easily kept under command by ordinary means, though he does not readily own a new master; and when a team of Clumbers is composed of dogs well broken, excellent sport may be obtained from them. Like the Laverack setter, the Clumber has been very much in-bred, and is equally difficult to rear, and somewhat inclined to be delicate even at the best. Nevertheless, he is no doubt highly prized by those who can afford to keep an unlimited kennel for only occasional use. The practice of battue shooting without dogs by the aid of human beaters has greatly reduced the demand for this dog, which was formerly adopted in beating almost all large woodland preserves.

The points of the Clumber spaniel are as follows:

Grand Total 100.

1. The head (value 20).—The skull of this dog is large in all dimensions, being flat at the top, with a slight furrow down the middle, and a very large occipital protuberance. Sometimes this part is heavy in excess, but this is far better than the opposite extreme. The nose is very long and broad, with open nostrils. The end should be of a dark flesh colour, but even in the best strains it is sometimes of a cherry or light liver colour. The eye is large and soft, but not watering.

2. The ears (value 10) are peculiar in shape as compared with other spaniels, being setter-like or vine-shaped, and indicating that this kind of spaniel is the original setting spaniel of olden times, now converted into the setter. They are slightly longer than those of most setters, and feathered, but not heavily, especially on the front edge.

3. The neck (value 5) is long and strong, but lean, and free from dewlap in front, where, however, there is a slight ruff of hair.

4. In length (value 15) this spaniel should be two and a half times his height.

5. Good shoulders (value 10) are very important qualities in so heavy a dog, who tires in any covert rather too soon, and, with heavy shoulders, drops into a walk after a single hour’s work. The chest must also have a large girth.

6. A strong back and loin (value 10) are equally necessary, and for the same cause. The latter ought to be free from arch, as the back should be from droop, and the back ribs should be very deep.

7. The legs and feet (value 15) of the Clumber must be carefully attended to, being of great importance to him in standing his work. He is very apt to be out at his elbows from his width of chest, and occasionally his legs are bowed from rickets, to which disease he is especially prone. These defects when present should be heavily penalised, as they are faults of great importance.

MR. LINDOE’S IRISH WATER SPANIELS RAKE AND BLARNEY.

8. The colour (value 5) is always white, with more or less lemon; and when the latter is freckled over the face and legs the colour is perfect. The face should always be white, with lemon head, and at the best a line of white down its middle.

9. The coat (value 5) must be soft and silky, slightly wavy, and, though abundant, by no means long, except in feather.

10. The stern (value 5) must be set low, and carried considerably downwards, especially when at work.

THE CLUMBER SPANIEL.

THE next of the Spaniel family in order of merit is the Clumber Spaniel, whose long association with many of the highest families in the land has fairly entitled him to rank as the aristocrat of the tribe. The name by which he is known—Clumber—is unquestionably derived from the seat of the Duke of Newcastle, where the breed has flourished for years, and this has given rise to the impression amongst sportsmen that the Clumber Spaniel owes his existence and origin to some early member of that illustrious house. This is scarcely the fact, however, as we learn on the authority of Daniels that the breed was imported into this country by a Duke of Newcastle, who acquired them from the Duc de Nouailles many years ago. It is nevertheless equally certain that the breed was for a long time treasured at Clumber, and that it was extremely difficult for outsiders to gain possession of a specimen.

As regards his origin little can be said, as it is veiled in obscurity; but it may be remarked that certain authorities have argued in favour of there being a remote cross of the foreign Basset-hound in the Clumber Spaniel, though as far as our experience goes the supporters of this theory have hitherto failed to substantiate their statements by any appeal to facts. However, this theory has found its way into print, and may therefore be given merely as a theory which has been propounded, and without any intention on our part to support it. A great deal might be said on the antiquity of this variety by those who are disposed to attach importance to the possession of this attribute, for Edmund de Langley, who wrote in the fourteenth century, described the Spaniel as coming out of Spayn, and being in colour white and tawny, with a large head and body. It therefore appears to us that it would require a very slight stretch of imagination to connect the ancient Spaniel alluded to by Edmund de Langley with the solemn-looking but patrician Clumber of the present day. Nor would this reasoning in any way detract from Daniels’ statement that the strain of Clumber has originated from some dogs procured from the kennels of the Duc de Nouailles. On the contrary, it seems to be a support to it, as it is extremely likely that his dogs would resemble in many respects the breed that, according to the Maister of Game, existed in Spain in the fourteenth century. Many authorities, no doubt correctly, connect the Clumber Spaniel with the old Setting-dog, who was included by Dr. Caius, in his Spaniel chapter, under the title of Index or Setter. In the present day, however, the duties of the Clumber Spaniel unquestionably lie more in the direction of covert-shooting than driving birds in the open, especially as both Setters and Pointers can readily be found who can manage the latter business far better than the short-legged Spaniel can.

In consequence of the jealousy with which the Clumber strain was formerly guarded by the Dukes of Newcastle, it was a difficult matter to procure a specimen years ago, and, therefore, indifferent Clumbers fetched very high prices when in the market. Of recent years, however, dogs of this variety can be more readily procured, and their value has sensibly diminished. In addition to the high value which their rarity placed upon the Clumbers, the fact of