r/cockerspaniel • u/alf20125 • Feb 16 '26
[Mega Thread] Cocker Spaniel Breeder Recommendations
Place to ask for recommended breeders relevant to your location! Please only refer ethical breeders!
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u/Inner_Work_3346 Aug 17 '26
Mud River Cockers in Kentucky. The breeder loves her puppies to death and takes great care of them. She makes each buyer fill out a questionnaire prior to taking any deposits so she can determine whether the family is a good fit. They’re healthy, vet visits and shots are all up to date, and she sends food, leashes, collars, and toys with familiar scents to help with the transition process. She also makes each buyer sign a contract stating that they will never give their puppy up to a shelter, that they must bring it back to her instead.
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u/alf20125 Aug 17 '26
they look a backyard breeder from their website, none of the dogs they breed seem to have any conformation wins or genetic testing done. good breeding practices don’t comprise of “i have 2 dogs that are good pets, I should breed them”
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u/Inner_Work_3346 Aug 17 '26
They are registered with the AKC and she does have a huge backyard (a farm, if I remember correctly). She’s been breeding for I think about 20 years? And has many dogs she’ll breed, waiting a year between each bitch after a litter. I can’t say I know about genetic testing but we did get extensive vet records when we got our cocker from her, and she was completely healthy. Others have reported the same things. I could reach back out and ask about genetic testing but again, I’m not sure. Also not sure about confirmation wins.
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u/alf20125 Aug 17 '26
AKC registration really doesn’t mean much at all, almost anyone can register their dogs. lol a backyard breeder isn’t someone who has a backyard, it’s someone causally breeding their dogs for profits without taking the proper steps that an ethical breeder would take, it really shouldn’t be encouraged.
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u/Inner_Work_3346 Aug 17 '26
I won’t speak on her practices since, for all I know, she could actually be top notch (or not), but I do appreciate the information you’ve provided. ❤️
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u/Slight-Sprinkles-329 Feb 16 '26
For UK, use ChampsDogs - all breeders have to health test and display their results and lineage.
I'd also recommend Kennel Club but there can still be dodgy people on there.
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u/Bekah414404 Jun 02 '26
ISO reputable breeders in the Ashville, NC area. Show titled, health tested and good temperaments. This is not my breed, just trying to send a friend in the right direction, and keep her away from the BYB. She's interested in Parti or ASCOB. Any suggestions would be appreciated. This would be strictly a companion home, but she wants one from an ethical breeder.
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u/Any-Meat-7736 Jul 28 '26
This post is pretty old so I don’t know if people still use it, but if you do, does anybody know of good breeder recommendations near Kansas?
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u/alf20125 Feb 18 '26
For English Cocker spaniels in the USA, the ECSCA has a great page on what health testing to look for and 3 of the people who do breeder referrals for the club https://englishcocker.org/breeders-2/
Also when contacting a breeder directly, you want to make sure you spend a fair amount of time on your initial email, especially if they don’t have a website that details exactly what information they would like you to provide. Some things to mention will be that you want to say a little bit about yourself, convey that you’re well aware of the breed needs, why you will be able to provide this puppy a good home (focus should be on providing the best home/life for the puppy!), if you’re looking for a dog you plan to enter in dog shows or if they will simply be a companion. Also don’t approach them saying “I want a puppy in 4 months”, many breeders have a year+ waitlist. A lot of times that people don’t get a reply back from a breeder is they don’t communicate well enough with the breeder in their initial email or come off as wanting the dog for vanity reasons and not instilling confidence with the breeder that this is someone they’d want to sell a puppy to.