How to Search for a Cavalier & Responsible Breeder

This is a summary. Topics with detail information can be selected from the menu on the left. Please take the time to read these detailed topics before you begin contacting breeders.

The selection of a reputable breeder from whom to purchase your puppy is the most important step you can take in ensuring that you have a better chance of getting a healthy, temperamentally sound puppy and one who has a better than average chance of staying that way. Whether you are looking for a family companion or prospective show dog, and before you fall in love with the first adorable face you see, the information gleaned by asking some pertinent questions under “Questions to Ask the Breeder” will help you locate a Cavalier who is a good representative of the breed, who enjoys family activities, and has a better chance of living a long and healthy life. You may not find a breeder who fits 100% of this criteria.

There is no “quick fix” to educating yourself on the process of purchasing a quality puppy so please – do try to sit quietly and read these recommendations for the sake of your family and for your future puppy. Yes, the information is long but living with an unhealthy and temperamentally unstable dog for 10 - 15 years is even longer so do your homework NOW and persevere with your quest for the ideal.

If your heart is set on a less accessible breed, like the Cavalier, you must be prepared for more difficulty in finding just the right puppy from a responsible breeder at exactly the time it is wanted. So that you are not waiting too long for a puppy, try to compromise and give the breeder some choices with regard to color, sex and age. It is equally important that you have a good relationship with your breeder because you will be communicating with this person for years to come with questions, requesting advice, and asking for help

All puppies are cute; and most appear healthy and happy. Any one of them would be ideal for your family at that age BUT what really matters is that they remain healthy. Dogs who grow up with chronic health and temperament problems are usually the result of irresponsible breeding. Therefore, to protect your family from the devastation of a sickly, aggressive or miserable dog, it is vital that you select a responsible, ethical breeder.

But how do you do that? The first step would be to READ and absorb this short summary as well as to click on the various titles listed at the end where the information has been separated into sections with headings/titles for easy reading and easy reference.

To add to the confusion, the cost of purchasing a good quality Cavalier (or any other breed) continues to escalate due to the ever-increasing veterinary medical charges. The fact is that it is costly to breed and raise healthy, temperamentally sound, beautiful and sweet tempered Cavaliers. Therefore you need to know that there are no bargains. If you find Cavaliers on the internet for less than $2,500, keep in mind that this is just the down payment. The installments come later at the veterinarian’s office. With the myriad of health problems that befalls this breed, (and in fact all breeds), you are taking a huge and unnecessary chance by purchasing cheap Cavaliers. The price of this breed generally runs from $2,500 to $4,000, depending on the cost of living in any particular area and depending on how close to the breed standard the puppy has turned out. Since you are paying a sizeable amount of money for your puppy – at least get your money’s worth and buy the best puppy you can find from the most reputable breeder. Surely you want your life companion to LOOK like a Cavalier and have the typical sweet temperament of a Cavalier? Remember, you are adding a new member to your family for at least the next 10 - 15 years. Now is NOT THE TIME TO BARGAIN HUNT!

In recent years, so many Internet websites for all breeds of dogs have sprung up making the selection of a reputable breeder of your puppy a daunting and overwhelming task. It is so easy to have the wool pulled over your eyes with these slick websites, many of which show Cavalier photos that have been pirated from other websites. Keep in mind that not all good breeders have a website so do not pick a breeder solely based on website or no website.

With all the press and documentaries warning American families about puppy mills and their cohorts, the pet shops, it is hard to believe that any conscious, functioning person would be unaware of the horrors of this industry which often produces defective puppies for resale to you, the unsuspecting general public. Yet the industry flourishes because puppies continue to be sold through pet stores, commercial outlets, multi–breed kennels, brokers and middle-men. FYI – There is no such thing as a responsible, ethical breeder who sells even one puppy to a middle-man or broker or pet shop for resale.

The Cavalier, as a purebred dog, comes from generations and generations of breeding dogs with a common gene pool giving a predictable characteristic appearance, temperament and function. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club, USA is dedicated to the health and welfare of the Cavalier breed while conserving the typical happy, laid back, small sized family companion.

CKCSC, USA sincerely hopes that the information in this segment of the website will encourage you to think long and hard before choosing your puppy and that you will investigate the breeder as far as you are able. Please continue reading by clicking on the topics listed below for more detailed information about acquiring a Cavalier.

Topics

Choosing a Puppy is an Important Decision
How to Find a Cavalier Puppy and a Responsible Breeder
Questions to Ask the Breeder
Questions to Ask Yourself
Short List of Do’s and Don’ts
Steer Clear of Importers, Brokers, Middlemen, and Pet Shops
Stories from Other Pet Owners
Slick Websites Can Fool You
A Puppy is an Investment
How to Find a Less Expensive Cavalier
Designer Breeds
When is a Guarantee Not a Guarantee?
Inherited Health Problems in the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
Code of Ethics Highlights