The English Toy Spaniel originated in England and were bred to be a companion to people. It is thought that this breed is a mixture of the Pug or Pekingese with a Spaniel giving them the slightly pushed in face and the body of a smaller spaniel. These dogs were popular with English royalty and were found in various paintings from early English literature. The King Charles Spaniel (with black & tan colouring) is a variety of the English Toy Spaniel.

This breed has a pushed in face like that of a Pug or Bulldog, an under bite, and a wide nose with large nostrils. They have a compact yet solid body with soft fur and large floppy ears. This breed has a few different names for it depending on the colour of their coat. The black & tan variety is known as the King Charles Spaniel, the Blenheim is the white & red variety, the ruby colouring which is all red with a few white markings, and finally the Prince Charles which is the tri-coloured variety (black, white & tan).

The English Toy Spaniel is a shy, sweet and loyal little breed that loves human attention but can seem timid upon the first meeting. They make excellent family pets because they love children and will get along with other dogs and smaller pets very well.

The English Toy Spaniel will come in 4 types of coat colours. These are the tri-coloured, red with patches of white, black and tan, and the white with red markings.

This breed has a silky, glossy coat that is wispy in appearance. Medium length and loosely curly, the English Toy Spaniel will be a low maintenance dog when it comes to grooming.

The English Toy Spaniel is a breed that is energetic yet well behaved and polite. They are smart dogs who are loyal and are constantly eager to please their owners. As most breeds in the Toy Group are, these dogs make great lap warmers and are small enough that they can be brought almost anywhere. With a tendency to be shy, the English Toy Spaniel will need to be socialized around people, and other dogs as puppies to ensure they don’t become timid adults.

This dog is quite bright and will take to obedience training very well. They will make great watch dogs as their bark is a sound alert system but will make terrible guard dogs because they love people and become too excited to scare off any strangers.

This breed will be a low maintenance breed to groom. They will need to be brushed about once every week or two and bathed according to how often their owner would prefer. The English Toy Spaniel is prone to ear/eye infections, mitral valve disease, luxated patella’s, and may show some breathing difficulties due to their pushed in face. On the whole this breed is healthy with only a few inherited diseases.

The English Toy Spaniel will be quite easy to train as long as their owner is positive and has consistent methods. They are a bright dog and usually grasp certain ideas quickly, so basic obedience will be simple if repetition and short training sessions are implemented.

These dogs will need about one hour per day of exercise whether that be a long walk or time spent in an off-leash dog park socializing with other dogs. They use up most of their energy throughout the day. The English Toy Spaniel will do well do well in an apartment because they are such small dogs and do not take up much space. A backyard would be excellent so they can have an outdoor area to run around in.