Cocker rage

Re: Cocker rage

Sarah Keir — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 20:32:57 GMT

Are we talking about show cockers or working cockers - they are a world apart, they even look completely different. My experience (personal, my mother owns a 3yo truely working type cocker) is the working cockers need TONS of exercise and still have mad moments (running around crazily, would probably nip if a hand got in the way) - it is just the breeding of a highly intelligent dog that can run all day. Unfortunately most home environments are not suitable for dogs like this, shock, horror

Re: Cocker rage

Anthony Todd — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 16:00:29 GMT

[quote user="bob lehner"](Actually - 15-20 years ago we used to regularly see (and pts) violent C Spaniels. [/quote]

Ware was the dog bred?

Re: Cocker rage

Laurence Webb — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 19:37:15 GMT

We had a golden Cocker in the early 80s that was diagnosed as having rage syndrome (not by me, I was 8 or 10 years old!). A long time ago but I remember him as having a split personality. He was generally a really lovely dog, everything you'd hope from a soppy cocker, but could suddenly change without warning into a snarling attacking ferocoius animal that would attack anything and everything in the vicinity. The episodes could last an hour or so and during that time, as well as attacking people, he'd chew through door posts, table legs etc. He was PTS when he was 18mths old.

I'd class this in a different category to just being a nasty piece of work or spoilt as, for the majority of the time he has friendly, happy, well trained and obedient. It just appeared as though a switch was thrown in his head and he'd suddenly turn without warning or provocation. Once he's calmed (ie we shut him in a room and waited for the destruction to stop) he'd be subdued for a while then back to normal. I'd query whether it was a form of seizure activity.

Re: Cocker rage

Anthony Todd — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 19:19:50 GMT

[quote user="james herriot lied"]a sign of 'good' genes - i.e. relationship to this dog[/quote]

Yeah, "related to a Cruft's champion"

Re: Cocker rage

Tim Cheyne — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 19:08:52 GMT

One way or another (schoolboy, lay assistant, graduate) I was involved in SA practice from the late forties to the sixties and I have no doubt that cocker spaniels (mostly golden but also some black) were the most deceitful snappiest breed that I encountered. Overbreeding was rife and in my opinion the cockers most likely to snap without warning were those with pointed snipey muzzles rather than square muzzles like the (then) well-dispositioned Springer Spaniel. However I never saw anything that i would be tempted to call 'Cocker Rage'.

Tim.

Re: Cocker rage

Martin Atkinson — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 17:19:57 GMT

Wasn't it supposed to be due to a reaction to rogue proteins or something in the earliest dry foods as a result of it being manufactured at too high a temperature of was some other sort of rage? Now dry food quality has improved even Bakers doesn't cause it.

Re: Cocker rage

bob lehner — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 15:39:19 GMT

I thought it referrred to the spat beween Jarvis and Wacko Jacko at the Brits a few years ago.

(Actually - 15-20 years ago we used to regularly see (and pts) violent C Spaniels. Haven't encountered one for years now).

Re: Cocker rage

james herriot lied — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 15:16:30 GMT

[quote user="Mark Holmes"]

I occasionally suffer from Cock Up Rage

[/quote]

Should I be locking up my granny? Ooh, missus! (Frankie Howard voice)

Re: Cocker rage

Mark Rowland — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 15:16:26 GMT

And I thought cocker rage was just a euphemism for infidelity ;-)

Re: Cocker rage

Mark Holmes — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 14:34:35 GMT

I occasionally suffer from Cock Up Rage and can vouch for its existance if that helps?

Re: Cocker rage

Simon Neuhoff — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 14:16:51 GMT

Just goes to show the gods appreciate irony - about 20 minutes after my post above I got bitten by a nine week old Cocker Spaniel! Clearly no damage done but a properly feisty little girl.

Re: Cocker rage

james herriot lied — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:33:45 GMT

[quote user="Anthony Todd"]

Mine as well, but in the early 70s a male cocker was a very popular stud, and was said to be shown only after some Acp.

[/quote]

This seems to be the prevailing 'wisdom' amongst the breeders, and paradoxically, the existence of cocker rage in some lines seems almost to be treasured as a sign of 'good' genes - i.e. relationship to this dog.

This little dog in for the day seems super, if perhaps a little hyper for first time owners who aren't working it. Mind you, if it HAS got The Rage, then it could just be intermittent...........

I think if the AHT are intereste in testing for falling - over spaniels, but not this, that tells me what I need to know.

Re: Cocker rage

Anthony Todd — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:15:23 GMT

[quote user="Simon Neuhoff"]My highly personal, unsubstantiated, non scientific 2p (prob not worth 2p really) [/quote]

Mine as well, but in the early 70s a male cocker was a very popular stud, and was said to be shown only after some Acp.

Certainly in those days the breed had a reputation for hysterical behaviour [apart from the occasional otitis....]

There again though, every "fashionable breed", loses temperament first and if the popular strain of the flavour of the month is a nutter then the legend arises.

Re: Cocker rage

Simon Neuhoff — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 12:40:45 GMT

My highly personal, unsubstantiated, non scientific 2p (prob not worth 2p really) - I've not seen a "Cocker rage". Met some nasty ones but nothing more than usual. The only dog I've come across who behaved as Cocker rage dogs are meant to was in fact a Springer Spaniel - this was euthanased on the recommendation of the behaviouralist after everything else had failed.

Re: Cocker rage

Richard Fox — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 12:07:31 GMT

IIRC I thought that was unsupported?