Mary Allen
Find out everything about the behavior, character, activity and exercise needs, education, and care of the dog breed American Water Spaniel in the profile. To this day, the breed is rarely seen outside of the United States.
The American Water Spaniel was developed in the United States as a versatile hunting dog and bred for both water and land work. The ancestors of the breed probably came from Great Britain. The breed was first officially registered in 1940. The first images of the dogs are known from the 19th century, but official breeding only began in the 1920s.
General Appearance
According to the breed standard, the American Water Spaniel is an active, muscular dog of medium size with a wavy to curly coat. A dense undercoat provides the necessary protection against water and bad weather. The forehead is covered with short straight hair, some dogs even have a small mop of hair. Tail and legs are moderately feathered. The coat color may be either uniform leather brown, brown, or chocolate brown. A little white on toes and chest is permissible.
Behavior and temperament
The American Water Spaniel is characterized by intelligence, docility, and great energy. When hunting, he shows great zeal and always strives to please his owner. His nature is cheerful and spirited, he is also generally friendly, but watchful in his territory.
Need for employment and physical activity
Like all spaniels, this one also needs a lot of exercise and activity so that it can live out its energy. As an alternative to hunting, you can offer tracking, fetch games, water work, and various dog sports, but employment as a hunting dog is optimal.
Upbringing
The American Water Spaniel is a very docile dog that always strives to please its owner and to perfectly fulfill the tasks set by him. Because of his intelligence, however, he needs more than normal obedience training. So that he doesn’t get bored, you should also offer him daily exercises for his head and regularly present him with a new challenge.
Maintenance
The fur requires regular grooming, combing should thin out the undercoat more frequently. In order to achieve a well-groomed appearance, the dog may also be trimmed and the hair shaved.
Disease Susceptibility / Common Diseases
When breeding the breed, great attention is paid to the robustness and health of the animals, otherwise, they would be unsuitable for the strenuous work of hunting. Diseases typical of the breed are therefore not known.
Did you know?
To this day, the breed is rarely seen outside of the United States.