We have just got back from a fab day at crufts and it really suprised me at all the really tiny cavaliers I saw. I have got home to my boys and they seem alot taller and wider (not fat but rib) than any that we saw. They are Cavaliers and they come from a show breeder who does very well in the show world........... so bizarre

The Cavalier breed standard says:
Size
Weight: 5.4-8.2 kgs (12-18 lbs). A small, well balanced dog well within these weights desirable.

Sometimes pet dogs are the ones that are too big (or too small) to fit the standard.

Our's are the top end of the weight scale (if I have done my conversions correctly) but are completely in proportion and the vet did say that the youngest could do with gaining a bit of weight. I have also just realised that the ones we saw today were female so these should be smaller shouldn't they?

This sound kinda weird but in our breed there are some huge dogs and some very small dogs, it depends on what kennel they come from and what the that particular judge likes on the day if the judge likes smaller dogs then only the smaller dogs will be entered and vice versa, well thats in my breed anyway. It also depends on fashion some years certain colours/ sizes do well but the next year it could be the other way round.

I think it also depends on the breed, as pet mastiff breeds tend to be smaller than their show cousins.

Thanks, we didn't see the ones in the show ring just ones walking around (we only saw a few) and the ones at dd (who were female). We did see some size extremes in a few breeds so I know what you mean

>I have also just realised that the ones we saw today were female so these should be smaller shouldn't they?

Yes, bitches are generally smaller than dogs.

I was showing and observing cavaliers at Crufts this year and apart from one or two oversized ones, they were all the correct size,
they are Toy dogs and should be small and pick upable.
Many people who have cavaliers obtained them from 'breeders' who disregard the standard and actively seek out larger cavaliers to get larger litters. Puppy farmers are notorious for introducing other spaniel breeds to get the litter size more profitable, welsh springer being a favourite I believe.

By the way....all my show dogs are my pets...just good looking ones :-)

> I was showing and observing cavaliers at Crufts this year and apart from one or two oversized ones, they were all the correct size,
> they are Toy dogs and should be small and pick upable.
> Many people who have cavaliers obtained them from 'breeders' who disregard the standard and actively seek out larger cavaliers to get larger litters. Puppy farmers are notorious for introducing other spaniel breeds to get the litter size more profitable, welsh springer being a favourite I believe.
>
> By the way....all my show dogs are my pets...just good looking ones :-)

Unfortunately we missed the Cavaliers in the show ring as we got a bit lost and being our first time we didn't follow all the show schedules so we only saw the ones at dd and a few walking around. I can assure you that our "breeder" is well known in the show ring and has certainly never introduced any other breeds to her breeding programme :-o , when I measured our boys one is the top of the breed standard and the other is either there or 1 inch over so in terms of weight they would be heavier than the smaller ones we saw or they would look like greyhounds where they would be so out of proportion. Our breeder did ask whether we wanted to show and our answer at that time was no because we couldn't commit to the time involved so she picked the boys for us so it may well be that she picked the larger ones knowing they would propably be at the end os the scale as the rest of the litter went to show homes in the UK and abroad. I can pick my dogs up but to be honest I wouldn't want to I see far too many people carrying their dogs like they are a doll and they have legs so imo should use them lol.

I'm sure your dogs are beautiful (in fact I have yet to see a cavalier that I didn't think was) and I have to admit to liking the petite sizes we saw and in future I may want to get into showing so it would be important for me to go to shows and see the sizes lines etc so that I knew what I was looking for. How do I find out who won in the Cavaliers?

>How do I find out who won in the Cavaliers?

Here you go. :-)

Thank you :-)

> I think it also depends on the breed, as pet mastiff breeds tend to be smaller than their show cousins.

I think that is to do with the fact that size is desirable in breed (as long as it doesn't comprimise quality & soundness) - they are meant to be big :)

When I saw cockers at Crufts I knew I had a elephant they were lovely but Whistler was bigger, longer and taller. So a show cocker onbly by coat and description but a huge one by birth and breeding.

> When I saw cockers at Crufts I knew I had a elephant they were lovely but Whistler was bigger, longer and taller. So a show cocker onbly by coat and description but a huge one by birth and breeding.

Its funny though because the vet made me so worried about how small my youngest was and it turns out he is a donkey lol

Many people who have cavaliers obtained them from 'breeders' who disregard the standard and actively seek out larger cavaliers to get larger litters. Puppy farmers are notorious for introducing other spaniel breeds to get the litter size more profitable, welsh springer being a favourite I believe.


When I lived in a built up area with lost of dogs walkers, back when I had 4 Cavaliers, other Cavalier owners would often stop me and say they wish they had MINIATURE Cavaliers like mine! I had 2 bitches and 2 dogs and none were particularly small, especially not the dogs. Just normal size. But I did wonder if elephant had been crossed into some of the ones we saw on our walks. ;)

The border collies of the show world are generally a lot shorter and squatter than the border collies of my world!

One of my labs has shorter legs and she has a beautiful head and is stocky, she is from show stock and very pretty indeed,however my other lab has longer legs her parents are shown in the summer but work in the winter she is very true to type.

Sheila.

Ditto our ISDS male Jake is a biggun as well, but with a 6'5" and 6'3" sons all in proportion with the rest of the family

Theres a huge cavalier and also a rather oversized border terrier that I see regularly on our walks to the local wood. I did a double take when I first saw them! :-O

Like all breeds cavalier exercise should be in small doses as they are growing.  How ever most puppies brought as pets are allowed to run and run and run, which in my experience makes them grow rapidly in the leg producing taller cavaliers.

Does early neutering have an effect? I seem to remember reading something about how dogs castrated before 6 months can grow taller, something to do with the normal puberty hormones closing the growth plates, which doesn't happen if castrated before puberty.

> How ever most puppies brought as pets are allowed to run and run and run, which in my experience makes them grow rapidly in the leg producing taller cavaliers

I'm not sure there is any real evidence for this. I give mine as much free running as they want as adults and only restrict puppy exercise to avoid exhaustion. None are anything but small and compact little people. Their littermates, sold to others, have had varying amounts of exercise including one who belongs to a friend who does working trials with her GSDs and the cav runs miles with them. When old enough she started agility but still looks just like the bitch I kept - small and compact- they all have remained that way.

Although not possible to prove either way, I feel this anecdotal theory doesn't hold water.
Other than improper diet or tampering with growth hormone, its genetically pre-decided how tall a dog will be.

We were very careful with exercise as they were growing and neither are neutured and to the best of my ability we have always given them a good diet........
There are a couple of littermates from my youngest who have done really well in shows so its not like they were bred by a puppy farmer or mixed with any other breed. I think like many others have said sometimes you get a range of sizes and the fact we were very clear about "pet only" will have had a part to play plus one of them was within the height range and the other was only an inch (if that) over. To me they are my beautiful perfect boys who are part of our family but it is something to be aware of should we ever want to get into showing. :-)