Can anyone tell me what they are like in a family environment? Are they too high energy? Do they get on well with children if properly socialised from day 1? I want to find out as much as possible about them. Thanks very much

Suitability as a pet really depends on the dog and the lines it comes from. A dog bred out of real field trial lines is not likely to make a good pet as it will have been bred to be very high drive, they can be real 'rocket dogs', very hard hunting and driven. I have yet to meet a working Cocker who is not really at their happiest when they are working; some dogs from lines bred as shooting companions/roughshooting dogs can make good pets in the right circumstances but they are with few exceptions very active dogs and they need a lot of physical and mental stimulation. An awful lot of young working Cockers are ending up in rescue because people find that they can't cope with the dog once the adolescent period arrives and/or its hunting drive really kicks in. Personally I'm not keen on them being bred purely for the pet market, they are (or should be) working dogs and this kind of breeding is doing nothing to enhance the strain either ability or quality wise.

As regards children like most dogs if they're well bred and properly socialised from the get-go and the kids are equally dog savvy then there shouldn't be any problems.

My friend has a 6mnth bitch pup, the breeder works all her dogs, I think the sire (who she owns also) does very well in trials. The puppy has been a joy from day one, she's clean and she's so obedient already her recall is very good. She has two daughters 13 & 9yrs and the dog has been wonderful with them. She has also been crated from day 1 and is left for 3hrs each morning but has seemed fine.My friend has taken her everywhere with her, she is a very friendly girl who loves every dog she meets. I was concerned when she told me she was getting the working strain as I thought it would be too busy for family life but my friend understands that she need extra stimulation and she has lovely walks and play every day. I have to say from never being a spaniel fan she has turned me right round to the point as i'm looking for a second dog who would fit in our lives I'm considering looking at this breed of dog for us. My friend has never regretted getting her and was only saying the other day how she loves her so much !!

I have two working cockers and would also say that it very much depends on the individual dog.  Our younger dog is a dynamo, sired by a previous cocker champion and is designed to work all day.  He was sold to us on the understanding that he would be a working dog.  We do have him in the house but - to be honest - the first year was a nightmare, though at 18-months he is calming down.  He was virtually untrainable as a working dog until he was about a year old because he was so exuberant and had such a short concentration span - it was quite a difficult first year and I was often in tears thinking he would never calm down and that he had some canine version of ADHD. But he is doing very well with his training now, it's just a matter of patience and perseverence. We also had some idea of how much damage a spaniel puppy could do to the house as he wasn't our first, so we used crates and playpens to keep him and our furniture out of harm's way.  Our older dog is completely different - in fact, she can be quite lazy.  She's not a working dog.  She does love going for walks and will happily spend a day hill-walking for 30 miles with my OH, but the rest of the time two 45-min walks a day will result in her spending the rest of the day sleeping on the sofa. She's extremely affectionate and likes nothing more that cuddling up with people. Whatever the energy level of the individual dog, he will need two good walks a day or else he will be bouncing off the walls.

Both of my dogs adore children, though we don't have any ourselves (when both were puppies the local children were always coming round to the house to play with them). They did both go through terrible stages of playbiting at around 5-7 months and I was black and blue - you would have to manage that phase carefully, particularly if you have younger children.  They are extremely intelligent and, even if you didn't use them for the job which they are designed, it would be good to do some kind of activity with them, perhaps agility.  They have quite sensitive natures and don't respond well to tellings-off - they tend to sulk or go away and hide if you shout at them.  But they respond very well to praise and bribery.   Their coats are quite low maintenance, though they do spend a lot of time charging through hedges and often reappear with burrs and brambles attached.

Up until 6 months or so is usually the easy stage of having a young working Cocker, I would expect most pups of that age to have good recall etc. as they're still just a baby.

I got a working cocker after having flatcoats for lots of years, it was a good follow on, almost makes F/c's 'boring' if you know what I mean. 
I had always liked the character of w/c's but still say they are not for town life, they need to have space and you do need to have control. 

I work my dogs and put the work into my bitch early. she is good. ex recall. stops on the whstle.  I also do clicker work with her, I can hardly keep up with her, but remind myself this is why I got her, because I like the perosnality.
when I come back I want to come back as a w/c! so happy, after a two hour walk they say, ok where to now.

> after a two hour walk they say, ok where to now.

exactly what the vast majority of Pet owners don't want, LOL

I want to find out as much as possible about them. Thanks very much

Yipeee........ so glad that you are asking before you get one (I like you :-) ) as opposed to afterwards which is what generally happens.

We've had many, many Working and Show Cockers in our family, granted our WC's have always worked apart from the last 3 that my mother has had which have been purely pets, I say purely, but they are exercised and stimulated much more than the Show Cockers. They can easily do 2-3 hours a day. The Working Cockers we have had have always had the most beautiful temparements, been very easy to train, are both dog and people friendly and brilliant with children, they are fabulous dogs and in the home are laid back, friendly, couch potatoes just like the other dogs.

However, any dog can be a wonderful 'pet' as long as it's needs are met, if you don't live somewhere where you can give this strain lots of exercise (as an adult) with plenty of mental stimulation, do not get one, because this lovely placid breed if given what it needs is a pleasure to own, but if it isn't it can become restless and aggitated which can come out in many ways.

Anything from a working background needs more exercise and stimulation than a show pet, so it will need more time and effort on your part.

If you can give that then I certainly can tell you they are fab dogs with great temperaments (go to a breeder who knows the breed well, gundog sites would probably be better suited for a good breeder) if you can not offer this strain what it requires to stay happy, please don't get one, don't make a good dog miserable in the wrong type of home and go for a Show Cocker or a Cav instead. :-)