I wouldn't think a show cocker would do well in the field, but they are a spaniel so I couldn't see why not. Apart from many of the Spaniels and Retrievers, most other breeds don't have a clear cut between show and working. A lot of working breeds are smaller IME.
I used to be heavily involved in a shoot and one of the guns and pickers up had a couple of show cockers. He had just started shooting and decided to bring his dogs along. Mmmm, didn't do a particularly good job. He soon got a working cocker. If you are wanting a dog to work, you may as well start off with a dog that has a working instinct. Jmo Helen
During my research into Working Cockers, I came to the conclusion that Show ones can work but they do not have the high drive that working ones do, so if you wanted one for fun then yes they'll kinda do the job but if you want to properly work it in the field than a show will not be up to it
I was puzzled by this question so asked on a gundog forum I am on and found out that in France, their working cockers have little difference to what our Show Cockers are and it would seem there is no clear cut, like there is here. This is a link I copied and these are Working Cockers.. http://terresfroides.chiens-de-france.com/site_eleveur/index.php?ID_ELEVEUR=5954&ID_SITE=6728
The show cockers I know have totally different drive to the working ones I have met Basically the show ones love to sniff and run about but (in general) dont have the same handler focus - the desire to work WITH you I guess they could be trained but what I have seen there is a very big difference between them here
Working Cocker kennels? They could work in the field, of course pretty much any dog can be trained to do a job, the question is would they be any good?
I'm sure there are show-bred cockers out there as well as cockers bred purely for the pet market who could be trained to do not range too far; to stop on a whistle; to flush, mark and retrieve.... I am sure a small percentage would be very good, but in most cases, it would be in spite of the way they had been bred, as opposed to because of it. I know there are some dual prupose cocker breeders in the UK, but I guess even withing the working world, people's expectations of what a cocker can do vary so much anyway, in terms of the terrain you want to work; the length of time you want the dog to work; how rangey you want the dog to be and whether you want to retireve with it or not. If I wanted a cocker to work, I woudn't just look at working lines; I would look at the type of work those lines do and the consistency in what the kennel produces. It's difficult enough to produce a specific type of working animal even for the working lines breeders, so adding the additinal criteria of sticking to the current show type too would make it even harder (I think!)
It is like a lot of things. There is a difference between PARTICIPATING in a discipline/hobby and COMPETING in it. So, if you wanted to go out and have some fun with a dog of any breed and background there is nothing to stop you. If you wanted to make your dog up to a FT Ch, then it might not be fair on the dog as you would spend a great deal of time being frustrated and disappointed.
