About Cockers
Working Cocker Spaniels are registered with The Kennel Club as English Cocker Spaniels. HOWEVER... they do not conform to the breed standard which is required for the show type cocker - the type most commonly shown in books about Cocker Spaniels. One book which contains photographs and text about both show and working types within the same pages without being detrimental to either is called "Cocker Spaniel" edited by Derek Shapland and is part of a Best of Breed series published by the Pet Book Publishing Company.
Working strain cockers are bred for their intelligence and ability in the field. As a result, individual dogs can vary greatly in size, shape and colour. The solid liver and liver/tan colours are more prevalent in the working strain. As a very general rule, working cockers tend to have squarer heads, longer backs and shorter fur than show cockers (in some respects looking more like Springers.) They also tend to be quieter and bark less.
Working cocker spaniels are intelligent, sensitive, determined, energetic and can be very hard work. They are NOT easier to look after than Springers just because they are smaller. If anything this just makes their spaniel essence more concentrated! They need firm but gentle handing and clear boundaries. Please do not consider a working cocker as a pet just because you like the colour. If, however, you are prepared to dedicate yourself to several years of training and hard work you will be rewarded by a loyal, quiet, obedient and beautiful companian of whom you can be proud.
If you have acquired a cocker but are unsure if it is show or working type, take a look at the pedigree. If it contains the titles FTW or FTCH within it then the puppy's ancestors are from working stock. There are also several key names which will reappear throughout. Look on the working cockers at stud pages of a reputable gundog site for examples of this. I highly recommend that you buy your working cocker puppy from a specialised gundog website rather than a generic puppy/dog web site.