Clumber Spaniel

Calm and steady; often carries things in its mouth.
A Clumber Spaniel
Photo: Canarian
Adult male
29.5–34 kg
65–75 lb
Adult female
25–29.5 kg
55–65 lb
Lifespan
12.3 yrs
Handler demand
Suits a first-time owner
Class · Companion
also Field

What it's like

In temperament the Clumber is calm, affectionate and steady, often reserved with strangers but rarely sharp. It has a reputation for a sense of humour and for carrying objects in its mouth. The Kennel Club's standard prefers lemon markings over orange, and the breed appears on the Kennel Club's list of vulnerable native breeds owing to low registrations.

Day to day
Activity
A good daily walk and play
Intelligence
Easy-going, simple routines
Handler demand
Suits a first-time owner
With people
Affection
Affectionate on its own terms
Loyalty
Bonded to its family
Independence
Cooperative, with its own ideas
Around the home
Sensitivity
Average
Voice
Quiet
Prey drive
Chases; needs managing
Breed explains only about 9% of how individual dogs differ in behaviour1. Meet the dog. A good breeder breeds for temperament as well as health, and matches each puppy's personality to the right home2,3.
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Living with one

It has a coat with feathering. It sheds through the year rather than in big seasonal moults. Plan on brushing a few times a week. It needs plenty of exercise compared with other breeds.

Size and growth

A Clumber Spaniel is a large dog, about the weight of a grown Golden Retriever. Males end up clearly heavier than females.

The head is large and square, with a heavy brow, deep-set amber eyes and a broad muzzle. The coat is dense, straight and silky, mainly white with lemon or orange markings, usually on the head and ears, and feathering on the legs. Its gait has a distinctive gentle roll.

Puppy growth

Reference curve · community data appears as owners log
By about 5 months, a male Clumber Spaniel puppy is already as heavy as a grown Border Collie. They grow fastest between 3 and 4 months old. The biggest males grow into the size large-breed puppy foods are made for.
Fully grown
12 mo
Both sexes, at 99% of adult weight7
Male
Female
Shaded: expected range
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Age
Male
Female
2 months
6.2–7.1 kg 13.7–15.7 lb
6.0–7.1 kg 13.2–15.7 lb
3 months
9.3–10.7 kg 20.5–23.6 lb
8.5–10.1 kg 18.7–22.3 lb
4 months
13.8–15.9 kg 30.4–35.1 lb
12.2–14.4 kg 26.9–31.7 lb
5 months
17.7–20.4 kg 39.0–45.0 lb
15.4–18.2 kg 34.0–40.1 lb
6 months
21.1–24.3 kg 46.5–53.6 lb
18.1–21.3 kg 39.9–47.0 lb
7 months
23.8–27.4 kg 52.5–60.4 lb
20.0–23.6 kg 44.1–52.0 lb
8 months
25.8–29.7 kg 56.9–65.5 lb
21.4–25.2 kg 47.2–55.6 lb
9 months
27.1–31.2 kg 59.7–68.8 lb
22.4–26.4 kg 49.4–58.2 lb
10 months
27.9–32.2 kg 61.5–71.0 lb
23.1–27.2 kg 50.9–60.0 lb
11 months
28.4–32.7 kg 62.6–72.1 lb
23.6–27.8 kg 52.0–61.3 lb
12 months
28.7–33.1 kg 63.3–73.0 lb
23.9–28.2 kg 52.7–62.2 lb
15 months
29.2–33.6 kg 64.4–74.1 lb
24.7–29.1 kg 54.5–64.2 lb

Health and lifespan

In UK vet records, inward-rolling eyelid turns up more often in Clumber Spaniels than in crossbreeds: it is far more likely. It is not rated serious. These are figures for the breed as a whole, not a prediction for your dog.
Listed by likelihood level, highest first, then by how serious it is, then by name.
  • Inward-rolling eyelid
    Far more likely
    Impact: moderate

Lifespan

In UK vet records, the typical Clumber Spaniel lived to about 12 and a half years, about average for a large breed.

Where it comes from

The Clumber Spaniel is named for Clumber Park, the Nottinghamshire seat of the Dukes of Newcastle. The 2nd Duke is credited with bringing the breed to Britain late in the 18th century, reportedly from dogs given to him by his French friend the Duke of Noailles. It was used to push game out of dense cover, working more slowly than other spaniels, and George V kept a team at Sandringham4,10.

The Clumber Spaniel moved from the kennels of the great estates to the show ring in the nineteenth century, appearing at some of the early British dog shows. It also attracted royal interest: Prince Albert and his son, later King Edward, both kept the breed, the latter at Sandringham. In America it was among the first breeds recognised by the American Kennel Club in the eighteen-eighties. Bred to work steadily through thick undergrowth, flushing birds and retrieving them for the gun, the Clumber is long and low, with heavy bone and a broad, deep chest.

Breed standard

The Clumber Spaniel is judged against standard no. 109, in group 8, Retrievers, Flushing Dogs and Water Dogs4.

Questions people ask

General guidance for dogs rather than a measured Clumber Spaniel figure: most females have a first season somewhere between six and fifteen months, and cycles then settle to roughly every 180 days. Smaller breeds tend to start earlier and larger ones later, so a large breed is most likely at the later end.

Compare with related

Sussex Spaniel
Retrievers & water dogs · Medium
English Springer Spaniel
Retrievers & water dogs · Medium
English Cocker Spaniel
Retrievers & water dogs · Medium
Golden Retriever
Retrievers & water dogs · Large
Or compare the Clumber Spaniel with any breed you choose
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Sources

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Parts of this page were written by AI ·