A Visitor asked the following question on 3/4/2005
My girlfriend and children are moving into my home,they have cocker spaniel that is mainly a house dog only goes out to do her thing.The dog is 3yrs old,I like dogs but not in the house,I live in Southwestern Ontario so the weather gets pretty cold at times.If I build an insulated dog house with somekind of heat in the house will the dog be alright to stay outdoors?
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5/10/05
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Hello,
The Cocker Spaniel breed is very people-oriented and NEEDS human contact. A Cocker will become unsocialized and possibly develop temperament issues if left outdoors without interaction with people or sights/sounds outside of their yard, without opportunity to go for car rides to new places with the family. Also, the profuse coat of the Cocker can become matted and entangled with twigs, leaves, debris if left long....not to mention if the animal gets rained on with a matted coat, it will not dry thoroughly down to the skin and this leads to more skin problems -- unhealthy ones. Mats that are not removed on a regular basis become tighter and pull the skin. A dog's skin will only stretch so much then it tears open. Of course the other alternative is to shave the dog very short, but it cannot stay outside 24/7 shaved down. In essence, this is not a breed to leave outdoors. A schedule of keeping the dog indoors and taking it outside for potty breaks or some playtime wit
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Debbie
Ky-Ann Cockers
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