First let me say there are no rare colors in Cockers! Buffs and Blacks are seen more than merles, sables and roans, but that does not make them rare. When a puppy is marked "rare" you can almost always see the breeder trying to get a higher price. Our solid puppies are just as special as any other variety and are usually the first to find homes! We do raise cockers in a variety of colors, but temperment and health come first! Every color, pattern and markings will not be listed, and all pictures are past puppies of ours!
This page is a work in progress!
Black Variety- Solid black and black and tans ASCOB stands for Any Solid Color Other than Black- Any shade of buff all the way to red, browns and brown and tans. Parti Color Variety- These cockers have two or more solid, well-broken colors, one of which must be white. The other color can be any of the colors found in solid-color dogs. The white must cover at least 10 percent of the body. Parti-colored dogs with tan points are often referred to as tri-color dogs. Roans are also included.
Black
Black Cocker spaniels have shiny, jet black coats, with no hint of brown. In order to be shown AKC only allows a small amount of white on the chest and/or throat.
BlACK AND wHITE
A Black and white parti is a parti cocker that is only black and white.
Black and Tan
Black and Tans are solid black with tan points. The tan markings are located on the sides of the muzzle and cheeks, inside of the ears, over each eye (eyebrows) on the legs, feet and under the tail.
Black and White Tri
A Black and white Tri is a black and white parti with tan points.
Buff
Red and White
Buff is the most common color in cocker spaniels. It ranges from lightest cream to darkest red.
A red and white parti is the darkest of the buff variety. Just like solid buffs, the parti version can come in the lightest cream to dark red.
Brown
Brown is solid brown and often referred to as Chocolate.
Brown and white tri
A Brown and White Tri is a brown and white parti with tan points.
Brown and Tan
Brown and Tans are solid brown with tan points.
Brown and White
Brown and whites are parti's that are only brown and white.
Merle Cocker Spaniels
Merles come in every solid and parti color and it's actually not a color but a pattern. Merle is the results of a gene that causes a dilution in the coloring of their fur. This makes the color lighter than it normally would be. It only lightens patches of the coat, and can dilute the eyes as well. Not all merles have blue eyes, but it can cause solid blue eyes, flecks of blue or one blue eye and one brown or green eye. The gene was once decribed to me as taking a solid dog and throwing bleach on it. Where the bleach lands (merle gene, dont bleach your dog) the color dilutes and causes a random color. Merle is common in many other breeds and just like in those breeds, a merle should never be bred to another merle. This can, and often does, cause the puppies to be born dead, deaf or blind. When bred to any other color there are no merle health issues. .
Brown and Tan parti merle
In this picture you can see how the merle lightens the coat. He would be as dark as the brown and tan parti above if he wasn't merle.
Blue Merle
A blue merle is a black cocker with the merle pattern.