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About the King Charles Spaniel

Origin: Great Britain
Typical life span
10-12 years
Size
Small — from its typical weight
Weight
3.6-6.3 kg
Height
23-28 cm
FCI status
Recognised by FCI
FCI group
Companion and Toy Dogs
Origin
Great Britain
Known hereditary risks
Not researched yet

About

What is a King Charles Spaniel?

Small, compact toy spaniel with distinctive domed head, flat face, short nose, large dark eyes, long ears, and silky coat available in four color varieties (Blenheim, Tricolour, Ruby, and Black and Tan). Known as the English Toy Spaniel in the USA.

King Charles Spaniel history and origins

Descended from toy spaniels popular with European nobility since the 16th century, famously associated with King Charles II who favored companion spaniels. Modern flat-faced appearance developed through crossings with short-nosed Asian toy breeds in the 18th-19th centuries. The four color varieties were once considered separate breeds.

King Charles Spaniel appearance and size

Typically 3.6-6.3 kg and 23-28 cm at the shoulder — published as one range rather than separately for males and females.

What the breed standard says

Bred for
Companion and Toy Dog
Behaviour and temperament
“Happy, intelligent, toy spaniel, with distinctive domed head. Reserved, gentle and affectionate”

Quoted from FCI standard n°128. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.

Breed reference from The Dog API.

Characteristics

Size
Small
Exercise needs
2 of 5
Easy to train
—
Amount of shedding
—
Grooming needs
4 of 5
Good with children
—
Cost to keep
—
Tolerates being alone
—
Intelligence
—
Health of breed
Not researched yet

Pros & cons

Pros & cons for the King Charles Spaniel

What you get with the King Charles Spaniel

  • Purpose stated in the standard: “Companion and Toy Dog”
  • The standard describes the breed as: “Happy, intelligent, toy spaniel, with distinctive domed head. Reserved, gentle and affectionate”

What you are taking on

  • High grooming needs — the standard’s own description is “Long, silky and straight, slight wave allowed, never curly.”

Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FCI breed standard. One breeder’s animals can differ from any of it, and an empty column means we hold nothing for that side rather than that there is nothing to say.

Characteristics

FCI standard · King Charles Spaniel

Coat and colour

As the FCI standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording, tagged undesirable.

Coat

Legs, ears and tail profusely feathered

  • Long
  • Silky and straight
  • Slight wave allowed
  • Never curly

Colour

  • Preferred
  • Permissible
  • Undesirable
  • Disqualifying

Preferred, permissible, undesirable and disqualifying are FCI’s own words about the breed. They describe what the standard asks for — not an assessment of any individual dog, and not ours.

• Black and Tan

  • Rich glossy black, with bright mahogany-tan markings on muzzle, legs, chest, linings of ears, under tail and spots over eyes.
  • Undesirable: White patch on chest. • Tricolour: Ground pearly white, with well distributed black patches, brilliant tan markings on cheeks, linings of ears, under tail and spots over eyes
  • Wide white blaze between eyes and up forehead. • Blenheim: Ground pearly white, with well distributed chestnut- red patches.
  • Wide, clear blaze with the “spot” in centre of skull should be a clear chestnut red mark about the size of a penny. • Ruby: Whole coloured, rich chestnut red.
  • Undesirable: White patch on chest highly

Shortened from FCI standard n°128 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.

FCI varieties

FCI divides the King Charles Spaniel into these varieties, listed in the registry's own words. Depending on the breed they separate colour, coat, size or line — they are not a full list of colours, which no registry we hold publishes. Ask a breeder which variety their line is.

  • BLACK AND TAN
  • RUBY
  • BLENHEIM
  • TRICOLOUR

Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the King Charles Spaniel in general; any individual animal can differ.

Health guide

What to ask for in a King Charles Spaniel

No breed-specific health panel has been written up for the King Charles Spaniel on this platform yet. That is a gap in our records, not a clean bill of health — ask the breeder which hereditary conditions their lines are tested for, and ask to see the results for both parents, dated and from a named laboratory.

Gallery

No photographs yet

This is where King Charles Spaniel owners’ own photographs will go, from the pet profiles they keep here. Nobody has added one to a public page yet.

A photograph in a pet profile stays private to its owner. We will not put one here unless they ask us to.

Puppies

No puppies listed right now

No King Charles Spaniel breeder has a record on this platform yet, so there is nothing to list. That is a gap in our coverage, not a fact about the breed.

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