The English Water Spaniel is a breed of

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. ...

that has been

extinct Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

since the first part of the 20th century, with the last specimen seen in the 1930s. It was best known for its use in hunting

waterfowl Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which i ...

and for being able to dive as well as a duck. It is described as similar to a

Collie Collies form a distinctive type of herding dogs, including many related landraces and standardized breeds. The type originated in Scotland and Northern England. Collies are medium-sized, fairly lightly-built dogs, with pointed snouts. Many type ...

or to a cross between a

Poodle The Poodle, called the in German () and the in French, is a breed of water dog. The breed is divided into four varieties based on size, the Standard Poodle, Medium Poodle, Miniature Poodle and Toy Poodle, although the Medium Poodle is no ...

and a Springer Spaniel with curly fur and typically in a white and liver/tan pattern. Pre-dating the

Irish Water Spaniel The Irish Water Spaniel (Irish: ''An Spáinnéar Uisce'') is a breed of dog that is the tallest of the spaniels. Description Appearance The Irish Water Spaniel is a sturdy, cobby dog native to Ireland. The coat, consisting of dense curls, ...

and thought to have been referred to by

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

in ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

'', it is believed to have genetically influenced several modern breeds of dog, including the

American Water Spaniel The American Water Spaniel (often abbreviated to AWS) is a breed of spaniel which originated in the United States. It was developed in the state of Wisconsin during the 19th century from a number of other breeds, including the Irish and Engli ...

Curly Coated Retriever The Curly-coated Retriever (not always hyphenated, and often called the Curly for short) is a breed of dog originally bred in England for upland bird and waterfowl hunting. It is the tallest of the retrievers and is easily distinguishable by ...

and the modern variety of Field Spaniel. It is unknown if the breed was involved in the creation of the Irish Water Spaniel.

History

In 1565,

Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (1546 – 10 February 1567) was King of Scotland as the second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, from 29 July 1565 until his murder in 1567. Lord Darnley had one child with Mary, the future James VI of Scotland and I ...

, the husband of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...

, was a given a Water Spaniel by

James Melville of Halhill Sir James Melville (1535–1617) was a Scottish diplomat and memoir writer, and father of the poet Elizabeth Melville. Life Melville was the third son of Sir John Melville, laird of Raith, in the county of Fife, who was executed for treason ...

. The dog had been brought to Scotland by an English merchant. In 1570, Dr

John Caius John Caius (born John Kays ; 6 October 1510 – 29 July 1573), also known as Johannes Caius and Ioannes Caius, was an English physician, and second founder of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. Scholar and physician to Edward VI and Mary I ...

described the Water Spaniel. It has been suggested that

also knew the breed "for he mentions the 'water rug' in ''

''. " Furthermore, Shakespeare specifically mentions the breed in Act III Scene 1 of ''

The Two Gentlemen of Verona ''The Two Gentlemen of Verona'' is a Shakespearean comedy, comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1589 and 1593. It is considered by some to be Shakespeare's first play, and is often seen as showing his first ten ...

'' when Launce says of his love, "She hath more qualities than a water-spaniel." WaterSpagnel1

The breed is mentioned specifically by name as early as 1802, in ''Sportsman's Cabinet'', where it is described as having "hair long and naturally curled, not loose and shaggy"; the description accompanied an engraving of a liver and white curly-coated

spaniel A spaniel is a Dog type, type of gun dog. Spaniels were especially bred to flush game out of denser brush. By the late 17th century, spaniels had been specialized into water and land breeds. The extinct English Water Spaniel was used to retriev ...

. This shows that they pre-date the

which was not developed as a breed until the 1830s. Unfortunately as the person credited with developing the Irish Water Spaniel, Justin McCarthy, left no written records, it is unknown if the English Water Spaniel was involved in its development. During the first half of the 18th century, the English Water Spaniel was used for

duck hunting Waterfowl hunting is the practice of hunting aquatic birds such as ducks, geese and other waterfowls or shorebirds for sport and meat. Waterfowl are hunted in crop fields where they feed, or in areas with bodies of water such as rivers, lakes ...

East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...

. The Kennel Club initially had a class for "Water spaniels other than Irish" as no standard was specifically set up for the English Water Spaniel and the judging of this class was described as "chaos" by Hugh Dalziel in ''British Dogs: Their Varieties, History, Characteristics, Breeding, Management, And Exhibition''. Writing in 1897, Dalziel said of the breed, "I do not believe the breed is lost, but that scattered throughout the country there are many specimens of the old English water spaniel, which it only requires that amount of encouragement to breeding which it is in the power of show committees to give to perpetuate the variety and improve its form." Dalziel bemoaned the fact that while the Irish Water Spaniel continued, the English Water Spaniel was allowed to quietly be absorbed into other Spaniel breeds. Reinagle Water Spaniel

The stud book of the Kennel Club also had a class for "Water spaniels other than Irish", however only fourteen dogs were registered in the twelve years up to 1903. This led some writers and judges of that time to believe that the English Water Spaniel was merely a cross of the Irish Water Spaniel as entrants in dogs shows in that same class do not match the description of the dog from earlier periods. Dogs awarded prizes as Water Spaniels during this period have been described as having "coats as flat as a Clumber, but with a bit of longish hair about the top of the skull." Writing in 1967, author John F. Gordon stated, "After two centuries of breeding it is now extinct. None have been seen for over thirty years." Descendant breeds of the English Water Spaniel are thought to include the

, which was also developed using additional stock from the Irish Water Spaniel and the

Flat Coated Retriever The Flat-coated Retriever is a gun dog breed originating from England. It was developed as a retriever both on land and in the water. Description Appearance The Flat-Coated Retriever breed standard calls for males to be tall at the withers, ...

breeds. The

is considered to have descended from the

, the retrieving setter, the

St. John's water dog The St. John's water dog, also known as the St. John's dog or the lesser Newfoundland, is an extinct landrace of domestic dog from Newfoundland. Little is known of the types that went into its genetic makeup, although it was probably a random ...

and the English Water Spaniel. Records for the origin of the modern Field Spaniel are more precise and show that one of the four progenitor dogs used in creating the breed was an English Water Spaniel-

Cocker Spaniel Cocker Spaniels are dogs belonging to two breeds of the spaniel dog type: the American Cocker Spaniel and the English Cocker Spaniel, both of which are commonly called simply Cocker Spaniel in their countries of origin. In the early 20th century, ...

cross A cross is a religious symbol consisting of two Intersection (set theory), intersecting Line (geometry), lines, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of t ...

which was registered at the time as a

Sussex Spaniel The Sussex Spaniel is a Dog breed, breed of dog native to Sussex in southern England. It is a low, compact spaniel and is as old a breed as and similar in appearance to the Clumber Spaniel. They can be slow-paced, but can have a clownish and ene ...

due to his liver colour.

Appearance

Very unlike the

in appearance, the English Water Spaniel more closely resembled a curly-haired version of the Springer Spaniel, with some traits of the

poodle The Poodle, called the in German () and the in French, is a breed of water dog. The breed is divided into four varieties based on size, the Standard Poodle, Medium Poodle, Miniature Poodle and Toy Poodle, although the Medium Poodle is no ...

, and

setter The setter is a type of gundog used most often for hunting game such as quail, pheasant, and grouse. In the UK, the four setter breeds, together with the pointers, usually form a subgroup within the gundog group as they share a common fun ...

. The white and liver (tan) dog stood about tall and looked like a typical, lean, long-legged

with long ears and tail, a white underbelly, and a brown back, except that it had the coat of a

water dog A water dog is a type of gundog bred to flush and retrieve game from water. Water dogs are considered the progenitors of most modern retriever dog breeds. Description Water dogs are usually medium-sized, active dogs; their most distinctive f ...

. The English Water Spaniel was described as having a long and narrow head, with small eyes and ears that were long and covered in thick curls of fur. The body was moderately stout and barrel shaped, but not as much as that of the Field Spaniel. Its legs were long and straight with large feet. The dog varied in size with the larger varieties known as "Water Dogs" and the smaller as "Water Spaniels". Due to the English Water Spaniel's colours of liver (tan) and white, it has been suggested that the breed may have been the source of the colours now found in the modern

English Springer Spaniel The English Springer Spaniel is a breed of gun dog in the Spaniel group traditionally used for flushing and retrieving game. They are descended from the Norfolk or Shropshire Spaniels of the mid-19th century; the breed has diverged into sepa ...

and

Welsh Springer Spaniel The Welsh Springer Spaniel (''Welsh'': ''Llamgi Cymru'' or ''Tarfgi Cymru'') is a dog breed, breed of dog and a member of the spaniel family. Thought to be comparable to the old Land Spaniel, they are similar to the English Springer Spaniel a ...

breeds.

Hunting

Paintings by Henry Bernard Chalon and

Ramsay Richard Reinagle Ramsay Richard Reinagle (19 March 1775 – 17 November 1862) was an English portrait, landscape, and animal painter, and son of Philip Reinagle. Biography Ramsay Richard Reinagle was a pupil of his father Philip Reinagle, whose style he fol ...

both show English Water Spaniels working with their masters hunting ducks. An engraving by

Henry Thomas Alken Henry Thomas Alken (12 October 1785 – 7 April 1851) was an England, English painter and engraver chiefly known as a caricaturist and illustrator of sporting subjects and coaching scenes.R. R. TatlockHenry Alken(The Burlington Magazine for Conn ...

Snr. shows a slightly different looking English Water Spaniel, but also reinforces its area of work by again showing it while duck hunting. In ''The Sportsman's Repository'' (1820), the author advises that if an individual wishes to hunt ducks or any other type of waterfowl, then the hunter had best use an English Water Spaniel. The breed is described as swimming and diving as well as the ducks themselves; and they are intelligent enough to avoid being lured away from the nesting places. The author described the best variety of the breed to be those with long ears whose coat was white under the belly and around the neck but brown on the back.

References

{{good article Extinct dog breeds Dog breeds originating in England Extinct animals in the United Kingdom Water dogs