Again, a heart murmur is an early sign but doesn’t mean the pup has MVD. Over 50% of Cavaliers will have a heart murmur by 5 and 100% of them will have one by age 10. Annual check-ups with your vet to check for heart murmurs are necessary. A cavalier can live their entire lives with a heart murmur but it is the first sign. The first signs of MVD is a heart murmur. Mitral Valve Disease is a disorder of the heart where the mitral valve doesn’t close properly when the heart pumps out blood. 12.3% of Cavaliers die of cancer and 12.2% die of old age. It is by far the number one cause of death in the disease causing death in 42.8% of Cavaliers. As a result of this called “founder effect” nearly 100% of Cavalier’s suffer from mitral valve disease. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is ranked as the 18th most popular pure-breed in the US.īecause of WWII, all Cavalier’s come from the same 6 Cavalier’s that survived the war.The American Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club was created in 1994 and in 1995 the AKC recognized the breed and the ACKCSC as its parent club. They started the Cavalier King Charles Club USA. The first recorded Cavalier living in America was in 1956 by W.Only 6 Cavalier Kings Charles Spaniels survived the war because of food shortages and all Cavaliers today come from the same 6 Cavaliers.
The breed suffered tremendous setbacks as a result of WWII. It wasn’t until 1945 the Kennel Club (British) recognized it as its own breed. The history of the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel continues with Miss Mostyn Walker’s dog “Ann’s Son,” which was the first official Cavalier King Charles in Crufts the club drew the standard using “Ann’s Son” and the paintings of old to create the standard breed.
Over many decades of breeding along with a financial incentive by American Roswell Eldridge the breed of Cavalier King Charles Spaniel came to fruition in 1928. By the 1850’s, England started taking dog breeding and showing very seriously. In fact, King Charles II made a law allowing that the King Charles Spaniel be accepted into any public building included the Houses of Parliament. These spaniels though were portrayed in paintings. During this time there were no dog registries, dog shows or serious dog breeders. He was rarely ever seen without having spaniels near him at his feet.
King Charles II (1630-1685) was the monarch of England, Scotland and Wales.