Historically, there were only two spaniel breeds, with Shakespeare and several others talking about the now extinct English Water Spaniel, and the Land Spaniel. Sadly, the derived breeds - Sussex, Clumber, Springer, Cocker etc are now too deeply inbred, and are slowly dying out. Some British veterinarians are mooting a return to the past by creating a "Super Spaniel" that would be a mix of existing spaniel breeds.

There is also a separate movement to get the UK Kennel Club to recognize the "Sprocker Spaniel," a popular Springer - English Cocker mix.

I wonder what members here think about these attempts. I, for one, love the idea. One of my favorite dogs was a golden Cocker. She died horribly from congenital disease. I'd love to see that none of these beautiful dogs ever suffers the way she did.