Tara Green spoke these words of wisdom in
:

Suja wrote:
"Phyrie" wrote in message:

Although I have no idea how available they would be in shelter/rescue,

That'll definitely be an issue.

There are health issues, though. Be aware of that, although I'm sure
that statement rings true for most breeds.

IMO, most breeds don't have the same type of serious issues that Cavs
have, which is unfortunate, since they're terrific dogs. I don't think
I can in good conscience recommend a breed that will develop MVD.
Plus, my vet says that every Cav she's seen has serious back problems,
and that is a really bad combination with kids.

There are dozens of Cavs in my area.

Only the teeeeniest minority came from
breeders that I wouldn't want to beat with a
large stick.

But only a small number of them have
developed the physical problems that the
breed is famous for.

The one I was keeping an eye on most (puppy
mill Cavvy, from a warehouse style pet shop)
has, at age 7, some slight arthritis in his
back leg. That's about it.

While I think its important to be careful,
and I know my experience is nothing more than
anecdotal, I simply haven't been seeing a
higher percentage of issues in that breed
than in any other.


My vet adores Cavs. He has tried several times to import and/or find good
breeders, doing health tests. He think's he's found "The one" at great
expense, and after great vetting of the breeders, and every dog he's
purchased has developed issues relatively young eliminating them as
breeding prospects.

Of course my vet was aware of the problems of the breed, and went looking
for issues long before they were clinical.

So perhaps the owners of the cavs that you are familiar with simply haven't
looked yet?
Perhaps their issues are subclinical?

How about a Boykin?