If you would like to join the Club, please send an email to kay@nespanielclub.co.uk with 

• 1. your name,
• 2. your address,
• 3. telephone number,
• 4. dogs name,
• 5. dogs breed,
• 6. dogs age.  (If you have more than one dog that you think you may like to enter into a test, that's fine, membership is still only £7.00 and you can give details of all your Spaniels.)

All the information is on the Club website at www.nespanielclub.co.uk.

The Kennel Club associated tests have to follow stringent rules, taking a lot of the fun and pleasure out of it and adding to the stress for many novices and beginners and even to the novice dogs of the more experienced handler.  The North East Spaniel Club tests will be more about being a test for the Spaniel and a learning curve and enjoyment for the owner and the chance to assess their dogs standard before entering them in any Field Trials. The tests will be much more relaxed and informal than a Field Trial but with the same opportunities for the Spaniel as the Labrador.

As the North East Spaniel Club is not affiliated with the Kennel Club in any way, your Spaniel does not need to be Kennel Club registered for you to join or enter a test.  However, if you do decide to get into trialling through other clubs, your dog will need to be KC registered as KC registered trials are not open to non-KC registered dogs.

Organising tests and even keeping membership details up to date and data protection compliant, is a very time consuming affair, so without the interest and support, this was another reason why the Field Tests for Spaniels in our region died out.

There is a lot of hard work involved to make this a successful club but this is an opportunity for us all to enjoy our Spaniels and to let the North East see that the Spaniel is one of the best working dogs around.

If you do not wish to run your dog in a test but would like to be involved in someway, please just let me know, there will be a million and one things to do to make sure everything runs smoothly so any help, in any way, would be greatly appreciated.

The plan of this club is to provide an informal likeminded community for people to either have a go at a Spaniel test with a view to bigger and better things or purely for fun or to try out young dogs with a view to trialling them.  Every club has to have a business element to it though for it to run but overall, I want this to be more about fun, learning and encountering new challenges for both you and your dog.  So lets get the Spaniel people together and get cracking!

How Did The Idea Come About?

Kay breeds, trains and works Springer Spaniels with a passion from her Craigelachie lines and works and trains many other breeds from working dogs to pet dogs. Teresa, Kay's mother, breeds, trains and works Cocker Spaniels from her Longwitton lines. Claire, Kay's daughter, works and trains her own Springers in agility but trains other breeds in agility also. The rest of the family are also very much into dogs. So between us, there are 3 generations currently working, breeding and training dogs. This is where the idea for the Club came from. There are numerous tests and trials for the Labradors but the Spaniels seem to have dropped off the radar for opportunities for them outside of the shooting day.

The conversation to start a club began about 2 years ago but because so much work is involved in it, none of us actually ever got around to doing anything about making it a reality.  After Kay heard some of her training clients from Craigelachie Gundogs ask about clubs, tests and other options for their dogs, she thought maybe now is the time to actually do something about it.

So here we go. 

Where Will Tests be Held (Location)?

It is planned that tests will be held over a very large area of the North East spanning from north of Wooler, to North Yorkshire and across past Allendale. This will hopefully ensure that all members have a good chance of tests being close to them at some stage throughout the year.

Ground for Spaniels needs to be very specific for dogs to work and show themselves off at their best and finding good ground is very difficult. Bearing this in mind, if you would like to enter a test, please make sure you are able to attend to ensure your place is not lost and so that the landowner who kindly allowed the use of their land, has not had their kindness wasted.

Members so far are very widely dispersed, so if you would like to join but feel it may be quite a distance to travel alone for a test, let me know because it may well be that there are other members in your area who you could share travel with.

Members (Locations, Facts, etc.)

We have a diverse mix of members so far, but they all have one common interest, and that is the Spaniel, one of the most interesting and exciting breeds on the planet. The Spaniels are so adaptable for many varied types of work and excel in all areas of work and play. They are such fun dogs, they can have you at your wits end one minute and then creased up in laughter the next. But a well trained Spaniel is an absolute joy. Even the best trained of all have attitude and character and that is what makes them so good at the many diverse tasks they are asked to do.

Entering a test not only gives you the chance to run your dog in a test and to see how well the two of you can do, but to meet and talk to other likeminded people who may have travelled many miles, just to be part of something which is purely for the Spaniel.

• The Cocker Spaniel is currently the most prominent breed owned by NEESC members, with the Springer coming in a close second and the Sprocker third. 
• A large percentage of members have registered more than one dog with the club.
• The majority of dogs registered with NEESC are also KC registered (but not all).
• Members come from far and wide, from Barrow-in-Furness, to Edinburgh and down to Hull. I think this gives a reflection of how much interest there is again in Spaniels
  
  

  Everyone is welcome to join and it's very easy, just go to the North East England Spaniel Club 'How to Join' page, send an email with your details and use the subscribe button for the £7.00 membership payment and there you go. Lets get as many people joined as possible.  The more who join, the more tests, events and opportunities could be available.

  Your dog does not need to be KC Registered to join the North East England Spaniel Club, this makes NEESC a very unique Spaniel Club & you don't need to live in the North East.  This club is open to all Spaniel owners & handlers.