About Us

Darlene bred her first litter of champion sired Cocker Spaniels in 1961. Her education into the many hereditary health problems of Cockers began immediately. Shortly after the birth of her puppies, the mother dog developed epilepsy and later the champion sire developed cataracts. The puppies and mother dog were spayed and placed in pet homes, not to be bred. This was the first of five times to restart a breeding program.

She sought out more experienced breeders to help her establish a healthy bloodline and found Barbara Robins, Charan Kennels who was willing to co-own an outstanding quality female with her and teach her about ethical breeding practices.

There was no testing for eye diseases in the early 60’s, but Dr Yakely at Washington State University Veterinary School (WSU) was conducting a research project. He held his first public eye clinic in June of 1969. They tested 21 dogs at this clinic and found 19 were in various stages of developing cataracts. She again spayed/neutered these dogs and placed them in pet homes.

After cleaning out her breeding program for the second time, she found another bloodline that she believed to be relative free from eye problems. At this time she began to do outcross breedings and color cross breedings to dilute the gene pool. Since all cockers in the United States can be traced back to 4 dogs imported from England, it is pretty hard not to do close breedings. The color crosses have really helped to increase strength and vitality to her breeding program.

During the 70’s – 80’s she discovered that the eye diseases were not the only health problems to plague cocker spaniels. She also discovered Blood Factor X and von Willebrands Disease, low thyroid leading to cronic ear infections, degenerative disc disease and hip dysplasia .

She continue to screen all of her animals annually for these various health problems and only breed dogs that are free from these various health diseases. These health screenings have resulted in her restarting her breeding program 3 more times, for a total of 5 new starts in 40 years. At this time, she is about 15 years with no major occurrences of health problems. She is currently in a search for a new, unrelated stud dog to introduce into our breeding program.

The character of the Cocker Spaniel is tied to its history. Originally, the Cocker was bred as a gun or field dog, used mainly in England. These hunting dogs needed to have a high intelligence, be easily trained and have a calm temperament. This is still a good description of today’s well bred Cocker today: happy, smart, very loyal and loving. They are natural retrievers and love the water. After generations of not being bred to hunt birds, most Cockers show desire to hunt when taken to the field. They flush birds like the Springer Spaniel, but can be trained to point if hunted with pointers. Most Cockers can easily be trained to retrieve various articles and to play ball with their family.

The well bred Cocker Spaniel is the most friendly, out-going and loving dog that you have ever seen. They want to make friends with the world. They give unconditional love to everyone they meet. They want to please their owners, consequently they make excellent obedience dogs. Cockers make excellent house pets because of their small, compact size. However, they are far from fragile. They like all outdoor activities including hiking, boating, fishing and hunting. They make the ideal family companion, as their popularity confirms.

Due to the extreme popularity of the cocker over the last 50 years, there have been many dogs bred with little concern for health or temperament problems.

Because of this poor breeding, we see many cockers with severe health problems. The most common is blindness, bad ears and skin and poor temperaments. All of which could be avoided through health testing, selective breeding and avoiding inbreeding.

A responsible breeder is like an architect for the breed. They need to have a plan for breeding quality dogs, know the materials that they are working with (the bloodlines and health issues) and strive for constant improvement. The true breeder is always learning and sharing their knowledge with others, being an advocate and mentor for the breed.

A responsible breeder works only with healthy dogs that have been tested and are free from serious congenital and hereditary defects which are known in their breed. A responsible breeder maintains the best standards of health for their animals and their kennels. A responsible breeder is the guardian of their breed, insuring their survival into the future.

Darlene Mattson is a past President and Vice President of the Washington State Cocker Spaniel Club and is currently the AKC Education Chairperson. Darlene is also a member of the American Spaniel Club. She has been breeding, showing and training Cockers since 1961 and training all breeds since 1968. She has also bred Labrador Retrievers, German Shorthairs, Brittany Spaniels, English Setters and English Springer Spaniels. Darlene is experienced in obedience, field and service dog training. She is a volunteer at the local Humane Society and active in “Cocker Rescue”..

Darlene has operated boarding kennels and grooming shops since 1968. She has been the Region 10 Director for the American Boarding Kennel Assoc. (ABKA) and Chairperson for the Public Relations Committee and served on the Education Committee.

She was the Education Director for the Prison Pet Partnership Program at the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor, WA. She taught all breed grooming and kennel management skills to the inmates, enabling them, upon their release, to be successfully employed in the pet care industry. The program also rescued unwanted dogs and trained them as service dogs for individuals with physical disabilities. This program has received numerous awards and has been featured on several television programs, including “Unsolved Mysteries” and a PBS Special on Dogs.
Over the last thirty years, Darlene and her husband Richard (Red) who is a general contractor, have built nine kennel facilities. The most recent was a totally enclosed, Houndsquarters kennel building for the Prison Pet Partnership Program at the Washington Corrections Center for Women. This is the only women’s prison in the State of Washington. She is currently working with several other states to develop similar programs for them.