Colors of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels Explained

Let’s start with the basics. If you want to know more about cavalier king charles spaniels, learning about their coat colors and patterns is a must!

Read more about cavalier king charles spaniels here!

I’ll take a closer look at the colors of cavalier king charles spaniels and explore what makes each shade so special.

In this article, the cavalier breeder explains the colors, what is the most popular color, how the breed standard describes them, and what to look out for if you are after the dog show success!

The Four Colors of Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Cavalier king charles spaniels come in a handful of colors, some of them being more popular than others. The colors of cavalier king charles spaniels are blenheim, tricolor, black and tan, and ruby.

These colors are recognized in different Kennel Clubs around the world and any other color or combination of colors is highly undesirable.

Let’s look at the four different colors!

The Blenheim Cavalier

Let’s start with the most popular color of the cavalier king charles spaniel. The color’s name comes from the Blenheim Palace, where the 1st Duke of Marlborough raised cavalier-like hunting spaniels of this color.

The breed standard says that Blenheim has rich chestnut markings that are well broken up, on a bright white ground. Markings are evenly divided on the head, leaving room between ears for a much-valued lozenge mark or spot.

In some Blenheim dogs, there is a chestnut spot in the middle of the forehead: this is called the “Blenheim” spot. The Blenheim spot is also known as the mark of the “Duchess Thumb Print”, based on the legend that Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough while awaiting news of her husband’s safe return from the Battle of Blenheim, pressed the head of an expecting dam with her thumb, resulting in five puppies bearing the lucky mark after news that the battle had been won.

Wikipedia

Blenheims are most common and they dominate in the dog show rings.

Dog Shows: Sometimes you can see a blenheim cavalier with an almost entirely white face without the rich chestnut markings. This is considered highly undesirable in dog shows.

The Black and Tan Cavalier

Black and tan can be referred to as King Charles because Charles I of England preferred this color. Raven black with rich tan markings above the eyes, on cheeks, inside ears, on chest and legs, and underside of the tail.

Black and tan is probably the least popular color for cavalier king charles spaniels and I don’t understand why. In my experience, it is much harder to keep Halla’s white coat bright and not yellow.

Dog Shows: Note that any white markings are undesirable and they will be considered a minor fault in dog shows.

The Ruby Cavalier

This one is the only solid color for a cavalier king charles spaniel. Ruby means rich red color without any markings. Some describe this color as rich chestnut depending on what country’s breed standard you look but they mean the same.

Dog Shows: Note that any white markings are undesirable and they will be considered a minor fault in dog shows.

The Tricolor Cavalier

Also spelled as ‘Tri-Color’. This color variation used to be less popular but has quickly become the second most popular color. Tricolor can be referred to as Prince Charles.

Tricolor means the cavalier has a white ground with large black markings broken up. Rich chestnut markings over the eyes, cheeks, inside ears, inside legs, and on the underside of the tail.

Dog Shows: Sometimes if the tricolor has almost entirely black back without the white breaking up the pattern, dog show judges will make negative mention of it. Any other color or combination of colors is highly undesirable.

Some History About The Colors

These dogs have a history that dates back to the 17th century and the breed was named after King Charles I and his son Charles II.

All the colors except ruby were named after the members of the House of Stuart. Black and tan is sometimes referred to as King Charles and Tricolor as Prince Charles.

John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough was not a member of the family but was closely connected and for that reason influenced the Blenheim name.

The History of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels

What is the Most Popular Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Color?

Finnish CKCS Club reported that out of all registered cavalier puppies in 2022, 56% were blenheim, 22% tricolors, 12% rubies, and 10% were black and tans. Over half of all of cavaliers were blenheims, they surely dominate the popularity!

The data shows that in 2017 tricolor climbed to become the second most popular color. This verifies my empirical research, I have seen the shift and rise of tricolors too. Heck, I used not to like the color but now I have Halla, the tricolor cavalier.

Other Color Variations

Cavalier King Charles spaniels only come in four colors that are recognized in different Kennel Clubs around the world. The colors of cavalier king charles spaniels are blenheim, tricolor, black&tan, and ruby.

There might be articles on the internet that cavaliers come in exotic colors like chocolate and merle. You can even find pictures of these dogs.

I have also seen pictures of “all black” cavaliers that often have small white markings on their paws and chest. Those dogs are most likely a mix of cavalier and solid black English Cocker spaniel and the little white markings come from their cavalier side.

Then there are all white cavaliers with blue eyes and pink spots on their noses. These dogs have a rare hereditary condition called albinism. ‘It is a common misconception that all albino animals have characteristic pink or red eyes‘, Wikipedia tells us.

Merle and chocolate color genes come from other breeds that have been mixed with cavaliers. Therefore those are not purebred cavaliers.

Let me emphasize, that there is nothing wrong with having a mixed-breed dog. I’m not an elitist like that.

But I have a problem with how these variations are marketed as exclusive, rare, and all the other bullshit. I will be doing more in-depth articles about chocolate and merle colorings in the future.