All about the Cavachon dog

The Cavachon is a hybrid or mixed-breed dog, consisting of a cross between a Bichon Frise and a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. While the Cavachon is classed as a mixed breed dog and not a pedigree, this hybrid crossing is quickly becoming popular within the UK with people who are looking for a small dog or a toy dog that is a little different!

If you are thinking of getting a new small dog and are looking for some information on the Cavachon, you may have noticed that there is not a vast amount of information on this dog type available! There is not currently any formal standard for the Cavachon dog, nor any formal organisation at this time to promote the Cavachon dog.

We’ve done our homework to find out the basic traits and details of the Cavachon dog, to give you a head start in finding out more!

What makes a Cavachon?

A Cavachon can be bred from either a Bichon Frise and a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, or two existing Cavachon dogs. Cavachons can also be bred back to one of the two founding breeds, so the dog may look and act more towards one side of their heritage than the other depending on which side is the larger. Both the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and the Bichon Frise are small dogs, and so the Cavachon will never grow to be particularly large!

Cavachon size

Cavachons can weigh anywhere between 6kg and 8.5kg, although they do tend to fall more commonly towards the top end of the scale. They stand on average between 23-33cm tall, again, usually towards the higher end of the scale. They are not a particularly muscular or hefty dog, but should not be too slender either.

The Cavachon coat

The coats of the Bichon Frise and the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel are rather different, with the Cavvie having a smooth, silky coat and the Bichon Frise having a more wiry, Poodle-like coat. The Bichon Frise is one of the many dog breeds who have Poodle heritage that are sometimes considered to be hypoallergenic, as their coats do not shed to any great degree and so, dander is not spread around the home so widely.

The Cavachon itself may inherit either the Bichon Frise or the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel coat in its entirety, but they are much more likely to develop a coat that falls somewhere between the two parameters.

The Cavachon coat is usually soft and very fluffy, and can grow up to 10cm in length across some areas of their bodies! They do not tend to shed much hair, and regular brushing and grooming is necessary to prevent tangling and knots in the coat. They can also be clipped into a particular pattern, or professionally groomed and trimmed to achieve a certain look.

The Cavachon is available in a range of different colours, from pure white to cream or apricot, or a mixture of shades including brown.

Personality and temperament

The Cavachon is not one of the most sedentary of small dogs, and enjoys being active and going outside for walks. They also enjoy plenty of play off the lead, and are good at making their own entertainment if provided with a variety of toys and puzzles! They are inquisitive and like to get involved in everything that is going on around them, but they are also happy to join you for a nap on the sofa. They have open, friendly personalities and are not generally prone to snappiness or wariness of strangers. They get on well with kind children, and are also fairly social with other dogs, assuming that they are socialised properly when young.

Feeding a Cavachon

Cavachons are little dogs, and so are best fed a food designed for small or toy dogs. They are not among the biggest of eaters, and should be fed small meals staggered throughout the day, rather than one big one. They do have a slight tendency to be fussy about their meals, and will sometimes inexplicably go off a meal that they have been enjoying for months!

Take care not to overfeed small dogs such as the Cavachon, but adjust their food quantities depending on how active they are.

Cavachon training and intelligence

The Bichon Frise and the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel both fall towards the low middle of the canine intelligence scale, and so the Cavachon will share this level of aptitude. While they do not rank towards the top of the list of canine brainiacs, they are by no means slow on the uptake, and in fact their middle ranking can mean that training is easier than it would be with either highly intelligent or rather slower dogs.

The Cavachon enjoys learning through play, and will soon get to grips with new skills if you train them using positive reinforcement and reward. They are not particularly prone to picking up undesirable habits, but it is important to keep your commands clear and unambiguous, and not be inconsistent in your training and management of them when they make sad eyes at you or play on their cuteness factor!