 The breeds of toy spaniel often rivalled the Pug in popularity as lapdogs for ladies . The disadvantage of the breeds of toy spaniel was that their long coats required constant grooming . By 1830 , the toy spaniel had changed somewhat from the dogs of Charles II 's day . William Youatt in his 1845 study , The Dog , was not enamoured of the changes : " The King Charles 's breed of the present day is materially altered for the worse . The muzzle is almost as short , and the forehead as ugly and prominent as the veriest bull @-@ dog . The eye is increased to double its former size , and has an expression of stupidity with which the character of the dog too accurately corresponds . " Youatt did concede that the breed 's long ears , coat and colouring were attractive . Due to the fashion of the period , the toy spaniels were crossed with Pugs to reduce the size of their noses and then selectively bred to reduce it further . By doing this , the dog 's sense of smell was impaired , and according to 19th century writers , this caused the varieties of toy spaniel to be removed from participation in field sports . Blunt @-@ Lytton proposed that the red and white Blenheim Spaniels always had the shorter nose now seen in the modern King Charles . 
