 King Henry III of France ( 1551 – 1589 ) owned a number of small spaniels , which were called Damarets . Although one of the translations of John Caius ' 1570 Latin work De Canibus Britannicis talks of " a new type of Spaniel brought out of France , rare , strange , and hard to get " , this was an addition in a later translation , and was not in the original text . Caius did discuss the " Spainel @-@ gentle , or Comforter " though , which he classified as a delicate thoroughbred . This spaniel was thought to originate from Malta and was sought out only as a lapdog for " daintie dames " . 
