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Acetylene · 04-25-2007, 05:02 AM

Yes corgis are REALLY REALLY LOUD. They also need at least an hour of vigorous exercise every day. They are intelligent and can be trained, especially for food rewards.

But here is an important difference that a lot of people don't realize: they are NOT herding dogs. They are DRIVING dogs. They drive herds of cattle and other animals to run in a given direction, barking and nipping to make the animals run as fast as possible. This is very diffrent from the behavior of a herding dog such as a Sheltie or Border collie, whose instinct is to keep people grouped together and circle people. The effect may seem the same (chasing and nipping) but it actually greatly affects their relationship with people.

A driving dog doesn't have to be controlled as much as a herding dog; they mostly just do their thing. As a result, they are much more independent and don't necessarily form the "partner" relationship that other herding dogs form. In some ways this makes them easier as pets: they don't actually need as much mental stimulation and working with you as a border collie would. At the same time, though, it makes them difficult in some other ways: they will be more stubborn and headstrong about things they want to do, and won't always just take your word for it when you tell them "NO". Thus, their training requires what's called "intrinsic reward" so they see the point of what you are trying to get them to do. I've also noticed that corgis are very difficult to make obey off-leash outdoors. In particular they don't like to come when called.

All this said, my cousins love their corgi to bits and find her strong character to be immensely amusing. Her primary owner, John, went to veterinary school and is a dedicated trainer and caretaker of his pet. She is 12 years old and still hale and hearty, due to the regular exercise they give her, and she is very obedient--when she gets the point. She is friendly, loving, and affectionate, and a registered therapy dog at the local retirement home. But they can't let her off-leash outdoors anywhere near a road or other hazard, because she would dash into the road with blind determination if she saw another dog across the road. She also barks nonstop at people in the yard and anyone who comes to the door, and seemingly will never be trained out of it. She's also very dominant with other dogs, and when I bring my own dog over to visit, she will not allow me or anyone else to pet my dog--we must pet the corgi, and only the corgi.

So I guess my point is, this is not an easy dog, but it is a potentially extremely rewarding dog. For your first dog, though, I really don't know if I would recommend one. Jorgelito is correct that an adult dog will be more OK with staying home alone and also is less difficult for a first-timer; if you are cautious about adopting a stray (which has difficulties all of its own) it is often possible to buy an adult dog from a professional dog breeder who has decided not to breed the dog after all. These dogs are often well-trained, can use a kennel, and tend to be good with other dogs.

Good luck!

04-25-2007, 05:02 AM	#12 (permalink)
Acetylene Addict Location: under a rock	Yes corgis are REALLY REALLY LOUD. They also need at least an hour of vigorous exercise every day. They are intelligent and can be trained, especially for food rewards. But here is an important difference that a lot of people don't realize: they are NOT herding dogs. They are DRIVING dogs. They drive herds of cattle and other animals to run in a given direction, barking and nipping to make the animals run as fast as possible. This is very diffrent from the behavior of a herding dog such as a Sheltie or Border collie, whose instinct is to keep people grouped together and circle people. The effect may seem the same (chasing and nipping) but it actually greatly affects their relationship with people. A driving dog doesn't have to be controlled as much as a herding dog; they mostly just do their thing. As a result, they are much more independent and don't necessarily form the "partner" relationship that other herding dogs form. In some ways this makes them easier as pets: they don't actually need as much mental stimulation and working with you as a border collie would. At the same time, though, it makes them difficult in some other ways: they will be more stubborn and headstrong about things they want to do, and won't always just take your word for it when you tell them "NO". Thus, their training requires what's called "intrinsic reward" so they see the point of what you are trying to get them to do. I've also noticed that corgis are very difficult to make obey off-leash outdoors. In particular they don't like to come when called. All this said, my cousins love their corgi to bits and find her strong character to be immensely amusing. Her primary owner, John, went to veterinary school and is a dedicated trainer and caretaker of his pet. She is 12 years old and still hale and hearty, due to the regular exercise they give her, and she is very obedient--when she gets the point. She is friendly, loving, and affectionate, and a registered therapy dog at the local retirement home. But they can't let her off-leash outdoors anywhere near a road or other hazard, because she would dash into the road with blind determination if she saw another dog across the road. She also barks nonstop at people in the yard and anyone who comes to the door, and seemingly will never be trained out of it. She's also very dominant with other dogs, and when I bring my own dog over to visit, she will not allow me or anyone else to pet my dog--we must pet the corgi, and only the corgi. So I guess my point is, this is not an easy dog, but it is a potentially extremely rewarding dog. For your first dog, though, I really don't know if I would recommend one. Jorgelito is correct that an adult dog will be more OK with staying home alone and also is less difficult for a first-timer; if you are cautious about adopting a stray (which has difficulties all of its own) it is often possible to buy an adult dog from a professional dog breeder who has decided not to breed the dog after all. These dogs are often well-trained, can use a kennel, and tend to be good with other dogs. Good luck! __________________ There's no justice. There's just us.