Breeder? Rescue? Mutt? Male? Female? Pem? Cardi?
Ok. The OCD isn't gone. I am ready for the fur bomb in my apartment, the exercise, classes, supplies, back up plans and bank accounts. I can't even seem to convince myself to do any research on other dogs. I am getting a corgi.
From my research I am leaning toward getting a boy puppy from possibly Poso Creek Puppies in Bakersfield (few hours outside of Los Angeles). I have yet to contact her, I will soon though.
I haven't heard anything bad and it seems to be the most accessible breeder for me in LA. Anyone have a poso puppy? Any one in LA recommend a breeder? I am still researching - all of your links to find breeders have been great.
I love a tail. But the Pems seem to have the more social non dominant personality needed for a city dog. Any cardigan or pembroke owners able to dispute this generalization? I know all dogs are different and a huge part is on the owner and the socializing but still it seems this is the pattern.
It seems that Females tend to be more aggressive and dominant and I would like the most dog park, dog party, stranger dog, friend dog friendly I can get. I had originally liked the idea of a lady dog but I am now greatly leaning towards a boy because of what I read. Agree?
I want to rescue, I love the idea of a rescue. HOWEVER. For my very first dog that is all mine I really love the idea of bringing home a puppy that has a good healthy background so that my dog can be my forever friend from the minute he leaves is litter and I can try to avoid some of those hip issues. Rescue animals in general have a sorted past and bad habits, often health genetic issues.
I want to know your thoughts on this. I think if I do end up going with a rescue dog I will still try to get one under 6 months old but I think I will be FAR more likely to go with a mutt. I have seen some pretty adorable golden retriever corgi mutts or lab corgis. I feel like the mix will help eliminate some of the corgi genetic issues that seems to appear in rescue pure bred corgis. Plus, I wouldn't hate a tiny bit more leg.
Any input on any of this would be great!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Natalie, Fiona, & Django on
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Hi Kim - I am also considering a puppy from Poso Creek. The only thing that concerned me was that Kim Beachler (the owner) told me her process is to have you pick your puppy out at 4 weeks old or so. At that age you are basically choosing based on color and markings, since personality and fit don't become obvious until later.
Is this how you chose your puppy as well? Clearly it worked out wonderfully for you! I've never chosen a puppy that way before, so it made me a little nervous.
Thanks for sharing your story!
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Permalink Reply by Kim Roberts on
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I know this is going to sound crazy... but we chose Molli the day after she was born. Kim sent me a picture of the 3 girls from the litter and I chose Molli. Then she separated them into Girl A, B and C and she was girl C! We could tell by her markings and her chubby tummy that she was the puppy for us! We knew her personality would be excellent based on her parents temperament. It was a gamble, but she is the BEST puppy! Our vet can't stop raving about how well-bred she is and how pretty she is!
Molli was definitely worth the wait!
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Permalink Reply by Caitlin Randolph on
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Were you allowed to see the puppies? I live closer to Bakersfield so I would want to see them!
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Permalink Reply by Ludi on
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Hi Natalie,
I don't know what Poso Creek is and I didn't get to choose my Cardigan this way, but I did happen to choose my Border Collie from her litter at roughly four weeks. It's true that dogs can change - luckily for me, my girl (Lady) started off as a fairly reserved puppy, but just a few days short of her first "month-birthday", she blossomed into a loving, wiggly, energetic personality. Since a BC is chosen on basis of its work ethic, drive, temperament etc. and not at all on looks, I can say that I chose Lady 100% on her character, and not on her appearance.
Lady has not changed at all from that time, only "exaggerated" what traits were already there. Her sister, Happy, was our other possibility but she was already quite shy at a month old, and only grew more introspective and reserved as time wore on. I honestly believe that at this age, you have a fairly good idea of what the puppy could be like, provided that there are no real major changes in the life of the puppy, and that the breeder keeps a very close eye on each individual personality. It was easy for ours since there were only five puppies in the litter.
But yeah, in short, four weeks is pretty early but it can be a pretty decent litmus test for the future personality of your dog. :-)
Side note -- if you speak extensively with the breeder before the puppies are even born, you can lay out exactly what you want/need out of your future pet. I told mine straight up that I planned to enter in competitive agility and obedience. I needed a sound dog with a sharp mind but soft enough to work for humans and not herself. She steered me towards Lady over the littermate sister, as the latter was proving to be a touch too soft. I ended up with a completely bombproof, fearless dog who appears to have a pretty good future in dog sports. She's incredibly smart and driven to work with humans. I couldn't be happier, and I made this choice when she was only four weeks old!
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Kim - Aw, you really did luck out! Molli is adorable - I just looked at your pics! How great that you got to see her grow up before you even brought her home! How fun. :) What a cute little girl she is!
Ludi - Thanks for sharing your story about your Border Collie. I think it's wonderful that Lady blossomed like she did! Between yours and Kim's stories, I'm feeling a little bit better about choosing a puppy so young. Thank you! Can't wait to get my baby next year! Seems like forever away, so in the meantime, I have to satisfy my corg craving by looking at all the cute babies on here... :)
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Permalink Reply by Eric Kim on
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Hey Caitlin,
For what it's worth, our first pup Buster is from Poso Creek (same litter as Mollie Mae) and he's a real champ in the making. My girlfriend and I did extensive research on corgis before deciding to grab one from Poso Creek. To be honest...we didn't even really know about the implications of breeder vs. rescue. Not until after we got Buster did we realize that many people out there just don't the practice of breeding. That's how new we were to all of this!
Thankfully, it's true...Kim Beachler's pups are a total clean slate that were socialized and bred for success from birth. I'm sure Kim (Roberts) can attest to how friendly, loving, caring, and fast learning these Poso Creek corgis are. We literally teach him something new everyday and he pretty much has it down (with consistent, positive reinforcement of course). We were definitely a bit nervous at first as novice dog-owners, but having a well tempered corg makes life a million times easier.The selection process was a bit tough for us since we had to just pick Buster out based on a picture. But now we know that it's pretty much a given that all of the pups she breeds will be winners - it all comes down to if you want a boy or girl and what coat. Were you looking for a red-headed tri? The vet projected that our Buster will grow to be 45-50lbs, so he's going to get pretty huge :) Feel free to message us with any questions, reservations you may have or updates! I'm excited for ya!
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This is good to hear that her dogs really do have that golden personality I am looking for. I have recently been looking into Pem's without tails and I haven't yet asked any breeders if they would be willing to leave a pup undocked for me but I really really love the idea of picking my dog from personality. However, as was said further up in this post that Kim has you pick the dogs at 4 weeks and many of you picked from photos so perhaps picking a puppy day 1 wouldnt be an end all?
I am not nearly as specific about look of my corgi, I prefer them a bit high and light rather than heavy and low (barely a difference but that is all) other than that I really just am focused on personality - which is something I am a lot more particular about.
Ack! I wish I could find a breeder who would keep tails!
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