Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Zigward & Kimberly on July 11, 2012 at 12:43am

People do have jobs, lifes and puppies at the same time. But it does restrict personal time more, as you can't just get a puppy to leave it:)

Corgis were bred to herd cattle, so it is probably safe to say that farm life is going to be a-okay. Corgis do fine hiking and camping..

You probably could teach you Corgi to walk along with your horse, but I don't think it would be safe to trust a puppy with that, even if they do behave well.. Puppies do get carried away. (Older dogs too) and with the whole herding instinct and such, they tend to chase and whatnot.. Just not worth the risk it presents in the begining, if you ask me. Others may give different opinions:P They may even be more right than me, but I don't really have experience with Corgis who run or having Corgis around horses lol.

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Permalink Reply by Jane on July 11, 2012 at 9:59am

Realistically how many hours a day would they be home alone? If the dog was unable to do the things you really want to do, is that a deal breaker for you? Because every dog is going to be different, and there is no guarantee. If it doesn't work out are you willing to adapt your life to suit the dog instead?

 

If the dog has a lot of herding instinct it may take a lot of work to train them to walk nicely next to a horse, or even be at a barn without disturbing the live stock. How far do you ride on the trails? Again it may take a lot of training to get the dog to walk along and not run off on their own to explore. Usually corgis tend to stick near their people, but you can't expect a young dog not to be naughty sometimes! Not all dogs are going to love other dogs either, I know my two would not like playing with Mastiffs as they are too big for their tastes.

 

All of the activities you describe will probably require a lot of time dedicated to training and socialization. If you do decide to get a corgi I would definitely tell the breeder what activities you are hoping to do with your dog, and let them choose an appropriate puppy for you.

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Permalink Reply by Ludi on July 11, 2012 at 10:50am

That is a pretty specific list of demands! ;) Have you thought about getting a retired adult from a breeder? They are not necessarily old dogs - in fact, some are retired quickly in their adolescence when they show aversion to whatever activity was planned for them (usually showing). I say this because I think a puppy's personality, and how well it can abide by your rules, is fairly nebulous and risky. If you want to be sure of a dog's personality and limits, go with an adult! If you find one in your area, try to set up the dog visiting an average day in your life - alongside horses, roaming the trail, etc. and see what comes of it.

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Permalink Reply by Beth on July 11, 2012 at 12:05pm

LOTS of barns have Corgis as resident dogs. They are hugely popular on the horse show circuit. I will respectfully disagree with those who say to get an adult. UNLESS that adult has already been socialized to horses, you absolutely need to get a puppy. If a puppy has not learned to interact with all the animals you expect it to interact with by 16 weeks of age, it may never be ok with those animals. You would want to expose a puppy to horses in a safe manner where it won't get kicked, but it's not fair to take an adult dog who has never seen a horse and expect it to think of this 1000 pound animal as a friend.

So yes, of all breeds, Corgis and Jack Russel Terriers are two that are actually noted for being particularly horse savvy. Every dog is an individual, and not every individual will be able to handle going on trail with a horse. However, you have a better chance with a Corgi than with many breeds.

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Permalink Reply by Diane on July 11, 2012 at 12:53pm

I'd agree with Beth - although I don't have this particular experience it seems logical that it would be easier to train a puppy to adapt to this situation (e.g. horses, etc), then an adult, for the same reasons you want to socialize your puppy at a young age.   

I know we adopted an adult who unfortunately happens to be obsessed with boats (as in chasing them), which is unfortunate because we spend most weekends in the spring through fall at a small ski lake where the boat runs almost constantly. The chasing part isn't actually that big a deal (he gets lots of exercise ;->), but he also turns into the Tasmanian devil when people are getting ready to go into the boat and/or ski.    When we were looking for a dog to adopt there were certain key things based on our lifestyle, etc. that were critical  - but I'd honestly have to say that I didn't think to add "must not be obsessed with boats" to that list ;->  Maybe I'm just being naive but I'd have to think it would have been easier if he'd grown up around them so they were just another part of daily life, although there's obviously no way to know that for sure...

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Permalink Reply by Ludi on July 11, 2012 at 1:24pm

Obviously I wouldn't advise getting an adult who is going to spook around horses; but the other demands are just a bit much considering the fragility and work a puppy needs in its early weeks. It boils down to: if you think you don't have the time to pour into a puppy, or the ability to change everything around to suit your dog's needs should it end up being a "bad fit" for the barnyard lifestyle, go with an adult AND a trial run. Just my humble opinion, of course. It's just so much easier to predict how well a dog can adapt to the OP's life when its personality has been established, and its maturity attained.

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Permalink Reply by Beth on July 11, 2012 at 3:08pm

I guess my assumption is that anyone getting a puppy knows that it won't be able to do what they want it to do for the first year or so. When I came up with a list of what I wanted in a dog, I realized a puppy would do none of those things. I work five days a week and managed, as do many households. Again that first year is tough, but then you have the dog you want.

I have a cat and two dogs. One dog was raised with a cat and he speaks cat very well. The other one was introduced to cats as an adult and while she is ok with cats, she does not read their body language well and ends up getting cracked in the head a lot as a result.

I really think if you want a dog good around horses, it is better to introduce it to horses as a puppy.

I don't think the list of demands is excessive. Camping, ok home alone for periods of time, and ok with horses is not a real demanding list for a dog. And again, anyone considering getting a puppy should realize that the puppy won't be able to go on long hikes. People get (or should get) puppies based on what the adult dog will be when it matures.

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Permalink Reply by Ludi on July 11, 2012 at 3:48pm

Fair enough! But it can be difficult to put everything else on hold while you wait for the puppy to "catch up". It's definitely worth it, though. :D

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Permalink Reply by Emily Evetts on July 11, 2012 at 5:23pm

I'm sorry if it came across like I was saying I wanted a puppy to do all of those things. That's not at all what I meant.. What I was asking you was once I raise train and work with the puppy will it physicality be able to do this *in the dogs prime * I do understand that all dogs are different and if my dog wasn't the perfect barnyard pup then it would fit right in as mastiffs are not exactly 'barn dogs' Oh and if I cant get the pup to walk with me on a trail a lot of times my family comes along and I could let the dog play with them while we go riding Thank you all for your answers I learned something from each one! I'm now confident that a corgi is just the pup for me I cant wait for all the adorable puppy times and then all of the wonderful dogie times this is going to be one attention spoiled pup!
P.S. we are thinking Charleston or Charles for short

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Permalink Reply by Ludi on July 11, 2012 at 5:30pm

Awesome. :) I think he will lead an awesome life with you guys with SO much to do! I'd hold off on names because you never know, you might end up falling for a girl! :D

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Permalink Reply by Tracy Dusek on July 11, 2012 at 6:34pm

when I was looking for my new pup (coming home this weekend!) I found alot of breeders that have farms, you might look for a set up like that, it might be perfect for the pup you are looking for...these pups are familiar with lots of different animals. 

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Permalink Reply by Beth Walker on July 12, 2012 at 3:16am

I have 5 corgi's and 5 horses. All of the corgi's came from a rescue or shelter and they all do great around horses. They know they are not allowed in the pasture with them and they are never allowed to chase the horses. As far as taking a corgi on the trails with the horse a lot depends on how far u ride. One corgi always came on the trails with us but when he would get tired he would go in front of the horse and stop. Luckily we have a great horse and  we would be able to put him up on the horse and ride double with the corgi, he absolutely loved to ride the horse. As long as you set rules and boundries from the start at the barn corgi's do well at the barn.

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