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Permalink Reply by Samantha on May 17, 2008 at 12:09pm

First of all, welcome to the site! As long as she's not aggressive, and lets him take care of her, it seems ok to me. She also lets him pet her and rub her tummy. She may warm up to him. You also (possibly) don't know her previous situation. She may have had bad experiences with men. I have also heard that some dogs just don't like men as much. I don't know if that's true or not, though. Good luck, and hopefully others with more expertise will comment.

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Permalink Reply by Sam on May 17, 2008 at 12:20pm

There could be many reasons she is choosing you. It appears that she trusts you more then your bf. For whatever reason her connection is with you. My experience shows me that often females seem to form a tighter bond with one person then the entire family. Boys seem to like most relatively equally. This is speaking in generalities and does not pertain to all dogs. I think as long as she is amiable and behaved around your bf it probably shouldnt matter. If he is wishing to form a tighter bond perhaps he should start doing special outings with her such as walks, a training class or playing ball or frisbee. It may or may not help but worth a try. One of my corgi girls adores mdh. I feed her, I care for her and I walk her.....she sits on back of the love seat each night awaiting his arrival. Who knows why....

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Permalink Reply by Sylvia & Timmy on May 17, 2008 at 12:33pm

Often with rescues, you don't know the history and she might have developed a bond with a female in her previous home or had little exposure to men. One thing your boyfriend might do is quietly sit on the floor with some really yummy treats. If she won't approach him, have him toss the treat in his vicinity working the distance closer and closer. Some people have had succes with feeding entire meals and treats this way.

Another thing to keep in mind is that most dogs will relate differently with different people in their lives/families. They may play games with one member of the family and just like to cuddle with another. Even in the best situations each member of a family will interact differently with the dog. So don't let your boyfriend think that she loves you more than him, she is just expressing herself differently with him.

Finally, walks and training help build a bond as well. You might sign up for a basic obedience class and only have him work with her on training.

Thanks so much for taking on an older dog. Very often they are not as adopable, cause they're not a cute puppy. Give her a few more months to adjust and try different approaches working on a bond with each of you.

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Permalink Reply by Geri & Sidney on May 17, 2008 at 12:37pm

HI! We had a discussion a few weeks ago about this topic. It seems a lot of us experience this! Here is teh link if you want to check it out:
http://www.mycorgi.com/forum/topic/show?id=1150197%3ATopic%3A91841

Oh and thank you so much for saving this dog!

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Permalink Reply by Elys on May 17, 2008 at 3:33pm

Thank you to everyone for the advice and the link. I think that we'll try obedience classes. When we got her, we were told that she was 4--turns out she's between 6-8. Hers is a sad story (kennel dog, had at least 2 litters, never leashed trained, afraid of people, doesn't know how to play with toys or other dogs, and more), but we're just sooo happy that she is here with us. She's sitting on the floor looking at me as I type with her big, brown eyes. I'm fairly certain that she has had very negative experiences with men. Her previous owner lied about so much that almost anything is possible. She is really the sweetest thing...

Again, thanks again for the advice. We'll talk again soon!!

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Permalink Reply by Cindi on May 18, 2008 at 10:46am

Oh boy, can we relate! We tend to take corgis with behavior problems. First, congrats on your rescue. You've given a home to a precious living being. There's a special place in the afterlife for folks like you!

Now, walking is a great thing. Good "pack" activity. I suggest it highly. Another thing you might try, since you say Camber won't sit with him, etd., is food reward. For example, if you're sitting on the couch, he can have some goodies in his hand to feed her when she crawls up on him. Two things these babies live for: food and attention.

Sounds like Camber's just not sure of him. As long as he lets Camber come to him and not chase Camber down and require attention, all will be well.

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