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Permalink Reply by Sandy Stickney on January 11, 2012 at 9:13am

HI Annaglen! I will leave the advice to the more seasoned pros on here, but congrats on the new puppy!!  You may find yourself quickly corgi-addicted, and may find that one is not enough! ;)

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Permalink Reply by Yuki & Ellie on January 11, 2012 at 11:41am

Hello, Annaglen, and congratulations on your future pup!  It's exciting, isn't it?  I just brought home my own (very first) corgi pup in July, so I remember that feeling quite well!   It's really great that you're asking lots of questions and preparing for things in an organized manner.

1.  As others have already stated, you could choose any food you want and your pup is likely to thrive off of it.  There are corgi owners who feed everything from grocery store brands, like Iams, to more expensive brands, like Taste of the Wild or Blue Buffalo, to raw foods.  It's really up to you and your pup.  I used to feed Science Diet when I brought home my first dog because it was recommended to me by my Veterinarian.  He ate it for two years and did just fine.  When I finally found my corgi, though, I decided I wanted to feed them both something with more "real" ingredients and less filler.  I did lots of research, tried a few brands and settled on Taste of the Wild (Sierra Mountain Formula.)  It works for us because it's grain-free, has lots of real meat ingredients and is one of their two lower-calorie formulas.  For us, it has improved coat quality and the dogs absolutely love eating it.

2.  Honestly, Ellie isn't quite old enough to go through a big shed just yet.  That'll be this spring, hehe.  Yuki sheds a lot, though, and I've always just used this palm brush (some might call it a slicker brush, I think) and a furminator.  I only use the furminator during a heavy shed, though.  Oh, and I bought my furminator off of Ebay.  It's a lot cheaper (most of the time) and it was even still sealed in its original packaging.

3.  It depends on what you want to do.  When I brought Yuki home, I didn't use a crate and he has always just slept in his bed in our room.  I didn't really know about crate training and he was almost housebroken, so it didn't really cause any trouble.  Ellie, on the other hand, came to use already crate trained and, at 9 weeks old, unable to make it through the night without a potty break.  I knew I didn't want her in our room at that age, so I opted to keep her crate in the kitchen and that's where she sleeps.  It works out well for us right now and it was convenient having her right there near the door for those quick middle-of-the-night potty breaks.  When she is older and I can trust her to not wander around chewing things at night, then she will be allowed in our bedroom with Yuki.

4.  I believe in using a collar 100%.  As previously mentioned, most harnesses will encourage pulling and you don't want that when you're trying to train a pup to walk nicely on a leash.  There are some harnesses, like the Easy Walk Harness, that do provide you the opportunity to correct that pulling behavior, but I feel that for most people it's just easier to use a collar in the beginning.  You definitely want to make sure you get a collar that fits well, though.  Have Tim measure your pup's neck before you bring him/her home so that you can get a collar or two ahead of time.  I bought a collar that fit 11"-14" and it ended up being too big for Ellie, though we still used it until she finally outgrew it.

Be sure to post pictures of your little bundle of fluff.  :)

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Permalink Reply by Jane on January 11, 2012 at 12:08pm

1. Everyone will have a different opinion on food. I feed Fromms and have been very happy with it. I'd go with a large breed puppy formula or an all life stages food in whatever brand you choose. I don't feed wet food.

 

2. I have a slicker brush and a flea comb for regular use. I would only use a furminator once their adult coat comes in, it's really not necessary on a puppy. I use a regular clipper for nails.

 

3. I like using an xpen in the kitchen area for when you're gone, and a crate in the bedroom for sleeping.

 

4. I would use a collar. A harness can teach a dog to pull even more since they have more control.

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Permalink Reply by John Wolff on January 11, 2012 at 12:46pm

I use a steel Afro-style comb.  I fear the furminator might take out too much healthy fur.

See the FAQ re claw trimming.  I use a standard guillotine clipper, backwards (cutting front-to-back seems more with-the-grain).  Easiest when claws are wet.  An assistant is handy to distract the dog.

See the FAQ re collars.   I like our modified martingales.  Some say a harness encourages pulling.  Our harness, too tight, wore wicked a sore on the collarbone on long hikes;  I use it only for safety belays on log bridge river crossings, but it will NOT hold the dog n a vertical hang -- Al slipped neatly out of it when I gently tested this.

I'd say the most important thing is to plan your training, esp. if you've not had a dog before.  This is the one thing I'd do differently, in hindsight.  I'd be very organized, list all the commands I want in the dog's vocabulary, keep a training log, plan my work and work my plan.  Now would be a good time to do a lot of reading on puppy and dog training.

I really like a 2-pocket dedicated fanny pack for bags, poop, keys, treat can (pill bottle works well), etc.

I like a headlamp for walking in the dark.

I believe that's a good breeder.  I think Al & Gwynn have some Nebriowa in their ancestry.

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