Corgi

L-M

Hello folks,

Any corgi owners out there?

We recently got a Corgi, he’s 16 months old. It seems he was kept in an apartment and from his mannerisms I gathered he slept in a crate (he’s afraid to go near it).

We only have him a couple of days so I’m sure he’s just settling in, but he seems very restless. Doesn’t like being rubbed, doesn’t seem to want to entertain a new bed we bought him.

He gets a serious amount of exercise (he doesn’t seem to tire at all!). Between the jigs and the reels today he got an awful lot, his usual morning walk plus lots of playing fetch and two more walks after that. Only now we’ve actually seen him lie down on the floor.

He seems to do a lot of groaning and sort of growling. It doesn’t seem to be aggressive growling but of an attention thing?

Anyway, any corgi advice appreciated.

aonb

New home. New humans. New everything! Hes probably half terrified and half over-excited at his new freedom. Hes scared - doesnt know where anything is, what hes supposed to do, where he can pee/poo, eat, rest, who to trust, whats going on.

A dog will take 3 weeks before he starts to feel comfortable, and about 3 months before he knows hes home. Google the "Rule of 3"
Lots of gentle care and calmness is required.
Set the tone from day 1 and he will get into a routine and start to relax - consistency, calmness, kindness and PATIENCE are absolute KEY. Dogs thrive on routine - help him to learn his new routine in a gentle patient way, and his personality will shine through.
Good luck with your new family member. Lets see a photo too!

edited to add - you've had him vet checked?
the groaning could be his personal trait, but it could be a sign of pain or discomfort too. If he hasnt been checked by the vet I would recommend you do that asap. He will need to be checked for worms, fleas, vaccinations, and general health check too.

L-M

Sorry yeah he was well minded by his previous owner. All his vaccines etc are up to date and it’s not a constant thing, it’s just the odd time when we’re both on the couch and he’s looking at us.

I agree in the patience thing, we’re over allowing for him now, we made a mistake the first day and introduced him to some young cousins etc and her mothers dogs, I think it was just too much new for one day.

Well give him time, just feel sorry for him as he seems to agitated and nervous, unsettled. There’s definitely an improvement though, he’s just fallen asleep in front of us which is great to see, but any little movement and he jumps up looking at us. He’ll get there.

twiddleypop

Just on the not tiring side, mental games are just as important.

Have you heard of Kongs or Lick mats? They are slow feeders and find them great to keep the dog busy and he loves them.

I would also think about hand feeding to build trust- it does take time!

L-M

twiddleypop wrote: »

Just on the not tiring side, mental games are just as important.

Have you heard of Kongs or Lick mats? They are slow feeders and find them great to keep the dog busy and he loves them.

I would also think about hand feeding to build trust- it does take time!

Hi thanks for that.

Yeah I googled a few games the other day, one was to hide treats in a cup and cover two other empty cups ans make him search them out. He did it once or twice but he lost interest then.

I think I’ll give him another few days to settle and just leave him gain his trust for us, it’s hard to know what type of situation he came from but he seems very claustrophobic so I think he needs his space for now.

I got a tug of war type toy today to see will he fall for that as well.

L-M

Hi folks. He seems to have settled down a good bit in the two weeks we have him, now know he’s not a morning dog!

Anyway, we’re managing away fine, one issue we have is snapping. It’s only happened a couple of times, once my fiancée went to rub him while he was eating and he snapped. Lack of judgment on our behalf, just forgot to stay away from an eating dog.

I was just playing fetch with him for a good bit in the back garden and I brought out his water for him, when he finished drinking he rolled on his side and went to rub his belly and he snapped and broke the skin. It’s a bit disheartening when you don’t know when he’s going to snap?

DBB

Hi op,
Yep... always a good idea to leave a dog alone while they're eating, especially when ye all don't know each other inside-out yet.
Along a similar vein, the rolling over thing a dog does, particularly when he doesn't really know you inside-out, is very often misconstrued as an invitation to rub his tummy.
It's not! In this context, it's more likely to be a submissive gesture which indicates that the dog is asking for some distance.
You can see the problem here, can't you?! The dog is asking us to do something, and we do the EXACT opposite!
When a dog's submissive requests for distance are ignored, albeit inadvertently, then he has little choice but to escalate things. This escalated response is usually always bigger when the dog feels he can't escape, which of course he can't, because he's lying on the flippin ground!
So, I think a good rule of thumb for any owner of a new or new-ish dog, especially if he's inclined to be a bit anxious or wary generally, is to limit interactions with him to when he initiates them... don't approach him, let him approach you!
That means no interactions when he's eating, chewing on a bone or toy, resting or sleeping, or when he does anything that increases his distance from you, which includes him lowering himself onto the ground.
Hopefully this is just a temporary rule of thumb until you really know each other better, and can trust each other more. That's going to take time and understanding... there's no short-cuts really.
Best of luck!

L-M

Thanks a mill for the post, fairly reassuring and consistent with what we believe ourselves.

We keep forgetting we only know him for two weeks and visa versa. He was definitely locked in a crate at night so I’m sure he has some anxiety claustrophobia over that.

Back to my initial post, well give him more time. Might bring him to the Vet also just to make sure all is well otherwise.

volchitsa

L-M wrote: »

Hi folks. He seems to have settled down a good bit in the two weeks we have him, now know he’s not a morning dog!

Anyway, we’re managing away fine, one issue we have is snapping. It’s only happened a couple of times, once my fiancée went to rub him while he was eating and he snapped. Lack of judgment on our behalf, just forgot to stay away from an eating dog.

I was just playing fetch with him for a good bit in the back garden and I brought out his water for him, when he finished drinking he rolled on his side and went to rub his belly and he snapped and broke the skin. It’s a bit disheartening when you don’t know when he’s going to snap?

Just on this submissive lying vs belly-rub, I've seen a very anxious dog doing that and once you know about it (which I didn't at the time) you can see the difference: our dog (who's not a bit anxious) lies down but lifts a leg so you can reach the place she wants rubbed. This dog didn't do that, and also was much stiffer and less relaxed.

em_cat

Esmae our Pom x does the confused belly exposed thing too & I work with her & all people to let her know she can expect to be left a lone if lying on the floor as I call it flakers. However when she’s upside down next to me on the sofa, she will paw my hand to pet, more of a soft tickle, her bedtime belly tickle I call it.

It took many many many months for us to develop this bond.

We don’t know much about Esmae’s previous life, but I can tell she has trust issues so i just take it at her pace and do my best to teach others to do the same.

With time & patience you’ll get there OP.

Also, check out AniEds fabulous 100 Days of Enrichment, it’s all about, fun, trust building and mental stimulation, & best of all all you need is dog, recycling, some of their favourite toys & tasty treats... & it’s totally free