Jumping down from things

[Bailey's driver]

Bailey is allowed to get on one couch and one chair. He loves it. The couch is only 12" from the ground when he compresses the cushion by standing at the edge before jumping, and the chair is about 14" from the ground. (taller than a stair riser, mine are about 7" high).


Is this too much for his front legs? He is 15 months old.

[Michael Romanos]

Piece of cake for a 12 month old-plus Corgi. In agility terms in current NZ conditions, it is nothing. Corgis here easily clear hurdles with the top bar set at 15 inches. Taylor considers jumping up on park benches and seats as his given duty - and they can be as high as a kite. I find it advisable to never hinder a Corgi who considers he/she can successfully attempt a jump because I don't want to upset the keen sense they have of knowing their capabilities. and render them nervous and unsure.

[Dillydoodle]

Deleted my post

[ChloeLouise]

This is an interesting thread - and reflects a concern that I have had also...Given the opportunity, ChloeLouise is a fearless leaper-off-things and causes me to have occassional heartfailure. Until she was nearly a year old, we tried to set her down off the couch and we carried her off the deck to the ground. She still is not allowed up and down our steep second floor stairs (scary for humans even!). We got a "new" chair recently and Chloe has claimed this as her personal Princess throne and flies onto it and hurdles herself off it ...I worry about her back and her front legs - is this kind of jumping too much stress? Michael, I appreciate your comments about agility - I guess Corgis wouldn't be encouraged to compete if the activity was bad for them... Still, am I being too overprotective? (actually, I KNOW the answer to that... )

[milosmom]

I've read so much that with those long backs Corgi owners have to careful about activities. My breeder told me NO FRISBEE...because of that jumping in the air and twisting their backs action...not good. She recommended no jumping on and off furniture either. Milo does get on the sofa and chair but my bed is too high. He has to use the hallway as a runway to gain enough momentum to get to the bed, so I just keep the door closed to discourage that.
Sometimes he really sails off the sofa and I do worry about that! I do try to be careful when playing. I throw the ball low to the ground so he doesn't have to jump up and twist himself to catch it.

[darci]

Not all corgi's are built for agility.

I wouldnt worry as much for Egan to jump down from the sofa, he's lean and muscular.

Darci on the other hand has HD and is a heavier girl, who gets hurt more easy. When I say heavy she weighs 26 lbs, but shes built different and carries her weight different.

I wouldnt let either of them jump from our bed its to tall.

I did meet a local lady on one of our walks last summer and she had a female corgi with a fractured leg in a cast who thought she could jump from a 6 foot wall. Doggies dont always know best.

So I think it depends on the individual dog. I would talk with your breeder and your vet.

I really think a lot of it depends on the health and build of your corgi.


ETA: Milosmom, my breeder and vet also said no frisbee...

[Chip's Mom]

Margo

I am with you - I worry too much also but i would rather be a little cautious then to risk Chip getting hurt. He also will jump sometimes off the sofa and it scares me. I have a padded bench at the foot of my bed that he uses to get down and I pick him up normally and put him on the bed but sometimes he gets off in the night and then gets back up on his own. I am thankful that Chip has decided he doesn't like agility anymore. He won't even go in the tunnel since that dog peed in it and it has been cleaned.

[Michael Romanos]

If you think Corgis jumping from a sofa is scary. Don't watch Taylor in agility when he has it in mind to not reach the contact area on his way down the 'big dogs' A-frame, but to launch himself off the two metre high frame ( approx 6ft 7in), a third of the way down to half way down - and done at speed. That's not inches, that's feet.

[milles2]

Lulu did what looked like a belly flop off the bed the other day. It made me question if she really knew how to jump off things. Once my heart started beating again I thought about it for awhile and she has been jumping off things for a long time.

That particular morning I don't know what she was thinking but it looked like she threw her legs out from under her.

She landed with thud rather than her normal "graceful dismount" (!). Since she had been diagnosed w/ Pano, it really worried me. Typically Tucker will jump off the bed and Lulu will wait for me to lift her off. No idea what got in her head that morning.

In agility I watched in horror as Tucker jumped off the Dog Walk. About 4
1/2-5 feet off the ground. Why did he jump? Heck, there was a treat on the ground!!!!! That's my boy!

[Bailey's driver]

I did leave out some information that I should have included. When Bailey first had a rear leg problem it was not clear what the problem really was.
The vet noticed that his neck muscles were very tight. I was using a collar all the time. The vet advised me to switch to a harness and not use the collar to restrain him or to even pull on it. She mentioned that the way Corgis are built jumping down is not good for a potential neck problem (disk problems) and it is tough on the front legs (the bones and joints). Not knowing for sure if he did have a neck or back problem I have been very cautious about letting him jump down from heights. He has plenty of muscle power and coordination, but I am concerned with a disk or joint problem. The muscles can allow all sorts of things that are too much for the joints.

It sounds as if all his symptoms were from his bad hips, but I know from first hand experience that too much pressure on a joint predisposed to a problem can make things worse. Or even just make him feel worse if it does no damage.
Also at 15 months he may still be growing a little. I prefer to err on the side of caution. You never know what you may learn when you ask a question. Thanks for the great input.

[glencorgi]

Originally Posted by Bailey's driver

Also at 15 months he may still be growing a little. I prefer to err on the side of caution. You never know what you may learn when you ask a question. Thanks for the great input.

You are exactly right - he is still growing, not so much in height or length, but in filling out and maturing. Very sound and common sense approach in your thoughts! Corgis can be taught they are not allowed on furniture, which will prevent the jumping on and off of sofas and chairs. That's one option. IF you don't mind and enjoy the couch company, then floor cushions placed in the jumping points can be useful - cushion the impact from the jumping.

Bailey is lucky to have you there for him.

Debbie

[Bailey's driver]

Originally Posted by glencorgi

You are exactly right - he is still growing, not so much in height or length, but in filling out and maturing. Very sound and common sense approach in your thoughts! Corgis can be taught they are not allowed on furniture, which will prevent the jumping on and off of sofas and chairs. That's one option. IF you don't mind and enjoy the couch company, then floor cushions placed in the jumping points can be useful - cushion the impact from the jumping.

Bailey is lucky to have you there for him.

Debbie

Good idea about some old cushions for a "landing pad". A few dog hairs
on my couch or my recliner are not important. I have a vacuum.