Mom of Suzy Q

[suzyqcorgi]

Newbie to site and puppy Suzy Q! She is almost 12 weeks old. Working on crate and house training. Crate training is going very well! House training is going okay. Seems like I can't catch her in time. I probably take her out every 20 minutes to half hour or so when she is not in her crate. Does not go in her crate. When she does go in the house I tell her no and promptly take her outside. Poo seems too runny to take with us sometimes. I think I am going to try the leash. I do gate her in whatever room I'm in but with two small kids sometimes it is hard to catch. Any suggetions? She has gotten a lot better with the nipping. Looking forward to being part of the site and meeting other corgi owners.
Thanks, Berri

[corgimom]

Berri,

sounds like you are trying to do your best with 2 small kids. Do you know
why her poop may be runny - what are you feeding her?

When we got our Corgi at 11 weeks, I was taking him out every 1/2 hour also.
Now, I know some people will say that was not necessary, but I think it
helped tremendously in his potty training and being consistent. He
only had 4 accidents in the house and that was my fault for not watching him.- he is now 5 months and goes consistently outside with no accidents at
all.

You may want to leash him to you if you are going to be busy with the kids,
so that way you can see when he starts to get impatient and start smelling
around which will indicate he needs to go out. It is time consuming in the
beginning, but it will pay off. Just keep up the good work. If you really can't
watch her, it is better to crate her and then immediately take her outside
as soon as she comes out of the crate. Even if you gate her in the room that
you are in, and you are busy with the kids, you may miss her pottying so
better to crate her if you truly can't keep a close eye on her.


Corgimom

[tandemgal]

Hi Berri,

deleted by T-Gal

[Michael Romanos]

Corgimom is right. Got to look at your feeding chart because the wrong mix of food is the number one reason why your Corgi pup has a messy bottom.
By the way, I learnt from Go Corgi that baby wipes are the best things to clean up with.
I have never wanted or felt inclined to train any Corgi to automatically use a crate. It's the sense of freedom that Corgis like best - even if having to be confined to a room or an area of the house until things fall into place eg house trained, able to run up and down stairs after aged six months, trained not to bite furniture, destroy clothing eic or get onto couches. Your pup has to learn all these things at the same time. I have always said that the Corgis I have owned have caused such very little damage to anything -inside or outside the house. So I can'r be that marvellous. It's to do with time and effort and organisation.

[corgimom]

Michael,

It doesn't sound like you are big on crates, but they can be a lifesaver if
not overused. I guess in Berri's case, she states she has two small children,
so trying to keep track of them and a new puppy would tire anyone out. I
would think a crate would be helpful to her if for some reason she has to
attend to her young child immediately and can't watch their puppy. If the
puppy is put in the crate for say only 15 minutes or so, while she is attending to her children, she would learn to hold her potty, but if left roaming in a gated off room, she would maybe potty and Berri would miss that opportunity
to "correct" the dog.

Linda

[Shelly]

Berri, Welcome, and best of luck with the new pup. Some petfoods have corn, some have rice, they all have different mixtures. Perhaps your pup's stomach doesn't do well with the mixture that is a major component of the food. Talk to the vet about a different food but phase it in gradually or their stomach's can have trouble. Best of luck. ~Shelly

[Michael Romanos]

Hi Linda
I'm sure ther are advantages in having your Corgi confined to a crate for short periods. The trouble is it could become a habit for everyone - one that has no value overall.

[corgimom]

Michael,

I am sorry, but I disagree with you. Many people use crates for their dogs.
Now I am home full time so the only time I use it is if I run short errands and
at night - he never complains(whines) when he is in there. There is no
way I am going to leave a 5 month old puppy to roam the house while I
go run errands. He often naps in his crate during the day - the door is always
open and he willingly goes inside by himself - sometimes he naps in the kitchen, but lots of times he goes in his crate.

Linda