Hi Everybody

[CalliCorgi]

Hi!

I'm form Southern NJ and wanted to take a minute to introduce myself and my Corgi girl of two weeks named Calli. I think I recognize a screen name here or two (Hi Cheetah and Shippo!). I got Calli at an out of town horse show--her breeder no longer wanted her as her children had lost interest in having her. She was not spayed or house broken and has apparently spent all of her 17 months out in a kennel. Ms. Calli is a very shy but loving little girl and I think her confidence will improve with time. Here is a photo--you would never guess how shy she is based on these photos LOL!




I have never previously owned a Corgi, but being a horse person I have known several--in fact amongst my current circle of acquaintances and friends--there are 8 Corgis--7 Pems and 1 Cardigan. They are such neat dogs and I just couldn't leave Calli after she raced back to my lap like her life depended on it once I tried to stand up!
My other critters include my Manchester terror (uh terrier! LOL) Zippy and my 2 horses. A little over a month ago I lost my Australian Cattle Dog named Blue to complications from diabetes.
I look forward to getting to know everyone and your adorable dogs!

[Michael Romanos]

Calli is very obviously made for you. She will thrive in a very short time on her new found freedom and companionship and should eventually be playful far beyond the extent she was formerly allowed.
Give her lots of things to do and plan for several highlights each week.

[Jane Austen]

Calli looks lovely and healthy. And I appreciate the fact that you adopted her out of a home that didn't want her anymore.
Can other members who have had to housebreak older dogs give us an idea of how you managed to housebreak adult dogs given similar situations of them being raised outside? I ask this out of curiosity and I guess thinking if I have the opportunity someday to take on another corgi such as a rescue, would I be confident in taking a chance.
Keep us up to date on her progress, coming out of her shell and the housebreaking.

[CalliCorgi]

Hi and thank you for the warm welcome! I will definitely keep you updated on our progress. Its funny with the housebreaking---she is almost regressing as she gets more comfortable in the house. I've gone through a lot of Natures Miracle and other cleaning supplies in the past few weeks LOL! She does fine as long as I'm home and taking her out. The tough time is when I am away at work for a lengthy stretch--sometimes she makes the day--sometimes not--a lot depends on the morning walk--at first she would consistently do all of her business in a fairly short time--now she seems to have gotten off schedule and will pee, but not poop in the morning. I know my work schedule will make all this take longer, but overall she is doing pretty well. Any tips for improvement will be greatly appreciated though!

[Peggy]

Originally Posted by Jane Austen

Can other members who have had to housebreak older dogs give us an idea of how you managed to housebreak adult dogs given similar situations of them being raised outside? I ask this out of curiosity and I guess thinking if I have the opportunity someday to take on another corgi such as a rescue, would I be confident in taking a chance.

You use the same methods you would when housebreaking a puppy.

Peggy

[Peggy]

Originally Posted by CalliCorgi

Its funny with the housebreaking---she is almost regressing as she gets more comfortable in the house. I've gone through a lot of Natures Miracle and other cleaning supplies in the past few weeks LOL! She does fine as long as I'm home and taking her out. The tough time is when I am away at work for a lengthy stretch--sometimes she makes the day--sometimes not--a lot depends on the morning walk--at first she would consistently do all of her business in a fairly short time--now she seems to have gotten off schedule and will pee, but not poop in the morning. I know my work schedule will make all this take longer, but overall she is doing pretty well. Any tips for improvement will be greatly appreciated though!

Is she confined when you are not home? If not she needs to be. She doesn't yet understand that she should not potty when she needs to. Crate training her and leaving her in a crate when you are not home will help her learn this. (Which is what you'd do with a puppy too, they don't get unsupervised freedom right away.)

Do a search on "housebreaking+adult dog" in google for several sites with ideas to use with older dogs.

Peggy

[Jane Austen]

Originally Posted by Peggy

You use the same methods you would when housebreaking a puppy.

Peggy

I am surprised! I would have thought it would be more difficult than that. But maybe I am not remembering how it is to train a puppy since I have not had one in so long.

[MyPemCharlie]

Congrats on the new Corgi and welcome to the forum! Peggy is spot-on about the training. Its pretty much the same as for a puppy. If she is having "accidents" while you're out of the house, you will need to crate train her. Dogs don't like to pee or poop where they sleep, so she'll "hold it" if she's in her bed (crate) while you're gone.

[CalliCorgi]

Yep, you all are absolutely right--I'm going to get her an appropriately sized crate this evening. At first it didn't seem like she was going to need it, but now I see it is defintely the way to go. I also think the crate will help her feel secure. She always seems to root her self to one spot in a room anyway because she is so shy. She also startles very easily.
This poor little girl will not walk around the house, play with Zippy or anything. She always acts happy to see me and will run up to me if we are on the couch and she loves to snuggle. But to get her from one room to another she normally has to be carried--once she is on the couch she won't move from it--once she is on the floor in the bedroom--she won't move from it. A few times I left her on the couch while the rest of us went to bed to see if she would follow--one time she came into the bedroom on her own about an hour or so later. The last 2 times she stayed out on the couch all night. I also have to carry her to the door to take her out. She doesn't come to greet me when I come home, but is always happy to see me when I go to her.
At first she was too nervous to be a good eater (I know, can you imagine!) but now she eats fine and has finally started taking treats from me--they still don't motivate her enough to ,for instance ,come off the couch to get one. Calli has also never made a peep--I mean not one sound--no matter how scared, how happy--nothing. She tolerates my Manchester but will not play with him---she lets him nibble on her, jump on her etc, but she won't play or defend herself when he gets to be too much. She actually seems to completely ignore him, she doesn't seem afraid or bothered--I try to distract him when he is being overbearing.
Sorry to ramble on so long! I'm just trying to give you all an overall picture of how Calli is right now--this weekend I will have her 3 weeks. She has been to the vet for a checkup and more shots--after a few more vaccinations she will be spayed. The vet said she appears to be in good health. If anyone has any other tips or advice or other shy Corgi stories to share that would be great!

[MyPemCharlie]

Poor girl! Shame on those adults for penning her out in a kennel her whole life. Thank goodness you got her and are giving her a first real home. Sounds like due to a lack of proper socialization and training, she has a mild case of shyness. More exteme shyness usually shows as fear aggression. In fact, she might just be adjusting to her new, improved environment and will get much less shy on her own within a few weeks.

This article may give you some ideas to help bring Calli out of her shell. In general, you'll want to slowly introduce her to lots of different sights, sounds, and places. A good basic obedience class should also help with her shyness and build a strong bond between you.

Shy Dogs: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

Looking forward to reading more stories about you and Calli!

[HemiBee]

welcome! glad to see more horse people here

So wonderful of you to adopt her!

I'm Tiffany.. and my boyfriend and I have 2 Corgis.. a r&w pem named Hemi whos almost a year and a half.. and then a 4mo b&w Cardi boy named Cooper!

Always used to see Corgis at all my horse shows too.. that's what first got me interested in the breed!

[Peggy]

Originally Posted by Jane Austen

I am surprised! I would have thought it would be more difficult than that. But maybe I am not remembering how it is to train a puppy since I have not had one in so long.

Acutally it should be easier since an adult dog can "hold" it longer than a puppy.

My experience is that they catch on pretty quickly.

Peggy