My Puppy Fargo

[Fargo06]

Hi everyone! I just found this site today and it looks like a great way to interact with other Corgi owners. I have a 15 week old little boy named Fargo. This is my first Corgi that I have ever owned and I can already tell that it is going to be an experience! He came into my home when he was 10 weeks old and he's been a handful ever since . I am crate training him but I think I am starting to realize I need a smaller crate for him. This morning we had a bit of an accident and he woke up sleeping in his poop. I am hoping that if I place him in a smaller crate that this will help? He has been great about not having too many accidents in the house. Mostly just in his crate lately. Well I must run home to let him out on my lunch break. If anyone has any tips or comments let me know. Thanks!!

[corgimom]

Fargo06


Welcome to the board and congratulations on your new addition. Not sure how big your crate is, but a smaller one should do the trick. I know some others have been going through what you have with the messing in the crate and I am sure they can offer you some suggestions as to what they did to solve it.

One thing is to not put a water bowl in the crate at night - is this something that you are doing?

He is really cute!

Linda
Corgimom

[lricch565]

Fargo is adorable - I love those big ears! My dog Mazie has them also.

She is crate trained, so the only suggestion I can make is to make sure that Fargo only has enough room to turn around and lay down in the crate. I bought the medium-sized crate when I first got Mazie (she was about 8 weeks) and put a box in there to take away half of the room. She was very good about not going where she was laying. I just made sure that I let her relieve herself every 4 to 5 hours when she was first put in there.

Good luck -
Lisa

[Fargo06]

I haven't been placing water in the crate. I figured that would only make it worse. I hope that the smaller cage will do the trick. Approx. how long did it take to potty train your corgi's? I have heard from someone that theirs was still having accidents now and again up until almost a year old. I would hope to rid him from that before that age though if possible. He has been a great puppy though thus far. He doesn't bark too often which I've heard can be a problem and he's been socialized with other dogs constantly so he gets along with them all wonderfully!! Thanks for the help!

-Sarah

[Fluffypants]

Another adorable corgi in our midst! Fargo is a cutie!

Jackie was fully housebroken by around 9 months. It took us a little longer than most, because we both work far away from home (too far to come back for walks during the day), so we had to rely on a hired dog walker for help. With a smaller crate, and consistent walking times, you should have no problem with Fargo. Good luck & welcome!

[Fargo06]

I am lucky that I only work about a mile away from home. So I can easily go back at lunch and take him out. I think the hardest thing for him, is telling us when he needs to go. He has whined now and then to let us know..but it's not very persistent. When he does whine, it's very quiet then he walks around the corner and has an accident. I've read in a Corgi book that a good thing to use is a bell. You ring it when you take them out and eventually they learn to ring the bell when they need to go outside. I thought this was a clever idea but haven't tried it yet. Probably would be a good thing to do though.

-Sarah

[Fluffypants]

I thought the bell idea was very clever also.

[darci]

Welcome to the boards. Fargo is a little doll...
Making the crate smaller should do the trick.
Persistance is the key to potty training.
I do have a friend that has trained thier lab to ring the bell to go out, very clever and cute, but she sometimes rings it just to go out and play... He he he

[Jeni D]

I too have a friend that trained their boxer to use the bell. They ended up having to take it down because he was constantly ringing it to go outside...too funny

Fargo is such a cutie. My cardi, Dudley, is 13 weeks old now, so we'll be going through the same things at pretty much the same time. We had some issues with pottying in his crate as well. Shrinking the size helped with the pooing, but he continued to pee in his crate. Now, he seems to have finally gotten the hang of it and doesn't have any problems with the crate at all. I've decided that everything is trial and error with these guys!

Welcome to the site! You'll learn loads of information here!
Jeni

[Fargo06]

Thanks for the welcome! Dudley is adorable as well!! I've only been a member of this site since today and I've already learned a lot! It's great! I have a feeling Fargo would ring the bell to go out all the time as well. We might end up giving it a try anyways until he gets potty trained. I'm glad to hear that Dudley got the hang of the potty training though! That's great! I think Fargo will get the hang of it soon.

-Sarah

[Michael Romanos]

Sarah - I most certainly wouldn't want to squash my Corgi in any small crate for any lengthy periods - the bigger the better for Fargo's comfort and moveability. It is not in a Corgis nature to want to piddle or poop in his kennel, bed or crate, let alone sit on the mess - so obviously you are doing something wrong. It's probably your timing of his toilet traits and your giving him liquid food/drinks without ensuring he has toileted at the right time before being confined to his crate. Also don't get him excited or anxious whilst he is caged.
Fargo is a real cutey.

[corgimom]

Michael,

We are not recommending that she squash her Corgi into a crate, but if he
has potty issues going on, a crate more for his size may be just what he needs. She did mention that she can come home at the lunch hour and
let him out, but you are right that her timing may be somewhat off in getting
him to relieve himself -

Linda

[Michael Romanos]

I don't consider the size of the crate a problem - so I wouldn't recommend a small crate in preference to a large crate.

[Fargo06]

Well I did try the smaller crate last night and there were no accidents this morning, which was one of our largest problems. So hopefully he will keep it up! During the day it is usually smooth sailing because I am home often enough to let him out. So we'll just hope for the best!!

[corgimom]

Michael,

The size of the crate can be a problem because if it is too large, the puppy
will go to the back of it and potty and still be able to move to the front area
and lay down in a clean spot. My sister in law just got a new puppy(not a Corgi) and they both work and decided to put him in bathroom which is
on the smaller size(but way bigger than a crate for this pups size) - anyway, of course the dog had already pottied when they came home for lunch, but now they have put him in a crate , more for his size, and this problem is not happening. I know you are not into the crate thing, but when people work,
there is not much of an alternative, other than hiring a dog walker, and not
everyone can afford that.

It sounds as if Fargo06 has solved this issue for night time with the smaller
crate.

Linda