PHOTOS BY JEFFREY LIM
By all rights, a Corgi is technically, well, a strange mix of characteristics: Is it a Terrier, a Sheepdog, or is it what one would have called in the past a toy breed? The answers might surprise you!
All of our furry canine family members are from the same scientific classification! They do not have subspecies. It just goes to show how adaptable our furry family members are.
SUPER-SIZED SOULS
If you love our canine companions, or you are lucky to have one or more (preferably more) of them as family members, then it’s practically impossible not to have even heard of Corgis.
It’s not hard to describe them: they are rather small Dogs, and they tend to look like Sheepdogs — but with very, very short legs. They tend to be like canine bullets zooming around when they’re excited, something like high-speed rugs that go around your house.
But it’s not only their cute physical appearance that can catch your heart. If anything, their character and personalities — which seem to be three times their actual size — are tailor-made to make anyone fall in love with them (except, perhaps, exclusive Cat lovers).
So here we are: Let’s find out more about these little canine friends with super-sized souls.
WAIT, THERE ARE TWO KINDS?
Getting down to brass tacks, there are actually two kinds of Corgis: the Pembroke Welsh Corgi and the Cardigan Welsh Corgi. Let’s get the basic look down.
Welsh Corgis, also known as Corgwyns in Wales where they come from, are actually a small type of herding Dog. They generally have Fox-like head shapes and have short legs. Their fur usually is reddish brown, black with tan or white, or grayish in color, with white markings.
PEMBROKE WELSH CORGIS
The Pembroke may be the more popular in terms of look, with a short tail and pointed ears. They are usually around ten to twelve inches in height but are a hefty 25 to 38 pounds in weight. Their coats have a fine texture.
CARDIGAN WELSH CORGIS
A Cardigan has a long tail and ears rounded at the tips. Cardigan Corgis tend to have short-ish coats, unlike the Pembroke blokes who have a more finely textured coat.
WORKING-CLASS FURBALLS
It may come as a surprise, but the two different Corgi breeds are actually separate lines, down to their maybe-so-and-maybe-no origins.
The Cardigan Corgi, for example, has been traced back to when they were brought by Celts to Wales, more than a thousand years before Christ (that’s 1200 BC!). Apparently, they were known as Bronants at that time, and their short legs make sense, as Dachshunds are supposedly their cousins.
The Pembroke Corgis, on the other hand, were brought over from Flanders around the 11th century, and are cousins to Pomeranians and Samoyeds. Across the centuries, Welsh farmers managed to standardize how both branches looked, until we now have similar-looking furry friends with very different origins – one is Celtic, and the other is Dutch!
BIGGER-THAN-LIFE PERSONALITIES
Corgis are known to be very friendly, devoted, and naughtily intelligent. However, they can sometimes be noisy around strangers and may bark at them — this is a throwback to their herding instincts, and it will also do a lot of good to train them not to nip at the heels or feet of people.
They sometimes feel, really, that their humans need a little bit of guidance, herding style! Corgis tend to be more individualistic and do need a lot of interaction with their families.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Their names describe them pretty well: cor gi means “dwarf Dog” in Welsh, and they’ve also been known as ci-llathed, “yard-long Dogs”. The specific names, of course, describe the places they are from: Pembrokeshire and Cardigan (in Ceredigion county, the historic county of Cardiganshire) are actual places in Wales.
There’s a method to the madness of their short legs, though: Being short allowed them to nip at the heels of cattle and other agricultural herd animals, so they could control and direct the whole herd. At the same time, they wouldn’t be an easy target for when Cows and the like would decide to kick back at who’s nipping at their heels.
Along the way, Corgis also evolved to become all-around farm help: They would guard the home territory aside from the herd, and they would even become hunting Dogs for a time and help during Cattle drives.
GETTING THEM FIT, HEALTHY, AND FRIENDLY
Corgis are a very intelligent breed, so it goes without saying that they do need a lot of training – otherwise, being the herding dogs that they are, they will train you. The dark side of having an intelligent canine companion is that you run the risk of letting them be the ones to take over the household.
Aside from proper training, it’s a good idea to keep them active, so that their energies are focused elsewhere. Socialization with their local neighborhood of dogs is one way to blunt their herding streak, and having long walks or jogs will keep them fit. The great news in that last bit is that most probably, you will end up being fit as well — or at the very least have more endurance.
It’s always a good idea to listen to your vet of choice when it comes to your Corgi’s diet, and this can’t be stressed enough: They shouldn’t be allowed to be overweight. Given their bodies and their long spines, any extra weight can lead to debilitating injuries in the long run.
Finally, there’s the matter of grooming. A Corgi is a Corgi is a Corgi when they are groomed well, as only then will you get that Instagram Corgi™ look. They have to be regularly groomed, preferably once a week, and their teeth and ears should also be part of the routine, aside from their nails.
A LOVABLE RESPONSIBILITY
It may sound like a Corgi is a high-maintenance breed, but in truth, they’re not — you just have to love them as you are supposed to love your furry family members. Their loyalty, sense of humor, and overall outgoing personality – combined with their friendliness to children (when properly trained) – make them perfect family members, and not just companions.
