Pembroke Welsh Corgi Dog Breed Facts and Interesting Information

The Favorite Dog Breed of the British Royal Family

Did you know, Pembroke Welsh Corgis are in fact the most popular of dog breeds with the British Royal family? Queen Elizabeth the Second alone owns an outstanding number of 16 Pembroke Welsh Corgis herself! The only downfall that the British Royal Family has realized about this petite herding dog breed is that you've got to watch out for your ankles because when Pembrokes are puppies they are prone to snip at the bottoms of your legs when they want attention due to their strong herding instincts and long history as cattle dogs.

Perhaps, one of the reasons that the British Royal family has been so drawn to these short herding canines is that Pembroke Welsh Corgis are actually quite an intelligent breed of dog. They're so smart in fact, that many top 10 Smartest Dog lists include Pembroke Welsh Corgis as one of the finalist dog breeds. Not only are Pembrokes highly intelligent, but unlike some canine companions, they respond excessively well towards obedience dog training. When you think about it, this is a must have feature for the British Royal Family dogs. I mean, when royal dogs are seen in public they simply have to keep it together with elegance and dignity even under high pressure situations; this is a trait that the Pembroke Welsh Corgi dogs display at some of the finest levels.

Pembroke Welsh Corgis are a breed of herding dogs that are thought to have originated from Pembrokeshire, Wales as early as the 11'th century. During that time, Pembrokes were bred for herding cattle and other livestock like horses, geese, sheep, and poultry animals by nipping their ankles in order to guide their movements and direction. For the past millennium now, the Pembroke Welsh Corgi dogs have made both wonderful family pets and herding dogs.

 

Pembroke and Cardigan Welsh Corgis

There are two distinct breeds of Welsh Corgis, the Cardigan Welsh Corgi and of course the Pembroke Welsh Corgi . There are few differences between the two dog breeds, but you can easily distinguish the two purebred dog breeds between one another just by memorizing some simple details. For example, the Pembroke Welsh Corgi has a naturally short semi docked tail to bobbed tail, while Cardigan Welsh Corgis have long bushy tails that usually have white tips to them. Also, the Pembrokes stand on short straight thinner legs, but Cardigan Welsh Corgis have slightly bent thicker legs, in particularly Cardigan Welsh Corgi’s front legs are curved. All in all though, Pembroke Welsh Corgis and Cardigan Welsh Corgis are practically identical looking cattle dogs in many cases.

 

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Facial Features

This ancient British herding dog breed has an overall lively appearance relatively similar to that of a fox, especially when it comes to their heads and facial features. These canines have large naturally standing up, erect triangular shaped ears and long slender muzzles. Pembroke Welsh Corgis have large eyes that appear as though they are outlined with charcoal like eyeliner, along with black noses and dark rimmed mouths to add to the combo. These facial features often times contrast greatly with their thick variety colored coats.

Pemboke Welsh Corgi Body and Build

The Pembroke Welsh Corgi dogs carry very long bodies with dwarf like stubby, pegged legs similar to that of a Dachshund. These fine canine companions more times than not have fairly short large tails which are bushy like a fox. Pembrokes display deep chests that gradually slope up to thinner waists, but this feature is scarcely equivocal on the account that its predominantly hidden and distorted with its shape by the Pembroke Welsh Corgi's coat. This purebred dog breed bears essentially high set, sturdy, solid, husky necks that add a demeanor of strength to the Pembroke Welsh Corgi .

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Coat

Pembroke Welsh Corgis come in various coat color variations. Some of the color pallets that these cattle dogs display include reddish tones with white, fawn and white, black and tan, sable and white, red haired tricolors, black tricolors, sable tricolors, and Pembroke dogs are supposed to always contain white fur somewhere on their bodies or faces; reddish pigmented coats are the most bountiful color of combinations displayed with this purebred dog breed. Pembroke Welsh Corgi dogs have dense double layered weatherproof fur. They exhibit course outer coats and softer diminutive inner coats. These herding dogs possess builds which are able to withstand the harsh British winters; the Pembroke Welsh Corgi dogs are deemed to have medium length coats. Ordinarily the Pembroke's fur is not liable for any cutting or trimming assistance to them.

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Grooming

These British Royal Family dogs , to no surprise, do however need fair amounts of grooming, especially during the late spring and early summer where this herding dog breed should be consistently groomed with preferably a wire brush 3 to 7 times a week due to their profound daily shedding! Though the grooming isn’t fast work, it's actually quite easy to groom a Pembroke Welsh Corgi dog, since they're not that large of a dog breed. When compared to other medium length haired to long haired canines, Pembroke Welsh Corgi dogs are a breeze to groom by a long shot. And look on the bright side, Pembrokes rarely need any grooming assistance for the Winter, Fall, Early Spring, and parts of the Summer, but if you can't take the time to groom these dwarf like canine companions, then do both the dog a favor and yourself a favor by not even considering bringing a Pembroke Welsh Corgi home in the first place.

The Pembroke Welsh Corgi Withers

This purebred dog breed has both Male Pembroke Welsh Corgis and Female Pembroke Welsh Corgis standing on withers ranging roughly from 10 and a half to 12 inches in height on average. Anything measuring more or less is usually considered a faulty trait for a Pembroke dog to display, and it is advised not to breed canines with such qualities for various reasons.

The Pembroke Welsh Weight

The average healthy weight that the Pembroke Welsh Corgi breed of dog should lye within is exactly 26 lbs to 28 lbs. If your Pembroke canine companion measures at a heavier weight, then it's recommended that you put your pet on a diet and set time out of each of day in order to help your pooch drop some of the extra weight.

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Temperament

Both Pembrokes and Cardigan Welsh Corgis score an A when it comes to their personalities and temperaments. The Welsh Corgi dogs are highly loyal to their families and loved ones with responsible, lovable, and obedient charismatic natures. For the most part, Welsh Corgis make a good family pet choice and are dogs that do well with children. Do keep in mind though that since the Welsh Corgis have been bred as cattle dogs since 1107 AD, Pembroke Welsh Corgi puppies are prone to nipping people's ankles, so this could be a problem if you bring home a young, completely untrained Pembroke Welsh Corgi puppy home to a household that has small children.

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Dog Training

Want to train a dog that can both learn quickly and efficiently without being prone to misbehavior? Well if you do, the Pembroke Welsh Corgi could be the dog for you! Pembrokes respond incredibly well to both standard dog training plus obedience dog training. What more could you ask for? That's why these canine companions have scored so high with an “A” with my dog training grading system. As if these cute pooches didn't already have it all down in the temperament category, these purebred dogs also qualify as easy to train watch dogs, of course herding dogs, and cattle dogs as well.

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Dog Exercise Requirements

Would you consider yourself more of a couch potato or an outdoorsy athletic type of person? Well, if you're closer to a couch potato, forget about owning any type of Welsh Corgi; on the other hand if you're the athletic type, then I have some good news for you! Pembroke dogs could just very well make the perfect match with your personal lifestyle. Like most all herding dogs these canines really need their exercise, more so when you think about how relatively small dogs Pembrokes are with such petite legs; another bonus is that they are shockingly fast runners too.

Keep in mind , if you do not properly exercise your Pembroke Welsh Corgi dog, your canine companion  can easily put on excess weight which is partially due to their incredible love towards food, so his or her individual diet and food intake should be closely monitored. If you neglect your dog’s health and lifestyle, this can sadly lead to multiple life threatening diseases and dog depression.

Did You Know?

Due to the Pembroke Welsh Corgi's strong cattle dog and herding breed background, when left with other animals or dogs they will sometimes try to herd the other pets and animals! Pembroke Welsh Corgi puppies have even been said to try to herd up small children and in a few cases adults too!

 

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Health

These friendly herding dogs are more times than not a healthy breed, but like most purebred dogs breeds, Pembrokes do have multiple hereditary health concerns and conditions that should be closely monitored, especially with age. Some of the hereditary health concerns that Pembroke Welsh Corgi dogs are prone to include Von Willebrand's Disease, Canine Hip Dysplasia (CHP), degenerative myelopatyhy, and various back problems due to weight gain and/or falling, similar to what dachshunds can develop and other Chondrodystrophic Dogs as well (Chondrodystrophic meas: large bodied dogs with disproportionately shorter legs when compared in ratio to one another.)

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Life Span

The average life span for Welsh Corgi's is between roughly 12 and a half to 15 and a half years of age, depending on the individual Pembroke dog's overall physical health, mental health, emotional health, and general livelihood. In other words more times than not, if you want your dog to live to the fullest of its years that he or she is able to, you simply must responsibly take loving care and provide your canine with the proper exercise and social environment to reside in throughout life.

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Temperament and Personality = B+ to A-

Intelligence = A+

Pembroke Welsh Corgi Dog Training = A+

These canine companions are highly intelligent dogs that are easy to train, and these Top Ten Smartest Dogs finalists, respond at great levels towards obedience dog training too.

Suitability for City, Urban, or Apartment living space and lifestyle = C-

This is on average, but sometimes these lively hearding dogs may suite Urban living if the dog owner leads an active lifestyle.

Suitability for Metropolitan and Suburban living spaces and lifestyles = B+

Suitability for Farm, Country, and Rural living spaces and lifestyles = A+

Stamina = A-

 Welsh Corgis may have small legs, but do not be fooled by their deceiving appearances. Pembroke Welsh Corgis pack a punch when it comes to stamina and exercise durability.

Dogs that are Good with Children = A++

Herding Dog and Cattle Dog Capabilities = A

Watch Dog Capabilities = B+

If you're worried of you or your family being burglarized or could be put at risk for trouble and intrusion, then have no fear! Your Pembroke Welsh Corgi is near! This favorite British Royal Family dog breed will surely sound of its alarm when they sense danger is near to harm its loved ones. If you are really trying to create your Corgi into the perfect watch dog, then train your Pembroke Welsh Corgi with the proper dog training techniques on how to adequately become a well trained watch dog and this can improve their barking alarm like abilities tenfold. I do recommend seeing a professional dog trainer though, who specializes in training watch dogs for a living, if you do not have any prior experience in this dog training process previously.

Friendliness = A+

The Pembroke Welsh Corgi is a herding breed of dog that tends to be friendly with just about everyone and anyone it comes into contact whether it be a family member, their owners, strangers, or your friends.

Guard Dog Capabilities = D-

Just because a dog makes a decent watch dog doesn’t mean that he or she is a great candidate for being a guard dog. Pembroke dogs aren’t usually the best guard dogs based on their petite sizes and friendliness towards the majority of strangers, but as with all purebred dog breeds and dogs in general this is not always the case.

Grading System: Levels 1 - 4 on Dog Care and Upkeep Requirements ("1" meaning little care and effort is required, "4" meaning lots of care and effort is needed to properly care for this breed of dog.)

Grooming Requirements and Up-keep = 2.5

Pembroke Welsh Corgis do not require all that much grooming during most seasons of the year, but in the late Spring Months and Early Summer Months one should be prepared for the worst your canine companion can possibly bring!

Feeding Requirements = 2

Considering the size of this dog breed, Pembrokes need a fair amount of feeding, but remember not to overfeed Welsh Corgis because they have an overwhelming passion for food, and this can lead to some major health issues later in life if you're not careful.

Levels of Exercise and Time Spent on Exercising this Dog Breed = 2.5

This score shouldn't come as too much of a surprise when you think about it because Pembroke Welsh Corgis are a herding breed of dog, which herding dog breeds 95% of the time need a fair share of exercise. For some dog owners this is a good trait for a dog breed to carry and is often embraced, while dog owners might prefer a canine companion that can get all the exercise she or he requires just by perhaps walking and moving around the house each day.

~ All in all to sum things up this purebred dog breed, it is a little above moderate/average when it comes to their care requirements.