Bear
ADOPTION PENDING!
PLEASE READ ENTIRE BIOGRAPHY BEFORE ASKING QUESTIONS OR MAKING APPLICATION
Bear is a 2–3-year-old male corgi who was living the life of a homeless, on-the-run dog for a year or more until CCK was contacted for help. With the community’s assistance Bear was captured and taken to a local vet for extensive care, including a wash, flea and tick removal, parasite treatment and neuter surgery.
PERSONALITY: Bear is extremely affectionate, despite his background. He is happiest when he is snuggled up against his person, being petted, and will actively seek out contact. Bear will politely and gently push our other corgis to the side so he can be next to his person. He is a typical active young corgi who has all the mannerisms corgis are known for: frapping, splooting, etc. Bear is a very charismatic corgi, happy and outgoing within his family circle. His manners needed some work when he came to us, but he is corgi-smart and a very quick learner. We have had no issues once he learned what was polite and what was considered rude by the other corgis in our home.
Because of his recent past, Bear is easily alarmed by sudden movements and noises. At first, we moved slowly and deliberately around him until he became accustomed to normal sounds and movements inside the house. When he panics, we allow him to sniff the object, so he is comfortable that it will not harm him. He watches the other corgis and settles quickly if they remain calm and are not bothered.
Bear has shown interest in toys and will sometimes go to try a discarded toy out after seeing one of the other corgis play with it. We have worked with him on this and he now has a few toys now that he enjoys.
Bear was completely silent for a week or so when he first came to us but has since found his voice and has a lot to say! He warbles like a wookie at times but does a lot of barking too.
SOCIALIZATION: Bear is very shy at first, but once he learns the routine and that his family will be kind to him (and especially providing food!) he will come out of his shell quickly. He has not shown a preference for women or men, but he does prefer people he knows and trusts. He watches our corgis closely for behavioral clues. He does not care for visitors in our home and will remove himself to his safe spot, out of the way. Once he feels comfortable, he may come back out but will want to stay where he can watch at a distance. He did not care for children at all but may warm up to them eventually provided they treat him with respect. Due to the pandemic, work on socialization in the home has been slow. There have been instances on walks when strangers will stop to pet the corgis, and Bear has approached some of them and received pats too after seeing our corgis enjoying the attention without harm.
Bear loves to go for car rides. He is a very good rider – quiet and attentive. He is accustomed to being secured with a seat belt clip to his harness and accepts this without fuss.
Bear gets “nippy” when he gets excited, including during play. He does not land a pressure-bite but will give a firm pinch on occasion. When this happens, we gently calm him down and lower the play level a bit. He is gradually learning not to do this, but since nipping is part of the corgi DNA it will take time and continued reinforcement.
Bear likes to chew and will chew on textiles in the home (blankets, towels) if given the opportunity. We keep toys available for this purpose and are helping him learn what is appropriate to chew on and what is not.
Because his food supply was inconsistent for so long, food will likely be an issue for some time. He is always hungry and ready for a meal. He is not aggressive as much as panicked about getting his share but we feel he would fight if he felt it necessary. Because of this, Bear is fed separately from the others. He eats extremely fast and would benefit from one of the slowing “puzzle bowls”. For training, he sits in a treat “circle” with the other dogs and has learned to wait his turn for a treat. He is always on the prowl for something to eat, and we recommend keeping trash secured as well as stored food in cabinets, etc.
TRAINING: Bear is perfectly house trained. In the short time we have had him, he has not had an accident in the house.
In the beginning, Bear equated a leash with being captured. He fought any tension on the leash, so we practiced walking on a slack lead in the fenced yard before venturing out. He is learning, mainly from watching the others, how to let our gestures, slight tension on the lead and voice commands guide him. He is still on “high alert” for personal danger when he is outside the home and yard and will stop walking if he hears someone talking nearby or approaching, to ensure they are not a threat. Seeing that our corgis are not bothered by this has helped some, and he is gradually learning that he is safe on our walks together. Because of this, we use a double-clip leash on him to ensure he does not get loose, as he will likely follow the instincts that have kept him alive the past year or so and hide. He will be a challenge to recapture if he does this. He will chew through a leash if allowed to drag it unattended, likely because he feels the need to free himself.
Bear is crate-trained but does not accept his crate willingly. This makes sense as he has been loose and unconfined for so long. We feed him his meals in his crate with the door open. We have crated him when we had a visitor with an unreliable corgi showed up and he crated quietly until the visitors left. On the occasions when we have left the house and have crated him for his safety, however, he has vocalized his displeasure at the unfair treatment. Right now, he would do best in a situation where he would not be crated on a regular basis.
We have begun working on basic commands – sit, down, come, etc. He is a quick learner and is highly motivated by food. He recognizes his name, but his recall is dependent on whether or not he wants to respond.
HEALTH: Occasionally Bear will leak a small amount of urine when he sleeps. This does not happen every time he sleeps. Letting him out regularly and before bedtime does help reduce the occurrences.
OVERALL: Bear is a very handsome, very friendly corgi! He is quite a cuddle-bug and is happiest curled up in the middle of his family pack. He would do well in a home with another dog that he could continue to pattern after as he learns to be a much-loved family member. He would like to be kept active and would prefer to be in a home that would require him to be crated on a very minimal basis. We would also recommend that he not live where a barking dog would be a problem. Bear comes with his harness, leash and a few favorite toys.
Bear's adoption fee is $300. We will not place him in a home with young children or without a fenced yard. Ideally we would like him to be in a home with another confident, but not too dominant corgi.