Watch Gatsby, a Pembroke Welsh Corgi in this timelapse video and see him grow over 365 days! Follow him on his adventures; from his hikes, puppy training to his vet visits. Gatsby’s first year sure is an exciting one!
Welsh Corgis come in two varieties: the Pembrokes and the Cardigans. The two have similar heads, bodies, levels of intelligence and herding ability, but the Cardigans are slightly larger and heavier boned than the Pembrokes. The easiest way to tell the difference between them is to look at their tails; the Pembrokes’ are docked whereas the Cardigans’ are long.
Legend has it that the Welsh Corgi is the enchanted dog of the fairies and elves. One day, two children were out in the fields tending to their family’s cattle when they found a couple of puppies. The children thought they were foxes but decided to take them home when they noticed something different about the pups. Their parents immediately saw that they were not foxes, but dogs, and told their children that the puppies were gifts from the fairies that lived in the fields. The fairies used them to pull their carriages and sometimes ride them into battle. The marks on their backs were where the fairy saddle had been placed on their shoulders. At night, it is said that the dogs would slip away to the hills of Wales to play with the magical little people.
For those who don’t believe in fairy tales, there are two “orthodox” theories as to how the Corgi came to Wales. Some say that were brought to Wales by the Vikings in the 9th and 10th centuries. Others think they may have descended from Spitz-type dogs that were brought to Wales by Flemish weavers in the 12th century.
No one really knows which of these theories are true because there are no records about their historical pedigree.
image © http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAkf4B_Ff3M