THE WELSH CORGI

The Pembroke Welsh Corgi is one of the most recognizable of breeds due to its long association with the British Royal family.

It originated in Pembrokeshire in Wales, where it was used primarily for herding cattle and the herds of small ponies which ran wild through the Welsh hills but in 1933, the Pembroke Welsh Corgi gained international fame through its royal patronage when
Princess Elizabeth, now the Queen, received a puppy, Dookie, as a gift from her father, the King.

Today, members of the breed are still to be found at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and the other Royal residences.

The Pembroke is the better known and more popular of the two Corgi breeds. He is slightly smaller, with a somewhat sharper head and smaller ears than the Cardigan Welsh Corgi, and of course, he was usually tail-less until the introduction of a ban on tail docking in some countries, including Australia in 2004. However, the Pembroke Welsh Corgi does possess a gene for a natural bob tail and natural short-tailed Pembrokes can still be found.

The Pembroke comes in all shades of red and sable, from light golden through to deep fox red, with or without white markings on head, neck and legs, and also tri-colour - a striking combination of black and white with red markings on head and legs.

Hardy, intelligent, easy to train and easy to groom, the Pembroke Corgi is a friendly little dog who enjoys games and is great fun to have either in the house or on country walks. Always alert and with a strongly developed sense of territory, he makes a good watchdog.