Amaretto Breedables Customer Connection

The Welsh Corgi ( Welsh for “dwarf dog”) is a small type of herding dog that originated in Wales. Sometimes just known as a Corgi, two separate breeds are recognised: the Pembroke Welsh Corgi and the Cardigan Welsh Corgi. Historically, the Pembroke has been attributed to the influx of dogs alongside Flemish weavers from around the 10th century, while the Cardigan is attributed to the dogs brought with Norse settlers, in particular a common ancestor of the Swedish Vallhund. A certain degree of interbreeding between the two types has been suggested to explain the similarities between the two. The Pembroke is the more popular breed of the two.

Welsh Corgis have historically been used as herding dogs, specifically for cattle. They are of the type of herding dog referred to as “heelers”, meaning that they would nip at the heels of the larger animals to keep them on the move. In 1933 the first Welsh Corgis were brought to the United States by American breeder Mrs Lewis Roesler, for her Merriedip Kennels in the Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts. The Pembroke Welsh Corgi club was formed in 1937. Following the Second World War, there were imports from the United Kingdom, and by 1998, the Pembroke Welsh Corgi had become the 37th most popular breed of dog in the United States.

Queen Elizabeth II has long been associated with Corgis. After a visit to Thomas Thynne, 5th Marquess of Bath in 1933, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret made it well known to their family that they liked the Corgis owned by the Marquess. Their father, Prince Albert, Duke of York (later George VI), purchased the Pembroke Corgi Rozavel Golden Eagle, from the Rozavel kennels in Surrey. It was renamed Dookie.

Princess Elizabeth was then given a Pembroke Corgi of her own, named Susan, for her 18th birthday in 1944. She had a strong connection to the dog, which was hidden under rugs in the Royal Carriage following her wedding to Prince Philip.Susan became the progenitor of all the Corgis owned by the Royal Household since. The Queen has bred ten generations of dogs from Susan, owning personally more than 30 of the dogs which were either pure-bred Pembroke Welsh Corgis or crossbreed Corgi/Dachshunds called Dorgis.

Corgis have also appeared on screen, stage and in novels. Corgis as characters were incorporated into the storybook fantasies Corgiville Fair, The Great Corgiville Kidnapping, and Corgiville Christmas of American author and illustrator Tasha Tudor. In 1963, a Corgi was featured in the Walt Disney film Little Dog Lost, which led to an increase in popularity for the breed within the United States. A theatrical adaptation took place of Welsh author Roald Dahl’s The BFG which toured the UK in 1991 required several different Corgis to perform on stage as those of Queen Elizabeth. The Queen’s Corgi is a Belgian animated film depicting the Queen’s Corgis.

When Amaretto released the 2.0 version K9s on October 2015, the Pembroke Welsh Corgi was one set of many exciting possible Non-Starter coats that could come from breeding Starter Coats. These adorable pups CAN pass their coats. Happy Breeding Arf!