Welcoming a new Corgi puppy to your home can be one of the happiest days of your life…but it can also bring about a lot of stress and anxiety for you as a new pet parent. There is just so much to think about, and you have this new life in front of you, relying on you for everything! Does this ring a bell? 

Don’t worry, we’ve got you! 

In this 8-week training guide for your adorable Corgi puppy, we’ll provide you with essential husbandry and developmental tips. We’ll also explore the unique quirks of these charming little companions, ensuring that as they grow, you feel confident and in control, no matter how big their personality becomes!

Download the Zigzag puppy training app today, and you’ll have a full training programme for your Corgi puppy with the most important life skills like socialisation, habituation, toilet training and staying-home-alone lessons. 

Our puppy programmes are specific to different breeds and ages, so you can be sure to receive the right information, at the right time. Not just that, but our team of puppy trainers on hand 24/7 will always be at hand to help you every step of the way. 

Getting started with training your Corgi puppy

The earlier you start training your Corgi puppy, the better. These guys are clever pups and will enjoy their positive reinforcement based training with you.

Equipment for training your Corgi Puppy

Getting the right equipment for your Corgi means you’ll be ready to go when you bring your new puppy home. 

Here’s our recommendations for what to get for a Corgi puppy:

Corgi behaviour stages

Corgi puppies go through a series of developmental stages. Just like other dogs, these are as follows:

Name of stage or periodAge of Corgi
Neonatal 0-2 weeks
Transitional2-4 weeks
Socialisation4 to 12 weeks
Juvenile3 to 6 months
Adolescence6 to 12 months
Adulthood12 months and older

In the Zigzag app, we tailor training to each developmental period so that your Corgi learns the right things at the right time.

Things you need to know about Corgis?

To effectively train and care for your Corgi, it’s important to begin by understanding their origins and unique quirks. Additionally, recognizing how they develop both mentally and physically will help you provide the best support for your playful pups.

Are Corgis easy to train?

Yes, Corgis are highly trainable and love to learn. Dogs learn best with rewards, and Corgis are no different. They enjoy playing and will be keen to be taught tricks and fun games.

Where do Corgis come from?

The Corgi breed can be traced back to Wales, where they were first developed as herding dogs. There are two main types of Corgis: the Pembroke Welsh Corgi and the Cardigan Welsh Corgi.

Pembroke Welsh Corgi

The Pembroke Welsh Corgi is believed to have been introduced to Wales by Flemish weavers in the 12th century. They were primarily used for herding cattle and sheep, utilising their agility and low stature to nip at the heels of larger animals, which kept them moving. The name “Corgi” is derived from the Welsh words “cor” meaning “dwarf” and “gi” meaning “dog,” which we can see reflected their small size. Over time, the breed gained popularity, particularly after becoming associated with the British royal family, especially Queen Elizabeth II, who owned over 30 Corgis during her reign.

Cardigan Welsh Corgi

The Cardigan Welsh Corgi has a longer history, with roots that may extend back over 3,000 years. It is believed to have descended from the Teckel family of dogs brought by Celtic tribes migrating from central Europe. These dogs were initially used to guard cattle and clear the way for herds. The Cardigan’s development was influenced by Norse settlers, leading to crossbreeding with local dogs, which helped enhance their herding abilities. The name “Cardigan” comes from Cardiganshire, the region in Wales where they were primarily found.

Both breeds share a common ancestry and were utilised for similar purposes, but they have different characteristics and histories that set them apart. Today, Corgis are well-loved not only for their herding skills, but also for their friendly and affectionate nature which makes them incredible family pets worldwide.

What is a Corgi’s personality like?

Corgis are known for having big playful personalities, they’re generally quite affectionate and they’re eager to please.

Being dogs originally bred to herd, they can have quite an independent nature, and will certainly let you know when visitors come to the door as they make trusty watch dogs.

Best training treats for Corgis

Corgis like all kinds of treats, but really enjoy high value treats…especially with cheese! 

You can learn a lot more about this in our article about rewards and treats.

Are Corgis good with families?

Yes, Corgis make good family pets. When socialised with children from an early age, they can get along well with them, although that herding nature sometimes needs a little help reeling in. When you’re training your Corgi puppy, make sure you teach them there’s no need in rounding the kids up! 

Overview of your Corgi training programme

Your Corgi puppy will grow up faster than you think. Therefore, we need to lay a solid foundation that teaches them key life skills that they will need as adult dogs.

In the Zigzag puppy training app, you’ll discover a comprehensive training programme tailored specifically for your Corgi, and the characteristics of their breed. The programme is designed to align with their age and developmental stage, ensuring that you teach them exactly what they need at the right time. 

If you come across any problems or challenges, there’s no need to worry! Our team of puppy trainers is available 24/7 to help you navigate any bumps along the way.

Our 8 week training programme for your Corgi puppy

Your Corgi’s 8-week training programme will provide them with the fundamental skills required to become a well-behaved, socialised dog capable of thriving in today’s modern world. Whether you live in the country or the city, your puppy’s training should be adapted to their surroundings and the experiences they will face.

In the countryside, your Corgi will need to learn how to greet farm animals respectfully and stay focused among all the distractions of wide and open space. City dogs however. will practise navigating busy streets, resisting the temptation to eat rubbish on the road, and remaining unconcerned about loud noises.

No matter where you live, consistent training during these early weeks is key for helping your Corgi become a well-adjusted family member and an all-around ‘good dog.’

Discover how we use positive reinforcement training in the Zigzag app, and get started with a step-by-step Corgi training programme today!

Week 1

In the first week of training your Corgi puppy, you’ll focus on socialisation and habituation. This helps to teach them about the world and build their confidence levels, which is a fantastic base already. You’ll also want to look at:

House Training – Whether you’re potty training in an apartment or have a garden, you’ll want to read our comprehensive advice on how to potty train a puppy in as little as seven days. Start doing this right away to avoid as many unintentional poops in your home as you can! 

Grooming and handling – While daily brushing is not necessary for Corgis, the process of grooming itself helps blood circulate and removes any dead fur, keeping your Corgi’s skin healthy. They also really enjoy it too, and it is a nice bonding experience for both of you. 

To make grooming run smoothly, make sure they are able to form positive associations with the brush and your hands. They need to learn that hands are harmless and will constantly touch them, sometimes in strange ways…never too strange though. High value treats will be a big help with this! 

Read our full guide to puppy grooming to know more! Oh, and you might also want to learn how to make those vet visits go well. 

Name – Your puppy’s name is not ‘no’. But to them, it can often feel like it! Teaching your Corgi puppy their name is the first step to getting your Corgi to pay attention and listen to you; an important skill we think you’ll agree with. 

Read our guide how to teach a puppy their name or how to choose the best name for your puppy to learn more about this part of the journey. 

Sit – Sit is usually one of the first cues we teach all puppies. Aside from being a polite skill to master, it just looks cute. But more than that, sitting prevents them from jumping on people, which is something we obviously want to avoid. Not everyone loves muddy paws, but it’s also not great for your Corgi’s growing joints either.

Check out the following guides to learn how to stop a puppy jumping up and how to teach your puppy to sit to try it out.

Crate Training – Teaching your Corgi to be happy in a confined space, such as a crate, playpen, or baby gated room will help them sleep better, establish a regular nap time schedule, and provide them with a safe haven away from the hustle and bustle.

Crates, playpens and babygated areas also provide your Corgi with a perfect puppy-proofed area to hang out in, so you don’t need to worry what those curious little noses are getting into!  

While Corgis are an affectionate breed who generally like children a lot, they also need space from them. Who doesn’t, it’s okay to be honest. And like any pup, they shouldn’t be left unsupervised with young children. Safety always comes first, so let’s make sure to use baby gates, playpens and crates to keep everyone safe and happy. 

What to feed – Puppy nutrition is always a heated topic, with everyone seeming to be an expert on what to feed your dog these days! Giving the essential nutrients is vital to ensure proper growth rate, and a healthy pup. Whether you choose to raw feed your puppy or go full Gordon Ramsey and cook for them yourself, make sure they get a balanced diet. It’s vital for their growth!

Week 2

In Week 2, we’ll continue with our life skills training. We’re focusing on making training enjoyable and rewarding for your Corgi puppy, as this is how dogs learn best! Avoid discussing dominance or “dogs being like wolves” approach…we disproved that long ago. It’s quite old-fashioned and simply not true!

Biting – It’s good to be prepared for the amount of biting your Corgi puppy will do, be warned… It can be a lot! Use frozen Kongs and long tug toys to redirect them on to something that isn’t your arm. Oh, and have lots of patience…you’ll probably need it! 

Dig your teeth into this topic by having a read of our full guide to puppy biting and puppy teething. 

Management – It’s well known that many behavioural issues could be avoided if we simply used one often-overlooked aspect of puppy raising: management. Management is all about preparing your dog for success. By managing their environment and situations, your puppy has a better chance of succeeding and developing confidence. Corgi puppies don’t know what they don’t know, so let’s keep them from making mistakes till they do. There goes a tongue twister.

You can learn all about this in our article all about management in dog training. 

Down – Another useful position that can be used in lots of real life situations is the down. Your Corgi will just love learning any tricks you want to teach them, this one is also useful for relaxing when you’re out painting the town. Don’t forget to get a mat or blanket, as it will be much more comfortable for them when training to lie on a hard floor. 

Alone time training – Begin by creating a safe and secure bond to you. Never let a puppy cry it out! It’s simply not a thing and never will be. Read more in our advice to prevent separation anxiety in puppies; there’s a lot of helpful information in there.

Introduce the collar and harness – We recommend a harness for your little Corgi, as well as starting them used to it, as well as a collar, early. We like to use a collar for ID tags, and a harness to go on actual walks. 

Bathing – Corgis shed fur, which means they get rid of a lot of the dirt from their coat on their own. This means they won’t need lots of baths, but they DO love to roll in the dust, so it’s a good idea to get them used to it anyway. 

Read our article on how to bathe your puppy to learn how to teach them step-by-step and keep it fun for your pup.

Week 3

Corgis may appear foolish (adorably so), but trust us, they are also incredibly intelligent dogs! Positive reinforcement training gets rid of the need for a harsh hand with any dog. It’s just the best!

As a working breed, they get bored easily, so it’s important you provide them with plenty of enrichment and mental stimulation. Use puzzle toys to feed their meals, and consider incorporating natural Corgi habits into their daily routines, such as games like treiball, or sniffing games.

Let’s get on with this week’s training:

Recall – It is super important to begin teaching your puppy to come when called early on. When the time comes to let them off the leash, you want everything to go smoothly, and not have to chase them around for hours. Practise as much as you can!

Loose lead walking – Loose lead walking takes a while to perfect, which is why it’s worth putting in lots of time to practise. It’s all about teaching your puppy not to pull by creating a reinforcement zone they learn to walk calmly around you in. First, practice indoors or in your garden so you don’t need anything except treats. Once you’ve got the hang of that, add a lead and harness.

Settle – This will be useful if you want to take your Corgi to that all-you-can-eat brunch place on the weekend. Teach them to relax on a mat or bed while you have a well-deserved mimosa.

Tug – Use the cue words “take it” and “drop it” to play a successful game of tug. If you treat your Corgi puppy to a tug-of-war, they will be ecstatic. Play is also amazing for bonding between you!

To stop them from snatching toys and encouraging them to give them too nicely, you should teach them the “take it” and “drop” cues. All of this is shown in detail in our articles on teaching a dog to drop, but you can also learn more by using the Zigzag app.

Teaching tug with the “take it” and “drop” cues also goes a long way to prevent resource guarding too. Yay!

Nail clips – Cutting a dog’s nails can be a little difficult. It may take some time for your Corgi to get used to the clippers and having their feet touched. This is normal – some dogs just don’t like it.

Cute paws come with responsibilities, which you can read more about in our post on how to take care of a dog’s paws.

By the way, how is potty training going? I hope it’s still not a sensitive topic. See our post on apartment toilet training or our roundup of the top indoor dog potties if you live in a flat without a garden.

At this age, your Corgi will likely be drooling and teething a lot, so you’ll want to provide them with plenty of puppy chews, stuffed Kongs and chew toys to get into.

Week 4

Generalisation – It’s important to practise training in a variety of settings so your puppy learns that ‘sit’ means ‘sit wherever you are’, and not ‘sit wherever you want, any time’. 

Practise these cues in various areas of your house and yard at first, and then take them on walks and to other places. Use tastier and smellier treats when you go to a different place that can be a little more distracting to get their attention back on you. In our article on rewards and treats, you’ll learn all about what type of treats to use and when. 

Build on the basic cues – Yes, all of those sits, downs, walking on a lead, and recall need tons of  repetitions and plenty of practice to perfect. Aaand lots of patience!

Leave it – This is a great self-control exercise for your Corgi puppy. It’s important for all dogs to learn to disengage and leave something you don’t want them to have. Start by using some plain, boring kibble that’s easy for them to leave, and then we can up the difficulty to more tempting treats.

Train with games – Corgis are lively dogs, which is excellent since we can use training games to teach them valuable life skills like frustration tolerance and self-control! Browse our training games library to find some good games to use throughout your training. 

How’s your daily routine going? To get everything back under control when things seem like they’re spinning out of it, take a look at our puppy training timetable.

Week 5-8

Try our customised Corgi training schedule for weeks 5-8. You should work on the reward based training  we discussed before, such as training your Corgi to walk on a lead and to come back when you call them.

Head on over to the app store and download the Zigzag app! The training is tailored to not only your Corgi’s age, it also caters for all of those breed quirks they have.

By using the Zigzag puppy training app, you trust that you are providing the best education for your Corgi puppy. Not only that, but our team of experienced dog trainers is always there to help you with any issues that may arise. They will really be there for you 24/7!

Corgi Puppy Training FAQs

How to train a Corgi puppy not to bark?

Teach your Corgi a ‘quiet’ cue, but also don’t forget to reward them when they could bark but choose not to!

How to train a Corgi puppy not to bite?

Redirect them onto a tug toy and teach them to bite toys and chew toys instead. Learn more in our article on aggressive puppy biting. 

Best Corgi puppy training tips

Train Corgis with positive reinforcement, the more you reward the behaviour you like the more they will do it. 

How often should I walk a Corgi?

Corgis would love to be out all day with you – and will gladly do an hour or two of walks a day. Don’t do as much as that when they are young as they are still growling, learn more in our puppy exercise article.

Are Corgis chewers?

Yes, Corgis will chew a lot when teething, and then again when going through adolescence. Dogs also need recreational chews, so it’s important they’re provided with plenty of chew toys to chew on.