Are you thinking of getting a Pembroke Welsh Corgi puppy and want to know what their life expectancy is? Maybe you have a senior Corgi and are wondering how long they’ll live? Here’s everything you need to know about the life expectancy of a Corgi.
What Is The Life Expectancy Of A Corgi? The average life expectancy of a Corgi is between 12 and 15 years old, but this can vary between individual dogs. Corgis have an above-average life expectancy but many dogs live even longer than this. In fact, some Corgis are reported to have lived to 18 years old!
Read on to find out what the most common causes of death are in Pembroke Welsh Corgis, whether males or females live longer, and how to improve your Corgi’s life expectancy!
Never use the advice in this article as a substitute for professional veterinary advice or treatment. I am NOT a Vet, qualified dog trainer or dog behaviourist. This article is based on research, personal opinion and experience of owning dogs over the last 12+ years.
What Are The Most Common Causes Of Death For Pembroke Welsh Corgis?
In 2004, the UK Kennel Club, BSAVA and The Animal Health Trust created a survey to look at the health of purebred dogs in the UK.
As part of this, they collected data on 312 Corgis. According to the ‘Purebred Dog Health Survey,’ the top five causes of death for Pembroke Welsh Corgis are:
- 28.5% Cancer
- 22.4% Old Age
- 8.6% Urologic (Including kidney failure and urethral obstructions)
- 7.7% Cardiac (Including heart attack, failure and disease)
- 7.7% Neurologic (Including seizures and spinal paralysis)
They also calculated the average age of death for Pembroke Welsh Corgis and found it was 12 years and 3 months.
This is a full year longer than the average across other breeds, which is 11 years and 3 months.
Do Female Or Male Corgis Live Longer?
It’s not possible to say for definite if female or male Corgis live longer.
Across all breeds, it’s thought that neutered female dogs live slightly longer than entire females.
On the other hand, it’s believed entire males live marginally longer than neutered males.
There has not been any specific research done to confirm why this is the case, or whether this is true for Corgis.
Many other factors can affect your Corgi’s lifespan much more than their gender does.
How Do I Improve My Corgi’s Life Expectancy?
This is what you can do to try and extend your Corgi’s life expectancy:
Choose A Puppy From A Reputable Breeder
If you decide to buy a Corgi puppy, choosing one from a registered KC or AKC breeder should mean their parents have been health tested before breeding them.
This can help reduce the risks of their parents passing on hereditary illnesses and diseases to them.
The most common diseases that affect Corgis are elbow and hip dysplasia, eye conditions, heart conditions and von Willebrand’s disease, which is a blood clotting disorder.
Thankfully, before breeding, all of these issues should be routinely tested for by reputable breeders.
Avoid any puppies who can’t be seen with their parents and littermates, as this can indicate they’re from a puppy farm.
Most Corgis from puppy farms are more likely to suffer serious health issues due to a lack of health testing and proper care.
Feed Your Corgi Good Food
What you feed your Corgi can directly impact how long they live.
Choose a high-quality food made from natural ingredients that contain nothing artificial.
Ideally, choose a food with a high meat content and no fillers like cereals or maize.
Avoid any dog foods containing: artificial colours, flavours, preservatives, fillers, meat meals or animal by-products.
These tend to be lower-quality options, which are not ideal to be feeding your Corgi every day.
Look for foods made from natural ingredients and high-quality meat and vegetables.
While these kinds of food may be slightly more expensive, your Corgi probably won’t need to eat as much to fill them up.
Corgis are greedy dogs who will most likely eat anything, whether it’s good for them or not! So, it’s up to you to decide on a nutritious, healthy diet for them.
Give Your Corgi Enrichment Activities
Corgis have busy minds! Bred as herding dogs, they love to think for themselves and have a job to do, so you need to replicate this in their home life too.
Scattering treats around the garden and encouraging them to sniff them out is a great game your Corgi will love!
Keeping their brain active can even help reduce the risk of Canine Cognitive Dysfunction developing, which is similar to Dementia in humans.
Not only this, but your Corgi will really enjoy enrichment activities too. Happy dogs tend to live for longer!
Give Your Corgi Plenty Of Exercise
Adult Corgis need at least one hour of exercise per day.
Making sure they get plenty of exercise throughout their lives helps them stay fitter and healthier, which can help them live longer.
However, there can be too much of a good thing, even with exercise!
Corgis are strong and determined dogs, so they may want to carry on exercising even after they’re physically tired.
Too much intense exercise can put added stress on your Corgi’s joints, potentially causing issues with them sooner than if their activity was more carefully managed.
It’s up to you to monitor their exercise limits and give them time to rest and recover.
Don’t Let Your Corgi Get Overweight
Corgis are greedy little dogs and will easily overeat if you let them!
If you couple this with them not getting enough exercise, they can quickly become overweight.
To be classed as overweight, a Corgi only has to be 10-20% over their ideal body weight of 28lbs for females and 30lbs for males.
If they’re over 20% heavier, they’re considered obese and are at a much higher risk of developing health issues.
In fact, studies show that being overweight can cut up to 2 to 2.5 years off your Corgi’s life!
Keep An Eye On Your Corgi’s Teeth
Poor dental hygiene can dramatically shorten your Corgi’s life by as much as 3-5 years!
So, it’s vital you keep an eye on their teeth, brush them with doggy toothpaste regularly and speak to your vet if you’ve got any concerns.
Because they love their food, your Corgi will often keep eating normally, even if their teeth and gums are painful and in bad condition.
So, don’t wait for this to be a sign of things going wrong!
Take Your Corgi To The Vet Regularly
Regular vet checks help keep an eye on your Corgi’s overall health.
They’ll listen to their heart and lungs and give them a full-body check to see if anything is wrong.
Adult Corgis should be visiting the vet at least once per year, but you may benefit from going more often when they’re a senior.
In-between vet checks, check your Corgi over each week yourself. Check their skin, teeth, eyes, ears, nose, paws, and bodies for any changes.
Catching any health changes early, can make it easier to treat them more effectively.
Make Sure Your Corgi is Comfortable
Making sure your Corgi’s comfortable can help them live for longer.
Although they’re pretty hardy dogs, they won’t be as happy or healthy if they’re kept outside too long in bad weather or not included as part of your family.
It is crucial to ensure they’ve got plenty of comfortable places to rest, especially as your Corgi gets older.
Dogs who are in pain for long periods are known to have a shorter life expectancy, so this needs to be carefully managed.
Consider Giving Your Corgi Supplements
Many doggy supplements are available on the market that can help support your Corgi’s health.
There are skin, joint and brain supplements, plus many more. Prevention is better than cure!
If you can reduce the chances of them developing an issue, that’s better than trying to treat one that’s already there.
Speak to your Vet to see if supplements would benefit your Corgi as they age.
So there you have it! Pembroke Welsh Corgis have an above-average life expectancy and generally live to between 12 and 15 years old. Some Corgis can live even longer than this so, if you do all you can to keep them fit and healthy, they should be with you for a very long time to come!
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