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2 cats and a dog, 1 bedroom apartment

post #1 of 15
11/23/10 at 12:21am
Thread Starter 
It's been awhile since I've posted here XD

Well, I currently have two cats living in a 700 sq. ft. apartment.
My girlfriend moved in with me at the beginning of 2010.
We have been talking about adopting a dog to join the family. The breed we have in mind is a Pembroke Corgi.

I currently have plans to move to a slightly bigger apartment (for various reasons), but I'm not entirely sure how long it will be before we can move.

My question is, would you consider 2 humans (of normal stature), with 2 cats and a small dog, to be crowded in a 1 bedroom apartment? The apartment itself isn't very cluttered. Most of the furniture is up against a wall, and we have little to no obstructions in the middle of the floor.

I'd like to get the Corgi as a Christmas present, but don't want to be in a situation were I feel crowded. I know this is a "cat" forum, but I hope some of you can give some opinions and insight ^.^
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post #2 of 15
11/23/10 at 8:13am
I guess the question is, do YOU think it will be crowded? I lived in a 400 sq foot appartment with 5 cats, and at one point had 6 (my 5 plus a foster). We are now in a 750 square foot house, it seems huge to me. I never felt overcrowded, but I know other people felt it was too small.
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post #3 of 15
11/23/10 at 8:29am
Thread Starter 
Well see that's the funny thing, I'm not 100% sure.

A few months back, we took care of my parents dachshund for about a week.
The animals got along fine, and it didn't seem that bad.
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post #4 of 15
11/23/10 at 9:13pm
Depends on you... I will say the choice in breed is not one I recommend for a small space... They are still what you call"working" dogs and they need lots of exercise and time if kept in an apartment
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post #5 of 15
11/23/10 at 9:45pm
What about fostering for a shelter to get a better feel(and maybe end up saving a life in the end:S)

I personally would have no issue with 2 cats and a dog in that area. We had 18 cats and 2 ppl in a one bedroom(knew going in it was a temporary thing till we figured out if wed be staying close to his family or not)

Nuts at times OH YEAH.
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post #6 of 15
11/23/10 at 10:57pm
If you can provide enough exorcise and stimulus then why not?

It's a FULL TIME job though. Doggie needs to be walked daily or will probably go stir crazy. At least needs some rough vigorous play (I dont mean like grrr bitey rough).

I don't know where you live at but if you live anywhere where it snows or rains a lot remember that walking a dog in the snow and ice and rain SUCKS.
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post #7 of 15
11/23/10 at 11:21pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nekomania View Post
If you can provide enough exorcise and stimulus then why not?

It's a FULL TIME job though. Doggie needs to be walked daily or will probably go stir crazy. At least needs some rough vigorous play (I dont mean like grrr bitey rough).

I don't know where you live at but if you live anywhere where it snows or rains a lot remember that walking a dog in the snow and ice and rain SUCKS.
Actually it doesn't rain or snow much here. Exercise shouldn't be a problem. We always enjoy playing with our pets, and can rotate on walks.

There aren't any parks that are walking distance (no pun intended), where we live right now though, but walking around the complex is decent exercise.
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post #8 of 15
11/23/10 at 11:22pm
Corgis are from the herding group, they can be very hyper, nip at heels and can be hard to manage if you are a first time dog owner. They are extremely tenacious and stubborn. If it was me I would consider another breed. I would not put any herding group breeds in apartments. They can literally go crazy not having a place to run and do their jobs. The other thing about corgis that I am not particularly fond of, is they shed like crazy... they shed like german shepherds.. massive amounts of hair come out of these guys.

Definitely do a ton of research before you get your pooch and make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. Good Luck!
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post #9 of 15
12/12/10 at 8:46am
I personally if I lived in an apartment would be okay with two cats and a dog if I didn't work 12 hour shifts, but I would choose a different breed as herding dogs sometimes chase cats. I have had herding dogs and that was a big problem, and another non cat friendly breed is the jack russell people I know had them for years and came home to a bloody horrible scene with their cats. Pugs and cavilear king charles spaniels, chiuhauhas, and other companion breeds are much better in apartments, even some big dogs such as bullmastifs do well in apartments but with herding breeds, and I used to raise them, it would be a nightmare they need both physical and mental stimulous with a routine and a job and in an apartment they would not be happy. I would try to find a dog that matched my personality. Me since I nolonger have cattle I nolonger have a need for herding dogs and I am a laid back person so as much as I love terriers most of them are not suited for me. So you have to take that into consideration.
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post #10 of 15
12/12/10 at 12:09pm
Actually it doesn't really matter if other people think your crowded, all that matters is whether you think you'd be crowded or not.
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post #11 of 15
12/12/10 at 1:56pm
"Walking around the complex" won't be adequate for many years. A corgi will need 2 or more INTENSE 30-45 min walks every single day.

I agree about avoiding the herding group breeds. We've had a border collie/cocker spaniel mix for 8 years and her puppyhood was ROUGH (and I got her at 7 mos!) We walked her, she had free run of a 1/4 acre backyard but she STILL needed more and showed us by attempting to "eat" our home to the foundation. Very destructive. We finally adopted another puppy of similar size and age and they bonded to each other.

For the first 2 years, they would play HARD up to 4 hours a day. They wore paths through the yard. They really need a lot more exercise than you'd think. Now, at age 8, they still play hard, but only for 20 min or so daily.

Good luck with your decision.

Cally
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post #12 of 15
1/6/11 at 8:22am
I have a 650 square foot apartment and have found that 1 human and two cats is quite enough. I wouldn't attempt a dog unless I had a house and a lot more space. Just my humble opinion.
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post #13 of 15
1/6/11 at 8:36pm
It CAN work, if you're committed enough. Any breed can live in a small apartment, IF you're committed enough. But be realistic. A Corgi (and many other breeds) will need a LOT of exercise and mental stimulation. It won't work if you just want to walk the dog for 10 minutes and then relax on the couch. If you walk the dog for an hour and then train for half an hour and then play mental games for a while, and you do this at least twice a day, sure, it could work. But are you really that deeply committed? Most people aren't.
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post #14 of 15
1/6/11 at 9:14pm
I'd really like to know what happened...I have a border collie, and the first thing I taught him was "down" and he had to immediately lie down and stay. It's worked pretty well, for us, but he does have to stay inside all day. I was hoping to see some encouraging news, so I hope the OP comes back!
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post #15 of 15
1/22/11 at 6:01pm
Interesting topic, as I currently live in a 2 bedroom 820 sq ft apartment. I currently have 2 cats, a dog (husky shepherd mix about 50 pounds), 3 small birds and a rabbit plus my fiance lol. We actually think we have plenty of room and all our visitors comment on how tidy our home is. The birds and the rabbit live in the spare room which is also our office. The dog and cats have free roam of the apartment. The dog goes for 40 minute walks everyday plus visits to dog parks a couple times a week. He is older and will be 11 this year, but he has lived with us in apartments and duplexes pretty much his whole life. He also gets exercise in the apartment playing with our male cat who adores him. They will chase each other all over. I do make a serious effort to keep things clean and organized as that helps alot. I also vacumn every day and that keep the hair under control. If I didn't have the birds and rabbit, I would consider getting another small dog or cat, but right now with the pets I have, I think is enough for 820 sq ft.
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