Before you consider owning a Newfoundland, as grand and desirable as they are and as lovable, they are possibly one of the most delicate dogs that you can own. This breed of dog due to it being a Giant breed needs lots of care with diet and exercise in the first two years of his or her life. A Newfoundland should not be exercised too much until they are at least 18 months old. Social exercise and play at home in the garden is enough with any hard walking time being built up very gradually with the rule of thumb being one minute walking time for each week of the dogs life. By the end of twelve months you will hopefully have gradually built up your time to enjoy 52 minutes walking time together. If you heed the advise, their joints stay protected from strain and overuse whilst going through their vast stages of growth. If you would like your puppy to interact on long days out from the start, then i strongly suggest you think twice about whether a Newfoundland is the right breed for you? My adult dogs still only do about 20 minutes twice a day. My puppies are under walked rather than over walked too. If you would like to build your Newfoundland up a little with exercise, then a hydro pool is the best place as this is weightless exercise. This will build muscle around the joint, thus protecting the joints better as the muscle does the work instead of the joint. So please consider this as an option.
When it comes to diet are you prepared to give your Newfoundland the best diet you can afford. My rule of thumb is you get out what you put in with the first 12-18 months being the most vital time in giving a top quality diet. Newfoundlands are different from most breeds because of the rapid development. If you underfeed a Newfoundland you will underfeed its growth and development. Newfoundlands need a good balanced diet to supplement both rapid growth and also endurance whilst playing. I have seen Newfoundlands that have sadly not been fed the right amount of "quality food" whilst in the first two years and i could have cried at the pathetic sight of them. If you cannot afford to give them good nutrition, please think again about one begin right for you. There is a huge misconception that big dogs need lots of food. No they do not as they are not exercising as much as other breeds to burn it off, but they do need it for growth. That said, it is vital that a growing puppy be give the right amount of premium food for its development and remember an overweight Newfoundland is not a healthy Newfoundland as this puts more strain onto the growing joints. It is better to be of good balanced weight to avoid any problems that can be otherwise unnecessary. Some giant breeds also are taken off of puppy high protein kibble earlier than most average sized puppies. This is said to slow the growth down should they be shooting up too quickly. Your breeder should be able to advise you on this. This again is to protect the joints from overgrowth in a short space of time. To me it depends on the kibble you are feeding. But you should also talk to your breeder as they raised your puppy.
Another consideration is regarding vet bills and insurance. You may choose to insure your Newfoundland but expect the premiums to be around £50+ per month with Pet Plan for example. Some are now less as i am with Emporium and the premiums are a lot cheaper. Then most insurers make you pay the first £90-150 of each claim for each ailment claimed for. This is an expensive option but if something does go wrong and it does ! can you then afford the vet bills that may potentially run into thousands of pounds very quickly? Our own dysplasia condition was in the thousands within a few weeks. If you cannot afford insurance please think about setting up a direct debit for an account you do not use so you have some vet bill money when it is needed. Even £25 per month soon mounts up. If you think treating a Newfoundland at the vets is the same as any other breed - NO IT IS NOT. Due to the weight of these dogs most medications are administered with weight being the main factor of how much is given to treat. So a Newfoundland may be three or four or even five times the weight of most dogs and so will your bill !!!!!! A simple example is with worming. We at Shirebears use Milbemax at least once a year. For worming just one of our dogs (Anoushka) she weighs in at 70kg so requires three Milbemax worm tablets as each one is for 5-25kg of weight. To cover her 70kg requires three tablets at a cost over £7 each tablet. So to worm just one dog it costs £21.00 + ! It is the same with antibiotics etc. Because of their weight it will cost at least £50+ for a short course of antibiotics. So please take this into consideration with any potential vets bills and if you can afford them if and when they come along. I must say that the better the diet the better the health of the dog going back to you get out what you put in which i am a BIG believer in !
When it comes to treats ours enjoy Fish skins and yummy treats made by me. These are dental treats as well as yummy treats so it is a bonus having one that does both. Alongside their Fish treats they enjoy raw fresh broccoli, raw fresh carrots, dried green tripe sticks (except Anoushka) and Salem loves dried rabbit ears and chickens feet !
You have to remember that a lot of dogs suffer from allergies and the purer you keep their diet the more you eliminate the potential problems such as allergies to dairy, wheat and gluten. This is why we use a premium kibble as the content of their ingredients are high concentrate and top quality with not being bulked up with cereal which is what a lot of lower budget manufacturers use.
When it comes to toys and play, only try to buy the most durable types of toys as a Newfoundlands jaw is very very strong and can kill and destroy cheap toys in minutes. It is not only the destruction that is not good for your pocket but they may ingest pieces of plastic and vinyl that are coated in God knows what, so better safe than sorry. Buying Kong like toys that will stand the pace or pieces of thick rope to chew on are usually preferred. Never give your Newfoundland a cooked bone to chew on as this can splinter on their insides and could actually be fatal. If you would like to feed bones, chose raw. Nylabones are good for puppies as these can be chewed and chewed and rarely go down. Always supervise your dog while chewing.
A Newfoundland hates to be alone so if you plan to go to work full time or have lots of holidays then a Newfoundland IS NOT for you. Only give one a home if you can exactly do that - "give it a home" where it is loved and cherished and taken care of. These dogs are more than dogs, they are Angels in fur coats ! They are very much people driven dogs and love nothing more than being the centre of the family's heart and attention. They need love and kisses and they need company. Please do not buy one if you cannot devote your time to him or her as there are many in Newfoundland Welfare already and nobody wants to see more being taken in. If you do not want to buy a puppy and would prefer an older Newfoundland please do check out the Newfoundland club sites which are The Southern Newfoundland Club or The Northern Newfoundland Club and lastly The Newfoundland Club. Here you will find links on these sites about heath & care and about the shows and water work and also about welfare - see our "links" page to be directed.
If you buy from a breeder be that home breeder or from a Kennel, please make sure the parents of your puppy have had "all" the relevant health checks with good results. no health checks - do not gamble ! There are "cheaper" puppies for sale. These may be short of the Kennel Club paper work and may not be registered. Always make sure they have had the parents "fully" health checked. Not just the hips but the heart & cystinuria too. Elbows are an added bonus and Assured Breeders must have this done too, so if they are scored for elbows - all the better. Scores for hips & elbows go with the lower the scores - the better. Hips are scored from 0 to 106. 0 Being the best score. The breed average is around 14 right now so use that as a guide when you ask about health. The higher the score, this means malformations are detected and signs of wear, tear and possible dysplasia. 14 is the score for both hips together so 7-7 is the average. Elbows the best score is 0-0 and these are graded to 3 for each side. Anything above 0 indicates a degree of dysplasia or malformation.
Puppies should not leave their parents before 8 weeks of age and 10-12 weeks if a heart test is carried out.
Expect a breeder to get you to sign a contract. This shows they care for the puppies they have bred.
Endorsements are usually placed on the Kennel Club papers. This means you cannot breed from the dog when of age. Some breeders will lift the endorsements allowing you to breed if the heath tests have been carried out with satisfactory results. They will normally also be an export ban on the pedigree too which does not allow you to export the puppy/adult out of the country. This does not mean you cannot travel with your dog, it is for sales purposes only.
Contact the Newfoundland Breed Clubs for information on purchasing a puppy too. Each Club has a puppy liaison officer.
All the information about health etc can be found on the Newfoundland Club web sites or the Kennel Club web page.
If you do think non of the above has yet put you off . . . . .
Welcome to the club !!!!
© Shirebears Newfoundlands
When it comes to diet are you prepared to give your Newfoundland the best diet you can afford. My rule of thumb is you get out what you put in with the first 12-18 months being the most vital time in giving a top quality diet. Newfoundlands are different from most breeds because of the rapid development. If you underfeed a Newfoundland you will underfeed its growth and development. Newfoundlands need a good balanced diet to supplement both rapid growth and also endurance whilst playing. I have seen Newfoundlands that have sadly not been fed the right amount of "quality food" whilst in the first two years and i could have cried at the pathetic sight of them. If you cannot afford to give them good nutrition, please think again about one begin right for you. There is a huge misconception that big dogs need lots of food. No they do not as they are not exercising as much as other breeds to burn it off, but they do need it for growth. That said, it is vital that a growing puppy be give the right amount of premium food for its development and remember an overweight Newfoundland is not a healthy Newfoundland as this puts more strain onto the growing joints. It is better to be of good balanced weight to avoid any problems that can be otherwise unnecessary. Some giant breeds also are taken off of puppy high protein kibble earlier than most average sized puppies. This is said to slow the growth down should they be shooting up too quickly. Your breeder should be able to advise you on this. This again is to protect the joints from overgrowth in a short space of time. To me it depends on the kibble you are feeding. But you should also talk to your breeder as they raised your puppy.
Another consideration is regarding vet bills and insurance. You may choose to insure your Newfoundland but expect the premiums to be around £50+ per month with Pet Plan for example. Some are now less as i am with Emporium and the premiums are a lot cheaper. Then most insurers make you pay the first £90-150 of each claim for each ailment claimed for. This is an expensive option but if something does go wrong and it does ! can you then afford the vet bills that may potentially run into thousands of pounds very quickly? Our own dysplasia condition was in the thousands within a few weeks. If you cannot afford insurance please think about setting up a direct debit for an account you do not use so you have some vet bill money when it is needed. Even £25 per month soon mounts up. If you think treating a Newfoundland at the vets is the same as any other breed - NO IT IS NOT. Due to the weight of these dogs most medications are administered with weight being the main factor of how much is given to treat. So a Newfoundland may be three or four or even five times the weight of most dogs and so will your bill !!!!!! A simple example is with worming. We at Shirebears use Milbemax at least once a year. For worming just one of our dogs (Anoushka) she weighs in at 70kg so requires three Milbemax worm tablets as each one is for 5-25kg of weight. To cover her 70kg requires three tablets at a cost over £7 each tablet. So to worm just one dog it costs £21.00 + ! It is the same with antibiotics etc. Because of their weight it will cost at least £50+ for a short course of antibiotics. So please take this into consideration with any potential vets bills and if you can afford them if and when they come along. I must say that the better the diet the better the health of the dog going back to you get out what you put in which i am a BIG believer in !
When it comes to treats ours enjoy Fish skins and yummy treats made by me. These are dental treats as well as yummy treats so it is a bonus having one that does both. Alongside their Fish treats they enjoy raw fresh broccoli, raw fresh carrots, dried green tripe sticks (except Anoushka) and Salem loves dried rabbit ears and chickens feet !
You have to remember that a lot of dogs suffer from allergies and the purer you keep their diet the more you eliminate the potential problems such as allergies to dairy, wheat and gluten. This is why we use a premium kibble as the content of their ingredients are high concentrate and top quality with not being bulked up with cereal which is what a lot of lower budget manufacturers use.
When it comes to toys and play, only try to buy the most durable types of toys as a Newfoundlands jaw is very very strong and can kill and destroy cheap toys in minutes. It is not only the destruction that is not good for your pocket but they may ingest pieces of plastic and vinyl that are coated in God knows what, so better safe than sorry. Buying Kong like toys that will stand the pace or pieces of thick rope to chew on are usually preferred. Never give your Newfoundland a cooked bone to chew on as this can splinter on their insides and could actually be fatal. If you would like to feed bones, chose raw. Nylabones are good for puppies as these can be chewed and chewed and rarely go down. Always supervise your dog while chewing.
A Newfoundland hates to be alone so if you plan to go to work full time or have lots of holidays then a Newfoundland IS NOT for you. Only give one a home if you can exactly do that - "give it a home" where it is loved and cherished and taken care of. These dogs are more than dogs, they are Angels in fur coats ! They are very much people driven dogs and love nothing more than being the centre of the family's heart and attention. They need love and kisses and they need company. Please do not buy one if you cannot devote your time to him or her as there are many in Newfoundland Welfare already and nobody wants to see more being taken in. If you do not want to buy a puppy and would prefer an older Newfoundland please do check out the Newfoundland club sites which are The Southern Newfoundland Club or The Northern Newfoundland Club and lastly The Newfoundland Club. Here you will find links on these sites about heath & care and about the shows and water work and also about welfare - see our "links" page to be directed.
If you buy from a breeder be that home breeder or from a Kennel, please make sure the parents of your puppy have had "all" the relevant health checks with good results. no health checks - do not gamble ! There are "cheaper" puppies for sale. These may be short of the Kennel Club paper work and may not be registered. Always make sure they have had the parents "fully" health checked. Not just the hips but the heart & cystinuria too. Elbows are an added bonus and Assured Breeders must have this done too, so if they are scored for elbows - all the better. Scores for hips & elbows go with the lower the scores - the better. Hips are scored from 0 to 106. 0 Being the best score. The breed average is around 14 right now so use that as a guide when you ask about health. The higher the score, this means malformations are detected and signs of wear, tear and possible dysplasia. 14 is the score for both hips together so 7-7 is the average. Elbows the best score is 0-0 and these are graded to 3 for each side. Anything above 0 indicates a degree of dysplasia or malformation.
Puppies should not leave their parents before 8 weeks of age and 10-12 weeks if a heart test is carried out.
Expect a breeder to get you to sign a contract. This shows they care for the puppies they have bred.
Endorsements are usually placed on the Kennel Club papers. This means you cannot breed from the dog when of age. Some breeders will lift the endorsements allowing you to breed if the heath tests have been carried out with satisfactory results. They will normally also be an export ban on the pedigree too which does not allow you to export the puppy/adult out of the country. This does not mean you cannot travel with your dog, it is for sales purposes only.
Contact the Newfoundland Breed Clubs for information on purchasing a puppy too. Each Club has a puppy liaison officer.
All the information about health etc can be found on the Newfoundland Club web sites or the Kennel Club web page.
If you do think non of the above has yet put you off . . . . .
Welcome to the club !!!!
© Shirebears Newfoundlands
