Just bought a dog - a Newfoundland x - any tips/advice?

Caroline_a

Not going to go off on a rant about designer crossbreeds (this time ) but you make it sound as if breeding is a simple thing to do with little knowledge or idea of the pitfalls! I find that the more I have learnt about dogs over the years, the less I would want to breed from any of mine. There are multiple threads on here regarding breeding with little or no knowledge, and, although I am not saying that the OP has very little knowledge, I don't think she would be asking for help if she was informed enough to breed!

Edit - reading back I see that it's the OP's first dog, so your breeding comment even more ill-advised than I first thought!

con1888

Yup breeding sure isn't easy.

I am not planning on neutering my pup as I am going to show him so he can't be neutered. Will I breed him ? I don't know, I may but I won't know til he is around 2 and I have his hip and elbow scoring done and his hypoglycemia test done. Even then I may not, it depends on how he turns out, what his breeders think and also other people who have been in the 'busniness' longer than me. IF and that's a big if I do breed him it will only be with a suitable female, ie hip and elbow scored, good example of the breed, temperament etc.

He is my puppy, my baby first and foremost and I have seen enough sick, disabled, ill treated puppies in my life and would not want to contribute to that by breeding without a clue.

con1888

Oh and he has an endorsement on his papers that means even if I did want to be one of those awful people who breed with no health checks I wouldn't be able to, well I could but the pups would not be allowed KC registration, I need my breeders to allow that should I ever consider breeding.

foxypink

we have a newfie too he is just over 6 months and i think the smell is just part of the breed. We tend to spray ours with some dry shampoo once a week but he is brushed every day and this seems to keep him fresh in between baths.

The mikki rake is brilliant and it really does get rid of the dead fur the amount of fur we get out of our dog is crazy im surprised he still has any left on his body haha. I find a good 30 min brush once a week then a 5-10min brush every day keeps him tidy. If you have a Dyson cleaner they do an attachment for dog grooming which has had brilliant reviews, as soon as the price drops on it again I'll be buying it but I wont be paying full price for it :rotfl:

emeraldbugle

con1888 wrote: »

I do not mean to offend you saying that you can't make a decision for yourself but look into it before just doing what your vet says. My vet is very nice and as a person I like them but always make my own mind up.

No offence taken , they said that if he smelt a female he would be off after it and be dragging us with him. The vet I spoke to isn't actually doing the neuturing. The dog groomer I met yesterday also recommended it. Dog owning is such a minefield!

I have some pictures of his grooming, are they easy to imbed in the post?

He was so so matted with massive clumps of hair. Including a huge bit right by his boy bits. Therefore he has very short hair now and we are determined to let it grow and maintain it better. He has now stopped panting as much, but he looks so much different though

Next question any tips on choosing a vet? I have had a couple or recommendations from friends, but is there some simple questions I should ask the vet or look for?

Food - I've been recommended Quantum by the local pet shop - any thoughts/comments on this?

Thanks :j

Caroline_a

Never heard of Quantum! I use raw with Skinners as a supplement if I can't get to butchers or as a change. Wainwrights is good too, but you will need a large breed puppy food until he gets to about 18 months/2 years to ensure that he gets the right mix of nutrients to ensure good bone growth.

krlyr

Persuing a !!!!! in heat is a possible risk but one that could be managed. For example, using a headcollar and/or a control harness (something with a ring on the front like the Mekuti or similar) to maintain full control of his despite his size, only letting him off-lead in secure areas or on a longline etc.
Personally given the fact that GSDs are prone to joint issues, and that he's going to be a big dog carrying a lot of weight on those joints, I would favour health over potential walking risks that could be managed for the short-term. I'm not saying I wouldn't neuter whatsoever, but neutering at a young age can have detrimental effects so the pros and cons need to be considered - it's not an operation without side effects.

The RCVS do a guide on choosing a vet
http://findavet.rcvs.org.uk/find-a-vet/choosing-a-veterinary-practice/
As do the BVA
http://www.bva.co.uk/1140.aspx

Important questions to ask, off the top of my head

- is 24 hour care available or do they refer to a separate OOH practice? How near is the OOH practice? Bear in mind that these may often ask for money upfront whereas your regular practice may let you pay 'on account'. Also I have heard many stories of sick pets having to be carted between OOH vets and regular practices first thing in the morning and last thing at night, for days if the pet needs to remain admitted. This can't help an ill pet to rest and recover!

- what equipment/services do they offer in-house? My town has two vets. The one that I use does everything on-site, from in-house blood testing (not all of them but a wide range), to surgeries, x-rays, kennelling, etc. The other vet is a small day surgery, open a few hours a day for consults, but surgeries, x-rays, etc. have to be done at the main surgery several miles away, 2 towns across.

- do they allow direct claims for insurance? I sorted a credit card out for this sort of thing anyway but if that's not an option you may want to make sure the vet will allow a direct claim from your insurance company so you're not faced with having to stump up several thousands if your dog needs treatment.

- how does their appointment system work and what hours are they open? Mine let you book in advance or on the day, and will squeeze in emergencies. They are open 7 days a week - 9-6 most days, and later 2 days a week. 10-2-ish on Sundays I think it is. Much better than the other practice that are only open for about 2 hours a day on a first-come, first-serve basis - it was very difficult to get seen and definately impractical with a reactive dog as the waiting room was tiny.

Other things I'd find beneficial but not necessarily a deciding factor - whether they supportive, neutral or very anti-raw feeding, whether they had fair prescription charges if I wanted to buy medication online, whether the vets had specialist interests they'd studied further, whether they were happy to look at new research I'd taken in and try alternative treatments, their 'bedside' manner with both myself and my pets...things like that.

Re. Quantam, the lack of ingredients listed on their own website is a slight red flag for me. If they're good, why not boast about them? Most good brands will happily list the contents whereas the not-so-good brands tend to stick to vague descriptions with no precise listing.

I found some ingredients listed online though
Contains - Lamb meat Meal, Ground Rice, Ground Yellow Corn, Rice Flour, Sunflower Oil, (preserved with mixed tocopherols, a natural vitamin E) Beet Fibre, and Calcium Carbonate, Dried seaweed.

From that, they don't look too bad but by splitting the ground rice, corn and rice flour up they've managed to portray the lamb meat meal as the main ingredient. Had they lumped it together as "cereals", like many companies do, the lamb may fall further down.
For example (just ignoring the oil here), if the lamb made up 26% of the food, the rice could be 24.6%, the corn 24.6% and the rice flour 24.6% - so 74% cereals which would be way above the lamb meal, its a bit of a sneaky labelling technique.
Corn also isn't that well digested by dogs, it's a cheap filler often associated with food alergies or intolerances, so I'd probably be looking for something without it. GSDs can be prone to sensitive tums - not sure about Newfies.
For the price range it's at online, you may be better with something liek Autarky or Skinners - Skinners is quite high in rice (but at least they're honest about it!) but it avoids the common cereal triggers like corn and wheat. The salmon and rice is about £25 for 15kg too so a bit cheaper than the Quantum stuff (which seems to be about £30). Autarky salmon is around the £25 mark too, or they do two sacks for £39 with free postage - you'll probably get through a lot when he's fully grown anyway. The salmon is higher quantity in Autarky, at 35%, and the rice around 33% so a bit lower.

MargaretB_2

I have two newfoundlands aged 6 and 4, and I have to say that taking on this breed as a first dog could be a bit of a challenge. They are wonderful dogs, the gentlest natures, but clumsy of course. I have heard tell that newfies stink, but mine never have. Diet does play a part, but to start with you might think about finding a good groomer.

This will not be cheap though. I was quoted £85 for one of mine. As to grooming, I could not manage without a blaster, which is a type of doggie hairdryer which will blow away all the loose fur.

I don't know if I am allowed to post links as only just joined, but have a look at this website: gentle newfoundland dogs. It will give you all the information you need. It seems I am not allowed to post links so put that in google and it should come up with a website with that name and a com at the end.

And good luck with him. Where did you get him from? I can never understand how anyone can part with a pet, especially one so young. The excited weeing will probably stop. Is he left alone for a long time? That is not a good idea. This breed needs company, which is why I have two.

Meant to say, all my newfies have been raised on Royal Canin.

BillTrac

We used to have a Newfoundland (sorry hate them being called newfies...shudder) with a full pedigree. Won a couple of awards through showing him but we didn't have him in the family as a show dog.

Beautiful temperament, his favourite trick used to be holding a raw egg in it's shell in his mouth without crushing it. Until he was told he could eat it. Eggshells are good for the shine in their coat.

Although would you believe it he was scared of water.!!!! Wouldn't want to rely on him to rescue me from the sea:rotfl:But he loved a bath. Looked like a drowned goat when he was really wet.

Great with the girls when they were little, although he could be a bit clumsy, like turning round and sending the girls flying, walking into lamp posts etc.

Smelt terrible if very wet, and if he shook his head we could have slobber up the walls:rotfl:

Unfortunately, he contracted cancer in his shoulder. And the only choice we had was whether to have his front leg amputated( not very kind to a dog weighing 13 stone) or have him put to sleep. After discussing things as a family and with the vet and the breeder we felt the kindest thing for him was to let him go. 20 year and I miss the soft lump still.

Enjoy your lad and hopefully he will make you as happy as our chap made us

ameliarate

I really can't understand how anyone could bear to have a dog that slobbers. :eek: When they do that doggy shake and the slobber flies everywhere - ooooooh it is so gross.