Health Care and Maintenance
There are some health risks associated with the newfoundland. They are a large breed and as with any large breed dog, there are some health risks that you should be aware of. The first is the usual large breed risk, of hip dysplasia. It is estimated that 22% of newfoundlands have some sort of hip dysplasia, do not let this scare you away from the breed. Even the very best bloodlines carry risks but there are things that you can do to help you prevent this risk. The most important thing is to not allow them to gain weight very quickly as puppies. Luckily, the newfoundlands seem to grow slow up until about 6 months, but once they hit about 6 months they grow very quickly and this is where a new owner and a great vet becomes the best defense. While any dog is growing, the weight that they carry is on soft forming bones, if the dog is overweight, the bones can become stressed and cause what have been a very mild case of hip dysplasia that would have never caused any systems, will now cause a dog great pain and costly affects for the owner. The best thing to do is to get them on a low calorie, high protein dog food and not give extras (such as people food). Talk it over with your vet and find out what food is the best. But this is your best defense, a good diet! When it comes to diet, our dogs have access to food and water at all times. My opinion is that if dogs know that there will always be food in the bowl, they will not overeat (causing weight gain) and they will also not “inhale” their food which can cause bloat and another thing it will prevent is aggression. Having food available will not cause your dog to overeat and will not cause food insecurities. I really do feel that a dog can quickly get the mentality of eat now or starve later and no one wants their dog to feel hungry and no one wants their behavior modified by being hungry. I am not a vet, this is strictly my opinion, but my dogs have access to food and water 24/7 and none of them are overweight, they also do not rush when they eat.
Another risk associated with the breed is cystinuria. This is when the kidneys fail to absorb the acid in the body and it is passed through the urine causing kidney and bladder stones. The most common pre-cursor to this is common bladder infections. It affects both males and females but more commonly girls. It is just something that you should be aware of incase your dog starts getting bladder infections. We have not personally experienced this in our bloodlines but it is something that is associated with the breed and want you to be aware of.
As far as maintenance, seasonal brushing is a must. But other than that, they are pretty low maintenance dogs. They just want to be loved
If there is something that I didn’t mention and you still have questions, all of my contact information is on the contact us page and I will be happy to talk to you and answer any additional questions. I want to thank you for taking the time to read about the newfoundland and considering us for your new family member!
The Amazing Newfoundland
You find yourself looking for a new family member or a companion and you want to make sure that the Newfoundland is for you, that is GREAT! I encourage people to do their research before committing to a new puppy because when we place puppies with families, we want them to have their forever home!