Comparisons

[Heighway]

It sounds like most of us have had truly wonderful, memorable dogs in the past.  My first newfie, Hightower, was what I thought the smartest dog in the world and as close to human as possible.  He helped me raise 4 children and was the light of all of our lives.  He lived to be just shy of 14 years and passed away about 4 years ago.  I now have a golden retriever, (3 yr/o) also smart as a whip and a joy to be around, but I just never got that same "feeling" as I had with Hightower.  Besides, he is definately my husbands dog.  Now, I have my little Webster.  I've just had him a week, and I don't know if it is b/c I am so much older or what, but this is an ACTIVE little sprite (when he is awake).  He yips and yaps and bites and has to be entertained to be kept out of trouble.  We are crate training....bu t he has to come out sometimes, and when he does, he is just into everything! Some of it cute, some not so cute.  I don't remember much activity when Hightower was a pup, of course that was 18 years ago.  Someone PLEASE tell me he will become a "gentle giant" at some point!  The good news is, he appears to be potty training very well.  0-1 accidents/day.

[BabsT]

My first boy is Zero a Central Asian and a complete gentleman since I got him at 10 wks old.  He is now 10.5mnths...No w I have added Chara to my family and OMG...she is h*ll on wheels LOL totally different in zero in some ways and alike in othe way

[Moni]

Mojo, my aussie was my first puppy. We had decided we weren't going to have kids for awhile, although we were pleasantly surprised to find out about Tori a month after getting Mojo!  lol 

I had always wanted a puppy since the only couple dogs I'd had in my life had been older pound dogs(nothing wrong with them, but I wanted to see what having a puppy was like )  Anyways, I met a great breeder and after talking to me she bumped me up the puppy waiting list and picked out which puppy she thought would fit us the best, and he did!  I did everything with Mojo, obedience classes, agility, clicker training.  This dog knows what I want and if he doesn't, then he'll try and figure it out. 

I've loved all my dogs since then, but each in their own way.  The easiest way to describe it is that they all have my heart, but Mojo has my soul.    Its so hard to not hold them up to each others expectations, but we have to try our best.  Good luck with your new pup!

~moni

[newflvr]

It sounds like Webster is a normal, happy, full of life puppy!  It's all good news!  Chester, at 7 months, is completely house broken but likes to eat everything he finds...which meant we were up at 4:00am this morning cleaning up vomit....*sigh*

What we did that seemed to help is blocked off all access to the rest of the house and he had full run of the kitchen (where I spend SO much of my time) and then we made him the "puppy yard" which he also play in without getting in to trouble.  I just opened the kitchen door and he could take himself out to pee and then come back in to investigate whatever I was doing.  At night it was the same thing....he only could be in our bedroom and I'd leave the door open to his puppy yard so he'd get up as he needed to then come back in.  At about five months, he was good enough he could have the run of the house.

I think that about a year, they seem to run out of "puppy juice" and just become the gentle giants that we know and love.

[sarnewfie]

Ever since you got this new pup observations on my part, could be wrong, but i get the feeling you want him to be something he is not
for instance
potty training, this breed takes a while becouse of body size and bladder size, it takes them time to develop the bladder.
and for training, you have to watch them like a hawk, you also have to remember this is a WORKING DOG
part of the WORKING group and they are just PUPPIES and just eight weeks at that!!!
my gosh, i cant believe that some newf pups are a lump on a log at this age.
they are puppies and will yip and yap and the breeder should have helped them along when the landshark phase started, by sitting in with them and teaching no bite and lick, than it is up to you the owner to give him an OUTLET for his ENERGY bursts, he needs to get out and run and play and excersise.
walks are wonderful. a tired newf is a happy newf.
and believe me, if hightower was not active, that just is not normal.
boisterous is the phrase i use when people are looking at getting a pup
becouse they are, and they will challenge you, and they need to think they need to work, they need excersise.
try not to compare him to the cocker spaniel you once had, or to hightower.
this is an individual pup with his own personality and your own challenges are being set for you.

[Heighway]

He really is an adorable little pup.... it is me getting older.  I wouldn't change a thing about him at this stage.

[loki]

How's this for comparisons. We have 2 newfs, loki our first was more or less potty trained after his 1st week home, no exageration, made only 1 more mistake to this day, and he's 2.5 yrs old. Smartest dog in his training class, remembers commands I haven't used in 18 months he's quiet, got over the mouthing stage early on, loves baths, he's small for a newf 30 " at the shoulder but only 95 lbs,  and is completely trust worthy left alone. .... Then there's Odin our 1 yr old puppy, took months to be house broken, chews on everything can't remember a command to save his life, barks, hates baths, still mouths on occasion, is 31" at the shoulder and 150 lbs. The 2 are mirror opposites in ever category you can think of, but wouldn't trade either one for anything. Nothing will crack you up more than watching these 2 sumo wrestle in the living room, or swap every toy or treat you give them, because no matter if the toys/treats are identical, "his" is always better.

[Jessdryden]

Sasha is our second newfie.  Our first newfie, Molly, was very different from Sasha even as a small puppy.  Molly was very quiet and timid as a puppy (she had been mistreated before she came to us).  Molly was incredibly smart and learned commands very quickly; she even learned the names of numerous toys and people.  Molly was just a wonderful companion and made us want to have another newfie.  Sasha is wonderful, but quite different from Molly.  She is very outgoing and loves to play with other dogs.  She wants every person she meets to pet her.  She is noisy--she has a bark/sound for everything!  Either way, we love them both and each is wonderful in her own way.   

It sounds like your Webster is a cutie with quite a personality!  Have fun!    Also, please post more photos for us!!!

[sarnewfie]

Ahhhh
yes they all are different, and it all depends on how they were raised also as newborns.
i truly believe the highly intelligent ones are the ones in the most trouble, their brains are active, and they need to do things, if they dont, trouble is their outlet.
i have naughty puppies. and i wouldnt have it any other way, becouse the naughty puppies have fabulous focus and eye contact and response!
take these naughty pups out for activities to keep them focused and tire them out! LOL

they are thinking dogs, we think, we get in trouble, so do they.
a puppy is a tonn of work.
i have two right now.
the second girl will be leaving soon, but man, to keep up with both of them?
i love it!
;0_

[Heighway]

My living room looks like a 2 year olds playroom at a daycare center!!! Toys all over the place.  Webster plays with anything for about 3 minutes, then is ready for something else!  I am glad I took a few weeks off work, he is hard work, but pure entertainment!  Big Bro Riley just tolerates him at present, but I think they will become good buds.

[Leah-n-boy-os]

I only have 1 newfie, he's our first, and he's 9 months old. As Sarnewfie said, they are thinkers, and need stimulation for both mind and body.

Heighway, you commented that your living room looks like a Daycare center with all the toys? Here's a fun suggestion that works amazingly well in our house, and delights our friends when they come over to visit.

We made the boy-os a "Toy Box". (Actually, it's a laundry basket that we no longer use.) We put it in the living room, in the corner. We put all of the dog-toys in the basket, and have trained the boys to go to the "Toy Box" to get a toy. They'll bring the toy to us, or play with it amongst themselves. When the command "Clean Up" is given, they pick up the toy and return it to the basket. It works very well with my two older boys, Onyx is relatively new to the house, so we're still working on the "Clean Up" command, but he's got the "Toy Box" command down already.

This helps keep them thinking, as he has to decide what toy he wants to play with Mommy, and where it's at, or if he can steal it....err..... that is....creative ly appropriate it from one of his brothers, and then how to put it back.

We try and think up all sorts of new games to teach them, both to play with us, and amongst themselves. As much as I love my cuddles, I like to foster independance in them, so that if they have to be left alone, they can keep themselves entertained and not devestate my house in the process.

I've found that just about any game that you can play with a Toddleer, works (with some modifications) with a dog. I won't even go into the laugh-riot that insues when we play a game of peek-a-boo.....

[sarnewfie]

Great suggestions!!
another is to go outside and hide and call them to you
they love to find their people
in doing SAR for six years the puppy run away to start them out is so fun and they love it!