Wednesday, July 27, 2011

The Newfoundland dog

Newfoundland dogs are known as the big, gentle, giants. Considered a large dog (and I guess really they are..), but to most Newfoundland dog owners they are not thought of as huge dogs. They are just the right size! :).

They can come in a variety of colors, and not all colors are approved by different countries National Kennelclubs. The colors approved by the American Kennelclub are (base color with a little bit of white is okay for all) brown, black and gray. There is also the landseer color, white basecolor with black markings (as described by the AKC).

There are other colors that do appear such as brown and white landseer. Although not very common, it does still exist, and perhaps one day it will be an approved color.

The average height for adult dogs is 28 inches. For adult females, 26 inches. The approximate weight of adult dogs ranges from 130 to 150 pounds, adult females from 100 to 120 pounds. Weight can vary from the standards of course, and you need to consider that you might have a dog that is larger then the standard and thus probably is more massive in body structure.

There are overweight Newfoundlands, and I remember seeing an ad for Newfoundland puppies where they first said that there were nice AKC blood lines (okay, that's a good thing), but then.. the father of the puppies is a 200 pound landseer! Now, that is not a healthy weight for a newfie.

My first newfie was definitely bigger than the standard height and he weighed about 170 pounds, he was a BIG newf. He was not overweight, but for a newfie to weigh 200 pounds? That certainly does not sound healthy, and to be described as a plus? I don't think so...

I now have my third Newfoundland girl. I often call her "little girl" and people that hear that usually go "LITTLE?" Hehe. She'll always be my little girl, 130 pounds and all! Cleo is a wonderful girl and she is a brown white newfie. We (Cleo and I) often hear, is that a St Bernhard? And I can see Cleo go "um NO," and I say no, she is a Newfoundland. She is not built like a St Bernhard at all, she doesn't even have similar markings. She looks just like a black and white landseer, except she is brown and white.

Here is a youtube video I made of my beautiful girl Cleo so you can see what she looks like :).


In summary, the Newfoundland dog is a big, beautiful dog but they are not for everyone. The puppies look like little bear cubs and you need to consider that the cute little bundle of fluff will become a big, strong dog with an even stronger personality. When dogs like German Shepherds and Rottweilers often have an attitude of "Ok what next, what do you want me to do now?" a Newfoundland (in general) comes with the attitude of "Alright, and you want me to do this WHY?"

Until next blog post,
Gunilla Wachtel - Kanweienea Kreations

Gunilla is an artist that loves animals. She is a member of the Crafting for Animals Guild on Artfire. She is a supporter of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Gunilla's artwork features many animals such as dogs, dolphins, orcas, horses and more. She sells her artwork as originals and prints, as well as printed on mugs, t-shirts, mousepads and much more.

3 comments:

Debra at Sleepy Cat Designs said...

What a wonderful video of Cleo! She is so gorgeous, and that tail, now that's some tail, and I love the white tip! She's a beautiful lumbering giant of a furry friend! Thanks for the info about Newfoundlands; I knew so little about this breed. I can tell she adds great joy to your life and she sure seems to be a very happy girl!

El at Tantalizing Stitches said...

I love your post, especially the last sentence: "Alright, and you want me to do this WHY?"

I often think that when you find an animal just staring at you that they are either thinking that or "Why are you doing that? Such silly humans."

As soon as I get a big back yard I am going to have a dog again :)

Kanweienea Kreations said...

Thanks guys :) Cleo says thank you too! :)