The arrival of a new puppy is an exciting event, and the inevitable change in household routine will go much smoother if you’re well-prepared for the arrival of your Newfoundland newcomer. The following items and discussions should help you to get ready – or, if your puppy is already at home, to make sure you’ve covered all the bases. (If you’re not new to dog ownership, some of what’s discussed below will be familiar, but please read through the list anyway, as many of its suggestions are Newf specific. Newfoundlands’ size and breed characteristics mean that what works for a Lab or a boxer won’t necessarily fill the bill now, or at least not when your new member of the family is full-grown.)
DROOL
It’s a simple fact: Newfoundlands drool. Some of them only a little, some of them a LOT. Maybe not when they’re puppies, but as they mature, it will happen. Be prepared: have inexpensive dish towels or rags ready and designated for use as drool towels. You’ll need them. You’ll also be able to use them to wipe your walls – and occasionally your ceilings – because Newfs not only drool, they shake their heads to help get rid of it. That shaken drool has to end up somewhere, right? (Go to any gathering of Newfs and their people and one of the first things you’ll notice is that many of the owners have towels hanging from belts or back pockets, and most are utterly blasé about the drool that gets smeared or flung onto their clothes.)
