Newfoundland: temperament, training and care

At a glance

Temperament

• Sweet and patient
• Born swimmer
• Drools and sheds

Training tips

Swimming is ideal exercise: easy on the joints and they love it.

Newfoundlands usually pick things up quickly, which also means they learn bad habits quickly. Keep sessions short and varied, and reward the calm behavior you want to see more of.

Start with a marker word, sit, come and leave it. For a puppy, see the puppy training guides.

Exercise and energy

A healthy adult Newfoundland typically needs around 30 to 60 minutes of activity a day. Mix walks with sniffing and short training games: mental work tires dogs as much as running does. Puppies need much shorter sessions while they grow.

See how much exercise a dog needs and our games and enrichment ideas.

Health to watch

Things the breed is known to be prone to. Ask your vet what to check for your dog.

• Heart. Heart conditions run in the breed: a yearly listen at the vet catches them early.
• Hips and elbows. Prone to joint problems: keep them lean and ask the vet to check the joints each year.
• Hot weather. A thick coat holds heat: keep walks early and late in summer. See: Heatstroke.