Training is the single most important thing you can do to insure that your Newfie grows into the type of dog you want around and that you can be proud of.
An untrained Newf is not only no fun to be around, he is a liability due to his size.
Begin training the day you bring your Newf home.
Simple rules such as no jumping, no biting etc should begin the day he enters your home.
Even though a little ball of fur jumping and "play biting" you seems like great fun now, mark my words:
it WILL NOT be great fun when he is 130 pounds and muddy!
Training teaches your dog his place in your family and in human society in general.
All dogs should at least know the basics:
Sit\Stay
Down
Come when called
We recommend professional obedience training, even for experienced dog owners. We find that people (ourselves included) are much more likely to establish a schedule for training when they are part of a class. Afterall, no one wants THEIR dog to be the only one that doesnt know the command taught the previous week! Also, even more important than the training aspects of professional classes are the socialization skills available from these gatherings. Your puppy gets to meet all sorts of people, and all sorts of dogs, which is extremely valuable to him as a socialization issue.
Most training classes want:
6 ft leather leash\Choke or prong collar.
In our opinion the prong collars are a much better option for a Newfie than a choke collar.
Even though you may be quite capable of training your own dog, professional services will make it easier.
When training on your own it is easy to miss lessons etc .
When training with a class there are expectations that need to be met week to week. In addition classes expose your dog to situations that you would be hard pressed to duplicate on your own.
A trained newfie is a dog you NEVER have to aplogize for, can be proud to take anywhere and that wil ADORE you for life.
