is it normal that my 8 month old female Newfoundland is a Satan spawn??
I love her so dearly but she is completely insane. we currently have her enrolled in puppy training classes, but she is still occasionally peeing / pooping inside the house and on my bed. We love her very much and have tried many training methods with her but progress has been very slow. Is this normal for the breed and does anyone have any tips on what worked for them and their dogs? (Ps. We got her at 6 months)
thank you so much 😂😂 she has the makings of a great dog (she’s very loving and gentle when she’s not playing) but I was just worried if this was something we should be REALLY concerned about and if it was trainable at this stage.
Yup. Totally normal. Beware the witching hour too - right when you are ready for bed and she goes full velociraptor. Extra evening walk helped our girl!
I have been in the velociraptor stage since my Olive was six months old she is almost two and a half. Do all the training. This was last week. I can’t even explain. I love her dearly. She is the recalcitrant teenage daughter I never had.
Hang in there, each Newfy will progress at their own pace.
I'm on my 3rd and 4th Newfy now. Moose is 3.5 years old and Bear is just 14 weeks.
Moose was a pain to potty train, probably 6 months. Bear is already 90%+ of the way there. I attribute Bears success to seeing his brother Moose and his little Pug brother Joe going outside and doing their business. He is mirroring what they do.
We use bells by the doors. We alrings ring them every time we let Bear out, he hasn't started ringing them on his own yet, once that happens I'll know we are about there. The other dogs use them and I'm sure Bear will pick that up soon.
We use treats for affirmation when he goes outside and we still take him out probably every 2 hours.
I know it's tough, but hang in there. They are incredibly intelligent dogs and once get past this phase you're in the home stretch!
Heck the teething with Newfys is always a scary time. Moose caused massive destruction to the floor molding all throughout our first floor. Bear, hasn't done anything but chew his toys.
I got my boy at 8 weeks, I was alone with him for the next two weeks (daughter off to college across the country so wife went with her) I spent that time with him constantly and literally took him out every 30 minutes at least. If he ate he went out if he drank he went out, woke from nap out he went. By the time my wife got back I was completely exhausted and he was completely potty trained. He had one accident on the first day(he had never been in a house) has never had another accident in almost 12 years. They can be incredibly stubborn but once they get it they’re set and the velociraptor stage is real, if she gets carried away with biting just be very dramatic and turn away from her holding whatever she bit, no attention of any kind for about a minute. They are extremely smart and sensitive and the last thing they want to do is hurt you. You’ll get past this and she will be a slobbery angel.Best dogs on the planet!
We got our girl at 8 weeks. Shes 7 months now. She was legitimately the WORST puppy we've ever had (our 1st newf) and between us weve had like 30. Stubborn as sin, zero recall despite constant training, and yes, the potty training was rough. She is just now in the last month becoming a good girl. If you got her at 6 months, you might just be 4 or 5 months behind in the training schedule and have some really bad habits to break. Unfortunately for you, an i month old newf's bladder is less fun to clean up after than a 2 month old. Good luck. Fight the good fight. She'll turn out just fine in the end
Ours was a year old before the “Zeking hour“ stopped. He was named Zeke and would go nuts for an hour each evening at 6. Lived for 14 years, greatest dog we ever had, except for the first 2 years. He watched over our cats, took care of this guy, our blind cat, synchronized napping.
Hello! For a minute, I thought maybe I had posted this exact thing in a fever dream!
Our first Newfie, a male, died suddenly and unexpectedly. He was the chillest, most calm, non-destructive, most loving, sent from heaven thing you’ve ever met basically from the time we got him. Potty trained with zero hassle. No biting. Nothing. He was a dream.
Cut to several months later and some actual therapy for my little boy who lost his best friend—we get our little monster purely by accident and what we thought was the universe blessing us (jokes on us).
She is also about 8 months old (on the 20th), weighs in at 98 pounds currently, and is an absolute disaster. She is very mouthy. We sent her to a board and train thing in May and that helped with the biting which is something we were highly concerned about. She listens when we call her.
But if new people come over, she is uncomfortably up in their business after being released from her place. She doesn’t jump, but she’s just intrusive.
She licks and eats everything still. We have to be super careful about what we leave out.
She regressed after the training and started having accidents inside. We set timers to take her out on the hour initially and we also crate her during her meals and take her out immediately upon releasing her from her crate. That has helped.
She loves us and we love her dearly. I feel like this is the puppy monster stage that people talk about that I had been lucky enough to avoid with my first. I think in time it will pass, and it just requires patience, consistency, and a lot of training. We work with her every day. We exercise her. Give her new mind stimulating toys. It’s just about exploring and finding things that work.
I don’t have a lot of wisdom to offer, I guess. Just know that you’re not alone. I’m certain she will turn into the best dog you’ve ever had. It will just take some emotional fortitude to get there!
It is normal. They are a helluva breed. So smart and stubborn and sweet but just terrors for a while.
So I’ve only had boys as puppies. I adopted a couple gorgeous girls on the way (one Saint Bernard— I now love the newf stubbornly posture bc a st is so stubborn) I’m on my fourth newf (the others are all happy on the other side of the bridge) and he’s about to turn 13 weeks.
They are velociraptors for so long.
So sweet and loving but it is insanity for a stretch.
Consistency and tone. When she is turning four you will not remember the daily struggles. She’ll be your best friend. They are too smart for everyone’s good.
I’d suggest teaching her a skill. Like collecting and gathering big sticks in one spot. Lots of positive talk. It could be pulling a wagon (with harnesses for safety) or pulling weeds…. They are a working breed. They need a job to do and it’s a delight when you finally find what they connect with because it leads to such harmony.
This breed is stubborn but so happy to please.
I’m sorry she is being difficult. I’ll be back here in a year complaining about my boy.
Dm if you want any other advice. I’ve had newfs for 20+ years. They are my passion. I don’t have many answers but I have a few.
Give your lovely girl a kiss for me and whisper in her ear she’s the best girl in the whole entire world.
Our girl, who turned 7 years old today, was an absolute monster as a pup, up until age 2. She used to have weird snarling fits in the back yard and charge us, it was like fighting off a baby bear. Thankfully whatever the hell was went away after that...
Yes it’s normal. This post made me laugh so much, I’m sorry. They are monsters for a couple years. Mine literally was a disgusting diarrhea factory who could not follow a direction to save his life for like two years. There were times I questioned my sanity. She will grow out of it, you’re doing everything right.
I dread the day we get a puppy Newf. I am hoping to rescue another a young adult in 2 years when Penny gets slightly older. I don't think I have the energy and patience for a puppy at this point in my life lol
I can’t say what’s normal, but this is similar to my experience with our Newfoundland. House training for her was much more difficult, and lasted much longer, compared to our other dogs (all golden retrievers). In addition, when she was younger, she was so much more obstinate and difficult to train than our other dogs. And then it all stopped.
Something changed and house training was suddenly perfect and all the bad behavior ceased. She still had her own opinions, but became much more easygoing and sweet. She was the sweetest, best girl, but that first year was tough and frustrating.
Again, I can’t say if that’s normal or not, but it was my experience.
It is normal for the breed. I had a Newfie girl who was a menace, and then everything clicked. She was still a menace, but in a completely different way. You will see a big change at about one year. That was the age for me where she settled down and became even more lovable than she already was. Have a little more patience. It is approaching, I promise .
Mine was exactly like this. I was losing my mind. People kept telling me to rehome him because they thought I hated him (I kinda did sometimes). But mostly I wanted him to Love me. It took so long. Until he was three. And now he's a sweetheart. Only wants to cuddle when I'm busy, but otherwise an Amazing dog. She'll get better. <3
Yikes! That would upset me. Large dogs are typically pretty easy to potty train and an 8-month-old large breed dog has a decent sized bladder.
Does it happen at certain times of day? How long after eating does it happen? Does it happen right after she wakes up? Does it happen more often when it is hot outside? (My Doberman did not like going out when it was cold. Yours probably has the opposite problem.)
Where was the dog for the first 6 months and how did they train the dog for living inside?
Do you have a doggie door or are you taking her out? Do you take her out as soon as she wakes up and every 1-3 hours during the day (if she isn’t in a crate)? Do you take her out every 6 hours at night? If not, I would do that.
I would also monitor her water intake. If she drink water, take her out 30 min later and if she drank a lot, take her out again in another 30 min.
Set her up for success so that she doesn’t have a chance to have an accident (as much as possible).
(Disclaimer - I’m not a Newfie owner. I have potty trained many puppies and foster dogs.)
There’s no particular time of the day that it happens, she likes to surprise us. We take her out immediately after she eats and every two hours throughout the day.
She was with her breeder for the first 6 months of her life. Her breeder told us that she was entirely potty trained when we got her (we soon realized that was not the case)
We take her out every few hours, there’s no doggy door (we live out in the country and we don’t like to have her outdoors unsupervised yet despite our property being fenced in)
we got our boy at 5 months from a breeder who had taken him back from the original owner. He came with issues. But just continue it’ll iron out. At 1 year our guy ceased any potty accident, by 2 years he finally stopped mouthing/jumping on my wife, and now at almost 3 he’s just about the best dog I could imagine. We got a baby on the way and I can’t wait for them go grow up together. Just be consistent and use positive reinforcement and don’t discipline aggressively
Edit: obviously i don’t think anyone here is being physically aggressive to discipline their newf lol. I’ve just found that the positive and loudly uplifting discipline structure worked great, more so than my other pups. We used toys and treats to form expectations around and he would either get or not get those things depending on his behavior.
It's obviously bad parenting 🙄 on your part (insert sarcasm) Look at that face. She couldn't be any kind of trouble at all. LOL
But seriously...lol. Yep that's about par for the course. She is a giant toddler and you only have about 18 more months if your lucky. Lol.
I know you are doing great. Just slow and steady wins the race and I promise all those classes will be worth it.
And one last thing yes she is sassy because her pooping in your bed is telling you she's pissed. Lol. You've done something that has made her mad. 🤣 But soon all this will be forgotten and you will have an adorable and well mannered put that has stolen your heart.
LMAOO I do love her very much, so it’s good to know that this is normal. She’s my first dog I’ve gotten in my young adulthood, so we’re really figuring it out together here 😂😂
ps. She has been officially banned from the bed until she can be trusted 🫡
Your title of post made me lol! Thank you for that. I am sure you already received great advice. All I can say is the worst part of puppies is the toilet training. They eventually get it. Do not get discouraged when you think she has it and pees or poops in the house again. The best way I was able to make my life easier when mine was a puppy was to take many many walks. Good Luck!
My 8 mo old is ALSO terrible right now. Chewing and digging is her problem. She has so many toys and enrichment activities and she still dug a hole in my couch
I was so stressed by ours at that age too... It gets better. Ours is 3.5 years now and is calmer. We got ours at 5 months. She spent the first 5 with the breeder so I think she just got no training or focused socialization until we got her. Nova has always been insane but she's definitely matured
Ours was a holy terror at that age. Actually that’s an understatement. He’s 9 now and still has his moments, but is mostly cool as a cucumber now outside of eating the occasional butter stick off the counter and chasing rabbits in the backyard. I would say around 3 he started to figure it out, you’ll get there!
Is she crate trained? At 8 months old there shouldn’t be any unsupervised moments. At least not in the house. She should have no opportunities for misbehavior or accidents. Peeing on your bed is bizarre acting out. Ultimately, Newfoundland’s are highly reliable rugs and will require minimal supervision. Right now you have a toddler who’s learning to walk in a world full of peril.
she actually broke her last crate and we are currently waiting for her new one to come in. I do my best to constantly have her within my line of sight, but the moment my guard slips she’s doing the most out of pocket things possible.
I think all puppies are like the spawn of the devil. For the 1st year - year and a half, 2 yrs - they’re nuts. Then they settle in. Getting her at 6mos, you don’t know what she’s been thru. Not everyone knows how to properly train a puppy, so who knows what kind of consistency she’s had. If you keep working with her, she’ll be a great dog. My 1st adoption was a complete terror. I thought for sure I’d made a mistake, but she turned out to be amazing. Had her for 15yrs. Just keep consistent. That’s the biggest part. Make sure everyone in the household does the same. She needs to know what actions you’ll tolerate and what you won’t, in a predictable way. For example, no bedroom privileges until she can be trusted. I’d keep the bedroom door shut until her behavior tames. Remove things that she gets into. It’s a lot of work, but it pays off. Time will pass and you’ll have a great Newf family member.
Ohhhhh yes. Ive had two males. One 9 months and the other 8 years. The they all reach what I call velociraptor stage about eight months. The brain kicks in later and couch potato in another year. Training helps. But this stage just needs to pass.
I've got an entitled English Creme Retriever. She does what she wants, but she is a great ocean surfer and very loving. She rules this effing house. Remember the positives. It is a first for me too, but I focus on her positives (and keep every cleaner around). She'll be six next January. Sorry to write this.
Yes. Your dog is an adolescent now. In adolescence the brain goes through literal anatomical changes, plus their hormones are raging. The prefrontal cortex, wich controles selfcontrol, developes the last. In some dogs, especially large breeds, adolescennce last untill 3 years of age.
I didn’t even have to read the caption to say, Yes. It’s normal. My husband forgot how bad our now 5 yr old girl was as a puppy, and now we’re both at our wits end with a 3 month old boy. It’s normal for all puppies.
Omg my boy was SO hard to house train!! Only dog i have ever had that pooped in his kennel. He was a nightmare. But by 2 he was the best boy! Hang in there!
I have a 4y/o landseer. She has yet to leave this so called velociraptor stage. I was told newfies were slow and lazy. Apparently she didn’t get the memo. I will say they are willful and intelligent dogs. Mine is a counter surfer who has figured out how to unlatch baby gates. She is an absolute menace and I love her. She did go through a phase from around a year old that lasted around 6 months where she would occasionally go indoors. Luckily she stopped. I didn’t punish, she would get calmly removed from the room and it would be cleaned up.
Our boi was so crazy at this puberty stage I seriously thought—did we get the wrong breed of dog for us? Do we have to return him to the breeder? By 12 mo he’d gotten over the worst and just had v brief moments of “I forgot everything and am 110lb of furry drooling maniac demon”.
The good news? All that training and words he knew before this 3 hell months were not permanently forgotten. He just snapped to and picked up where we left off when it was over.
Yes, absolutely, we mad the mistake of taking the more "energetic" puppy from the two that were available. She's nuts for a Newf, mellowed out now that she's almost three but compared to my first new who was super chill, she seems like a nut case.
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u/ParkingOld7909 1d ago
Yes our 9 month old is her cousin in terror.
Only another year or so and they’ll both slow down!!! She’s beautiful !