Etiquette dictates you should... (On the topic of Introductions)

This is a bizarre page out of Hurley's past, which we know very little about.
We know that his original owner was renting and his landlord wouldn't allow him to keep this dog.
We know he was abandoned to the Humane Society in South Dakota.
He spent a little bit of time with a foster family in Omaha, Nebraska.
His foster family spent a good amount of time identifying his likes, dislikes, and amount of training.
His evaluation report stated that he had been taught "Sit", but needed work on all his basic commands.

Now having trained a few dogs in the past I can tell you a 6 month puppy that doesn't know "Down" or "Come" is well on his way to becoming a poorly trained dog.  And a poorly trained 140 pound dog is a recipe for disaster. Now I realize that working with the attention span of a puppy and getting them to obey 100% of the time is not realistic, however, puppies at 2-4 months of age can be taught "Sit", "Down", and "Come".  Fortunately, Newfoundlands are known to be very intelligent and eager to please, so I am certain that he will be able to pick up his basic commands quickly as long as I continue to invest time in training him.

Please note that I mentioned that training takes time.  It is becoming an increasing trend among dog owners to not invest the necessary time required for training their dogs. Whether through frustration (with themselves or the dog), maybe from lack of patience or poor method implementation, there are more dogs who are becoming poorly trained. But I digress....

After we had Hurley for about a week, my wife turned to me and asked me "Did you know Hurley can shake?"  My initial thought being "Well of course he can, it is a natural response dogs have to try and remove water from their coats.  Okay, Wait, that doesn't make sense, she is referring to something else. Well I am having him get used to me take each of his paws so I make sure they are clean and healthy, I wonder if he is picking up on that." I was wrong again.

Hurley was sitting at the entrance to our bathroom. My wife leaned toward him and said "Shake" and sure enough he raised his paw to her.  I was shocked and then immediately appalled.  "Very Cool" I uttered. Because honestly who doesn't want a giant dog who can "Shake" on command.  But I refer you to my previous digression.  That means his previous owner took the time to teach his dog how to "Shake", but not "Come".  This is totally asinine. He was teaching his dog tricks to show off, but no basic obedience commands.  Hurley, I am so glad you are with us now, you have no idea how bad things were going to get for you.  In time you will learn a bunch of different commands but first of all and most importantly, you will be an obedient and well-behaved dog.
My promise to you.
- Corey

Introducing Yourself to a Giant

Well we had gone through the application process with Big Dogs Huge Paws.
We informed them of the dogs we were interested in, and we got to confirm that we would like to meet a 6 month old puppy named Achilles. I arranged to go get him and another pup that was going to his new home at 11:00 a.m.(CST) on Sunday August 29th 2010.  The meeting place was in Kearney, Ne. 
Well sure enough the 29th arrived, I got up at a time of day that I would contend is actually still night time. Slapped on some clothes, ate some breakfast, jumped into the car and was off.

The trip went well. My parents called me regularly to make sure I wasn't falling asleep. The type of care and concern that only a parent can have over their child's well being. Then I arrived at the gas station in Kearney where I had arranged to meet the dogs.  I made the initial assumption that the lady walking the large black dog was in fact the person with whom I was supposed to meet. I reminded myself of my years of training dogs. "Don't go to the dog, let the dog come to you" / "Don't give into the initial demands for attention"  - Show the dog that you are the Master and he should be submissive. So I introduced my self to Achilles handler first, which proved to be more of a feat than I initially expected. Upon approaching and reaching out my hand to say hello, the dog came toward me and buried it's head between my legs. As I corrected my balance and managed the person-to-person pleasantries, I realized "This is, and is going to be, a LAARRRGE DOG!"  And although I am familiar with large breeds and dogs in general, it is a whole new experience to have something with a furry head that weighs as much as a cinder block, and is larger than a regulation size rugby ball squirm between your legs begging for attention. Needless to say I was unable to withhold my affection for the beast for very long.
Well the dog's and I loaded up and headed home.

Where the rest of my family got to experience the unbridled joy and enthusiasm that is a 6 month old puppy. Which I think was a new experience for all of them.

- Corey



Um duh!

In case you couldn't tell by the blog description, This blog is dedicated to our new family member "Hurley". For the most part I will be authoring these posts, but every so often you can probably expect to hear Hurley's take on the world around him.

Hurley is now a 7 month old male Newfoundland puppy.
For those unfamiliar with the standard for this breed let me share some data from the AKC website.

Newfoundland Breed Standard (extracted)

Working Group 

General Appearance
The Newfoundland is a sweet-dispositioned dog that acts neither dull nor ill-tempered. He is a devoted companion. A multipurpose dog, at home on land and in water, the Newfoundland is capable of draft work and possesses natural lifesaving abilities.

The Newfoundland is a large, heavily coated, well balanced dog that is deep-bodied, heavily boned, muscular, and strong. A good specimen of the breed has dignity and proud head carriage.
The following description is that of the ideal Newfoundland. Any deviation from this ideal is to be penalized to the extent of the deviation. Structural and movement faults common to all working dogs are as undesirable in the Newfoundland as in any other breed, even though they are not specifically mentioned herein.

Size, Proportion, Substance
Average height for adult dogs is 28 inches, for adult bitches, 26 inches. Approximate weight of adult dogs ranges from 130 to 150 pounds, adult bitches from 100 to 120 pounds. The dog's appearance is more massive throughout than the bitch's. Large size is desirable, but never at the expense of balance, structure, and correct gait. The Newfoundland is slightly longer than tall when measured from the point of shoulder to point of buttocks and from withers to ground. He is a dog of considerable substance which is determined by spring of rib, strong muscle, and heavy bone.

For the full standard go to Newfoundland Breed Standard.

- Corey