Hi everyone,

I don't know if anyone can give me any advice here!!

I have a beautiful 15 week old Newfoundland boy, which we all love.  He is starting puppy classes next week (4th).  At the moment, I feel like giving up!, I have a 7 year old son and a 9 year old daughter (plus my husband who's not as committed as me with my boy!).  My newf is very greedy, even tho he is on 122 x 4 meals a day (dried food), my daughter made herself a sandwich and had a piece of cheese in her han, she walked away from the counter with it in her hand and my boy just grabbed it out of her fingers and made them bleed.  She screamed the place down so me and my husband had an awful row! my newf didn't obviously mean to do this, as it was the food he was after, he has done this on numerous occasions - you just can not walk past him with anything even on walks, he'll have it off you or try to get it, it is so tiring trying to stop him doing this.  My daughter is now scared of him together with my son I am so upset!.  I am also trying to make him 'work' for his meals to stimulate him by putting little treats around the house or garden.  This does'nt work at all, as he loses concentration and forgets about them and just walks away!

What are we doing wrong! we have waited so long for him and want to end up with a beautiful behaved boy, he just seems awfully greedy all the time so because of this, training him is hard as when we are out on walks, he is constantly on alert mode for food, I have tried to distract him with a plastic bottle with peas in or stones to make a noise but that doesn't do anything!! I am constantly having to hold his lead above his head, I just don't want him to pick anything up and make him sick, I am at my wits end...nothing seems to be working...he has a crate which he sleeps in no prob of a night but all his toys he chews to bits and anything he sees on the floor he chews so I can't leave nothing in his crate for him to play with not even a chewy bone, he gets fed up with it and just chews what ever he can find to destroy!!

it is mainly the jumping up for food from your hands is really scarrey, you can't pass him and he'll have what ever you have out of your hand,

sorry to go on, I know iv mentioned a few things here, but my mind is racing, I am about to take him out for a walk with my plastic bottle, I dread it! and I should'nt feel like this, again, sincerely apologies for 'droning on' - but ANY HELP will be ever so grateful

thank you

xxxx

Hi. I am really sorry to hear about your problem. The food issue is easy to solve if it is hapening when your children walk passed him with food.  Either make the kids sit at the table to eat, leaving him in another room or if they have to walk around with their sandwiches put him in his crate.  When eating is finished let him out it really is that simple.  Obviousley you dont want to loose him so a few changes will help around the house.

As Regards him walking outside.  Going to a puppy class and having and expert show you how to get the best out of your walks is the way to go.  They will teach you to get his attention, usualy with a food treat and keep it while on lead.  Take is slowly and dont give in to him.  Newfies are very loving dogs but big with it, people will be afraid if he lunges at them to take food.  A good training class will teach you the leave to. Just need to learn the techiques from someone who knows.

Echo has given great advice.  Some dogs really are very food orientated and you need to have some management techniques in the kitchen to prevent the situation occuring.  Use the crate and/or baby gates to keep dogs and kids separate when there is food around.  I would suggest you observe what the kids do whilst they are handling food as you may be able to give them some advice about not attracting your pups attention at this time.  Pups are more food focussed at this stage but your puppy class should be able to teach you the 'leave' command which works wonders with all sorts of things that might otherwise go in their mouths.

At 15 weeks you should only be doing very short puppy training walks so try and pick routes with the 'right' distractions.    Have a think about the things you want him to experience such as traffic, cows, school children and take your dog to visit with those elements.  You won't be doing much more than going to the end of the road and back so use this time to make him think.  Time spent sat on a bench watching the world go by is much more important than big physical exercise.  Your puppy class will show you how to do it,  but with a fist full of tiny treats you can encourage your boy to walk alongside you, with his head up.  Believe me, if you have a food motivated dog your training will be easier!  You'll also find that concentrating on training tires him out.  My pup was more exhausted after class than at any other time.  If you get those hyper phases, don't get out the lead, get out the training treats and do a bit of work on sit, wait, stand, walk with me etc

I hope your course is a good one as it's possible to learn so much and if you are working toward the KC Good Citizens awards you can print off the sheets on their website, this will reassure that you will be covering the elements you need to get your boy sorted.  You will be able to practise each new technique all round the house and garden and your OH will see such a difference.  Make sure you calculate your treats into your pups meal allowance, as you'll get through so many, but it's a great way for your pup to learn.  He'll also soon associate training times with tasty treats so will start to do the right thing completely unasked hoping for a reward.  My pup went through a stage of sitting in front of me all the time - so much so that we couldn't walk in a straight line from one room to another!

By the way - you're not doing anything wrong, you just need a bit a help to do things right!  It's always a difficult time, you have high expectations, and you're probably a bit sleep deprived too.  It'll come good, just set some boundaries, be consistent, and start the training.  Good luck

Hi,

As he is used to a crate I would pop him in that with a stuffed kong when people are preparing food and eating that way he can't practise the stealing and little ones fingers are safe.  If you haven't already, then it would be a good idea to start teaching him a really strong 'leave' - that can take a while and needs to be generalised to lots of different situations so don't use the cue until you are sure he knows it well and is likely to respond.  Do lots of training for it, setting him up for success and rewarding him for doing well.  The fact that he loves food so much can be used to your advantage for training.

I would really advise getting rid of the rattle bottle.  They tend to work because the dog is worried by them which can cause problems such as them associating the rattling with other things when out and about or they can be less keen to focus on you when.  Either that or the dog is initially startled by them and then they get used to it and pay no attention any way.  You want all his experiences especially at this age to be positive.  Maybe consider walking him on a harness and a flat collar with a double ended lead to give you a bit more control.  Also take out some extra special yummy treats that are likley to keep him more focussed on you, something like, hot dog sausage or cheese.

The hiding his food to keep him busy is a really good idea, maybe you are just making it a bit hard for him a the minute if he gets distracted and wanders off.  Again set him up for success make it easy for him with a few treats in a small area and give him a cue such as 'find it' and then it can start to become a game to him.  You can gradually make it harder for him as he gets the game and cue and as his concentration improves.

Do three or four few minute training sessions throughout the day to keep his brain working and help with the basics like sit, down, wait and leave which will all help with reagrds to control around food when they are well established behaviours.  It may be an idea to start teaching him a 'bed' cue so that eventually you can ask him to go to bed while you are preparing food.  Always reward him every step of the way though.

It's important the get gets to play and chew toys at this age, there are plenty out there a that are really strong and durable, like the black kong and a couple of other bone shaped ones.

It may also be worth popping him to the vets just to make sure there is no other reason why is so hungry, worms can make a pup very hungry all the time and it may be something like that.  He may need a different food.  Some dogs seem hungrier on some foods than others.

Although big already he is still just such a baby and is learning the ropes :-)  Reward him as much as possible and manage the envrionment where food is concerned.  Good luck

The problem is that he is a very young pup and acts like a young pup, he has no self control and a very short attention span, but he is a large size due to his breed.

Baby puppy teeth are like needles, so of course they can cause damage inadvertently.

Personally if he is so food orientated leaving food around for him is a mistake as it is telling him that he is to look for food everywhere, and not that his food is always in his bowl or given by hand by you or the family when earning treats.

When food is being eaten or prepared by the kids or yourselves that is the time pup should be crated or in a room away from the food preparation and consumption.

With pups it really is best to avoid situations that can get the pup acting in a way you do not want.

I too would advocate using the crate to its best advantage. Remember too that 15 weeks he is really a baby, just a very big one! I have a bernese and you do forget just how young they are because they are so big. As others have said, food is a fantastic tool in your training and I'm sure once you start your classes you will see a difference. One thing you will notice is how much like puppies the smaller breeds still are at 15 weeks, much more so than the giant breeds but they are ALL still babies. Try to get your OH along to classes with you if you can. If he can start to see how 'clever' your boy can be that might help him be more involved, men are so competitive!
My daughter was 10 when we got our bernese and she too was frightened by all the 'mouthing ' bramble did. Puppy teeth are sharp, once that stopped, more due to age than anything we did although we did stop playing if she did it, my daughter came to adore her and they often sit and cuddle. I got Puppy Training for Kids, from Pets At Home I think, it doesn't say anything different to adult books but explains why puppies do what they do in language that children can understand.

Persevere, time spent now will pay off 10 fold as your puppy grows. Just remember no puppy comes ready trained and all of them have their own little foibles. I hope you can begin to enjoy him soon!
Marion

I'd crate him or have him in another room at mealtimes and when you prepare food. He's too young to be expected to have any self-control when it comes to something as important as food. Putting trerats around the house and garden is teaching him that there's food everywhere as long as he hunts it out - it's an easy find if it's in your hand so naturally he'll look there first. I think this ploy has backfired on you by making hunting for food even more exciting, so rather than discouraging him for jumping at you it's having the opposite effect.

>training him is hard as when we are out on walks, he is constantly on alert mode for food

Because he's learned that it's all over the place and he has to hunt it out ...

Good advice given already about crating him away from your children when there is food around.  Get a kong (or two, so you always have a spare) and fill it with tasty stuff & give it to hom when he goes in his crate.  Have a look here for some ideas of what to use to stuff a kong but you can basically use anything edible.  You can also freeze them which he also enjoy as he'll be teething at the moment and a nice frozen kong will soothe those gums.

STOP with the rattle bottle immediately.  They are entirely inappropriate for training any puppy, let alone a Newfoundland.  Newfs are sensitive dogs and respond best to  patient training with kindness and reward.

I think your puppy class will help you immensely...they will show you how to use food treats to gain and keep his attention which you can then use to make him focus on you when out and about.

Training a puppy requires the committment of everyone in the household.  With 2 young children and a husband who is not showing the same level of committment and a rapidly growing giant breed puppy, you are going to have an uphill struggle on your hands to get him to the level of obedience you desire and will have to work twice as hard with him becasue you will find the others undoing your good work as you go along.

I'd also advise that you give your breeder a ring.  They will be able to give you advice and tips & just a bit of moral support...after all, they will have been through the puppy stage many times and will be able to give you the benefit of their first hand experience.

> Training a puppy requires the committment of everyone in the household.  With 2 young children and a husband who is not showing the same level of committment and a rapidly growing giant breed puppy, you are going to have an uphill struggle on your hands to get him to the level of obedience you desire and will have to work twice as hard with him becasue you will find the others undoing your good work as you go along.

I'd second this - I've probably spent as much time training the kids as I have the dogs!  Over the years I've spent quite a lot of time explaining to them what I was training for and showing them what works and what doesn't.  They are now 12 and 13 but do still need to be reminded from time to time as scrumptious, kissable, whiskery faces are very hard to resist!!

When you get to class you'll be given sheets to read and exercises to practise - if you involve the kids and your OH you'll get faster results as they'll understand what you are trying to do and can help reinforce the right messages.  You dog will thrive on consistency

You've already been given some good advice and your trainer should be able to help you more in a couple days. However, I'll guess that you want to start doing something now. I've taught my dogs to not snatch food from hands using a method like described here. Your puppy will probably snack your fingers a bit when first learning to leave the food  but with a closed fist it's not that bad. He'll soon learn the only way to get a treat is to back off - it can work quickly but as he's already learned that stealing is a great way to get a yummy sandwich you may have to work a little harder. He's so young, puppies don't come beautifully behaved. It takes a load of work and a lot of time. Give him a year and a half to grow up and he'll give you many years of enjoyment in return. :) (don't worry, they get better as they go along!)

As good as my dogs are (and you can safely hold a biscuit right in their face) I'd never let a child walk past them with a sandwich. That's an awfully tempting target! Like putting me in a cake shop! :-p

loads of great advice given already, so just thought i'd try make you feel a bit better. i got my puppy at the end of january, had waited for almost a year for him, and for the first few weeks, it was awful!! i hate admitting this, but he was a lot harder work than i thought, seemed to never settle, very food orientated like your boy, i was certain he would have a foreign body by the age of 4 months!! a large breed, very independent.
however, with a LOT of patience, and time we got through it, my boy is 9months old, and can be a total hooligan, but on the other side, he doesnt mug people for food, he knows sit, stay, down, stand, leave, drop, back, roll, paw and come. ive shown him lightly and hes done very well. i still have many problems with him, such as being too over confidfent with other dogs, and not wanting to ever stop playing with them, but we're working through it. 95% of the time hes an absolute joy, so i just thought id say hang in there!

the leave command is definetely something that needs taught, it remains one of my boys better commands at reacting to, probably because ive used it so much lol!

It is a worry but the pup is being very normal. In time with training, he will be well behaved (after adolescence).

Do you know how to train a dog? Not being funny but not everyone knows how to - if not, off to classes pronto! :)

I recommend association of pet dog trainer classes as there is usually one near people, and the trainers are kind, fair and effective. They could help you with any worries.

He should also go to a puppy class (usually around 12-20 weeks) but the good ones are often booked up. Try www.apdt.co.uk, and also www.puppyschool.co.uk

I think once you get him in classes and have others to chat to (besides us ;) ) and realise he will be OK with training, it will help so much!

Please whatever you do though, don't skimp on classes. I usually like to suggest puppy class, basic obedience, (pet) at least, and maybe a fun class such as tricks or similar.
If there are any special newfie water classes near you, give 'em a go. 

Lotsa luck - and don't worry.
Oh, a good book to buy may be "The Canine Commandments" by Kendal Shepherd, vet and behaviourist. It's for adults and children.

http://www.parentingwithouttears.com/articles/20070502_1

When was this pup last wormed?  Just wondering whether he's always hungry for a reason.

I have a 8mth old pup who until recently did this to my 11 year old daughter.  Firstly let me paint a pic:
1 older dog, pup will not even go near when hes eating (pack order)
2 Adults, pup will look at whilst eating but not come near
1 teenager, pup sits closer and if food was put down, pup would steal
1 11 year old, pup would jump up and try to steal food from her!!!!!

Solved=11 year old had to be strict if pup attempted to steal, her commands to the pup i.e. making him sit and stay whilst she was eating were re-enforced by master if he broke command, if he remains sitting until child has finished he also gets a treat.  This stopped my pup anyway, no harsh methods needed, just letting him know where his place was in the family.

Your pup is obviously food motivated, allthough it seems like a battle at the moment you will find that you can use this to your advantage.

My 'pup' is now 13 months old, he is highly food motivated and a couple of months ago he started to steal food at any given opportunity. I had made plans long before getting my pup as to how I would train him and make sure he was the 'perfect' dog and I was quite proud of how things were going - imagine my horror as my 11 stone Mastiff barged his head onto the counter while I was making a sandwich and stole a block of cheese (and swallowed it after only 1 chomp)!!! That was it, he realised he could steal food so I had to up the 'security' while food was around :( 

Firstly he is never left unatended while the kids are eating, allthough I'm a stong believer in the 'pack theories' and I am confident my dogs know thier 'place', I am also aware that dogs are oportunistic and will do what they can get away with. Stealing food is self-rewarding, evey time the dog is succesful at a theft atempt of food it is another step closer to becoming a habbit, so you need to make sure that the opportunity to steal isn't there in the first place.

Any attempt to steal food is met with him being shut in the kitchen in his own for a few minutes to calm down (he generally tries to steal food when he is exited, it has nothing to do with hunger).

A few weeks of trying to stay one step ahead has really started to pay off, the only times I really have to be carefull is when there is cheese or bread about as he'll steal it of the side if he's by himself.

I have always got my pup to 'work' for his food, but this entails him having to follow a few commands before his bowl is placed down, it helps get the message accross that obedience=food, his bowl will not go down unlss he is paying attention and doing what is asked.

Several short, fun training sessions throughout the day may help by giving your pup a mental work out, if they don't help with the food stealing at least it helps with building trust, bonding and obedience :)

As for your pup being a nightmare to walk - try a halti, they give you so much control over the head it is unbelievable. My pup was a nightmare for walking past people - he wanted to play with them & jump up, with a harness and a halti on, along with some treats for distraction & reward it worked a brilliantly :)

I also have 2 children (9 & 10yr old boys) and a husband who is not commited atall to training  (the deal was if I wanted another dog, then I had to make sure it behaved!!), my boys were scared of the pup to start with,  however, once I proved how well-behaved the Mastiff could be with the right attitude (calm, patient & consistent), they all started to copy what I do so now I have 'helpers' and my boys are not scared of him (even though he waighs more than both of them put together!!) :)

DONT GIVE UP, you haven't done anything wrong, your pup is just being a pup. The more work that you put into him now, the better the dog he will grow into, so don't feel like you've failed, feel like you are ready for the chalenge and look forward to what he will be like when the hard work has paid off :)

Hi newfidays

I'll get three immediate observations out of the way, in no particular order ..... :-D

Firstly, you aren't 'doing anything wrong' - it's very early days in training and at worst you haven't as yet found the best way which will work with your pup.  Nothing to be worried, ashamed or anxious about as advice always has to be generalised even though most of us understand there isn't a 'one way suits all' method for anything
Secondly, he's only 15 weeks - regardless of size and weight he is very much a baby puppy and while him throwing himself around, stealing and mouthing is probably more alarming to the kids than if he were the size of a 15 week border collie, Labrador etc, his behaviour is perfectly normal for his age.
Thirdly Forget the rattling bottle idea - IME these are either frightening (thankfully doesn't appear to be having that affect on your lad so far) or something which encourages over excited behaviour.  Regardless, not a good idea for a pup especially when there are going to be 101 things you want to mould differently as he matures so it would quickly lose any value as a tool anyway.  When you need to be firm, an authoritative 'Ah, Ah' should be sufficient to distract and will neither scare nor excite him.

OK, here comes the (non) science bit ...

As advised by others, re food opportunities it is a MUST that all counters, tables, work tops etc are clear of food and leftovers while he's around - while he has opportunities for rewarding his behaviour (i.e. manages to steal something) he will continue to try his hardest to do it.

On to walking - practice this indoors and in the garden without a lead first.  Because of the height difference between pups and handlers it 's back aching to keep bending to lure and praise - dangle a tube of cream cheese in front of him if he's losing interest or resorting to pulling/ignoring you.  Only squeeze a very little amount out at a time so that he's randomly getting the taste and hopefully keeping his attention on it.  A good trick to have up your sleeve (literally :-D ) for times when he's being more stubborn or aloof towards you during training.  Progress to lead on and substituting treats for the cream cheese but keep the tube on you for occasions when his attention is wandering.  Give him a command as you' do these exercises such as 'heel' or 'close' when he's in the correct position so that he makes a connection with what he needs to do to be rewarded.
  

On actual lead walks, have him on your left hand side and his lead across your body in your right hand so that your own left hand is free.  Keep particularly tasty and smelly treats in your left hand pocket and use these as a lure when he's on lead.  Treat little (as in really teensy pieces LOL) and often when he's walking well and keeps his attention on you.    When he has the idea ( which hopefully will be fairly quick with such a dedicated grubber LOL) then progress to areas with few distractions.  Be patient and consistent - if he gets and keeps it right, FAB, but if it needs oodles of biting your lip and forcing a smile and up-beat voice don't despair and stick with it.

Persevere - it may sound like a lot (because I write it like War & Peace >sigh<) but it's really only a simple method of encouraging both you and the puppy towards a happy partnership so that you both enjoy your walks and this will help tremendously towards increasing your children's' confidence around the puppy too.

Good luck with the puppy classes - they will help enormously. 

Finally,focus on the positive - this manic behaviour is the norm for most pups and they grow out of it (OK, except mine VBG) so once you've scrambled over a couple of hurdles you'll find that it's all paid off and your opportunistic thug is really a gentle giant who simply wants to please you!

HTH, Teri  :)

You've been given some excellent advice by other posters. When you feed him, make him wait until you give the command before he ears. It will take a bit of time and a bit of practice, Decide on the command you are going to use and keep that particular command specifically for feeding time. If I have a greedy dog, I train them not to eat until I say 'tuck in', then they know they can eat.

Just to say 'THANK YOU' to everyone who has advised me, I am so grateful.... I have been so tired as my boy has started to bark to go our for a wee at around 2am!! but he's ok when he's done and back in his crate but sadly my sleep is broken and I only have 4 hours sleep! my OH is now getting up and we are taking turns. (don't know why he's started this!!!)    I am taking your advice to crate my boy when I am preparing food AND when we are eating, and am now starting to have very tasty treats in my pocket but it is early days I can tell you!!, starting puppy classes tomorrow (4th) and just can not wait...also, just to mention, he was wormed again last week as I thought he may have had them hence the reason why he is such a greedy things.  Anything on the floor he will pick up and chew, as I said, I can't put anything in his crate as he will chew it to bits and eat it so a kong I am getting tomorrow stuffed with treats.

I feel so stupid, and to be honest, quite a failure with him, he just has a strong mind, and that's why my OH said he couldn't cope with him (as he is not that committed like me) and with having a 7 & a 9 year old being scared of my boy, just adds to the pressure!

Anyway, apologies for going on again, I'll keep you updated on my boy's progress as the weeks go on in his classes and with me doing a few mins of training through the day with him, iv ditched the rattling bottle, and just now take tasty treats out with me as so does my OH. 

Many thanx to you all again, I don't know what I would have done without all your great advice and kindness.

kindest regards to you all

Debi
xxxxxxx

Hi Debi

thanks for the update :)  Don't feel stupid or a failure - while we may seem to have all the answers they dont work for all dogs and (strictly between you and me of course) my latest puppy is a monster LOL.

Good luck and keep us posted :)

Teri

As Debi says, don't feel a failure. If there is one thing dogs teach us, it's how little we know. Some of us on this site have been breeding and/or training dogs for years and we still don't have all the answers. All we can do is pass on our experience, or share tricks and tips that have worked for us, it doesn't necessarily mean it's going to work for you and you just have to keep trying different things until you find the key to your puppy. Good Luck.