Newfs in Toyland

I love these pictures that Gary took of Louie. His face is so full of expression.


This is Louie's EVIL EYE look which is really just his serious toy chewing look. Louie doesn't have a mean bone in his body. We have never heard him growl.


Nummie, Nummie, I love this toy!


By the time he got done with the blue toy he had it decapitated. Thankfully, Louie never tries to eat the stuffing or cloth. He just likes to make a big mess for me to clean up.


Katie gets in on the action in the second half of this video.


After all that playing Louie needed a nap on the Newf bed.

Love Letters for Louie

When Mama and I went to see the kids at school recently for Reading Day I knew the kids liked me because they petted me and gave me lots of complements. But WOW!...they must have liked me even more than I knew. Lookie what I got in the mail from them.


















Look at this cool picture they made for us (note: children's names are blurred out)


We were so excited to get these awesome handmade cards. Now Katie is saying she wants to meet these wonderful kiddos. I told Mama she better not think of leaving me home next time. My fans need to see me and I need to see them. You see, they are not the only ones who fell in love; I did too. xoxoxo Louie

Clean Freaks Beware

Someone recently sent me an email asking, "[I] was wondering if you could tell me just how much shedding they really do. Is vacuuming once a day sufficient?" I applaud this self proclaimed clean freak for asking me this because so many people don't do their research before bringing a dog of any breed into their home which is one big reason why our animal shelters are so full and so many dogs and cats end up being euthanized.


I have never been the best housekeeper in the world, but since the Newfs entered our lives I have become even more relaxed about our home's level of cleanliness. When trying to decide whether to spend my time playing/caring/working with Katie and Louie or cleaning the house which one do you think wins most of the time?

Here was my response...
If you vacuum your floors and brush your Newf for 10 minutes daily your floors should be 99.9% free of Newf hair. However, you will still likely find a bit of hair in the dishwasher, refrigerator, bathtub and any number of unlikely places. One good thing about Newf hair is that it does not stick to many fabrics. I rarely have to use a tape roller on my clothes. It does stick to eyeballs quite thoroughly, so I would try to avoid that unpleasant scenario.

I feel I would be remiss if I didn't tell you this: in all honesty, the hair is the least part of the mess caused by a Newfoundland dog. In my opinion, hair is the second runner up. The first runner up is dirt. Newfs like to play outside (except for when they play inside and offer you suggestions on better ways to arrange the furniture). The dirt, pine needles and leaves that get stuck to their coat are of course tracked into the house. Pine needles and leaves are easily vacuumed up, so no big deal there. The dirt however will cling to their coat until they lean against a cabinet, refrigerator, door, wall, etc. where they will leave a thin coating of dirt behind. Some people blow their Newfs off with giant dryers like the one we have every time they come in the house to remove most of this, but I don't feel like doing that 6 times a day.


The winner of the anti-clean prize is the Newfie drool. It's worse than dirt because it's slimy, sticks to objects, dries into a hard crust and can be easily slung 10 feet through the air. So, it's possible, although rare in our home, for it to land on the ceiling. The drool is truly quite gross, but Newf owners seem to become immune to it very quickly. We almost forget about its existence and wipe the Newfs' mouths off many times a day with little conscious thought. When visitors come it's good to offer them a drool towel of their own. Drool does get on our clothes frequently, but a damp cloth easily removes it if the drool is fresh.


If all of this sounds unbearable then don't get a Newf. They are a high maintenance breed for more reasons than the fact that they are messy. Personally, I love the idea of a pristine home, but I love our Newfs SO much more. They are not for everyone, but they are the only breed we will ever have from now on. Louie and Katie bring us more joy and love than I thought possible. They are true gentle giants and share their love with us, each other and the world so freely. After watching the face of an almost completely paralyzed child light up as I helped her to pet Katie, hearing a dying Hospice patient tell me the kisses she received from Louie were the best in her life, seeing children's faces filled with joy while riding in a wagon pulled by Katie, hearing a class of second graders pronounce Louie the best visitor they'd ever had, and many other wonderful experiences I am AWED by these wonderful creatures. Their intelligence, compassion and soulfulness shines out of their eyes and into the hearts of those who meet them. I feel grateful for all that Katie and Louie have taught me and I feel lucky to be able to clean up their messes.

Sleigh Ride Southern Style

Since we rarely get snow in Arkansas we had to improvise with a Newfie wagon ride for our friends Evelina, Riley, Raeghan and Rachael. Katie and I had a great time with the kids and with their Mom, Charlotte who filmed the video I used in this little movie.

Evelina and Katie

Riley, Raeghan, Rachael and Katie

Charity with Katie the Newfie Reindeer

Seven Hollows Hike

Last Saturday Gary, Leah, Katie, Louie and I drove to Petit Jean State Park to hike the Seven Hollows Trail. As we were driving along the top of the mountain we noticed some people dressed in costumes with lots of old timey tents and tepees set up in the background. We found out it was a pioneer days celebration and we decided to check it out before our hike. There were so many fascinating things to see. I wish I had gotten some photos, but Gary and I were bombarded the entire time we were there with questions about Katie and Louie. The double trouble team was extraordinarily well behaved considering they had not yet had a walk. They graciously allowed people to fawn all over them and even showed off a few of their tricks. After visiting with lots of people we jumped back in the car for the short drive to our trailhead.

Katie is ready to go!


Katie and Louie have been training with their backpacks for a month now. This was their first time to use them on a real hike. With proper conditioning dogs are supposed to be able to carry up to 30% of their body weight which would be 37 pounds for Louie and 33 pounds for Katie. We won't ever ask our Newfs to carry that much weight. We just want them to carry a little water, dog treats and a few drool towels. For this hike Louie carried 10 pounds and Katie carried 7. (I did get Katie's pack properly balanced before we got too far down the trail.)


Gary, Leah & the Newfs pose in front of a BIG boulder


Katie carried her pack the whole 4 1/2 miles without even noticing that she had it on. Louie only carried his 1/3 of the way before we decided to put his pack into Gary's backpack. Louie is conditioned to easily carry 10 pounds, but we were worried that he might get too hot with it on the whole way. The temperature was unseasonably warm at 65 degrees and Louie is very heat sensitive. Louie stayed cool by jumping into the streams along the trail. It reminded me of the Siberians, Lincoln and Scarlett, who always used to do that.


One of my favorite places on earth is this natural stone bridge. We had a nice meditation and snack here. The Newfs got a good rest although Louie protested a bit because he wanted to keep hiking until he couldn't go any longer. Maybe that fired up enthusiasm is what made him so hot.






Impressive U shaped flooger by Katie

Katie Sue heads down the trail

At the halfway point we hiked into this little box canyon. During the wet season there is a waterfall here. It was barely running last Saturday, but it still made a pleasant sound as it echoed off the rocks.




Me & my Sissy


We hiked the last mile and a half of the trail during twilight. We barely made it back to the car before dark because of all of the dawdling we did along the trail. It was a beautiful day spent with four of my very best friends. Life is good :-)

Auntie Leah

Our Auntie Leah came all the way from New York City just to see us (Note from C: We let them think that anyway). We think she ranks right up there with our Grandma, our first human Mom Bonnie and our Auntie Majia, so we were super excited to see her.

We got lots of cuddles with Auntie!

Hey Auntie stop snuggling my bratty brother and look at me!

I love you Auntie!

Auntie Leah is so much fun; can we keep her forever?

"This Was the Best Reading Day Ever"

This morning Louie and I participated in our local public schools' annual Reading Day. We went to two different elementary schools and visited a class of second graders at each one.

Our first stop was Ms. L's class. Ms. L summed up our visit by saying, "This was the best reading day ever!" I totally agree. Louie and I had so much fun with Ms. L and her students. The kids were extremely sweet, well behaved and very gentle with Louie. I don't think they wanted us to leave. We got an open invitation to visit again and I hope we get the chance.


This video cracks me up. Louie has never had so many people petting him at one time.


After all of the kids got a chance to feed Louie some kibble and watch him do his tricks we got down to the main purpose of our visit. I read a book to the children called "Newf" by Marie Killilea that was perfect for this age group.


Louie and the book were both a big hit!


Louie was getting so relaxed with all of the lovely petting that he started getting sleepy.


"I think this one needs a kiss."


Our second stop was Ms. R's class. We had another great visit there. Louie did a bunch of tricks for the kids then we settled down on the floor to read our book. While I was reading Louie had at least six pairs of hands touching him at all times. The children just couldn't get enough of Louie. I can't blame them...he is also impossible for me to resist.






Being the center of attention is always a good thing in Louie's opinion.


"I think it's time for a nap Mama!"


We also got to briefly visit with several classes of students in the hallway. One class must have been kindergartners because they were tiny. The children looked interested in Louie so I told the teacher they could pet him if it was ok with her. She said most of them would be too scared, but as she gave her permission for them to approach him every single child in the class reached their little hands out to pet Louie. He had about 14 pairs of fearless hands on him simultaneously. It was great to see the smiles on all of those cute faces.

Now Louie is crashed out on the floor trying to recover from three hours of nonstop loving :-)

Louie's Friend (& Katie's too)

Whenever we visit our local nursing home we always make a point to spend some time with Mrs. T. She adores all dogs and always tells Katie or Louie (whoever happens to be visiting on that day) that she loves them. Mrs. T has become a good friend to me too.

During our visit this week Louie greeted Mrs. T, posed for the pictures below and then quickly fell asleep on the floor at the foot of her bed. As Mrs. T and I were chatting for about 45 minutes a few different staff members came into the room. Most of them were scared of Louie which kind of tickled Mrs. T and I since we both know how sweet he is. I finally convinced one staff member to step over Louie and he didn't even raise his head. Most dogs, including Katie, react negatively to people's fear, but not Louie. Mrs. T asked me why Louie doesn't EVER show any acknowledgment of fear and I told her I believe it is because he has lead a charmed life. He has always been treated with love and rarely left by himself. Louie is just an all around well balanced Newf. Katie gets a bit nervous when people act fearful. I think that's because she didn't have an older Newf to raise her and keep her company when we were at work like lucky Louie did when he was little.



That smile from Mrs. T makes our therapy work so gratifying.


(Our thanks to Mrs. T for giving us permission to post these pictures)