Question 1

Where are you located?

Accepted Answer

We are a small Canadian Kennel Club (CKC) registered breeder kennel located in rural Oakbank in Manitoba, Canada.

Question 2

Do you ship your puppies?

Accepted Answer

Yes, I do.

By the time newfoundland puppies are 10-12 weeks of age they are too large to fly in the cabin - therefore they must go as cargo. This option will incur extra fees beyond purchase price of the puppy,  for the flight, airline-approved crate, waterer (as required) and transport to the airport.

In Canada, puppies may fly with Westjet Cargo, Air Canada Cargo, or Cargojet depending on availability. Flights must be direct with no layovers. This may end up costing an additional $600-$900.

If in the USA***, you must make arrangements to either pick up in person or have a reputable pet transport company pick up; cost for this will greatly vary.

***As of August 1, 2024: USDA requires puppies to be minimum 6 months of age to enter the USA, therefore no puppies will be sold to the USA at this time. The Canadian Kennel Club has been working diligently to have this revised but so far no such luck.

Question 3

What is the cost of a puppy?

Accepted Answer

Puppies cost $5000 total including the holding fee. I do not cut corners. This price reflects all that goes into my breeding program; each and every penny goes right back into it.

You are not just buying a puppy. You are buying a puppy from generations of dogs that have been carefully and selectively bred for health, temperament, soundness and breed type. You are buying a puppy that is raised using Avidog and Puppy Culture methods to give them the best head start in life. You are getting lifelong breeder support. See "what is included with my puppy" for a breakdown of everything you receive with your Lanfear Newfoundland puppy.

Question 4

What is included with each puppy?

Accepted Answer

All our puppies come with:
Lifetime breeder support and advice​
Canadian Kennel Club limited (non-breeding) registration
 M4S ID Microchip registered with CKC and CANADACHIP national pet recovery program
Comprehensive puppy package detailing all things newf: socializing, training, exercise, vaccines, diet, common health issues, etc
Physical exam and age-appropriate vaccines (minimum 1 distemper/parvovirus) given by a licensed veterinarian
30 day free trial of Trupanion Pet Insurance
Age-appropriate deworming (typically done at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 weeks)
Heart echo-dopplered by Dr. Yevhen Miskarov. While he is not yet board-certified in Canada, he practiced as a board-certified cardiologist in Ukraine for 16 years prior to coming here
Raised with Puppy Culture/Avidog training methods
Blanket containing mother/littermates' scent
A familiar toy
A 4 generation pedigree showing health clearances
A starter collar/leash set and customized pet ID tag
Sample of food and coupon for free trial bag
Clicker for clicker training your puppy
USB with photos/videos of your puppy as they grew
If, for any reason you are unable to keep your dog, we will ALWAYS take the dog back no matter what

Question 5

Do you have a waitlist?

Accepted Answer

Yes. I keep two lists - a general list and a current litter waitlist.

For a  more detailed answer regarding the application process visit my puppies page: www.lanfearnewfoundlands.ca/puppies

Question 6

Do you require a deposit?

Accepted Answer

Once puppies have been born and are past the initial delicate period (2-3 weeks of age), I will ask for a $1000 non-refundable* holding fee to ensure a puppy in the litter is reserved for you. Holding fees are non-refundable as at this point I expect the homes that I have carefully selected to be committed. A lot of time and effort goes into my puppies, but also into vetting families for my Lanfear Newfoundland puppies.

*In the event that there is not an available puppy from this litter for some reason (eg. no good matchup for your family), your deposit is 100% refunded.

Question 7

What colors do you breed?

Accepted Answer

I only breed black and landseers (white with black markings) as these are the only two colors recognized by the Canadian Kennel Club. I specifically do coat color testing so that I do not produce off-colored puppies. If you'd like to read up about the history and why other colors are not accepted, please refer to the Newfoundland Dog Club of Canada page here:  https://www.newfoundlanddogclub.ca/newfoundland-colour-in-canada.html

If you are looking for a brown or grey (dilute) puppy, I recommend you look at breeders in the USA or elsewhere; Canada is the only country that does not accept brown color. The USA is the ONLY country that accepts grey; the dilution gene in newfoundlands is linked to color dilution alopecia which can come with severe skin issues; please read up on this prior to continuing your search for a 'grey' newfoundland.

There are no countries where it is acceptable to combine these recessive coat colors: that means they are not purposefully bred by reputable breeders as we can DNA test to prevent these combinations. This includes white with brown markings, white with grey markings, white with beige markings, and beige. Backyard breeders may advertise these colors as 'rare' but they are far from! In fact they are easy to produce; reputable breeders are following their breed standards and NOT producing them.

Question 8

Do you offer any health guarantees?

Accepted Answer

Yes! While I do everything I can to prevent health issues from arising, these are still living creatures and many health issues are polygenetic without genetic tests for them - breeders simply don't have a way to fully eliminate them from our breeding program. Our rigorous health testing, however, plays an important part in reducing both the frequency and the severity of issues. Lanfear Newfoundlands offers an 18 month  health guarantee against debilitating hereditary and/or congenital diseases. For full details please request a copy of our puppy contract.

Question 9

Can I choose which puppy I get?

Accepted Answer

We eat/sleep/breathe these puppies for their first 10 plus weeks of their lives. We are constantly watching them to see their individual characteristics such as energy level, work drive, confidence and much more. We then compare these traits with the wants, needs and lifestyle of potential puppy owners via questionnaire answers as well as conversations. We also perform APETs (Avidog Puppy Evaluation Test) at around 9 weeks of age. All this information guides us into determining which family is suited for which puppy and vice versa in order to set up each puppy and family for success.

While you may come and visit and one puppy in particular raced over and "chose you", or has a little patch of white on one toe, these are only a snapshot moment in time and/or aren't qualities that are suitable to determine if they are the best fit for your family. That one that greeted you may have the highest energy level and be very boisterous and mischievous, while you were looking for something more calm. Or maybe the other puppies were running around earlier and are napping but this one just woke up from a nap. It's important to trust your breeder with this decision as they will know best!

Question 10

What size dogs do you produce?

Accepted Answer

Females on average are 26" at the shoulder, and 100-120lbs. Males on average are 28" at the shoulder and 130-150lbs. Average means I will utilize and produce dogs that both are over and under these amounts. In a litter, size  order as puppies does not often translate into same size order as adults, as there are many factors that go into birth size and growth rates. Just like two short people can produce tall kids, the same can happen with a litter as these are polygenetic traits. I will not place puppies in homes based off size.

"While large size is desirable, it should not be favored over correct gait, symmetry, soundness and structure." - CKC Newfoundland Breed Standard

Question 11

At what age do puppies go home?

Accepted Answer

Puppies will go home no earlier than 10 weeks, after they have had their hearts echo-dopplered by Dr. Yevhen Miskarov. While he is not yet board-certified in Canada, he practiced as a board-certified cardiologist in Ukraine for 16 years prior to coming here.

Question 12

Can I breed my puppy?

Accepted Answer

All our puppies are sold on a limited (non-breeding) CKC registration unless you are a known reputable breeder to me, that shares my breeding values. Any dog sold as a potential show/breeding prospect will be placed in co-ownership. In some instances, we may be looking for the right co-ownership home for our pick puppy due to limited house space (since more than half of our newfs are retired, cherished family members).

Breeding dogs is not something to do light-heartedly. It takes a LOT of time, knowledge, money, energy and often heartache to do correctly. It is not something to just jump into. You need to have a mentor (preferably several!), be willing to learn, and not cut corners. If you are truly interested in helping preserve the newfoundland breed and breed for the right reasons, we can discuss further - after all, the newfoundland breed NEEDS more reputable breeders.  If you, however, are wanting to breed so you 'can have another like mom', or 'because they're cute' or 'I want to make money', you will be declined. It is imperative that I protect my lines as well as the lines of all those dogs I use in my breeding program, and there is a hefty financial penalty in my contract for those that breed a dog sold on limited registration.

If you are interested in breeding, please make sure you mark off your puppy application as such so we can have an open and honest conversation about it. I promise you, I'm not scary! Every reputable breeder has to start somewhere, and I'd be happy to help you understand what's involved, and whether or not it may be the right decision for you. I can also discuss my requirements for switching from a limited registration to full (breeding) registration, and what you can expect from a co-ownership contract.

Question 13

What is the difference between a pet quality puppy and show prospect puppy?

Accepted Answer

In every litter there is typically a range of how close puppies fit the breed standard. A pet quality puppy simply has characteristics that deviate a little more - this DOES NOT affect their ability to be a pet! Things like eye shape, head shape, length of leg, angle of shoulder etc will all play a role in deciding these factors, and the untrained eye will not pick up on these qualities. A potential show quality is just that - a puppy we feel that has the potential to improve a breeding program based off their qualities. As a dog ages some of these aspects will change, therefore there is no guarantee that the dog will turn out as predicted. When breeding dogs you will never get that perfect specimen. All dogs have faults no matter how miniscule, but the goal is to get as close as possible to that perfect image while maintaining health, temperament and soundness.

Question 14

Do you health test? Can I see the certificates?

Accepted Answer

Yes and yes! We complete all the health testing recommended by the Newfoundland Dog Club of America  to obtain CHIC certificates on all dogs (https://ofa.org/chic-programs/), plus additional tests. At minimum I have:
OFA Hips and Elbows reviewed by board certified radiologists
OFA Advanced Cardiac - hearts checked via echocardiogram (doppler ultrasound) by board certified cardiologist
CAER Eyes checked via board certified ophthalmologist multiple times as they age
OFA Patellas checked by veterinarian
DNA tested for cystinuria
Puppies also have their hearts checked via echocardiogram (doppler ultrasound) by a veterinarian with advanced training in cardiology, prior to leaving to new homes

While we have no problem providing you with a copy of their certificates, all of our dogs used in our breeding program will have their OFA health tests public in the OFA database (https://ofa.org/) as this is the most reliable way to verify what health testing has been done on each dog. I have seen in some instances people using falsified certificates, therefore I always recommend looking results up directly on the OFA website.

Question 15

Where do your dogs live?

Accepted Answer

All our newfoundlands are part of our family.  They sleep in our bedroom, lay about in our livingroom, race around our large backyard and curl under the desk while we work. We utilize 4'x8' pens or rooms as needed when managing girls in heat or when going out, but we do not have 'kennel dogs'.

Question 16

Can I come visit?

Accepted Answer

We do not have a kennel; all our dogs live in our home, therefore we do not allow complete strangers to visit. Only those who are on our current litter waitlist via our puppy questionnaire and who we have communicated extensively with are allowed to visit in person.

If you are not sure if you're prepared for a newfoundland, we highly recommend visiting us at a dog show if we are in attendance, or joining us during an event held by the Newfoundland Dog Club of Manitoba. We also are available to video chat, too.

Screened visitors are allowed to view and play with puppies once they're past the at-risk period, and are greatly encouraged! We even throw puppy parties to help with socialization. We do request guests to come freshly showered in fresh clothes, leave shoes at door and wash hands prior to touching puppies, just as an added precaution.

Question 17

What do you feed your dogs?

Accepted Answer

We are currently feeding Purina Pro Plan 30/20.

Frequently Asked Questions