by Hadassah Ryan

Created on: March 26, 2009   Last Updated: March 31, 2009

As a young couple of the nineties, we were only a few years into our marriage when it was time to move on to the next logical stage.

It was time for a four legged baby.

I had been considering for a number of years what kind of dog I would want when the time arrived. In my teens I had been visiting my pastor when his brother and wife had arrived with their family bear, I mean, dog. Their 200 pound all-black Newfoundland dog took my breath away-literally, when he planted his paws on my chest and pinned me to the ground. I decided right there and then that a dog that small children could ride on was the dog for me.

A few months before we anticipated a move into our first house, we began researching breeders within a five hour radius. Having never delved into the world of professional dog breeding, we were a little stunned at the costs involved and had no idea how to go about choosing a reputable breeder. In the end, we split the difference and went with the breeder whose fees were about average.

In the fall of that year we were excited to learn that a litter of puppies had been born. We traveled the few hours to the breeder's farm to visit the pups and hopefully choose out the one we wanted. Having come to the conclusion through our extensive research that a male would be the best option, we set our sights on one of the two males of the eight puppy litter. By Christmas, we were housetraining our twenty pound mass of downy, black fur. We called him Gideon. Our yuppie family was complete.

Our research had also educated us about a fearful malady that large, deep chested dogs are prone to: Gastric torsion, otherwise known as Bloat. A horrible ailment, bloat is largely unknown in its origins (although many factors are thought to contribute to it). Gases accumulate in the dogs' stomach and cause it to twist around inside its abdomen, cutting off the blood supply at both ends of the organ. Intense pain, shock and rapid death follow. As a Newfoundland, our Gideon was a member of breed that was especially susceptible to bloat, as well are German Shepherds, Old English Sheepdogs, Great Danes and St. Bernards, of which Newfs are closely related, to name a few. I read a number of books and websites over carefully, committing to memory the warning signs. We attempted to follow the recommendations to prevent bloat, like serving his food in a raised dish, not taking him for runs right after eating and feeding him smaller meals twice a day rather than one large one.

Jump ahead three

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>