Dog Name: Mahoney
Human Name: Lynne Gibson
Dog Breed: Landseer/Newfoundland
Dog Age: 2 years old
She’s feisty and a bit bossy, with nicknames like monster, mermaid, and mischief maker.
Mahoney, owned by Lynne Gibson, is technically half Landseer and half Newfoundland and can often be seen on Instagram romping with Rosco the Rottie, or Buddha the Lab. While Newfoundlands are commonly known to be all black, some breeders choose to integrate Landseers into their lines, which produces smaller, black and white puppies. “When I first started looking at Newfoundlands, I didn’t even know they came in black or white and I didn’t know what a Landseer was,” Lynne explained. “I thought she was just a black and white Newfoundland but Landseers are more sporty, more energetic. I’d come across the Newfoundland Association blog while researching the breed. It said black Newfoundlands will bring you the newspaper while Landseers will read it to you … Mahoney is definitely a Landseer.”
Unable to find litters locally, Lynne found a breeder in New York who bred smaller, healthier dogs, meeting established breed specifications. She also researched dog trainers. “I was looking for Newfoundlands and thinking about therapy training,” Lynne said. “I did a lot of research for trainers. Nicole kept coming up and she had the best credentials. It was that simple. I looked at reviews. I looked at philosophies. It was important to me that I knew what the philosophy of the trainer was. All the trainers at Philly Unleashed are absolutely fabulous.”
Lynne started training with Mahoney immediately in 2016, bringing her to Puppy Kindergarten classes and scheduling private sessions with Nicole. Now, as Mahoney approaches her second birthday, she is working on agility, rally, and water retrieval. She attends Farm Camp two times a week for training and participates in behavior walks once a week.
Mahoney displays the typical characteristics of a Landseer–she tends towards being bossy, stubborn, high energy, and motivated by play. “The biggest challenge is figuring out how to reward with play,” said Lynne. “That’s why she goes to Farm Camp. She gets her training session, then gets to run around in playgroup.”
Even with Mahoney’s endless energy, training has impacted their relationship positively over the past two years. “I would say I know her better,” shared Lynne. “I know what to do when she’s just being a puppy. It just makes for a better camaraderie.”
A trait Lynne really enjoys in Mahoney is seeing her adjust to the needs of other dogs and humans. When Mahoney was six months old, she encountered a neighborhood dog who had became partially blind and had cancer in his nose. While normally Mahoney would run up to and initiate play with another dog, she was gentle. “The owner was like, ‘Oh my god, this is the first dog in the neighborhood that has approached him in a respectful way,’” shared Lynne.
Lynne advises other dog owners to give training in agility, rally, and advanced training a chance. “Try everything,” she said. “You don’t know. Your dog might surprise you. If I had just stuck to the stereotypical personality for a Newfoundland, I wouldn’t have found out how to channel her energy or that she likes agility. She’s done rally training, too. Don’t have this preconceived notion that your breed will behave a certain way.”
