Did you know that the most famous nanny dog ever was a Newfoundland? Nana, the nursemaid in Peter Pan, was originally modeled after author J.M. Barrie’s Newfie, Luath. Arthur Lupino played Nana in early stage performances and he spent hours with Luath studying his every move! Lupino’s costume was also inspired by Luath’s black and white fur. In later adaptations of the book, Nana was modeled after Barrie’s other dog, a Saint Bernard, but we don’t mind sharing the spotlight with a fellow giant breed! In addition to being gorgeous and charming, we’re also humble.

We Newfoundlands come from, you guessed it – Newfoundland! That part is pretty clear, but we’re not exactly sure of our breed’s origin story. One theory suggests we’re a cross between Tibetan Mastiffs and the American Black Wolf. Another theory says the Vikings brought us over to the New World in 1000 A.D. and left us there to interbreed and breed with wolves! In our early years, we helped fishermen, which was awesome because we love to swim! We have webbed feet which makes us super strong swimmers. When the day was done, we were sometimes responsible for carting the day’s catch into town. We also made perfect seaside companions because we’re strong (and heroic) enough to save humans from drowning. Newfie to the rescue! Though we served a vital purpose, we almost went extinct in the 1780s. The Canadian government restricted families to only owning one dog, and they made humans pay taxes on those dogs. It probably wouldn’t be possible for humans to own us giant teddy bears today if it