A Great Title for Every Newf — and Why It Matters Most for Giant Breeds
There are dog titles that take years of specialized training, and then there is the Canine Good Citizen — a title every well-loved Newfoundland is capable of earning, and one that pays back the effort many times over. Created by the American Kennel Club in 1989 and elevated to an official AKC title in January 2013, the CGC has become what the AKC itself calls “the gold standard of dog training,” with more than 1.2 million dogs certified to date.
For the owner of a giant breed, those ten test items are far more than a feel-good exercise. They are practical, life-saving life skills.
What Is the CGC, Exactly?
The Canine Good Citizen program is a two-part initiative: it teaches responsible ownership to people and basic good manners to dogs. The evaluation itself is a ten-item test administered by an AKC-Approved CGC Evaluator and includes such everyday behaviors as accepting a friendly stranger, sitting politely for petting, permitting basic grooming and veterinary handling, walking on a loose lead, moving politely through a crowd, performing sit, down, stay and come, behaving calmly around another dog, recovering from a distraction, and remaining settled with a trusted person while the owner steps out of sight.
Every dog who passes earns an AKC certificate, and owners may choose to record CGC as an official suffix title after the dog’s name. The NCA offers CGC testing each year at the National Specialty, showcasing the temperament the breed is famous for.
Canine Good Citizen provides you with the foundation you need to be a responsible dog owner, and it will educate you how to teach your dog the skills he needs to be a well-mannered pet.— American Kennel Club
Why CGC Matters Even More for a Newfoundland
The AKC breed standard puts it plainly:
Sweetness of temperament is the hallmark of the Newfoundland; this is the most important single characteristic of the breed. — Official AKC Standard for the Newfoundland
Sweetness, however, is not the same as trained reliability. A 130-pound dog who is overjoyed to meet a stranger can knock a child off a sidewalk without an ounce of bad intent. A friendly Newf who barges through a doorway can injure an older guest. A 150-pound dog who lunges toward another leashed dog at the vet — even in play — is a public-safety problem in a way that a friendly 15-pound dog simply is not.
That is the heart of the case for CGC training in giant breeds. The same behaviors that pass the test (accepting a stranger calmly, walking politely on a loose lead, behaving courteously around other dogs, holding a stay while you greet a friend) translate directly into the day-to-day moments where a Newfoundland’s size could otherwise turn good intentions into real problems.
Trainers who specialize in working breeds put it succinctly: with a giant-breed puppy, “puppy manners” are not optional polish, they are life skills. A four-month-old Newf is already strong enough to pull an adult off balance. A two-year-old Newf has no realistic “time out” option in public if her training is shaky. The CGC curriculum gives owners a structured, nationally recognized path to those life skills — and a clear standard for knowing when their dog has truly arrived.
Practical, Real-World Benefits
Beyond manners, the CGC carries practical weight in places that matter to giant-breed families.
Housing and insurance. Some rental agencies, homeowners’ associations, co-op and condo boards, and insurance companies recognize CGC certification as evidence of a well-trained, well-managed dog. This can be a real factor for breeds that sometimes face size-based restrictions.
Many insurance agents will accept certificates from AKC’s Canine Good Citizen Program. — Loretta Worters, Vice President of Communications, Insurance Information Institute
Therapy work. The exercises in the CGC test form the foundation of nearly every major therapy-dog certification, including Therapy Dogs International and the AKC Therapy Dog program. A Newfoundland’s calm, watchful presence is tailor-made for therapy work, and CGC is the on-ramp.
Community welcome. CGC-trained dogs are easier to take everywhere a dog is allowed to go — outdoor cafés, hardware stores, family gatherings, hotel lobbies on travel days. For a breed whose size already draws attention, being the dog that brightens a stranger’s day, rather than the dog that crowds them at a doorway, is a gift to the breed’s reputation as well as to your own life with your dog.
Veterinary and grooming visits. Test items three and six (grooming and handling, sit/down/stay) make routine care dramatically easier. Anyone who has tried to towel off a 140-pound wet Newfoundland after a bath knows the value of a rock-solid stay.
Recognized Far Beyond the Dog World
The CGC’s reach now extends well past training clubs. In 2009, the U.S. Senate passed Resolution 393 formally recognizing the AKC and its public-education programs, including CGC. To date, dozens of state legislatures have passed AKC Canine Good Citizen resolutions, endorsing the program as a model for responsible dog ownership. Dr. Mary Burch, a Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist and longtime Director of the AKC Canine Good Citizen Program, has framed why that matters:
Practicing responsible dog ownership is the best way to combat restrictive dog legislation and ensure that reasonable ordinances are proposed in every community.— Dr. Mary Burch, Director, AKC Canine Good Citizen Program
For a breed that depends on its public reputation to remain welcome in apartments, parks, beaches, and hotels, that argument is not abstract. Every Newfoundland who earns a CGC is, in a small but real way, helping keep doors open for the breed.
How to Prepare and Where to Test
Most well-socialized Newfoundlands are closer to passing the CGC than their owners realize. A solid foundation in loose-lead walking, sit, down, stay, and come, paired with steady exposure to other dogs and to friendly strangers, gets most pets to a passable level within a few months of consistent training. AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy classes are an ideal lead-in, and many trainers offer CGC-prep classes that conclude with a test.
AKC-Approved CGC Evaluators can be located through the AKC’s website. Regional Newfoundland clubs frequently host CGC tests, and the NCA offers testing each year at the National Specialty — a wonderful opportunity to earn the title surrounded by other Newfs and the people who love them. Newfoundland Ambassadors, the NCA members who help mentor new owners, are also a good resource if you are unsure where to begin.
Set CGC as This Year’s Goal
If your Newfoundland has not yet passed the Canine Good Citizen test, consider making it the training goal for the year. The work is friendly, achievable, and grounded in skills that make every day with a giant-breed dog easier and safer. When the certificate arrives in the mail, you will have joined the ranks of responsible Newfoundland owners — and you will have a dog who is genuinely a good citizen of your community, just as the breed standard always intended.
