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Sure it's possible she could do well with free feeding. We have no food aggression issues here but I know that my guys would end up either over-eating or under-eating if we weren't there to supervise mealtimes. And not all my dogs eat the same food either. 

My leo pups have always had a "healthy" appetite and will over eat if given the chance but once they grow up(about 2 years) they are really good at regulating their own diet(so they say....I don't have much experience with that being that I have a 6yr, 1.5yr and 10 month old).  Rarely do you see an over weight adult leonberger. 

How do you stop Sophie from eating the other dog's food when it is left down all day? 

Bosco who is now 10 months old was a major chow hound and really needed to learn his manners at mealtime.  He'd bark, jump, twirl around and within a week was sitting quietly for his meals.  He was also very nippy when taking treats from the hand when he was very excited.  They learn......som etimes it takes a bit longer. 

I wish I had answers for you regarding the food aggression.   

Good luck!!

I must say that you have a very unique feeding situation for a multi dog household.  Pyrs and toy breeds have much different eating habits than leonbergers and especially puppies.  But you didn't ask for advice on feeding your whole crew so I'll just stick to Sophie.

I would keep with the hand feeding and every time she nips or gets too rude I would close my hand up with a "YELP!"  Wait for her to give you eye contact, praise and open your hand for a reward.  You should see definite improvement if you keep at it.

You know,  I've never had a problem with them chewing on inappropriate things at night.  Lucky I guess?  I know Gunnar liked to wake up and chew on a toy(make sure it's a soft, quiet chewy) for 5 minutes and would fall back asleep.  Bosco would sleep, no problem but he had a great play buddy to tire him out.

I've found for myself that I'm just not a good crate trainer.  You have to get the puppy really used to it slowly and make it fun but it's hard when the first night you bring your pup home he has to go in a crate(when he's so used to sleeping with his litter mates, no less) when you just haven't had the time to introduce it properly.  My bedroom was pretty puppy proof and I never really get too attached to personal items so I took a chance of having chewed nightstands.

Instead of putting the water in her crate maybe just let her have access to water when you take her out for her bathroom breaks.  She doesn't need much, just a few sips.

Good luck!  You'll find what works.

YAY!!!  Enjoy your new puppy!!

I totally agree.  And good luck on your search for a pup!!  SO exciting!

The best thing you (and I will say...) SHOULD do is join the club of the breed you are interested in.  They are a helpful source of information for breeders.  You should find a breeding mentor...a friend who has the experience that you can learn from.  You can help them in assisting births of pups and will be there for you when you have YOUR first litter.  Very often in the Leo world your breeding mentor would most likely be the breeder(s) you got a pup from in the past whom you've developed a relationship with.  But you can find breeder friends at shows and other events too.  The more you get involved with now in regards to reading, researching and hanging out with those "in-the-know" the more you'll soak up and retain for the future.

Obviously there's MUCH more to breeding healthy pups than doing health tests on parents but like most said,  they are the main tests that most everyone does and then there's specific ones for the breed on top of that.

As hard as it sounds....firs t you have to pick a breed of dog!  And get one!   

It could very well be that he is a mix.  Missouri is notorious for puppy mills.  No reputable leo breeder would register their dogs with APRI.

I agree with Patrick. 

Temperament and health trumps a beauty contest in my book.  As long as the Breeder herself competes in shows/carting/etc and is knowledgeable about conformation then it's not a huge issue if the dog hasn't been shown. 

It would be a small gene pool if breeders only used champs.  I've seen some with less than ideal personalities that I wouldn't want a pup from and I've seen family dogs who don't compete in the ring that are just wonderful.