[ Sporting Magazine ]
The Sporting Magazine (1792 - 1870) is considered the first general sporting magazine, though in its later decades it gave considerable emphasis to fox hunting. But it published all manner of sporting-related material, from news stories to poetry to calendars of upcoming sporting events. The subtitle of this magazine was "Monthly Calendar of the Transactions of the Turf, the Chace, and every other Diversion interesting to the Man of Pleasure, Enterprize and Spirit." [more at Wikipedia]
A brief note on blindness in dogs, in the December, 1828, issue makes the following mention of Newfoundlands:
Always allowing the horse to be the noblest of God's creatures, we would rank the dog second, and would refer more particularly to the old English mastiff, and the Newfoundland or Labrador. (160)