Expert: Labman - 10/31/2009

Question
Just got a 2 month old Rottweiler.  What is the best food to buy and best toys to buy?

Thanks!

Answer
If you know what it was eating before, chances are you would do best by sticking to it if it is anything reasonable.  There isn't any evidence available that any one food is better for dogs than any other. None. That doesn't stop marketers from insisting their finer ingredients make a better food.  If you don't know what it was eating, any of the common brands of puppy chow should be good.  Buy one large bag, and when it gets low, start switching over to an adult food.  You should be feeding a puppy chow now. Switching to an adult chow for the
larger breeds at 4 months, slows growth and helps develop sturdier joints.

For the same reason, how much you feed is more important than what.  Your dog definitely should be narrower at the waist than the hips and chest. You should be able to easily feel the ribs, but not see them. Each dog is different. Standard recommendations are a good place to start, but each dog must have its food and exercise adjusted to its individual needs. Here is a link to a good
illustrated guide, http://www.longliveyourdog.com/twoplus/RateYourDog.aspx

We are getting a 7 week old Lab is a week.  We will buy a big bag of Pro Plan chicken and rice growth formula.  They usually last until just short of the 4 months, and then we switch to the adult formula.  You do need to watch, some adult foods have over the 1.5% Calcium and will cause joint problems.  

The pet stores are full of toys that many dogs will quickly chew up into pieces
they could choke on or cause intestinal blockages. If you are not there to
watch, stick to sturdy stuff such as Nylabones and Kongs. Keep a close eye on
chew toys and quickly discard anything that is coming apart in pieces. Rawhide
is especially bad because it swells after being swallowed. I don't trust any of
the consumable chews. The dogs just gnaw them down to a dangerous size too
quickly. These problems are the worst with, but not limited to, large,
aggressive chewers such as Labs.

Ropes from the pets' store quickly turn to hazardous shreds. Ones I made lasted
much better. Go to a hardware or home center that sells rope by the foot. Buy 2'
of 3/4" poly rope. Melt the ends, and tie knots in it. Get them as tight as
possible, put it in a vise and pound it with a hammer. Watch carefully, and be
ready to discard when it comes apart.

Many dogs aren't interested in a slick, new Nylabone.  I think they are putting the nubby texture on more of them now.  I think it is part of the reason so many dogs like the hard to find dinosaur ones.  The ultimate is the Souper Size Galileo Nylabone.  It is about 7 inches long and 3 inches around.  It has the slick surface.  They are more attractive if you rough up the surface with sand paper or by rubbing it on a concrete floor.  Another technique is to jam a Nylabone into a Kong creating what I call a twofer.  The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.