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Before you get a Tosa puppy
New puppy parents should have the following:-large size dog bed, that is easily washable. Unless you want your dog to have big ugly callouses, and potentially early arthritis from laying on hard surfaces (i don't consider carpet a soft enough surface). Sofas and people beds are perfect too.
-elevated food stand for when pup is a few months old. adult dogs are ok with 12-18" tall stand
-stainless steel or ceramic bowls, no plastic
-sturdy, extra large crate to keep on hand if you ever need to confine dog. Puppies can be very destructive when bored, nothing is safe. Sorry, I'm not an expert on crate training as I've never done it myself.
-Petstep (or other type) ramps for getting in and out of SUV's, etc. They can easily make the jump when they're grown up, but please be aware, there is a small possibility of injuries when giant dogs jump.
-old towels or paper towels for drool
-regular flat collar with a regular buckle, or if necessary, a gentle leader. NO choke collars, you can damage tender tracheas and optic nerves.
-regular leash. flexi leashes are ok if you know how to use them and can keep the dog in control. Flexi leashes should not be used while training to walk on leash.
-a brush suitable for short hair dogs, and nail clippers or rotary nail grinder
-good pair of running shoes. For YOU!
-lots of toys and chew items. I do not recommend tartar/knuckle, lamb or pork bones. Big smoked beef marrow bones are ideal. Tartar bones are great for chewing, but introduce a lot of extra calcium as it is consumed. Use those very sparingly, maybe no more than two fist sized bones a month. Nylabones (Galileo) and Bully sticks are good too.
-food. i will be weaning pups on a premium food such as Blue Buffalo, Holistic Select (used to be Eagle Pack) or Wellness. Solid Gold Wolf Cub, Orijen and Acana are the other foods I recommend.
-toys. Tug toys, rope toys, tennis balls (mostly for chewing up), flirt poles, squeaky rubber toys are some favourites in this house. There's about a 50/50 chance Tosas will like to play fetch.
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