The English Bulldog Puppy Blog

The bulldog made a comeback as the 8th dog in the list of the most famous canines released by the American Kennel Club (AKC). Lisa Peterson, a spokesperson of AKC, shares that the “docile and adaptive nature of the bulldog is gaining ground as a family favorite“.

The bulldog’s popularity is growing in the US as opposed to its absence of 70 years in the AKC list and has since jumped two notches from the 10th rank last year. The bulldog ranks second behind the Labrador in Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Diego, but is off the list in Honolulu; Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.; Portland, Ore.; Raleigh, N.C.; and Salt Lake City.

The Labrador retriever emerged as the top people’s choice among purebred pooches for 18 years straight. AKC disclosed that more than twice as many Labs are registered in the U.S. in 2008 as Yorkshire terriers (Top 2 on the list) – clearly showing that Labs will most likely retain the title of Most Popular Dog in the near future. The rest of the top 10 canines are German shepherd, golden retriever, beagle, boxer, dachshund, poodle and Shih Tzu.

The news comes as the country’s new first family has yet to decide their choice of a dog for the White House. It looks like that none of the purebreds appears to be a candidate considered by Obama and his family. President Barack Obama has said his family was considering a Labradoodle, a hybrid of Lab and a poodle, or a Portuguese water dog. The advantage of both breeds are low-shedding breeds that won’t get hair all over the furniture or cause problems for the Obamas’ 10 year-old daughter, Malia, who has allergies.

The American Kennel Club said the hypoallergenic Portuguese water dog has increased 44 percent in popularity in the past decade and is currently the 64th dog in the recognized breeds list.

The kennel club will celebrate their 125th anniversary this year and offered some other information treats in its report.

The number three spot went to the German shepherd as the top dog in Detroit and Miami, with the Lab as the runner-up.

The Boxer, same with bulldog, is making a comeback as the second choice in Baltimore; Cincinnati; Des Moines, Iowa; Louisville, Ky.; Omaha, Neb.; and Kansas City, Mo. It is third in Atlanta, Cleveland, New Orleans, the Twin Cities, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Philadelphia.

AKC started with nine breeds in 1884 and now recognizes 161. The most popular dog in the first yearly survey is the pointer, is now number 111. The Chesapeake Bay retriever used to be top two in 1884, is now number 48.

Technorati Tags: American kennel club, bulldog popularity USA, labradoodle, obama choice dog, pet, Portuguese water dog, top 10 famous popular dog breed

Here comes a new dog-lovers flick to a movie theatre near you. “Hotel for Dogs” stars Emma Roberts in a smart, funny comedy adventure that shows how far love and imagination can take you. The young actress had a fun, chaotic time shooting the film together with her 20 canine co stars but apparently doesn’t love bulldogs.

Roberts said she “loved the Australian sheep dog. She was the smartest and the prettiest. My least favorite was probably the bulldog. He was kind of lazy and very stubborn. He smelled, too.” To each his own, in this case, to each her own so to say. Roberts may have a different opinion towards English Bulldogs but for me or most of us still love English Bulldogs because they’re plain adorable and timid – not really lazy. Of course, I’m saying this in an English bulldog lover’s point of view.

“Hotel for Dogs” will take you to a hotel where you will see dogs doing cute things enough to make children, parents, dog-lovers and movie lovers say “awww” every so often. Just about every breed imaginable makes appearances in the movie: an English Bulldog that will devour almost anything especially license plates; a Boston Terrier that loves to play fetch; a Bullmastiff that likes to bray at an open window; a Chinese Crested named Romeo that is interested in only one thing, it isn’t even playing dead.

Emma Roberts plays “Andi” along with his brother “Bruce” played by Jake Austin had to think of a way to rescue their dog, Friday. Lisa Kudrow and Kevin Dillon play their foster parents who forbid the kids to keep a pet. The resourceful kids were able to find an abandoned hotel as their dog’s new home – eventually for all Friday’s friends. Bruce as the mechanical genius transforms the dogs’ new home into a magical paradise for dogs. When the barks of the dog guests became louder making neighbor suspicious, Andi and Bruce resorts to all possible means to keep anyone from knowing who let the dogs in.

Like all other dog movies, “Hotel for Dogs” shows ideal go-to scenes and close ups of dogs (including English Bulldogs, yay!) looking mischievous, forsaken and other human emotion. English Bulldogs may not be Emma Roberts’ most favorite dog in the world. “Cooper“, an English bulldog, as one of the 20 breeds cast in the movie, is enough for me to catch “Hotel for Dogs” in cinemas.

Watch the sneak peek video of “Hotel for Dogs” right here.

Technorati Tags: boston terrier, bulldog, emma roberts, english bulldog, hotel for dogs, new movie, pet

Bulldogs can now breathe a sigh of relief after the revision of standards regarding dog breeding issued in Britain. Bulldog will get a make over based on the new guidelines declaring that the classic over-nose wrinkle of bulldog “must-never adversely affect or obscure eyes or nose” and heavy over-nose wrinkle is “unacceptable and should be heavily penalized.”

The Kennel Club charged into action and seeks to change existing breeding rules to put a stop to animal cruelty. The UK-based club is currently reviewing breeding standards for each pedigree dog species in Britain in an effort to introduce gentler rearing for pets especially show dogs. The action to promote safer standards of dog breeding followed a recent BBC documentary. It highlighted how breeding turns unhealthy as breeders endanger dog’s health to covet prize worthy features. There were responses to the airing of the BBC documentary including leading animal welfare charities such as RSPCA and the Dogs’ Trust, have severed their links with the show.

Caroline Kiosko, a spokeswoman for the Kennel Club played down fears over dog breeding in the future. Ms. Kiosko stated that “the character of the bulldog certainly isn’t going to change,” and “they will still be the steadfast, strong-willed and gay-tempered dog that they are now.”

The bulldogs‘ large jowly face, stubbly legs and broad shoulders have long been exaggerated by dog breeders according to reports. The modifications in effect lead to difficulty in breathing, walking and breeding.

Old rules said a bulldog’s legs should not be so short that they “cripple him” are modified to say short legs should not detract from his activity. Another previous standard is a bulldog’s gait should be “peculiarly heavy and constrained” now says he should walk with “short, quick steps” on the tips of his toes.

The revised standards of Kennel Club will not only benefit bulldogs. A total of 78 breeds will be protected to ensure all dogs are in good health, good temperament and fit to their original function. UK’s Kennel Club hopes revisions to the bulldog standards will make dogs healthier without the need to drastically change their looks.

The new rules covering 209 breeds are in place end of last year 2008 and will be used as one of the criteria in this year’s biggest dog show in the world, Crufts, organized by the Kennel Club.

The upturned muzzle of English bulldogs poses harm in their breathing resulting to respiratory problems. Their narrow hips and large heads make natural birth seemingly impossible. Their breeding demands artificial insemination.

Kennel Clubs outside Britain such as American Kennel Club are not affected. They govern and make their own rules for breeding and shows.

For English bulldog owners, it would be a shame to see classic features modified or totally disappear but ends up as a good cause. Though some bulldog breeders insist the breed is in perfect health and these changes are not called for. Kevin Davis, one bulldog breeder in King’s Lynn, England, shared that “reports they get are only from vets, and vets only see sick bulldogs.” Davis adds that “loads of bulldogs walking around without any health problems at all.”

Watch a clip of the BBC documentary of pedigree dogs plagued by problems. Click here to watch it.

Technorati Tags: bbc documentary, dog health, english bulldog, revision breeding rules, UK british kennel club revisions

You might be one of those pet owners who aren’t so keen on renewing your pet’s insurance this year. Think again. Take the case of an English bulldog owner in St. Louis, Jennifer Zwart, who was glad when she got her Lulu, her dog, insurance.

It took six months for Zwart to eventually know where her daughter’s lost pacifiers. Lulu managed to find the 15 pacifiers herself but unfortunately decided to eat them. Zwart believed that the missing pacifiers where either kicked under couches or possibly dropped from a moving stroller. Lulu found her knack of swallowing these dropped pacifiers. This love for pacifiers came to an end when Zwart herself found the pacifier gone in an instant right after she scolded Lulu for licking a dropped pacifier. Lulu was then taken to a veterinarian and had an x-ray examination. The X-ray confirmed the lost pacifier. The vets decided to perform surgery to remove the ingested pacifier. However, midway through the surgery, it surprisingly revealed not just one pacifier but 15 of them along with a bottle cap and a piece of a basketball. Lulu handled the surgery well despite failing to exhibit any signs or symptoms from eating non-edible things.

Zwart’s claim for Lulu’s case is just one of more than 75,000 claims received in one month of December 2008 by Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI). The pet insurance saved Zwart an estimate of $600 off the $800 cost of surgery. Apart from that, Lulu is now entered in VPI’s search for the strangest animal surgeries of the year.

Save yourself financial worries next time your pet needs to be rushed over to an animal hospital or vet. The last thing you want to do is thinking what it is going to cost you. Pet insurance proved to be a good plan for Lulu and thousands of other pets perhaps not exactly the same case with the unfortunate pacifiers.

Technorati Tags: english bulldog, Jennifer Zwart, Lulu, pacifiers, pet insurance, pica dog, strange animal surgery, VPI

A special thanks to a consultant of National Geographic for providing information about Nat Geo’s special series. Nat Geo takes animal lovers where they have never gone before -  in the wom of dogs and cats.  Watch its critically acclaimed In the Womb series – In the Womb: Dogs followed by In the Womb: Cats. Enter a world where paws and barks first began. Embark on a real time 4-D ultrasound adventure and see images of puppies (including English bulldog puppies), kittens, lion cubs and wolf cubs.

In the Womb : Dogs

In this series, the fetal development of one wolf and three different dog breeds – mastiff, golden retriever and Chihuahua – are carefully chronicled. A Chihuahua fetus is seen in some of the first 4-D ultrasound images.

Photo Credits to to National Geographic

In the Womb : Cats

The utero journey of a house cat and a lion debuts for the first time ever on television in 4-D ultrasound images of a lion embryo and cat embryo running and stretching in the womb.

Enjoy watching some video teasers of In the Womb: Dogs and Cats.

“Golden Puppies” – They’re not old enough to adopt, but these in-utero puppies are already cute enough to make you one.

“Fuzzy Fetuses” – These fetuses are doggone cute!

“Pups in the Womb” – When times are tough, a wolf fetus may make the ultimate sacrifice to ensure its siblings survive.

Dogs have come a long way from a single cell to man’s best friend in just 63 days. Witness a remarkable journey which opens up a rare view of life inside the womb where pregnancies can be false, fetuses reabsorbed and see unborn puppies panting and running. The most astonishing part of this journey reflects the evolution and how human intervention turned the wolf into a dog.

If you are one of those dog and cat lovers who missed out on the premiere of this “animalistic” In the Womb series, don’t despair. I may have missed the premiere of In the Womb but here’s good news. Mark your calendars with these dates.  We can catch the rebroadcasts of In the Womb on the following dates and times:

Friday, January 9 at 9-11pm ET/PT
Saturday, January 10 at midnight-2am ET/PT
Sunday, January 11 at 1-3pm ET/PT
Friday, January 16 at 5-7pm ET/PT

Technorati Tags: 4-d ultrasound images, dogs cats kittens, in the womb, nat geo, National geographic, puppies

English Bulldog – check out GreatDogSite.com for English Bulldog information; read reviews, view photos and ask questions.

Technorati Tags: english bulldog photos reviews, great dog site, training

I thought of sharing this funny video when a tough looking English bulldog dad meets his daughter for the very first time.  They look so cute together. I like the part when the daughter growled at her dad. Enjoy!

English Bulldog Father Meets Daughter First Time – For more of the funniest videos, click here

Technorati Tags: dad meets daughter, dogs, funny video, hilarious, puppies

The staff of the English Bulldog Puppy blog wishes all readers this new year adorn your life with many beautiful things and sweet memories to cherish forever. May you and your English bulldog or dogs may continue to have more abundant joys and happiness.   Watch this video showing so cute photos of  English bulldogs.

Wishing you life’s best this New Year!

Technorati Tags: cute english bulldog puppies, happy new year