The English Bulldog Puppy Blog

Are you wondering why your puppy defy your commands even though it has been obedient since younger? English bulldog puppy blog aims to guide you on raising your puppy as we feature the development stages of an English bulldog puppy.

Canine Socialization Period (5 to 7 weeks)
At the age of 5 weeks, puppies begin to growl to get food. The puppy is now emotionally developed and ready to learn. It is a crucial formative stage when the skills and habits formed will be retained and become part of its personality as an adult dog.

Puppies must not be weaned at this period. You can put them on supplements at three weeks of age while left to the mother when it comes to ho much nursing is done. You do not want to have an excessively noisy and aggressive puppy when you do wean the puppy. The opposite side of allowing the puppies to stay with the litter and its mother after the 7th or 8th week is that its emotional development will be restricted. Soon, your puppy will become bullish or cowed tendencies which will be a fixed trait into adulthood.

Human Socialization Period (7 to 9 weeks)
When your puppy reaches its 7 to 9 weeks in age, it is the best time to transfer the puppy to its new home. At 8 ½ weeks, the puppy defecates in specific spots, usually at a distance from the eating and sleeping area. Potty training should be done prior or during this age.

You must take account of the socio-ecological conditions. Limit the space available when the puppy is not under human control and supply the needed elimination medium placed at a proper location specifically 2 to 3 meter distance from where the puppy eats or sleeps. Aim to take your English bulldog puppy out for a walk at regular intervals. During this time, teach your puppy where to eliminate in sites such as gutters or the lawn before the age of 15 weeks. Clinical research has shown that puppies taught to defecate in one spot and one medium until the 15 weeks of age will often resist learning how to use other media or locations. These puppies will retain themselves up to hours when placed outside until they can do their potty on their accustomed medium and spot.

Fear Impact period (9 to 12 weeks)
The fear impact period of an English bulldog puppy is a time of sexual maturity leading to an extended period. It is also an important period to teach your puppy to fetch much more for working dogs. A puppy that failed to learn how to fetch will never be able become a detector dog or a guide dog in the future.

Hierarchization period (13 to 16 weeks)
Don’t be surprise when your puppy manifests resistance from your commands. It is a critical period when the absolute authority of the pet owner will be put to the test. Your English bulldog puppy will make its initial attempts to rebel to establish itself as the dominant being in the family. Don’t tolerate its rebellious trait, at this point, for the confidence and trust you have as an owner will be lost. It is now or never to reinforce this behavior so avoid giving confusing signals to your puppy by being firm upon imposing rules for obedience. A usual mistake among new pet dog owners is the habit of feeding the dog before dining time of the family. You may think that you are doing your family a favor so the dog won’t bother when your family eats. It is quite the opposite because it sends a message to your puppy that it is the dominant member of the family hence being fed first.

Flight period (4 to 8 months)
In this period, your puppy thinks it doesn’t need you anymore thus showing interest to roam in the outside world (outside your gate to be more specific). Positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement are important disciplinary actions at this age. If your English bulldog puppy wanders around then don’t punish it upon calling it and actually come back. It will then link coming back with punishment. Chances are then low that your puppy will be obedient again. As a general rule, don’t call your dog when the only thing you want to do is to punishing it. It is suggested to reward your dog with a cookie or other treats when it does comes back after being called. This positive reinforcement is highly effective. As soon as your pet will hear you calling out its name then it will immediately associate a potential reward and will come back.

Treat your English bulldog puppy well when it goes through its developmental stages. Once you understand its needs as a developing puppy, the more you can modify your reinforcements. You’re on your way to have an obedient and loving puppy.

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DES MOINES, Iowa – The newly crowned English bulldog is named Beautiful Bulldog for the rest of the year. Porterhouse has all reasons to drool happily as he sits on his throne to which he was so close to getting it for three years. He had come a long way from two runner-up finishes and one “Mr. Congeniality” title before finally crowned the winner of Drake University’s annual Beautiful Bulldog Contest in downtown Des Moines.

The 4 year-old brown and white bulldog hailing from Des Moines claimed the title and beat out 49 others dogs coming from eight states. The event coincides with the Drake Relays, hosted for the 100th time this week by the Drake University Bulldogs.

Looks, in a dog’s standard, is everything when named the Beautiful Bulldog but not necessarily the prettiest mutt in the blend. They wanted to see the X-factor of a bulldog of drool, bloodshot eyes and bowed legs and costumes won’t hurt either. Colorfully clad bulldogs showed off their stuff including tutus, blonde wigs, goggles and all kinds of wacky hats to accessorize the mutts.

Pedigree is not major judging criteria according to Dolph Pulliam, the master of ceremonies for the event, said of the judging.

The annual dog contest has grown in popularity in recent years. Pulliam said the 50 slots intended for this year’s pageant filled up faster than ever before in history. Drake could have had 100 bulldogs more listed in the competition if it had enough room.

Porterhouse beat out Maxxis, another Des Moines bulldog, to claim top dog honors by sporting a camouflage and an army helmet for the event.

The proud owner of Porterhouse, Erin Bell, said her dog is a sweet, friendly guy who loves to make people laugh. She and her hubby, Kevin Bell, had a gut feeling that Porterhouse would finally emerge victorious this time around. The bulldog finished second in 2006 and 2007.

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A lifeless English bulldog puppy with a bullet hole in the head was set on fire and dumped into the trash can. Several oozing sores covered a mangy Doberman pinscher. While dozens of terriers were crammed into wire cages only 18 inches tall, 3 feet deep and 2 feet wide.

This scene in the dark corners of a large-scale dog-breeding operation in Indiana serves as a haven for irresponsible breeders. Owing the fact that some of the country’s weakest animal-cruelty laws, enables Indiana as one of leaders in churning out puppies. The industry is poorly regulated that authorities have yet to put a stop on animal abuse and neglect.

Despite the legitimacy of many breeders, The Indianapolis Star reveals an industry where a majority deals with a troubling bottom line: to produce puppies as fast and cheaply as possible for merchandise, often to unsuspecting buyers without any regards to the dog’s health and well-being. The conclusion was derived from the series of interviews of veterinarians, animal-rights advocates, prosecutors and others.

Insiders of the breeding facility divulged that the state is home to 3,000 of these so-called puppy mills. An estimated $1.3 billion profit comes from the production of tens of thousands of puppies annually along with an unknown numbers with genetic defects resulting from over breeding.

As an answer, state lawmakers are trying to seize control on the industry by submitting breeders to state inspections, passing stricter animal-abuse laws and moderating the number of dogs to be bred. A bill and similar legislations is being considered by The Humane Society of the United States in 32 other states.
“Many of these dogs live their whole lives in a cage. They’re never held, never touched, never allowed to walk on grass and never taken to a vet,” said Rep. Linda Lawson, D-Hammond, author of House Bill 1468, which would crack down on commercial breeders.

Limitations

Most breeders operate discreetly on farms across Indiana. They are not required to register with the state thus making it difficult to identify. Some who were identified are reluctant to talk.

A commercial dog breeder in Shipshewana, was one of the few willing to speak. He said most breeders have been victimized by a handful of breeders. He adds that all these horror stories are attempts to give them a bad rap. Some of the breeders have nothing to and no animal abuse takes place in some of the operations.

Loophole in the law

It is stated in the Indiana’s animal-cruelty law that owners only have to provide food and water to their pets, a major hole in the law. Putnam County Prosecutor Tim Bookwalter questions it adding that “a person can shoot their own dog and kill it, and there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Prosecutor Bookwalter obtained a search warrant for a breeding operation on a Putnamville farm after securing photos of abused dogs there.

Upon reaching the site, the police officers found 70 dogs in barns, living in squalor.

They found a bulldog puppy that had been shot because the breeder did not like its coloring, a Chihuahua with no fur left on its face and a Boston terrier that was too weak to walk.

The team left empty handed since the puppy mill owner was able to provide food and water to the poor dogs.

Terre Haute veterinarian Michael Staub found many dogs in wretched condition in October on a Sullivan County farm. Following the search warrant, 300 dogs had turned up at local vets.

Staub treated the Doberman pinscher suffering from mange, saw terriers living in cramped cages and found an old bus filled with dogs. A dead Pomeranian had been discarded on top of a trash bin.

Yet again, the police could not press charges due to the limitation of the law instead, they could only talk the owner into releasing 67 of the sickest dogs. If only the bill could be pass to better protect dogs living in puppy mills.

photo credits to joeshacks

Tough to prosecute

In February, the only know case involving a commercial dog breeder is Tammy Gilchrist having charged with five felony counts of tax evasion owing the state $ 193,000 in back taxes.

Charges were pressed when the Indiana attorney general’s office receiving complaints from customers who purchased dogs from her with genetic and other health problems.
Upon investigation, the state learned she had failed to secure a business license to operate in Indiana. The police then obtained a court order preventing her from selling dogs leading to a raid by the Indiana State Police. 74 of her 150 dogs were seized from their pitch-black tool sheds, including a beagle with a failed C-section.

One of Gilchrist’s customers was Rep. Trent Van Haaften, D-Mount Vernon. His wife bought a schnoodle — a schnauzer-poodle mix — from the breeder last year. The family never saw her kennel only to receive their pet when Gilchrist had brought the dog to their home. The dog didn’t live long dying from an infection with a parvovirus which causes diarrhea and vomiting.

What the breeders have to say

Commercial breeders said they don’t oppose the plans to strengthen the state’s animal-abuse laws or state inspections, which will root out the bad kennels.
These two provisions are being objected by breeders namely against protections for consumers and a cap on how many dogs they can breed.

Under the proposed legislation, buyers would be allowed to return puppies within 15 days upon any major health problems discovered, also within a year if a genetic defect is found.

The bill also would limit the number of breeding females, or those that are not spayed at 30.

Frey said that the “30-dog cap is unreasonable and would put breeders out of business,” who has 60 adult dogs in two buildings at his operation. “He added that the amount of money spent on vet bills, dog food and maintenance of the animals wouldn’t be worth investing.

Supporters of the bill agreed that the changes were necessary to get the legislation through the Republican-controlled Senate. It could keep the stronger animal-abuse provisions intact.

If the Senate passes the bill, it would move to a conference committee where the two chambers would have until the April 29 legislative session deadline to iron out their differences.

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The best way to know if your bulldog is suffering from any ailment is to know your bulldog. An effective intervention is to detect the disease with prompt treatment at an early stage before it gets any worse. You should know when your dog isn’t eating or it is not showing its usual behavior. You can easily treat a minor treatment at home. Be on the lookout if a home remedy doesn’t cure the problem in two days then take the dog to your trusted veterinarian. It is most recommended however to take your dog on any signs of health problems as there are other medical conditions which cannot wait for two days.

You may not be aware of the possible diseases your English bulldog may develop later in its life. Generation to the next generation of English bulldogs pass on genes but there is more to it. A number of inherited and congenital diseases are often inherited and can be quite complicated. An English bulldog can carry a defect without ever becoming physically evident and undoubtedly pass on the defects to its offspring in which may become apparent itself.

Here is your guide to inherited diseases in bulldogs including genetic predisposition to diseases.

Skin Conditions

Acne
A common skin problem of bulldogs is acne. Determine first if the acne is caused by ingrown hairs around the mouth. You may want to switch to a stainless steel bowl when your dog is currently feeding from a plastic bowl. Allow enough time to see if the change of feeding bowls would help clear the acne. IF it fails to do so, it could be a skin disease which requires a quick trip to the vet and a doses of antibiotics. After all, skin diseases are well known in English bulldogs.

Fold Dermatitis
Bulldogs look so irresistible with those folds forming on their faces. The facial skin folds, however, are prone to infection. It can occur due to rubbing of the skin and trapping of moisture in the folds. Fold dermatitis commonly forms on the tail, facial folds and associated pyoderma develops in breed where skin folds in these areas.

Folliculitis
Superficial folliculitis is characterized by reddened pustules in less wide area such as outside thighs and along the back and top of the neck. An obvious thinning of the hair coat is noted on the affected area. A genetic predisposition often plays a primary cause of folliculitis which calls for a possibility of lifelong intermittent antibiotic therapy.

Muzzle pyoderma
It is an infectious disease that occurs on the muzzle of English bulldogs.

Demodicosis or Demodectic mange
A microscopic Demodex canis mites is the culprit of English bulldogs afflicted with Demodectic mange. These mites lives within skin layers and produces an immunodeficiency syndrome. Some dogs are genetically predisposed to it while others do not contract the disease even though exposed to infected animals.

Tail Fold Dermatitis
It is a skin infection causing mild to significant discomfort and itching of your dog. The abnormal tissue folds around your dog’s tail results to a skin infection.

Eye Conditions

A common hereditary problem is the abnormalities of the eyelash. When rubbing against the eyeballs will lead to corneal ulcers. Two types of eyelash abnormalities happens as a predisposition in bulldogs:

Distichiasis
This condition exist when extra eyelashes grow form abnormal follicles located on the inside edge o the eyelid.

Trichiasis
When eyelashes grow from normal sites turned inward. The length of the eyelashes is often abnormally long.

Cataract
Cataract is a change in the structure of the lens of the eye leading to cloudiness and usually to blindness. It is more common in old dogs.

Cherry Eye
Cherry eye is also referred to as prolapse of nictitating membrane. The third eyelid is protruding.

Ectropion
Ectropion is a state in which the eyelids rolls out or drops away from the eye. You should always steer away from adopting English bulldogs displaying excessively prominent eyes and heavy facial folds due to the problems associated with them.

Entropion
Entropion, on the contrary, is the reverse condition of ectropion. The lid is abnormally rolled in resulting a constant irritation to the eye.

Keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS)
Dryeye is another term for Keratoconjunctivitis sicca where one or both eyes do not produce normal amount or type of tears. In cases of deficient tear production causes chronic irritation of the cornea and conjunctiva. Corneal ulcers leading to corneal scarring happens as an effect leading to eventual blindness.

Persistent papillary membrane
This abnormality refers to the membrane forming the iris does not form properly.

Mouth and Teeth

Abnormal dentition
It refers to a misaligned or abnormal placement, number and development of teeth.

Cleft Lip
It is also called as “Harelip” as a condition where two halves of the upper lip don’t join together. Cleft palate and cleft lip often are related and seen together.

Cleft Palate
Cleft palate is a state where the roof of the mouth is not closed and the inside of the nose opens into the mouth.

Elongated soft palate
An elongated soft palate is an abnormality that causes breathing disorders.

Bone Structure

Hemivertebra
In this condition, only half of the vertebra structure is formed.

Hip Dysplasia
It is a developmental abnormality or subluxation of the hip joints.

Spina bifida
This condition causes an exposed spinal cord due to developmental abnormality.

Respiratory System

Bradycephalic Upper-Airway Syndrome
A grouping of conditions leads to a decrease tolerance to excitement, exercise , high temperature are caused by compressed and narrowed air passages.  This condition is typical of the bradycephalic breeds of dogs. The signs indicating bradycephalic airway syndrome includes noisy or open-mouth breathing, snoring, panting, exercise intolerance, vomiting and eating difficulty. An exaggerated movement of the abdominal of your bulldog during respiration is evident in more severely affected animals.

Hypoplasia of trachea
It is a condition of trachea that fails to develop fully.

Cardiovascular system and blood conditions

Mitral valve defects
It is signified by a group of abnormalities of the mitral valve of the heart.

Arteriovenous fistula
It is an abnormal connection that links arteries and veins.

Pulmonic stenosis
Pulmonic stenosis is a condition where one of the valves of the heart do not open and function properly.

Von Willebrand’s disease
Von Willebrand’s disease is a type of bleeding disorder due to a defective blood platelet function.

Reproduction

Dystocia
Dystocia is one of the complications of the birth process.

Vaginal hyperplasia
It is an overgrowth of tissues of the vagina.

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