Hello from MO with Dozer.

[prendatram]

Hello forum, I been lurking around this forum for about 2 months now, just gathering info and waiting for the right pal to come in to my life. SORRY ITS A LONG POST.

Let me tell you a little bout myself. My name is Sean Bowers, I'm 21 and from Rolla, Mo. I'm a full time student in Petroleum Engineering at the local University. I currently been working at Papa Johns for over 2 years and just a few months ago got moved up to manager.

Now how in the heck did that all turn into falling in love with a bulldog and getting to this forum.....well my wonderful girlfriend has an old english bulldog and they just eat your heart out and I feel hard. She got her bully when she graduated high school and opted for the olde breed for a little less "issues" or as I like to say human traits. She was worried about college and wasnt sure if she could give the dog enough time.

Regardless I fell for the breed. I been searching for quite a while for a bully of my own. Because I still reside with my parents and the basement is pretty much my pad, they just got two 3 legged huskies from a rescue and they live upstairs and i felt alone and been struggling with school lately and working 5 days a week.

So my girlfriend and I have been searching and finally found someone local and was selling him for cheap because he was older and they both picked up second jobs and couldnt make ends meet.

I got Dozer on thanksgiving morning. He is apparently about 4 years of age. I also purchased him cheap because they currently lost his papers. (yeah yeah I know. questionable but the owners were very up front and honest.) he said he would look for them because how he reacted to us, he knew he was going to be ok.

The journey begins, I have Dozer, gave him a bath yesterday with the oatmeal shampoo, clipped his nails, got some witch hazel for his wrinkles and unscented aloe baby wipes, got some treats.

He got his name cause he has quite the under bite and sticks his tongue out about 85% of the time. and he is quite the construction equipment when it comes to eating and drinking. I will post pictures in a bit.

Shower-he was great stood there fine and didnt cry or nothing.
Nails- good a little pulling but nothing bad.
wrinkles- I think they a little raw right now(owners care went down with the new jobs I believe), didnt care much for the witch could of been a little to harsh, but he was perfectly ok with the baby wipes.
Nose- was cracked and dried so vaseline has done its magic on that already in two days.


He lays around and is a great dog, they have him on joint supplements and I been giving that to him and he cries until I let him come up in my bed and he just lays right next to me with his head on his pillow.... I WANTED A PAL LIKE THIS. LOVE...

So EBN I come asking a few questions. I have searched alot but still got a few. HE IS GOING TO THE VET NEXT WEEK.

1. The previous owner had him on beneful healthy weight and he seems to like it but I was looking at Avoderm cause of the recommended by the forum and high up on the star rating compared to beneful, Will Avoderm be a night and day difference with his bad breath, and farts and coat. I read it can help alot. What do you think?

2. His pads seemed a little cracked. I read about snout soother and aquaphor for pads. my question is aquaphor safe for him, I dont want him licking it and getting sick.

3. Breathe. he seems to have trouble chewing sometimes and his breathe isnt great, and he didnt like me brushing at all, and he seemed to gang on it. anyone swear or use the water additive for his breathe religiously and have experienced results.

4. I been reading alot on ear maintenance but it all seems general and I feel bullies are special. I thought I heard drops are bad for them. Should I just wipe them out like i do wrinkles. any certain product to use or not to use.


Thanks folks. this forum is a great resource and I look forward to every moment I have with this guy. I would describe him more but pictures are what is needed.

Sincerely, Sean (prendatram...forum name for everything.)

 

[JAKEISGREAT]

Sean! Congrats to you and a big hello to Dozer! You went and jumped ALL in! You sound like you have really been reading and learning, which is so great. I'm sure you will find this place can save you panic attacks, heart attacks and hopefully a little money! just always feel free to ask..know there are NO silly questions.

For the ears..the best thing I've found is the witch hazel. Soak a cotton pad and squeeze out most of the excess..leaving damp. Wrap it around your finger and gently swab the entire inside of hs ears. You can reach deep and don't worry about drying. Because witch hazl s a natural astringent, it will dry on its own.

Dont use the witch hazel every day on his wrinkles. It's drying and can cause irritation. Every 3 or 4 days should be fine. If you see any redness, a tiny dab of desitin goes a long way!

Beneful isn't a good food at all. Avoderm is a much better choice, reasonably priced and should be easy to find. Go very slow anytime you start a new food. gradually decrease old while ncreading new..over a 10 to 14 day period.

I am happy for you Sean and I know you will do right by Dozer! Don't forget those pictures!

 

[prendatram]

much better

 

[prendatram]

just a quick cell phone, and thanks for the reply, I know I saw some of the witch hazel has natural grain alcohol in it should I stay away form that as well. and I planned on baby wipes and drying most days. witch hazel every few if it needs a good cleaning.

 

[JAKEISGREAT]

just a quick cell phone, and thanks for the reply, I know I saw some of the witch hazel has natural grain alcohol in it should I stay away form that as well. and I planned on baby wipes and drying most days. witch hazel every few if it needs a good cleaning.

I think any witch hazel is fine. He is very handsome Sean. :D. Use unscented baby wipes and yup..dry is the key. I don't do Jake's every day. I'm kind of the theory..you can do TOO much..every other day and if not needed I stretch to every 3rd day.

 

[Davidh]

Welcome to the site and your baby is a handsome boy. [MENTION=2092]JAKEISGREAT[/MENTION] has given you some good advise, so I have nothing to add, but glad you are here, so enjoy and jump right in.

 

[prendatram]

thanks I appreciate all the help and advice.

 

[BruceP]

WTH is pendadram mean?? LOL to EBN. Relax and enjoy yourself. Definately going to need to post some more pix of the little fella. Thanx for joining

 

[prendatram]

it was a randomly generated name from an online quiz u take. like do u prefer this or that. and that was the name it came up for me. been using it as my forum name, gamertags, pretty much everything so i dont forget what ones I use on different things. its unique too so if I ever join anything its rarely ever taken.

 

[BruceP]

Most excellent idea!! lol

 

[JAKEISGREAT]

WTH is pendadram mean?? LOL to EBN. Relax and enjoy yourself. Definately going to need to post some more pix of the little fella. Thanx for joining

Most excellent idea!! lol

it was a randomly generated name from an online quiz u take. like do u prefer this or that. and that was the name it came up for me. been using it as my forum name, gamertags, pretty much everything so i dont forget what ones I use on different things. its unique too so if I ever join anything its rarely ever taken.

Soon you will understand....a certain someone has to use his name cuz he can't remember anything else!

 

[prendatram]

yeah with school and work and playing college football with as many times as I get hit in the head it can get hard to remember alot of things.

 

[Lucy-licious]

Soon you will understand....a certain someone has to use his name cuz he can't remember anything else!

Yeah but that's because he's old

to EBN......@pendatram,Dozer is very handsome x

 

[Vikinggirl]

Hi, Sean and welcome. You joined an awesome site. I am fairly new here as well and I have 2 new pups, a brother and sister, they are 9 months old, and their names are Blossom and Bulldozer. I have a Dozer too, and like your Dozer, mine also has a severe under bite, and his tongue sticks out. Lol. My two came from the breeder on Royal Canin food, but after researching foods on this site, I switched them to Fromms Beef Fritata, a lot of people on this forum seem to use this food. My 2 are doing very well on this food, I chose this food after trying 4 other foods, my female Blossom has allergies or sensitivity to chicken, corn, and grains. These foods give her mushy poops, pink skin, ears, and chin rashes . I would switch your Dozers' food to either Fromms Beef Fritata, or the Avoderm, as these foods are rated a 6 star , and Beneful isn't a good food. You can see and read the food ratings on this site, under food and nutrition , also Desertskybulldogs , and Cowsmom , are experienced in food and nutrition, are a good source of information. Switching to a better food will definetly improve smelly poops, it did with mine, and as for their breath, I brush my guys teeth, twice a week, I started when they were really, small so they don't mind, good food will probably help, as could the drops in the water. I am not familiar with these drops, and am not sure if they are good or safe to use regularly? Maybe someone else on here knows more. I use Organic Apple Cider Vinegar in their water , I put a Tablespoon in their bowl everyday. ACV helps with a lot of things from breath, to inflammation, to killing bacteria internally, and for their immunity. I give natural supplements to my guys as well, they get 1 tsp of salmon oil liquid in their food everyday, ACV in their water, and I give them a cranberry pill everyday to avoid urinary tract infections. For their treats, I also use natural foods such as cut up apples, strawberries, bananas, plain unsweetened yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese strings, hard boiled eggs, or oatmeal. They don't get these everyday, but 2 or 3 times a week , they get one or two of these. One week they will get plain yogurt with strawberries one day, and a hard boiled egg a couple of days later, and then the next week I'll give them banana , one day and a couple of days later, they'll get some cheese strings, I mix it up . And finally on cleaning their ears , I will just use a baby wipe, I do their eyes, nose ropes, ears and tail pocket with baby wipes, once or twice a week, and I usually bath them once a week, usually on Sundays. I use Petsmart no tear puppy formula with oatmeal and chamomile. I rinse them with water first, and then use 25% ACV mixed with 75% water for a final rinse, this makes their coat really soft, and whitens my females cost, as she is white. It smells at first like vinegar, but goes away when they dry, and actually keeps them fresher smelling. Also when I bathe them, I don't pour water over their heads or faces, to avoid getting water in their ears, and noses, which can get into their lungs. I use a face cloth, and wet it, and put the shampoo on the cloth and wash their faces , and ears with it, then I rinse it off the same way with a rinsed out face cloth. Hope this helps. Looking forward to seeing pictures of your Dozer.

here are some pictures of my guys Bulldozer and Blossom:

 

[Texas Carol]

Hello forum, I been lurking around this forum for about 2 months now, just gathering info and waiting for the right pal to come in to my life. SORRY ITS A LONG POST.

Let me tell you a little bout myself. My name is Sean Bowers, I'm 21 and from Rolla, Mo. I'm a full time student in Petroleum Engineering at the local University. I currently been working at Papa Johns for over 2 years and just a few months ago got moved up to manager.

Welcome Sean & Dozer! Great introduction, you really touched my heart with your earnestness
& sincerity...Dozer got very lucky to have you as Dad. You and I have a lot in common, my son
dated a girl w/a Bully, they are now engaged and I fell in love w/her Bruzer, researched a year
then adopted Brutus 5 months ago. Was told he was 3 y/o but I believe he's 4 or 5 but I don't
care, he's wonderful! Believe me, you are in for a real treat, after about a month or two, I thought
Brutus and I were bonded and close but in about another month...that wonderful Bully REALLY gave
me his whole heart...just blew me away and Dozer, while he bonded with you right away and is a
great Bully and it's mutual love, wait until he's decided you're trustworthy and then he gives you
everything he has to give...no holds barred, it is AWESOME!

Avoderm is what I landed on feeding Brutus (after 3-4 others), he does best on Red Meat Meal w/
Potato (watch that Dozer isn't sensitive to the potato) if so, they have a couple others w/different
protein choices, just make sure you feed one of their GRAIN FREE formulas. He was on Iams when
I got him, his hair was thin, bald in places, red bumps, small sores here & there, horrible, constant
farting and constantly goopy eyes, bad allergies...Avoderm fixed all that. The previous owner's
friend saw him a couple weeks ago (he's been on Avoderm 3 months) and just could not believe
the difference in his coat & allergies gone! I do give him a daily dose of ChlorTabs, generic Walmarts,
(Benadryl doesn't work on him) Spring & Fall change but then only if he gets ichy or congested not
everyday like before the Avoderm made such a positive difference.


Welcome here to EBN, Sean & much Congratulations on Dozer, he's really handsome -more pics please!