Bully Newbie

Kevin Hance

New member
Aug 31, 2015
2
0
Hello,
My wife and have a 14 month daughter that is a bit rough at the moment. We will be moving into the house I grew up in; in about a month.

I am looking at getting an English Bulldog. I read how they are very good with kids. I am aware of health issues and wondering if anyone can share some knowledge about health and what I can do about those issues.

Thanks for your input
 

Manydogs

Well-known member
Community Veteran
May 2, 2013
13,637
2,025
Tennessee
Country
U.S.A.
Bulldog(s) Names
Maudee,MarthaKatie,Lizzie,Bro.Mini
:welcome4: to EBN! There is much info listed on the home page about different health issues. You can't do much about things, until a problem shows up.
You can find a very good vet, who is experienced with EBD's, and feed a good, grain free food, and high quality supplement.
 

Donnam

New member
Nov 5, 2014
1,433
60
Dallas, Texas (Richardson)
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USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Winnie
Hey Kevin! Welcome to EBN! I wanted to respond to your question because I got a bulldog puppy a year ago and at the time I had 3 grandsons that were all a year old. First, Bulldogs are generally wonderful with kids. Winnie is my 4th bulldog, all of which loved kids to death, and my own kids grew up with Bulldogs. There's a big "however" though. If you get a puppy, he will probably go through a "shark phase." Some puppies are worse than others, my first one was terrible, the second two were not bad, and Winnie was the worst by far. We had a couple of months where we could barely play with her at all. She bit our hands, arms, feet, clothes--anything she could grab. When the grandkids would come over, Winnie would have to spend a lot of time in her crate. She would also run and jump on the boys, knocking them over and making them cry. Of course, pups have to be trained not to do that stuff, but it's a process and takes a while. We also put up some baby gates which helped when we wanted to separate Winnie from the kids.

So, fast forward to now, the boys will turn two in a week and Winnie is 13 months. She quit the puppy biting by the time she was 4-5 months old and at some point after that she quit knocking them over. Now, she is wonderful with them. Mostly she just follows them everywhere. She still gets their toys and chews them up occasionally and tries to take food from them. Sometimes they get mad because she's just always "in their space." We still put her in her crate for the first 30 minutes the boys are here, so she can calm down before we let her out.

Anyway, I just wanted you to know what you'll be in for, with a puppy anyway. It will be a lot of work and crazy making for a while. If you're up for that first 8 months or so, a bully would be a wonderful choice. Try to pick a calm, laid back puppy. I would be very careful about getting a grown dog, because you can't be absolutely sure how they will respond to a baby.

Good luck! [MENTION=14749]Kevin Hance[/MENTION]
image.jpg image.jpg image.jpg

And, I just re-read your post and wanted to address the health issues you asked about. It is true that Bulldogs have a high incidence of health issues. The best thing you can do is find a reputable breeder and ask questions about the health of the parents. I won't go into all the health issues Bulldogs have, because you can read about them here on this site. But I will say that there are really healthy Bulldogs too. We tend to focus on health problems here, because that's usually what people want help with. All four of my bullies have been very healthy, except two of them had cherry eye. They never had allergies or any other issues. I feel lucky, because you never really know what issues will pop up.
 

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Donnam

New member
Nov 5, 2014
1,433
60
Dallas, Texas (Richardson)
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Winnie
I know there are several people at EBN who have had bulldog puppies and babies at the same time. I just can't remember who specifically or I would tag them. Maybe they will read your post and chime in.
 

2BullyMama

I'm not OCD....now who moved my bulldog?
Staff member
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Jul 28, 2011
48,581
3,673
Gilbertsville, PA
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USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Chelios (Frenchie), Nitschke (2004-2011) Banks (2005-2014) and Lambeau (2014-2024)
:welcome3: to EBN .... Any specific questions you have at the moment?

Few words of advice -- do not buy for a pet store or off craigslist --- find a good breeder in your area an area you are willing to travel and pick up your new baby
 
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Kevin Hance

New member
Aug 31, 2015
2
0
  • Thread Starter
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I live south of Philadelphia and contacted a breeder in Delaware that does French and English bulldogs; they have offered me to come visit.
 

2BullyMama

I'm not OCD....now who moved my bulldog?
Staff member
Community Veteran
Jul 28, 2011
48,581
3,673
Gilbertsville, PA
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Chelios (Frenchie), Nitschke (2004-2011) Banks (2005-2014) and Lambeau (2014-2024)
I live south of Philadelphia and contacted a breeder in Delaware that does French and English bulldogs; they have offered me to come visit.

I am northwest of Philly..... got all my babies from a breeder now located in Virginia
 

Miss Charlotte

New member
Jan 31, 2015
147
10
Elizabeth,NJ
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Charlotte
@Kevin hance I have a 14mth old baby and an 18 month old EB... The baby arrived when Charlotte was few months old. It requires attention and limit setting. Now that Ethan is getting around its a whole different set of limits and the toys, oh the toys! No matter what I do they are shared....ugh. It takes supervision and effort but never have I thought the EB would harm the baby (intentionally) we do have issues with excitement but we are working on it. They both have time out areas which are a must.. I could go on and on......

As for charlottes health- EBN is awesome in that prevention and knowledge are very helpful. Make sure to go to a reputable breeder and research plenty! My breeder is in North Carolina.

(Arghhhhhh have to go back and remember how to upload a photo lol smh.)
 

punky

New member
Mar 19, 2010
732
41
washington, west virginia
Country
usa
Bulldog(s) Names
porkchop, abbey, gucci and rocky,
i agree with the others.. i have 4 bullies and i would look for a breeder that breeds for good health. i was lucky to find the one found on our second bully.. my fourth one was a rescue and so far his health is nothing to serious that we couldn't take care of..i found this site really informational also..
 

natski282

Dog Hoarder
May 27, 2013
2,399
151
Barrys Bay Ont Canada
Country
Canada
Bulldog(s) Names
Megan = Meg,
Welcome to EBN
ask away and yee shall receive here and read on Macdough you came to the right place for info , friendship and all Bulldog stuff
You will find that we Demand pics here also once you get your pup were all sort of strange that way .
As I am old as dirt I am well past your original question but there are tons of Bully lovers here that have gone thru what you want to know .
Here is Tilly as a pup IMG_6002-600x500.jpgPrimrose=Rosie 003.JPGand soon to come home from the breeder Primrose = Rosie ( Rosie comes home this weekend at 8 weeks old ) just to keep your excitement up a bit
 

Miss Charlotte

New member
Jan 31, 2015
147
10
Elizabeth,NJ
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Charlotte
[MENTION=13140]Donnam[/MENTION] the pacifiers are a struggle. The baby doesn't help since he gives and or throws them at her and laughs as charlotte runs for them---- lol the puzzle pieces are a mess luckily the baby doesn't realize there are pieces missing!


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