Help Needed! soft palate surgery for Engish Bulldogs

lgauci

New member
Oct 30, 2016
1
0
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Dottie
Hi Everyone -

I am the proud owner of a 5 month old English bulldog (dottie). SHe is my first English although I do have a 4 year old Frenchie too.

Dottie is having trouble with her breathing. It just seems labored for such a young girl. She also snores heavily. I am considered soft palate surgery but would lilke some more information on it. Is she too young? can I have it done while she is under anesthesia for her spaying? Any anecdotal stories or information would be very helpful for me. I do intend to speak to my vet about it also. Is it covered under insurance?

thank you everyone!
Laura
 

cefe13

Well-known member
Sep 12, 2013
3,714
205
Country
Sweden
Bulldog(s) Names
Castor (2013-2021 RIP)
Many bulldogs here have gone through soft palate / nares surgery! Castor was 1.5 years old but I think [MENTION=2894]2BullyMama[/MENTION] has experience of surgery in a much younger bulldog?

I'm in Sweden so not the same insurance companies here but we were lucky in that our insurance did cover quite a lot of the costs.

We noticed that Castor was having trouble when he was about 1 and then it got worse month by month. He would throw up white foam almost every day and he had trouble breathing when he was excited or warm. After the operation, his breathing improved dramatically so we're very happy that we had the procedure done. I and several others have written a lot about our experience here so just search for 'soft palate' to read our stories and please ask if you have further questions!
 

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)
Has your vet checked her nares? I had Lambeau's nares widened at 16 weeks and it really made a difference for him... now at 2 yrs old he barely snores and has little issues with breathing/stamina.

My Frenchie had palate and nares at 1 yr, but had to have it again at 2 because it continues to grow.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

ddnene

EBN's SWEETHEART aka our little GOOB
Staff member
Jun 19, 2013
14,554
1,249
Nashville, Tennessee
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Willow (2015) Walter (2014-22) Winston (2012-13) Wellie (2012-13) Bella (2007-13)
I had the surgery for my bulldog Walter, and I'm considering having it done w/Willow as well. It made a HUGE difference for Walter and his breathing...
 

AdorabullHenry

New member
Jun 9, 2016
38
2
Country
United States
Bulldog(s) Names
Henry
My first piece of advice would be to make sure you are going to a vet that specializes in English bulldogs, as they are a very special breed and need special care when going under anesthesia. It may be a bt of a drive but it's so worth it, especially for this situation since the soft pallet issue is unique to flat faced breeds. My Henry is actually getting this surgery done on the 11th. He will be almost 8 months when the time comes. The vet did say that it is a bit early to do it because there is the possibility of t changing as he grows more, but it is unlikely and it's worth it to ease there breathing issues as soon a son possible. He is also getting fixed at the same time so it's worth it to only make them go under anesthesia once because they have a higher chance of not coming out of it due to the flat faces. My vet says the only way they can tell for sure if they need the soft pallet cut is while they're under anesthesia, so I would tell the vet the symptoms and pretty much give them the okay to do it if it needs to be done at that time. That's exactly what we're doing. It could also be her nostrils are right, that's also an issue Henry has. So based on how the soft pallet looks they're either cutting that or cutting his nostrils to open them up. But definitely try to find a bulldog vet it's night and day the info they give me compared to the first vet I took him to
 

AdorabullHenry

New member
Jun 9, 2016
38
2
Country
United States
Bulldog(s) Names
Henry
And for insurance it depends on what kind you have, some are basic wellness plans and some, like mine from nationwide cover everything even fixing!!
 

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