HELP! Please?

[Bunny]

Hi I need your advice!
I've had Bella since she was 4 months old, she's 7 months old now. I've got the gist of owning an EB but I'm indecisive about what to use on her for her health (e.g. nose/paw butter, oils, tear stain remover, ear cleaner, etc.) or what to feed her I read so many different things on the internet and in EB books but I want the BEST of the BEST for my Bella!

I just stick to the basics:

• Wipe her folds everyday with puppy or baby wipes and keep them dry.
• Feed her 2 cups of food( 1 in am 1 at pm), I feed her Nutro Max puppy food (hard) just because that's what her breeder had her on before I got her. I used to mix in a little Blue Buffalo with each cup because I heard they get good nutrients out of it but it made her poo too runny so I stopped.
• Try to take her out for 1 walk a day
• Feed her Zuke's treats, they seem like the healthiest at the store although she prefers the "junk food" treats. Oh ans I give her her favorite, frozen green beans.
• Take her to Petsmart or Petco to get her nails trimmed, I don't have a schedule for her nails I just take her in if they're getting long
• Bathe her when she gets dirty

Overall I think she's a healthy baby (besides her red itchy eye which I'm taking her to the vet for tomorrow) So here are my questions:

1. What is the best food and treats for an EB, and when do I stop feeding her puppy food?
2. How often should I bathe her, I know dogs really don't need baths often but like I said I only bathe her when she gets muddy or poopy.. she loves being in water!
3. She doesn't have a tail pocket under her tail, hers is above her tail. Is that normal? It isn't too deep, How often should I clean that?
4. How often should she get her nails trimmed? I don't keep track but it seems like it's been once a month that I've taken her to get it done. Also should I stick to trimming or try the filing?
5. She's been getting a crusty nose and paws!! What do I use to repair them? When she gets a crusty nose does it mean she's sick??
6. What is the average weight for a female puppy EB and a female adult EB?
7. This one and the next one aren't biggies but what works best to remove tear stains?
8. I want to buy her a few articles of clothing but it seems they don't make clothes for EB's know where I could get some??

I know that is a lot but I feel like y'all are the best people to get advice from!
Please if you have any recommendations for anything at all it would help me out!

 

[Bunny]

Forgot one! She has already gone into heat.. which I really don't know much about but I was planning on getting her spayed anyway. I will talk more about this with my vet tomorrow but how long will it take for her to recover? Is 7 months a good age? How safe is it?..I guess that was 3 more oops

 

[Marine91]

Here are my thoughts. Please keep in mind that what works for one bully will not always work for another.

1. What is the best food and treats for an EB, and when do I stop feeding her puppy food? On the right hand side of the home page there is a link to a great article on dog food ratings. Many mambers here including myself us the Fromm's 4 Star Grain Free line with great success.
2. How often should I bathe her, I know dogs really don't need baths often but like I said I only bathe her when she gets muddy or poopy.. she loves being in water!We typically fully bather Harlea once a month and she gets an ACV rinse between baths just to refresh her coat plus it makes her smell really nice.
3. She doesn't have a tail pocket under her tail, hers is above her tail. Is that normal? It isn't too deep, How often should I clean that?Again all bullies are different. Some have tight and deep tail pockets and others have next to nothing. The majority of the time people clean them once or twice daily to prevent yucky infections.
4. How often should she get her nails trimmed? I don't keep track but it seems like it's been once a month that I've taken her to get it done. Also should I stick to trimming or try the filing? We have Harlea's trimmed and filed once a month.
5. She's been getting a crusty nose and paws!! What do I use to repair them? When she gets a crusty nose does it mean she's sick?? Crusty nose doesn't always mean illness. Some bullies tend to get a dry nose from time to time. Products like Snout Soother and Coconut oil can provide help and relief.
6. What is the average weight for a female puppy EB and a female adult EB? Again bullies come in all shapes and sizes. My baby is right at 7 months old and only weighs 33lbs while other members have babies that way 30lbs or more at 4 or 5 months.
7. This one and the next one aren't biggies but what works best to remove tear stains? Duoxo pas are a bully owners best friend.
8. I want to buy her a few articles of clothing but it seems they don't make clothes for EB's know where I could get some?? Sometimes you can't catch some items at a local pet store or online like an Etsy store but most of the time we just buy toddler clothes for Harlea and they fit her just fine.

As for the spay Harlea's was just done last Friday only a few days after turning 7 months old. We got lucky and she was ready before her first heat cycle hit.

 

[Samantha Orts]

1. I don't know what is "best" but I feed June Fromm. She used to be on Fromm puppy food but I switched her over to the all stages food at 5 months hoping that would help her tear stains. I feed her the Beef Frittata which is grain free. Still has tear stains though so we are thinking of switching flavors.
2. I bathe June every couple of weeks-usually if she's gotten in some mud or something. She really likes taking a bath but i'm just worried of drying her skin out. We use Johnson and Johnson baby shampoo on her.
3. I don't know much about tail pockets- June's is underneath but not very deep. I just use some Witch Hazel (bought at Walgreens) on a paper towel and try and wipe in there every couple of days. It's self drying too.
4. I would say about once a month-but i'm no expert! We just took June to have hers done for the first time instead of trying to do it ourselves and I will FOR SURE keep doing that. She is so good for them! They do both the nail trim and file. But I think I will just do the nail trim from now on because I walk her on the sidewalk and I thought that actually trimmed them better.
5. June's paws are a little rough (I think from walking on the sidewalk) but the vet said that's normal and fine. He said I get put a little Vaseline on her paws and nose as a moisturizer. I haven't tried it though.
6. All bulldogs are different, but for reference- June turned 6 months old last Friday and is 33 lbs.
7. If you find out please let me know haha
8. Same problem here! I read somewhere on here that people buy clothes in the children's department so i'm going to see if I can find a couple cute toddler shirts or sweaters.
9. Heat- I know nothing about this. June got spayed last week on her 6 month bday. As far as safety goes I think it's just a matter of having a good vet. Ours sees a lot of bulldogs and owns 2 himself so we trust him. She had her surgery last Friday and was drowsy when we picked her up and basically slept all evening. Saturday morning she was her crazy playful self which is nearly giving me a heart attack because i'm so worried she'll rip out her stitches! But she has done totally fine besides that, and hasn't had to wear a cone because she can't even get close to her incision but we've been keeping a close eye on her. She doesn't even seem phased by the whole thing.

 

[Lisabear123]

I thnk marine91 hit on everything perfectly. I stopped feeding Brie puppy food at about 7 months old n switched to Fromms beef frittata. I give her 3/4 cup twice a day w some different veggies like green beans, carrots etc. treats I use either freeze dried liver treats I get from the pet bakery near me or so e of their grain free home made treats. I also make her frozen yogurt n peanut butter drops, give her frozen blueberries or green beans etc. I use 1 squirt of grizzly salmon oil n give her a tbs of plain low fat Greek yogurt on her breakfast. Brie will be 1 year old in on Thursday at weighs about 41 pounds. She is a smaller frame then the average bully but like Marine91 said, they come in all sizes. I bathe her when she needs it. I use a soapless shampoo I get from my vet so it doesn't wash off the flea n tick stuff we use. I use organic coconut oil on her nose, pads to keep them soft, n rub it on her fur sometimes too. The (acv)-apple cider vinegar is also good to use on a warm wash cloth to put on the paws if they seem to get discolored from licking due to allergens. It helps Brie. A lot of ppl put a tsp of acv in the water daily as it helps prevent yeast and is very healthy. I alternate with witch hazel and the phyto pads on her folds and tear stains. I use wipes on her belly n private area, but alternate w witch hazel n phyto pads on her privates fold. Her tail pocket is under her tail, but not deep at all so I clean it every other day unless it needs it daily. I've seen various kinds of tail pockets here..every bully is different. As for nails, we trim them as needed. Usually once a month. A lot of ppl have vets do it, pet groomers do it or use clippers or a dremmel themselves. Whatever you feel comfy with is what will work. We had Brie spayed at 6 mos. it took about a week of recovery. She hadn't reached first heat yet tho, so I'm not sure how that affects anything. The anesthesia can make the poop a little harder so a tiny but of our canned pumpkin (not the pie filling) can help and they get a lot of fluid so for the first few days home they might have to pee more then average. It sounds like your fur baby is in wonderful hands w you!

 

[Lisabear123]

Oh! I think I read somewhere here that a little cornstarch mixture is good for tear stains. Brie gets them from allergies so hers gone n go n the witch hazel n phyto pads seems to keep it managed. I'll tag a few ppl that will def know more thn me! @desertskybulldogs, [MENTION=2071]Davidh[/MENTION], @Texas Carol, @2BullyMama

 

[Bunny]

Thank you all for the great advice and help!!:D:D:D ... Idk how to tag you lol hopefully y'all can see this. What ingredients in food should I stay away from? Like in treats? Also, would I need to take off from work at all when she gets spayed?

 

[Samantha Orts]

June doesn't have any allergies yet that we know of but I think a lot have problems with chicken, sometimes potatoes, and grains. But it all depends. Some have allergies to fish, beef or pork while others do well them... so it's a toss up. My bf did take off work Friday for June's spay but it wasn't really necessary. He dropped her off around 7:30 and we were able to pick her up after 3. He stayed home to take care of some other things, and it just so happened to be on the day she had surgery. We were home with her all weekend and then went to work yesterday as normal.

 

[Marine91]

We didn't take off of work either for Harlea's spay. Plus our vet likes to keep them over night just to be safe. I work from home so it wouldn't have mattered anyhow as I get to love on her all day every day.

 

[Davidh]

You can use corn starch on the tear stains and also hydrogen peroxide on them too. I would wait about two months after her heat to spay her.

 

[Bunny]

You all have put my mind at ease thank you!

 

[Texas Carol]

@Lisabear123...Thanks for the tag

Welcome to EBN, excellent advice from all and though too!

All of what you've asked (and much more) can be found in the Forums,
scroll down till you find the headings you want to know about i. e. Nutrition,
Health, Training, etc...so many articles to read & learn from.

Things to always avoid are Grains (wheat, corn, oats, barley...) and Soy.
Some things are iffy such as white potatoes (causing yeast in sensitive dogs)
but usually sweet potatoes are okay but again, can cause yeast in some bullies.
No dairy or very small amounts...Cami isn't sensitive for yeast so I give 1 level
TBSP of lowfat cottage cheese on top of her meal once or twice a week, also
give 1 level TBSP plain greek yogurt a couple times weekly for better digestion
& improves gut health. Treats are a very soft boiled egg (leave shell on) or a
couple small sardines (in water or olive oil only) once or twice a week. No grain
based treats either!

No soft toys (stuffies), raw hides or ears, smaller balls, etc, only LARGE Kongs or
LARGE Nylabones are safe.

Again, all of this is in these articles, they are your best friend! Good luck & GOD bless.

Use stainless steel drinking & eating bowls or ceramic or glass, NO plastic. If your
bully drools a lot or likes to immerse head into water bowl try to keep dry w/old
dish towels to prevent chin acne.

 

[Texas Carol]

Eyes~DO NOT use regular eye drops, a good choice if needed are GenTeal
Refresh Gel Drops (can be found at Walmart, CVS, Walgreen's).

 

[2BullyMama]

wow - I was late to the party, but the gang has you fantastically covered!

 

[anatess]

I'm gonna chime in with my opinion.

1. What is the best food and treats for an EB, and when do I stop feeding her puppy food? There's no such thing as the best food for all Bullys. Each Bully is different and will have different nutritional needs. Bullys are prone to allergies and some are health-compromised so it may be that what works for somebody's bully will not work for yours. Also, like everything in life, one has to balance what is the best food for your specific bully's needs with what you can afford (both time and money). That said, I feed my dogs raw food following the Prey-Model principle. That way, I know exactly what goes into my dogs and I can tweak each serving for each dog to combat any health concerns. So I buy my dogs' food from the meat section of the grocery and not the pet aisle. If you want to know more about this method, google "Prey-Model Raw".
2. How often should I bathe her, I know dogs really don't need baths often but like I said I only bathe her when she gets muddy or poopy.. she loves being in water! My bullys get bathed once every 3 months or so unless they get dirty/stinky in between. They get brushed daily.
3. She doesn't have a tail pocket under her tail, hers is above her tail. Is that normal? It isn't too deep, How often should I clean that? Daily or more often.
4. How often should she get her nails trimmed? I don't keep track but it seems like it's been once a month that I've taken her to get it done. Also should I stick to trimming or try the filing? Depends on the dog. I have a bully that will not play for more than 5 minutes and will not walk more than half a mile. My other bully is very active and will chase frisbees for an hour or more. These activities will file their nails on the ground. I use a dremel tool, so I file the not-too-active bully at least once a week. I check the active bully's nails every week and file the nails that need it.
5. She's been getting a crusty nose and paws!! What do I use to repair them? When she gets a crusty nose does it mean she's sick?? Not always. More often than not, you'll get other symptoms besides the crusty nose if she's sick. As I feed raw, I increase the fat of their food if their nose is crusty.
6. What is the average weight for a female puppy EB and a female adult EB? Bully sizes vary. The AKC lists adult English Bulldogs around 55 pounds for males and 45 pounds for females. My female bully is 65 lbs, and the male bully is 55 lbs.
7. This one and the next one aren't biggies but what works best to remove tear stains? Tear stains is a symptom of a problem. It is caused by over production of tears that keeps the eyes wet which causes a breeding ground for yeast or bacteria. The problem might be temporary and a no-biggie (like skeletal changes or growing teeth causing the bones/muscles to temporarily pinch the tear ducts) or it could be a big deal - improperly formed drainage, ingrown eyelash, glaucoma, yeast infection, etc. The first step is to try to find out why the dog is producing excessive tears. A check-up with the vet just to be sure it's not a biggie is ideal. Once the cause is determined, then if possible, correct the problem. If it's not correctible - like teething puppies - or to clean out existing tear stains, you can use soft towel moistened with warm water to clean the area and then put cornstarch to keep it dry.
8. I want to buy her a few articles of clothing but it seems they don't make clothes for EB's know where I could get some?? I bought mine from [MENTION=983]LariP[/MENTION]. There are others here who make really cute sweaters and such. I suggest watching the auctions around here.