In need of advice. We don't know what to do.

Ftshumate · Oct 13, 2021

I have had a total 15 bulldogs thru the years and I have three now. One is a. Rescue. I feed them Zignature / Zeeential Formula. It is chicken free which is a must for English Bulldogs. Mine do not have any skin or allergy problems,,, knock on wood. I guess I could maybe take another rescue.

PebblesMommy · Oct 13, 2021

I have no advice but just want to say I can tell how much you love Morris. You are a great dog mom and he is very fortunate to have someone who loves him so much. I can’t even imagine how emotionally drained you are.

2BullyMama · Oct 15, 2021

Morrisisboss said:
Oh thats an interesting idea using colloidal silver. We do clean his face after he eats but its just licking of everything after he eats is our main concern regarding that.
We try to prevent him from licking everything but theres only so much we can do, shy of putting on a muzzle.

Any update since using the colloid silver?

I love Emily · Oct 20, 2021

ppardoski said:
So sorry for your family and Morris...I had a white female English Bulldog named Beauty. She had all the same issues as Morris, eye surgery, conjunctivitis, ear infections, cysts on paws between toes, allergies, seasonal flank alopecia, surgical removal of benign cyst on top of head between ears, cysts in mouth on Jaw bone removed as her last surgery. I could go on...so much love for her and hated to see her with so many ailments but always took care of my baby girl. I did holistic pet nutrition shortly after I got her from a breeder at 3 months old. Discovered that Salmon and Turkey are the highest quality Protein with little ever allergic reactions. Beauty could not eat beef, chicken or any whitefish due to allergies, gastric sensitivity, vomiting, etc. Chicken is known to cause ear infections in most breeds, lamb & duck are more 'oilier' based meats. I also used 93% Fat Free ground turkey, cooked about 1 lb/week to put over her kibble organic, sensitive, dairy-free, no eggs, wheat free diet.

Also, after the vet prescribed Merck prescription drops (which burned) for dry eyes & others which were quite costly, my eye doctor prescribed an over-the-counter 'Retaine' for humans which consisted of Mineral Water/Oil effective for Dry eyes/alllergies. These did not burn and Beauty did let me apply those along with Mineral Water drops to rinse/clean the mucous from her eyes - this was about 4-6 times per day.

Another holistic cure for the season flank alopecia after Vet prescribed antibiotics & prednisone which never worked and would only make these hot spots even redder/more irritated, I discovered that Melatonin 3 mg capsules once a day over dry food resolved the issue within 4-6 weeks, no more redness or itchy spots and her fur grew back within 2 months and never an issue. I kept her on the 3mg/day dose as a maintenance plan the rest of her life and never had any issues after. Just the issues with the cysts on her paws. I used peroxide to cleanse, and calendula oil to clear up and heal the cysts to prevent infection. Sovereign silver first aid gel is also great for skin/healing. It helped to clear up the bruising around surgical sites within a few days - I was amazed at how quickly she healed!!

Unfortunately, I had the epileptic cysts in her mouth removed, since it seemed to be a reason she stopped eating for 1-1/2 weeks, she was 9-1/2 years old at the time. I was having to feed her one kibble at a time, she would choke/vomit on soft food, rice and everything else I tried. After that surgery, she was on a down-ward spiral - whether it was the anesthesia and her reaction to it, but she start developing seizures shortly after, which was one of the most difficult things to watch and see her go through that and feeling so helpless. This was during covid lockdown, and unfortunately vet kept prescribing different medications without being able to witness and see her condition, until I finally decided I could not possibly watch her go through another one of these episodes. I took her to the vet on Aug. 21, 2020 as I called prior, and said this cannot go on any longer - this seizure was continuing for 90 minutes and no more medication as I had just picked up a new script last night. After sedation, her heart stopped within a minute & she was no longer suffering. The Vet apologized to me with tears in his eyes, saying 'I'm so, so very sorry - I didn't realize how bad Beauty really was...she was very, very bad and you made the right decision for her. It was the hardest, most emotional thing for me to do having her for a blessed 10 years and 3 months - even more devasting than my divorce, which marriage lasted less than 6 years!!

As difficult as it was to let go of my baby girl - she no longer had to go through another episode, and suffer. I honor her and all our bully friends by looking at the photos of how she made everyone smile, laugh and entertain us with her silly, goofy antics. All pictures of our bully friends bring so much joy and happiness!! Be blessed with all your memories of Morris, whatever decision you make and hopefully others can benefit from holistic suggestions.

Hope this helps.

Huge Hugs to you. I am so sorry for what you and your Fur baby had to endure. I do understand, it is the blasted guilt and what if's that can do your head in. You did your best. I am sorry for your loss.

Kathy Sherinsky · Oct 20, 2021

blabaird said:
We have been very fortunate in a lot of respects with our Grace Kelly but we found the best thing for her skin by accident trying to prevent bladder infections with a home remedy by putting apple cider vinegar in her drinking water. She went from having hot spots and skin issues that we tried everything from the vet and other home remedies but to no avail. We started putting apple cider vinegar in her water for the bladder infection prevention and the apple cider vinegar did not help that but all her skin issues and hot spots cleared up, we did not put it together at first so when it appeared the apple cider vinegar did not help the bladder infection issues we stopped and then we started having skin issues again, my husband and I sat down one day and said to each other, what has changed from before, we stopped the apple cider vinegar in her water bowl and once we started putting it in again the skin issues completely cleared up and we have not had an issue since, she is going to be 11 in November so that has been nearly 10 years now. Now we still have issues with her folds around the nose and we clean her ears regularly but no more itching or bare spots on her body so it may or may not work for you but it's worth a try!!

Can you tell me how much apple cider vinegar you used?

VooDoo & Breezy Cano · Nov 17, 2021

Crystal Searcy said:
Hello. I have 2 English Bulldogs.
My 7yr old Male has a few of your baby's problems.
Apoquel was tried at his old vet. Junk! Cost me $160.
Old vet wanted to literally cut out his cysts! Hell no!! That's when she was fired!!
My new vet, has gotten him all handled!! He actually got a yeast infection in his ears when I first went there. 2 visits later... fixed for $30.
What really took care of these problems was, hill's prescription diet derm complete! I pay $107 for a 24lb bag. With one dog on it, it'll last you longer. It's guaranteed they'll eat it or your money back. It is for food and environmental allergies.
Also, I use malacetic wipes. Hc for his paws to keep them clean and free of more issues and regular for his face and ears. My vet does recommend them also. Those will set you back less than$75 and last.
Basically, with what he has now... you could keep him problem free for way less.
Good luck!!

What did you do to fix his ear infections?

VooDoo & Breezy Cano · Nov 17, 2021

Morrisisboss said:
Hi there everyone,
My husband and I are at a loss and in need of some advice. Its our good boy, Morris...

I will be as honest as I can be about how we are feeling and coping. But I can say that our dogs health is causing mental health issues for my husband and I.

For a long, long time, Morris’s health has been declining. He has suffered from:

-massive tail pocket infections (his tail had to be removed) and now he cant hold his feces very well so he has lots of poop accidents
-entropion, on both eye lids, upper and lower (has had a surgery to correct)
-his vision is limited and suffers from chronic conjunctivitis due to allergies.
-interdigital cysts. They start to swell and explode across the room in about 20 minutes.
-yeast, bacterial infections and losing the fur in his back. (He uses special wipes and shampoos I import and get him professionally bathed for dogs with skin issues )
-chronic ear infections.
-obsessive foot licking and scratching

All in all, we have spend about $45,000 on him.

I have spent countless hours with him in the bathtub, at the vets, preparing holistic poultices and ointments. We have gone holistic as possible but now we cannot. We have done food trials, allergy tests. Everything.
We have tried to make him as comfortable as possible but hes absolutely miserable and wont play or lift his head most of the time.

All he does when he lifts his head is lick, lick, lick and we cant stand it. We are getting angry because the socks and shoes we use wont stay on unless we tape them. We are trying not to get angry with him but it is honestly getting really hard and we know that its absolutely not his fault. We have spent a fortune on him and cant afford to anymore and frankly, are not willing.

He has been on every medication under the sun. Apoquel, cytopoint, steroids, antibiotics, benadryl, and now hes on this anti itch which is helping a lot. He’s up walking around and engaging!

But, when a problem gets better, two takes its place.

We have had to switch him off of raw to a kibble because I have just had a baby. He likes to lick everything and with the baby , we were concerned about meat juice and getting the baby sick.

The anti itch medication he’s on has increased his thirst and hes started to urinate in the house and needs to be taken out twice a night. 11pm and 3 am, then 5am.
I need to take Morris out every two hours during the day but my baby is about to crawl and its becoming overwhelming; We are concerned about the baby crawling on a floor shared with the dog with all the blood, feces and urine.
We dont want to lock Morris upstairs and we dont want to limit the babies movements. Our place isnt huge so we cannot really partition off the house.

We are at an absolute loss on what to do. We have called a shelter and they said that if we surrenered him, it will kill him and we have asked family and friends but no one wants the financial burden or can give the time for his medical needs.

Im sure Morris senses our anxiety and he has snapped at two people.

We love Morris very very much. He is a lovely boy. But honestly, hes gone from being our dog, our boy, to a burden being held together by pills and medicated baths.

And maybe there is an obvious answer we are not seeing. Everyone we have spoken to about him has said we should put him to sleep; Its giving us extreme anxiety.

We never thought it would get to this point.

Writing this has me in tears.
help help help help help help help

Hi, I've been thinking about Morris ever since I first read your post. He's such a beautiful boy. I'm heartbroken by his issues. Wish I was able to offer you more advise other than what has already been given. But please don't give up on him. Sending positive vibes and prayers.

Riggly · Nov 18, 2021

Morrisisboss said:
Hi there everyone,
My husband and I are at a loss and in need of some advice. Its our good boy, Morris...

I will be as honest as I can be about how we are feeling and coping. But I can say that our dogs health is causing mental health issues for my husband and I.

For a long, long time, Morris’s health has been declining. He has suffered from:

-massive tail pocket infections (his tail had to be removed) and now he cant hold his feces very well so he has lots of poop accidents
-entropion, on both eye lids, upper and lower (has had a surgery to correct)
-his vision is limited and suffers from chronic conjunctivitis due to allergies.
-interdigital cysts. They start to swell and explode across the room in about 20 minutes.
-yeast, bacterial infections and losing the fur in his back. (He uses special wipes and shampoos I import and get him professionally bathed for dogs with skin issues )
-chronic ear infections.
-obsessive foot licking and scratching

All in all, we have spend about $45,000 on him.

I have spent countless hours with him in the bathtub, at the vets, preparing holistic poultices and ointments. We have gone holistic as possible but now we cannot. We have done food trials, allergy tests. Everything.
We have tried to make him as comfortable as possible but hes absolutely miserable and wont play or lift his head most of the time.

All he does when he lifts his head is lick, lick, lick and we cant stand it. We are getting angry because the socks and shoes we use wont stay on unless we tape them. We are trying not to get angry with him but it is honestly getting really hard and we know that its absolutely not his fault. We have spent a fortune on him and cant afford to anymore and frankly, are not willing.

He has been on every medication under the sun. Apoquel, cytopoint, steroids, antibiotics, benadryl, and now hes on this anti itch which is helping a lot. He’s up walking around and engaging!

But, when a problem gets better, two takes its place.

We have had to switch him off of raw to a kibble because I have just had a baby. He likes to lick everything and with the baby , we were concerned about meat juice and getting the baby sick.

The anti itch medication he’s on has increased his thirst and hes started to urinate in the house and needs to be taken out twice a night. 11pm and 3 am, then 5am.
I need to take Morris out every two hours during the day but my baby is about to crawl and its becoming overwhelming; We are concerned about the baby crawling on a floor shared with the dog with all the blood, feces and urine.
We dont want to lock Morris upstairs and we dont want to limit the babies movements. Our place isnt huge so we cannot really partition off the house.

We are at an absolute loss on what to do. We have called a shelter and they said that if we surrenered him, it will kill him and we have asked family and friends but no one wants the financial burden or can give the time for his medical needs.

Im sure Morris senses our anxiety and he has snapped at two people.

We love Morris very very much. He is a lovely boy. But honestly, hes gone from being our dog, our boy, to a burden being held together by pills and medicated baths.

And maybe there is an obvious answer we are not seeing. Everyone we have spoken to about him has said we should put him to sleep; Its giving us extreme anxiety.

We never thought it would get to this point.

Writing this has me in tears.
help help help help help help help

Hi. Look up NAD+ for dogs (nad+) it’s Resveratrol and MNM. It‘s a revolutionary rejuvenation and life extension supplement. Then Look to see if you can get Lillys Kitchen wet dog meat, which saved my dogs life after we switched to it. If you can’t get Lillys Kitchen imported, then do try to get organic non-inoculated meat and organic vegetables, guided with expert nutritional advice. Dont be scammed into buying any formulated food specially made for dogs. Apoquel and all those other meds destroy the organs causing kidney desease and probably affect them mentaly. You need a natural healthy gental approach with real organic meat and veg, and a few natural supplements.
Have you looked up hormone replacement therapy for your dog? If it’s available for men and women it must be available for dogs.

nursejusty · Feb 10, 2022

Charissa said:
Hello, I have some very good news. I have had 10+ English Bulldogs, some have had their tail pockets done (basically no tail). Some have had allergies, some have had the inter-digit cysts. I learned early on to always go to a Bulldog Vet. It'll save you lots of money, time, headaches, and mental stress. Most Bulldog Vets are in touch with Bulldog "show" veterans who pass along the knowledge of years & years worth of experience. That helped me tremendously. I'll pass what I know to you.
Inter-digit Cysts are caused by wetness in or around the paws, either licking or standing on wet surfaces. (1) Keep feet dry at all costs (that means towel drying when they come in from outside if it rained or walked in water. I found that the dog will stop licking once the cyst if gone. So, here is the cure all for any skin issues: Canine Relief (online) sells an Anti-microbial spray that works excellent & only costs around $18, you can also find other brands like Vetricyin at the pet shops but I like Canine Relief best because they also have a follow up wound relief that you apply in-between applications (minimal $). Call & talk to a representative & they will tell you the best approach. I myself apply the Anti-microbial spray more often than directed. Catching it early on will provide the best results: in 1 -3 days it will be completely gone if caught early enough. When there is an ongoing inflamation it can take days longer, just don't give up. You will see results daily. I even use it on cold sores that I'm prone to getting, yes it is the same as human anti-microbials only it cost less.
I feed raw when possible ($$$), but, also have tried all other forms of dog food. I feed grain-free when I've fed kibble. Allergies are caused by grains. Stay away from "hot" meats like pork, venison, and lamb. I've had 2 babies with my bulldogs and never had a worry about feeding raw. Don't let the dog lick the baby but, if it happens, then don't freak out.
You can give a human grade allergy med like Claritin for eye itching or goo.
I would not put your dog "Down" and if you cannot keep him, there are people like me who are not intimidated by a bulldogs special needs. I rarely go to a vet except for surgeries and rabies vaccinations. Otherwise, I go to clinics to save money. I have had to report some vets to the veterinary medical board for treatments to bulldogs that are unnecessary & unnecessarily expensive. One Vet put one of my sold puppies in an oxygen chamber ($2000), telling the new owner to put the puppy down. Turns out that 1 in every 200 bulldogs have a undersized Trachea and eventually grow into a healthy sized Trachea. I took that puppy out of the oxygen chamber, while they were outraged at me, telling me I was a killer...to a bulldog vet who treated it for the correct "bacterial" not viral pneumonia. Told the owner to get a nebulizer/humidifier & put Tylan (purchased at a feed store for bovine respiratory antibiotic). In a week the puppy was bouncing around and acting normal. I had known to bring the puppy home and give it a dose of Tylan on top of raw hamburger until I got it to the vet the next morning. The killer was the vet that didn't know about bulldogs.

I need some advice! My dog has allergies of some kind! No idea what. Most likely food since there is not much for him to get into! I have tried so many friggen different foods nothing works. Tried grain free, fish, lamb no venison all peoples suggestion.
His allergies present like this: Red lips and sometimes belly, what bothers me is he constantly sounds like there is tons of phlemb in his throat and he can't clear his throat and coughs with that but does not clear anything and the cough is not strong. His eyes are always watery and this happens all day everyday! Tried benadryl and yertec and even Apoquel and nothing touches him!!! Ergghh should i make his food?? I am at a loss and have tried so many with him

ddnene · Feb 10, 2022

nursejusty said:
I need some advice! My dog has allergies of some kind! No idea what. Most likely food since there is not much for him to get into! I have tried so many friggen different foods nothing works. Tried grain free, fish, lamb no venison all peoples suggestion.
His allergies present like this: Red lips and sometimes belly, what bothers me is he constantly sounds like there is tons of phlemb in his throat and he can't clear his throat and coughs with that but does not clear anything and the cough is not strong. His eyes are always watery and this happens all day everyday! Tried benadryl and yertec and even Apoquel and nothing touches him!!! Ergghh should i make his food?? I am at a loss and have tried so many with him

Has he been evaluated for an elongated palate? That could explain the gagging and cough...

Food can be an exhaustive undertaking... we ended up doing allergy testing on Walter and found out that he is allergic to egg, chicken, wheat, turkey and salmon. It made our protein choices easier, and we give him Cytopoint injections on a regular basis.

anatess · Feb 10, 2022

nursejusty said:
I need some advice! My dog has allergies of some kind! No idea what. Most likely food since there is not much for him to get into! I have tried so many friggen different foods nothing works. Tried grain free, fish, lamb no venison all peoples suggestion.
His allergies present like this: Red lips and sometimes belly, what bothers me is he constantly sounds like there is tons of phlemb in his throat and he can't clear his throat and coughs with that but does not clear anything and the cough is not strong. His eyes are always watery and this happens all day everyday! Tried benadryl and yertec and even Apoquel and nothing touches him!!! Ergghh should i make his food?? I am at a loss and have tried so many with him

Try Prey-Model Raw. Basically, go to your grocery store's meat section and buy meat parts there. You can just eyeball it - for every 8 lbs of meat, add 1/2 lb of liver, 1/2 lb of kidney, and 1 lb of bone. Use as much variety of meat as is available - beef (beef hearts are cheap so you can mix it in with the roasts that are much pricier to bring the cost down), chicken (gizzards are cheap so you can mix it in with the breast parts to bring the cost down), pork, fish, etc.

A lot of times, allergies to kibble meat ingredient doesn't follow to raw meat. For example, my dog was allergic to chicken ingredient in kibble but when she got transitioned, she ate raw chicken without a problem.

2BullyMama · Feb 10, 2022

nursejusty said:
I need some advice! My dog has allergies of some kind! No idea what. Most likely food since there is not much for him to get into! I have tried so many friggen different foods nothing works. Tried grain free, fish, lamb no venison all peoples suggestion.
His allergies present like this: Red lips and sometimes belly, what bothers me is he constantly sounds like there is tons of phlemb in his throat and he can't clear his throat and coughs with that but does not clear anything and the cough is not strong. His eyes are always watery and this happens all day everyday! Tried benadryl and yertec and even Apoquel and nothing touches him!!! Ergghh should i make his food?? I am at a loss and have tried so many with him

What food brand and protein are you currently feeding?