My 1st Bully! Advice Would be Appreciated!

[TX Bully Lover]

So I've adored bulldogs all my life and finally reached a point where I felt I could give a dog the necessary attention it deserves. I acquired Porkchop, an 8 week old English Bulldog last Friday. Needless to say he's been a major handful since he's arrived home. I have some questions/concerns that I would really appreciate some advice on.

1) When we picked him up from the breeder she was feeding him Science Diet, which she had just started after initially feeding him Pedigree which she said gave him the runs. I had researched dog food in advance, and had a bag of Merrick Chicken, brown rice, and green pea puppy food waiting for him. He loves the food but his stool is still loose, and even worse his farting is out of control. I mean he's only 8lbs and his farts rival a 300lb Billy-Bob frat boy that has feasted on wings and beer all weekend. We're talking room clearing mustard gas.. So should I try changing his food again or wait things out and see if it gets better?

2) Both myself and my girlfriend work so our walking schedule (which right now is just backyard) is morning, noon the GF comes home for lunch, 3:30 PM dog walker comes, then I walk him when I get home from work at 6:30 PM. Though Porkchop has been FANTASTIC about going on his pee pads (he took to them within 24 hrs) he has yet to go outside.. During the day and overnight he's in his crate, and obviously he can't hold it that long yet so 1/2 of the crate has his blanket while the other 1/2 has a pee pad. He's pretty good at going on his peed pad in the crate as well. My question is are we addressing the housebreaking process correctly? My worry is that so far he has no interest in going outside and will actually become trained to go on the pee pads instead, which will be another habit to break later on. But at the same time we NEED the pee pads to prevent accidents in the house and in his crate to tide him over until he can hold it long enough.

3) He seems to get pretty smelly, pretty quick. We used some "waterless dog shampoo" which cleaned him up for a few days, but he's back to being a stinker. Any advice to handle this?

Thanks all!

 

[Davidh]

Well welcome to the site and he is just adorable. They food you can give a week or so to see if it gets better. We feed our pups FROMM Puppy Gold on the pink bag and our pups do great on it. I don't know how much you are feeding him, but sometimes if they get too much food that will make their poop soft. He should be fed 3 times a day for now until about 5 months of age. Try cutting back just a little on his food to see if that helps with the loose poop. Sounds like the breeder never took them outside so he is not used to that. Give him time and patience and he will figure out the potty outside thing. We have two 10 week old pups now and they know just what to do when we let them outside. It just takes time and plenty of praise when they do finally go potty outside. We always let ours outside when they are about 5 or 6 weeks old so they can get used to the grass and this helps with potty training.

One of our pups decided she didn't like the puppy food any longer and stopped eating it, so we switched her over to FROMM Pork and Peas, which all FROMM 4 star foods are an all stage food and can be fed to pups of this age. She is doing well on it.

Just be patient with him and he will learn soon enough. Another thing we use is cotton pads with an absorbent lining and water proof backing for puppy pads. They work better than regular puppy pads and are washable, plus the pups don't tear them up as bad, as they love to chew on every thing. Let me know if you want me to send you the info on where we buy them.

 

[LariP]

Porkchop is adorabull!

As David said it would be a good idea to give the Merrick's another week or so to see if it settles. Did you do a slow transition from the Science diet?

With Amelia we have noticed she is very inconsistent with her stools. One time it'll be nice and firm, next time not so much. We also feed Fromm puppy in the pink bag. She however also has a very bad habit of eating whatever plant takes her fancy. And our back garden is full of plants.

Perhaps adding a tablespoon of plain Greek Yogurt or some Kefur to his food would help a bit with the gas. Probiotics are a good thing. You might also see the gas get better once he is fully transitioned over to the Merricks.

I can't really speak to the puppy pads. Bruce is retired so he's here to let Amelia out during the day. So we never tried puppy pads.

 

[Marine91]

Welcome to the site. You have been give some great advice so all I can add is be patient and consistent with lots of praise while working on potty training. They get the hint eventually.

 

[Texas Carol]

Welcome to EBN, I live in Central, TX, we are getting lots of Texans joining up, Yea!

The best way to get rid of gas or to reduce it greatly is going grain free, even to treats.
Probiotics aid in digestion and so help a lot plus aid in strengthening the immune system.

Chicken can be tricky for some bullies so just a caution if after a couple months, still w/gas.

My advice, that's a lot of changes very quickly...I'd keep on the Merricks 2-3 months and give
a dollop of plain, unsweetened yogurt per day, a teasp of REAL pumpkin once a day~not pumpkin
mix~it will firm up the poo, add probiotics if not included in Merricks ingredients. Let us know.

After bath & final rinse, mix 1 cup of vinegar to the rest water in a big plastic pitcher then pour
over him and not rinse out, you can blot dry. This will help his skin PH and once it dries will not smell
like vinegar.

That pic of Porkchop is heart melting...beautiful bully, congratulations!

 

[rockybullywrinkle]

Hi there and welcome! I'm a new bully here from TX too!

Food: My puppy eats Bil-Jac. It uses 5 pounds of actual chicken for a 6-lb. bag of food, and my pup does well on it. He has stinky farts too but his stool is always firm, so it's easy clean-up if he has an accident.

Housetraining: Sounds like you are doing pretty well! The most important things in housebreaking are a crate, a set feeding amount and schedule, and a set walking schedule. Looks like you're doing all those things. Just make sure he isn't overeating or eating too many treats that might make him go more than usual.

Stink: Make sure you to wipe out the wrinkles on his face and a quick wipe under the tail every now and then (he can get gunk built up in both those places and it'll smell a little fishy and gross). Also, some puppy cologne is a quick fixer-upper!Hope that helps! Good luck with your bully!

 

[Ashleym]

I love the name porkchop and she is too cute! I agree with everyone above. Cant wait to see more pictures

 

[Lokismom]

Cleaning the wrinkles is huge in helping with the smell and his little arm pits we clean Loki's face multiple times a day as well as his tail pocket. It is good to get him used to cleaning asap since it is going to happen a lot he is such a beautiful boy can't wait till watch him grow up

 

[cali baker]

Congratulations and Welcome to EBN! Such great advice already given here! It sounds like Pork Chop is doing really well at such a young age already w/the potty training and the walking in the backyard. The crate is a valuable tool in training...something I only learned when my boys were well over a year old. They are a handful but a fun and loving handful...so enjoy her every moment b/c they grow up so quickly!

 

[BruceP]

to EBN.... Enjoy the site. You are getting some sound advice. Thanx for joining.

 

[2BullyMama]

You have a BEAUTIFUL little Bully boy --- love the stripped/freckled ear!! The gang gave some great advice.... best of luck with the baby and keep us posted especially with pictures.

 

[ChrisRN]

so glad you joined us! It looks like you've gotten some great advice already. I think changing his diet food may have an impact on his body odor too.

 

[TX Bully Lover]

Hey all,

Thanks so much for all the advice and feedback. We'll keep going with Merrick and see how things pan out-- it does contain grains though. We're going to give him his first bath tonight so hopefully that turns out well . Last night was the first day that he's slept through the night and not woken us with howling, so that is a huge relief. It was also the first night he hasn't taken a dump in his crate, though he still refuses to go outside but will immediately go on his pee-pad when he comes back inside.

Here's a few more pics

 

[Texas Carol]

​Oh my gosh, I'm just smitten with love for him...truly a great looking bully!

 

[Ashleym]

Pink Paws and Puppy Bellies are the Best!!