xtina615
New member
Hello everyone!
This is my first post to reach out for some help and advice.
My husband and I rescued a 2.5 year old English Bully off of Craigslist about 2 weeks ago. He came to us from his previous owners saying that he had absolutely no health problems. I've never owned an EBD, but I've been in rescue long enough to know some general things about the breed, and my husband has owned 2 in the past. My first step was to switch his food (from Ol Roy- poor guy) to Premium Edge Skin and Coat- which is a salmon based diet. Upon doing my research, I have started including glucosamine chondroitin in his morning feeding, and a probiotic & omega 3 in his nightly feeding. I also have been rotating a boiled egg, yogurt, and canned pumpkin every other night for additional nutrition- he is a BIG eater! LOL....
Second step was to get him to the vet for neutering. The vet wasn't able to do his neutering due to an elongated soft palate, which needs to be surgically removed. I was also informed of his inverted tail- which is pretty nasty, and no matter how much I clean it, it seems to just stay pretty gross. The vet says he has a pretty bad case of dermatitis, and probably needs to have the tail amputated. He also had an inter-digital cyst, and has a cherry eye come up (usually only at night- then he wakes up looking all better). The vet has put him on antibiotics, as well as a steroid ointment for his eye. I have been bathing him every other day in a medicated shampoo (ketoconazole), and have ordered some Duoxo shampoo and spray- to help as much as I can with his yeast build up. I also started applying Desitin to his nose fold (which is rather prominent) as well as his poor little tail.
I will do whatever it takes to get this guy healthy. I guess my biggest questions are as follows:
1.) Is going grain-free with their diet the right thing to do, or is that too much protein for the Bulldogs? This is a link to what I'm currently feeding, which I'm able to find at a small pet supply store here in town: http://www.premiumedgepetfood.com/p..._coat_salmon_potatoes_and_vegetables_formula/
2.) Have any of you gone through with an amputation of an imbedded/inverted tail? I have read some horror stories about this, and I'm trying to weigh the options of which is better- surgery, or dealing with this hot mess forever?? I don't mind cleaning him regularly, but sometimes I can barely remember to take my own vitamins- having Chunk is like having a kid right now with all of his maintenance!
3.) Most things I read about repairing a soft palate sounds positive- any advice here? He is scheduled for surgery on June 12th, along with his tail amputation, and neutering.
I know this was a super long post- I thought it probably required a lot of information. I might still be missing something, but any and all advice on my Chunky would be much appreciated! We adore him, and want to give him the best life possible, and seems as though all we're doing right now is making up for the lack of care by his previous "owners"....jerks.
This is my first post to reach out for some help and advice.
My husband and I rescued a 2.5 year old English Bully off of Craigslist about 2 weeks ago. He came to us from his previous owners saying that he had absolutely no health problems. I've never owned an EBD, but I've been in rescue long enough to know some general things about the breed, and my husband has owned 2 in the past. My first step was to switch his food (from Ol Roy- poor guy) to Premium Edge Skin and Coat- which is a salmon based diet. Upon doing my research, I have started including glucosamine chondroitin in his morning feeding, and a probiotic & omega 3 in his nightly feeding. I also have been rotating a boiled egg, yogurt, and canned pumpkin every other night for additional nutrition- he is a BIG eater! LOL....
Second step was to get him to the vet for neutering. The vet wasn't able to do his neutering due to an elongated soft palate, which needs to be surgically removed. I was also informed of his inverted tail- which is pretty nasty, and no matter how much I clean it, it seems to just stay pretty gross. The vet says he has a pretty bad case of dermatitis, and probably needs to have the tail amputated. He also had an inter-digital cyst, and has a cherry eye come up (usually only at night- then he wakes up looking all better). The vet has put him on antibiotics, as well as a steroid ointment for his eye. I have been bathing him every other day in a medicated shampoo (ketoconazole), and have ordered some Duoxo shampoo and spray- to help as much as I can with his yeast build up. I also started applying Desitin to his nose fold (which is rather prominent) as well as his poor little tail.
I will do whatever it takes to get this guy healthy. I guess my biggest questions are as follows:
1.) Is going grain-free with their diet the right thing to do, or is that too much protein for the Bulldogs? This is a link to what I'm currently feeding, which I'm able to find at a small pet supply store here in town: http://www.premiumedgepetfood.com/p..._coat_salmon_potatoes_and_vegetables_formula/
2.) Have any of you gone through with an amputation of an imbedded/inverted tail? I have read some horror stories about this, and I'm trying to weigh the options of which is better- surgery, or dealing with this hot mess forever?? I don't mind cleaning him regularly, but sometimes I can barely remember to take my own vitamins- having Chunk is like having a kid right now with all of his maintenance!
3.) Most things I read about repairing a soft palate sounds positive- any advice here? He is scheduled for surgery on June 12th, along with his tail amputation, and neutering.
I know this was a super long post- I thought it probably required a lot of information. I might still be missing something, but any and all advice on my Chunky would be much appreciated! We adore him, and want to give him the best life possible, and seems as though all we're doing right now is making up for the lack of care by his previous "owners"....jerks.