Couple of questions from new bully parents
Submitted by Aren and Matilda on August 18, 2010 - 2:00pmMy husband and I brought our Matilda home Feb 25th of this year. She is just shy of 8 months old. We have a couple of new parent questions. At what age are they pretty much full grown? What's the general consensus on switching over from puppy food to adult food? She is still on the large breed puppy kibble from Eukanuba that she was on with the breeder. She has lost all of her baby teeth and the new ones I believe have all come in, so I assumed that she has finished the teething process. We've on occasion caught her chewing on the brick of our house, another dog owner said that she's probably still teething... if the adult teeth are in, at this age is her mouth still uncomfortable from the adult ones coming in? The breeder has told us to give her daily 500mg of Vitamin C, which have been doing, are there any other supplements we should be giving her?
Aren
Isn't it fun??
LOL! Bullies are such a blast, huh?
She should reach her adult height by 9-10 months, but she will continue to fill out (shoulders and head). I switched Q to adult kibble by 5 months. Some breeders don't even give their pups puppy food, so it should definitely be OK to switch her over, now.
Teething should be done, by now. However, bullies enjoy a good chew, so it's important to provide safe durable chewies for those powerful jaws! I use big durable nylabones and kongs (the black kongs are stronger than the red). Others have gone with deer antler, raw bones, etc. All dogs are different, though. It's best to monitor your dog closely when giving a new chew or toy. I don't like ANYTHING that they can pull a big hunk off and swallow ("edible" nylabones are not safe IMO). Q obstructed twice from a foreign body, and I think I watch him pretty closely.
Good luck! How 'bout some pics of your girl on the General board? :)
Olivia
congrats!
Congratulations and welcome! Milton is 8 months old too, and believe me, we've seen him chewing on the brick of the house, wooden baseboards, furniture, anything he can get his hands on. His adult teeth are all the way in but I think he just likes to chew on stuff. We got him a couple of super jumbo sized nylabones for strong jaw dogs, and he really likes them.
We're on Blue Buffalo food and will probably be switching him over to adult food in the next month or two. Milton's getting fixed tomorrow. Our vet has us giving Milton one Pet-Tab Plus a day, which he loves and thinks it's a big treat. He also absolutely loves to chew on ice cubes so I take some of my smaller rubbermaid containers and freeze about an inch worth of water in the bottom of them so I can give him "pucks" of ice in various sizes to nom on every now and then.
Milton is 50 pounds at 8 months old and our vet says he's going to keep growing until he's 18 months old, but he will probably not get much taller than he is now. It seems like every day at this stage his head is filling out and his chest is filling in and he's looking more and more like an adult. Just keep a close eye and make sure she doesn't start showing signs of obesity, our vet has said this is the time in their development when they can really pack on pounds in a way that could be detrimental for them, their knees and their hearts.
Good luck!
Milton's Mama -- Tinker AFB, OK
She should be
changed to adult food now. Most breeders typicall suggest changing around 4 or 5 months. My bulldogs are all big chewers, so be sure she has lots of bones and toys to knaw on. Maturity depends on the lines is 2 - 2 1/2 years even up to 3 years.
Congrats on your new baby!
the others have said it all. they are strong chewers and needs strong chew toys.
Thank-you!!
Thank-you to all of you for your comments they are very helpful! We have tons of toys for Matilda, (we really should buy stocks in Petsmart :o)), but I think we may need to get more durable chewies and less soft squeaker toys. To Milton's Mom, I hope everything went okay for your little boy :o)
Aren