First time owner of a bulldog
Submitted by Momma.to.IZZY on January 26, 2011 - 7:41pmI adopted a sweet bulldog named Izzy and brought her home on the 16th of January. She was a year old on Nov. 23rd. I kind of feel like it was more of a rescue than an adoption. The man that owned her kept her in a small cage that was just about the size of her with a bed that only fit the bottom of the cage. It was black and dirty.
So to make a long story short Izzy smelled horrible. In fact she smelled so bad I had to wash not only her my clothes and coat when we got home. Now it is not two weeks later and she stinks again. She smells like a dog that has lived outside with other dogs or in a kennel. She had a few very tiny scabs and bumps on her skin and a few spots of missing hair. The worst is mainly on her neck. They used a choke chain on her and it pulled all of the hair out around her neck. We picked up some medicated shampoo from a friend that has a bulldog and bathed Izzy. Is it too soon to bathe her again? I was just thinking we didn't get her clean enough the first time.
I asked him if she had shots and he replied yes, when I looked at her vet records she had one round of shots at the age of 7 weeks. So she has been to the vet and now does have her correct shots with her booster due in a month. Her nails were horribly overgrown and curled. We had them cut and ground so she can walk comfortably. I have also cleaned the gunk from her ears and make sure her folds are clean.
I am hopelessy in love with this gal. She demands all of my attention. She is always with me because she follows me everywhere I go. I don't even think she misses her previous owner. She never cried when we left or since coming to her new home with us. I purchased some nylabones for her as she seems to have a big urge to chew. We have already taught her how to sit, lie down and give us her paw. When we got her all she would do was jump on any human that came near her. She does not do that anymore.
I purchased a bag of Taste of the Wild salmon and sweet potato. Right now she is finishing off the Science diet I have as we a chihuahua that was on that food when we brought her home. I know it is not the best food for her but I wanted to get rid of what I had left and mix it with the new food as I change her over. Her previous owner didn't even tell me what he was feeding her so after I have read through pages and pages from this site it seems like the new food will be a good choice for her and the chihuahua. I believe her previous owner may of fed her table food because when we eat she goes crazy trying to get at ours. We are breaking her from that habit too. She now stays behind a gate and can watch but not try to jump up on us.
Any suggestions on how I am handling her would be greatly appreciated. I have been on every website and tried to read any information available so I can be a good owner.
Kindest regards,
Melanie
Izzy and her good buddy Shorty
Congratulations, she sounds wonderful!
You are doing the right thing with the food, we use TOTW salmon and our guys do great on it. You can bathe her again, I would use a mild oatmeal shampoo unless she's got a skin infection. Bulldogs shouldn't smell bad, but it might take the food 6 weeks or so to start making a difference in her coat and skin. Has your vet looked at the scabs? I'm sure others will have lot of input, good luck with her, I'm glad she's found a good home.
Thank you!
I will try bathing her again. I was just afraid it was too soon and I sincerely appreciate the help. The redness around her neck is gone now. It just looks bad because there is no hair all the way around the front of her neck.
I don't understand why some people get dogs. Izzy is such a lover. If you had seen the cage they had her in it would have made you cry. It was so tiny.and not even as tall as she was. I didn't even bring it in the house. How they got her in there I will never know.
My vet did not seem concerned about the scabs. They are about a dozen or so very tiny on her back, they cannot be seen, but the bumps and scabs can be felt. I will do some searching tonight to find a vet here in Indy that knows more about bulldogs. Izzy deserves the very best!
Izzy and her good buddy Shorty
What a very lucky girl to have found you and your family...
nm
Sounds like you are doing a great job
and you will be rewarded by lots of love. She is a lucky girl to have found you.
She looks a little thin
But, I'm sure she will gain some weight now that she has a loving home.
Check to make sure she doesn't have a tail pocket. If she has a tail pocket, it would be under her tail at the base and it can collect hair and yeast. It also can become very smelly if not cleaned.
You might want a Vet to scrape the bumps and scabs on her skin if it doesn't clear up soon. In the meantime, I would use a medicated shampoo like chlorhexiderm or zymox. You can use these once a week if needed. I would also rinse her with apple cider vinegar after her bath. That should also help her skin and the odor.
I also use TOTW and I just switched from the Salmon to the Lamb. My dogs seem to be doing great on the lamb.
Good luck and thank you so much for rescueing this girl.
Excellent advice. I was going to mention the tail pocket also..
That will be a smelly pocket if it hasn't ever been cleaned and cared for. Your vet, if they are bulldog knowledgeable, will be able to show you where that pocket is, or you can find it just under the tail and it can go in for more than an inch. Make sure to check that out right away, an infected one will be trouble for her.
You sound awesome! Congrats on a wonderful rescue, and many happy years of Bully ownership to you !!
Amy and Sophia
There is a list of recommended vets on the home page...
of bulldogsworld, maybe you can find one near you. She's the same coloring as our Chester! So cute.
Thank you all so very much!
I appreciate all the kind words of help and encouragement. Izzy weighed 45.2 lbs when we went to the vet. I hope once she gets used to the new food things will change. I am going to get a different shampoo and other items as suggested today. Hopefully it will combat the smell. I have been cleaning her tail area with unscented baby wipes. So far the only thing on the cloth are a few hairs. It seems that most of the smell is around her head area. Her ears are nice and clean. She is not scratching or acting irritated. Maybe the reason I notice the smell so much is her never ending kisses. No matter where I am she is either sitting on my lap or very close to me. I just can't believe I have fallen so hard for this dog. She not only moved into my home but into my heart!
Thank you all for taking the time to respond to my message.
Izzy and her good buddy Shorty
Hello Izzy and Mom
First, thanks for rescuing this girl and taking her out of a very unpleasant environment. And you have described a very common feeling among bulldog owners -- you are head over heels and there is no going back!
Sounds like you are doing a wonderful job taking care of Izzy and she loves you at least as much as you love her. I know you got lots of good advice and information from others on here and I bet the changeover to TOTW will help a lot with her skin, etc.
She is a very pretty girl. Her brindle reminds me of our Gus. You are going to have so much fun with her!!
Monica, Maude and Gus
Have you checked her teeth then?
If the smell is coming from her head area, and you notice it most when she gives kisses, check those teeth for any abscesses or items stuck between them. That could very well explain the odor.
Amy and Sophia
She is Precious
Your bully is so cute! Your story is heartbreaking, but with a GREAT ending ot should I say new beginning for your bully. You sound like you are doing a WONDERFUL job. She is so lucky to have you and your family. This site is great and will give you advice that is helpful. Goodluck with our new girl. Congrats!
Lindsey and Paisley
Wonderful forum
It's wonderful to find such kind people that offer assistance the way you all do. Your words of encouragement and suggestions are so helpful. I found the tail pocket with the great instructions given. Just a little tiny bit of dirt.
We also bathed Izzy with the oatmeal shampoo. I also used the apple cider vinegar to rinse. Oh, now my beautiful girl smells great.
We bought a toothbrush and some toothpaste for her. I checked all of her teeth carefully. They are so white and no abscesses or problems found. The inside of her mouth looks so odd with the underbite. Do all bulldogs have this? It was a work in progress to make sure I brushed all of her teeth.
I started switching and mixing her new food with the Science Diet so in a day or so she will be on the new food totally. Her stool is a little loose. I guess that is to be expected when changing her food. Not real firm but not diarrhea either.
She has an appointment with a different vet next week to get the spots checked. Hopefully they will have some positive answers for me. I just want her to have the best life I can and all of your kind suggestions are pointing me in the right direction.
I will be forever thankful!
Izzy and her good buddy Shorty
Well, what a lucky girl she is to
have found you!
I too am a first time bully owner, and this site has been wonderful for Kofi and me!
Glad to have you with us, and your girl is beautiful!
Thank you for rescuing!
When I adopted Tucker, he had bumps and scabs under his fur. Some of them even seemed to be sores...we took him to our vet to get everything checked out and they determined he had a skin infection that can be cleared with antibiotics. He was on it for about 2 weeks and the scabs and skin cleared up very nicely. Our vet recommended doing antibiotics for the infection versus anything topical becuase he would be healed from the inside out.
Also, when we first adopted Tucker he was smelly too. Not becuase of anything in his tail pocket but becuase they kept him outside. We bathed him several times and realized that the shampoo was irritating his skin. Our vet recommended baby shampoo and he's done really well with that.
Look at these pics - miraculous only 2 weeks
Thank you for the info. This is Izzy on the 18th of January just a couple of day after we brought her home and before her vet visit. It scared me to death when I saw the condition she was in. The vet I saw had not prescribed anything for her skin so when we do get in for her appt. I will be sure to ask them about the scabs.
This is what her neck looks like only 2 weeks later after a couple of baths and no collar. We went the same day she came home and bought a harness.
Hard to believe it is the same dog.
Izzy and her good buddy Shorty
Oh wow, that looks like
Oh wow, that looks like excellent progress! Let us know what the vet's diagnosis is. I remember when we brought Tucker to our vet, they shaved him and found that they had to stop shaving at a certain point becuase the sores and bumps were ALL OVER his body. The antibiotics dried them out though, and they scabbed over after a couple of days and now his skin is clear.
I sure will
Thank you. I don't think anyone would believe just how far she has come without the pictures. Her neck had big bumps and no hair and all the redness. I am amazed everytime I scratch her there, no more bumps and the new hair is so soft.
I will be sure to let you know what the vet says but she only has a few bumps with scabs left so this is great for her. The change might be the medicated shampoo we first washed her with. It didn't seem to get rid of all the smell but we did get the oatmeal shampoo and an apple cider vinegar rinse that did get rid of it.
Izzy and her good buddy Shorty
Isn't it amazing what a little TLC will do?
She's looking good. Thank you for taking her in and loving her.
Loving her was easy
We are both very happy. I am just amazed at how easy it was for her to accept us. I believe she knows we truly care.
Izzy and her good buddy Shorty