Bulldogs World

1) skin issues

As long as these arent dueto infection, I wound imagine once they heal you should be fine.  It sounds like youe vet thinks these might be pressure sores but thats really hard to believe, hes not grossly overweight and pressure sores dont really happen to healthy mobile dogs.

2) tail issues

what kind of tail does bentley have.  have you checked to see how deep his  tail pocket is?  oliver has a tight bun but luckily its high enough away from his butt so doesnt get dirty.  if bentley isnt so lucky a daily cleaning should hopefully prevent recurrent infections.  i know some dogs on this site never really got rid of their infections and eventually needed surgery.  we like to use malaket medicated wipes, i think they really work well.

3)cherry eye

not too familiar with this.  i know if you neglect severe cherry eye that can lead to permanent damage.

4) diet

what kind of food is bentley on now?  i think its pretty universelly accepted here that science diet is crap.  if you have a bulldog you have to feed grain free.  does wonders for skin, allergies, poops, gas.  if bentley likes green beans you can replace it for kibble 1:1.  i think what people do is reduce by 1/2 cup and see if the dog looses any weight after a week or so and keep adjusting.  if your vet thinks your bulldog can run on your walks you might want to look into finding another vet.  there are some active bulldogs here but i dont know of any that actually can jog with their owners at a consitent pace.  a nice long walk should be fine and playing with the kids is a plus!

5) rawhides

No rawhides!  These dont digest if swallowed.  A lot of dogs like to chew on antlers which last forever.  We give bully sticks which they chew on and can eat and are 100% digestable.  They are pretty gross though and can smell.

6) bathing

Oliver loves baths as much as he loves rolling in dirt so we bath him once a week.  others here only a couple times a year.  probably not a big issue

7) pools

i imagine this is fine as long as you dry up his wrinkles and tail

8) general temperment

wish i could help you out here but oliver is the same.  loves everyone and a couple dog friends but is bad with most other dogs.

One with bulldog experience, especially as a new bully owner.  You need someone who has experience with the breed and their "issues" and you need to be able to feel comfortable trusting their judgement and recommendations for treating Bentley.  Where do you live?  In addition to the vet list on the homepage our members are all over and could probably make a personal recommendation for a vet if we knew where you're located. :)

2 things stood out to me to make me feel this way about your vet-his statement that Bentley needs to run (in the freaking summer, is he serious?!) and his statement that the cherry eye doesn't need to be fixed.  Cherry eye is not a life or death condition, but it is painful and can cause serious, permanent damage to his sight.  If it's not fixed soon it could cause permanent dry-eye (which requires daily drops to help keep the eye lubricated).  Please let us know where you are and I'm sure someone can help point you towards a better vet.

As for your questions...I think TonyJerry pretty much hit the nail on the head on each point.

I'm sorry if this seems harsh, but you seem like a wonderful person trying to do the best for Bentley...and the best would be finding a knowledgeable and capable vet.

I would put your dog on a grain free feed. Taste of the Wild is a good one, available at many pet food stores or feed stores. To lose weight you need to cut out ALL treats you give the dog. I mean ALL OF THEM!!!! Give him 1 1/4 cup of food twice a day, that is all he should need. If he isn't losing on that amount, go to 1 cup twice a day. 

Walks are good but not in any heat over 75 degrees. The ground can be up to 10 degrees warmer than the air, be very aware of this when you walk. 

Tail pockets...directly under the tail, above the anus, there can be a pocket. Slip a finger under the tail and check to see if you can feel an indent or "cave"! That is a tail pocket. If you don't clean it frequently it will get infected. My cleaning is this...I put Sophia in my sink, spray the tail pocket with luke warm water, then with a rubber gloved hand, I put dish soap (antibacterial) on my fingers and gently clean the entire pocket well. Then I rinse and rinse with my sprayer, then repeat the process with the soap then rinsing. I dry her off very, very well Make sure you get in the tail pocket as far as you can with paper towels, they absorb much more than a towel. I finish it off with a dab of Desitin baby rash ointment to keep her smelling fresh and to wick away moisture that may have been left behind. 

As for the spots on the coat, try dabbing them lightly with original gold listerine. That will kill any bacteria there might be and will help the spots heal quickly.

Good luck!

First off --- fire your vet and find one who is bulldog savy.  Never, never expect your bulldog to go out on runs, especially if he has never run in his life.  You will kill him. 

Exercise is no different that what you would expect for an extremely obese person.  Short walks, start with a block, early in the morning is best if you live in a warm climate, then after work up to 2 blocks.  Very short walks that he can handle. 

1) skin issues. Bentley has a few sores on him (a couple on his should and one on his face). Yesterday the vet checked them to make sure it wasn't mange, and it's not. He said it's from being overweight. He doesn't scratch at himself so i am not even sure how he got them. Vet shaved the area's and cleaned them and told us to leave them be. Is there anything we can do to prevent this in the future?

Did the vet scrape to determine if there is any staph?  If he determined it was not mange he should have done a scrap.

2) tail issues. when we got him he smelled. after getting his tail area and face cleaned up he was good for a day or so. then the smell returned. we determined that his tail was infected. Vet confirmed this yesterday, shaved him, cleaned him and put him on a 21 day course of antibiotics and told us to clean and dry him after every potty. Will this keep him from getting infected again?

Amy discribed the tail pocket very well.  If he has one you have to keep it clean.  If he is obese, then getting weight off of him will make the cleaning process easier.  The tail won't be so tight, if he has a tight tail.  Is he easy to clean back there?  Did the vet have to sedate him to shave him?

3)cherry eye. again he had this when we got him. they said it was the 2nd time he's had it, but said their vet told them to leave it be if it didn't bother him. The vet we took him to yesterday said once we get his weight undercontrol we need to take care of it so he doesn't go blind. what are your thoughts on this??

Get his cherry eye fixed...Find a vet who will remove it and not tack it.  Poor guy.  But make sure it is a cherry eye you are talking about.  From the photo it does appear to be cherry eye.  Can it be massaged back in?  Did the vet try to do this?

4) diet. when we got him we were told he was 65 pounds and that they had cut his food down to 2 cups a day. we have followed this and cut out peanut butter (which was a big treat for him with the other family) and he only gets occasional treats. Yesterday the vet told us he weighed 70 pounds (and we had thought he looked like he was lossing) and they want him down to 55. They want us to put him on Hill's prescription diet R/D to help lose the weight. This is very expensive and can only be bought thru a vet. Is there any other diet's that will help while being less costly? He is very active and we take him for short walks daily, but the vet wants him to run on them now.

Diet ... As the othre said...Hill's is horrible.  Try the Blue.  Give ti at least 6 weeks to see if there is improvement in his coat.  Also pick up some Salmon Oil to add to his food daily.  I personally like the Grizzley Wild Salmon Oil.

5) rawhides. Mr. B isn't much of a chewer but in the past I have always given my dogs rawhides to give them something to do. I have noticed that Mr. B can't handle them. He throws up after chewing them. Is there anything else that I can give him so when he wants to chew he has something? do bulldogs tend to not beable to tolerate rawhide?

No rawhinds...they are a terrible choking hazard and they are non-digestable.  Bulldogs tend to try and swallow them and then you will have a very expensive obstruction surgery to save his life.

Non-Edible Nylabones (the originals) and any hard rubber toy like a Kong.  Whatever you give him to chew on you still need to watch to make sure he doesn't tear off pieces and try to swallow them. 

I personally give my dogs raw marrow bones....but my dogs are fed raw and they have been chewing on these hard things since babies.  Your guys teeth might not be strong enough for raw bones.

6) bathing. how often should he get a full bath?

When he is stinky....  Too many baths don't allow the natural body to cleanse itself.  I'm actually embarassed to say that my dogs have not had a bath since last August,  but they still pass my sniff test.  LOL.  Maybe my smeller is having problems.  (I have my reasons for the long over due baths) :)

7) pools. we have a little kiddie pool just for him. he loves to lay in the sun in it. He loves being outside and we have found that this is the best way to keep him cool when it's hot. Is this ok for him or will it just cause him to have continued tail infections?

Just dry him well after he is in the pool.  Like Amy said.....use a paper towel and get as much of the dampness unde his tail dry.  Moist warm dark areas grow fungus and icky stuff.

8) general temperment. mr. b is very friendly with people and he is starting to tolerate our cat (who teases him relentlessly). but i have noticed that he isn't too fond of other dogs. Is there anyway to encourage him to get along with other dogs? (he is our only dog but a lot of our neighbors have dogs) and I would love to beable to let him play with them

He may never like other dogs.  Don't push it, just be glad he tolerates your cat, LOL.   We are the ones that want our dogs to socialize....not the dogs.  My ex took my first bulldog Norbert to the dog park...because he thought he needed to play with the other dogs.. What Norbert did was go visit all the people, he could care less about the other dogs.  Bulldogs love people, dogs not always so much, especially if they were an only child.

Thanks for givng Bentley a loving and caring home.

sweetie you're getting tips from some of the most trustworty ppl i know in here!

so pls feel safe and confident in their adcice...also first thing i would do is definitely

get a vet who KNOWS bullies!!!

good luck w/your cutie patootie(love the name!) and keep us posted!!!

smoochies the scrunchy face