no other complaints..

Something that is so easy and so taken for granted for virtually all life forms is such a struggle for bulldogs.

..I think the scariest thing would be the breathing difficulties and small trachs.. Our vet told me last week that when they put Maggie under for her surgery they have to use a very small trach-tube.. So far we haven't experienced any breathing problems with Maggie.

Skin allergies have caused us the most grief over the last year. We live where there are dozens of different kinds of trees, grasses, shrubry and flowers.. ..also a large forested area on our property. It's so hard to try and eliminate the things them "might" be allergic to.. We are trying to determine food allergies at the moment and it's hard as heck to keep the little devil out of everyone elses food. She's not real happy with her limited cuisine right now..

n/m

AMEN Liz!! You go girl. Although no matter what I do, Simon is fat, fat, fat, 5mos old and 50lbs, when he lays down, his skin "puddles" around him!! I feel bad, baby boy is definitely going on a diet.Thanks for my wakeup call.

Gail what is chugging? Simon I know has a teensy tiny trachea, and sometimes sounds like he has asthma.Is that what you mean?

OK allergies is number one for me..with cookie..
then I would have to say breathing trouble....
Glad muggs is super healthy--just a tail removed.
Cookie and the allergies--and the cost wow...I will keep her thou:)

The number one thing I said to look for was BREATHING!! I told them to play with the sire and the bitch if available and listen to their breathing. Ask about mom and dads trachea size as well.
If you get a dog with poor breathing you will not be able to enjoy the dog. You will constantly be worried about playing with your pup, taking it for walks etc. The quality of life will be compromised. How would you like to live your life like you are breathing through a straw? All of my bully's have excellent breathing.

I have a pet peeve about straight stifles. This leads to so many leg problems and yet breeders continue to breed these dogs.

The eye problems I am not to sure if we will ever get away from. The conformation of the bully is loose wrinkly skin which I think is a recipe for entropia etc.

I have dealt with torn ACL's, Arthritis, pinched nerve in spine, cherry eye, head tremors, interdigital cysts, mange and seasonal flank alopecia. Two of my bully's have straight stifles and my first bully has torn both ACL's in her rear legs. She was chronically limping since she was 3 months old. She weighs a total of 33lbs and she is as thin as they get. Weight for her was not the contributing factor I don't beleive.

However, I do agree with Liz regarding weight causing many problems with joints and ligaments. I think the show ring is the worst culprit for seeing overweight bullys. I refuse to cave and I watch my bullys diet very carefully. I much prefer a nice tuck and some muscle tone.

Just my two cents worth.

your post was fabulous liz!!!!

Webmaster - Bulldogsworld.com

i would say trachea size, allergies and throat problems of all kind.

Webmaster - Bulldogsworld.com

.

Alot of owners can hear a definite and fairly consistent "chugging" that would be an indication, and a vet can diagnose from there. Neither of mine did that to a detectable degree ... the palate issues were diagnosed when we were already in serious trouble.

How would I know if my dog has similar issues? What do I look for?

Tracheas and allergies. Tracheas because there is no way of correcting the problem and it can be life threating. Allergies because they are the hardest to treat and sometimes you never find relief.

Immune/skin problems here.

Maybe not as life threatening as some of the others, but if chronic.....it's tough to tackle.

No matter what I feed my dogs, what kind of treats, vitamins etc., my Greyhound suffers no problems from it, Spike has all kinds of problems. Once again, my Grey is finishing up Spikes old food, while we try Spike on something else.

The Vet feels there is so much inbreeding that these dogs suffer so many problems, especially immune problems. I'm not an expert, so I don't know the truth of his statement. I know my dog suffers from skin/immune problems and lives in the same house with a very healthy dog who could swipe food off the table, and suffer no ill effects from it.

Thank you, Liz!

That was a great response Liz, and I agree with it wholeheartedly!!

Jane

Sorry, Emily

Since I have been very lucky with Lucys health...
I would have to focus my most challenging aspect on the fact that she is an independant breed, she is very determined & of course has her own personality. For thus, I love her more; however since she was a rescue it did take me over a year to earn her trust & break the large "attitude" barrer...LOL, which is completly understandable, being she was abused.
ALTHOUGH, I couldnt ask or love anything more!
Lucy is my Angel!

Hadn't thought about the idea about dogs being shipped all over to where their immune system might not be used to what that local area's allergens are. Interesting thought.

I have to agree with the others that have posted so far. Allergies, enlongated soft palate, and small trachea.
Being in Rescue, I see probably more problems than the average Bulldogger. While I have seen the above problems, the one that I see most is aggression or behavior problems. But that is not necessarily due to breeding, and is more realted to how the bully was raised.

Jane

I also agree with what you have said!
Emily

The most scarey I have dealt with is raging allergies that are most difficult to control. Although anything that can hurt my baby is extremely scarey.

the most important problem, imo, would be breathing...tracheas, palate, small nostrils, etc. if a dog can't breathe...they can't live.

while allergies seem to be very common in bulldogs, i have a few things that i would like to say about them. first, with dogs being shipped from one part of the country to the other, there is a whole WORLD of new allergens they need to face & over come. which could be some of the problem, especially with pups and their immature immune systems. second, i truly believe vaccinations are the cause for most allergy problems in dogs, as well as poor nutrition. the same goes for dogs with mange problems...which are also way too common in the breed!

you didn't mention one thing, that i feel is very important, and that is weight. most bulldogs i have seen could stand to loose some extra pounds. this could also play a role in the joint problems that bulldogs seem to be prone too. i don't know how many times i have read that breeders will say "keep the puppies fat". this does nothing for the health of a dog, or the joints as the dog grows, esp. a bulldog whose structure is so awkward. add to that, a fat puppy that jumps off the sofa, on the bed, out of the car, etc. etc. that is just asking for trouble. i think some of the joint problems could be lessened by keeping puppies thin and letting them grow before they do any sort of forced exercise or adding extra weight. as well as screening the breeding dogs so you don't breed similar problems.

i've seen plenty of posts about behavior issues with bulldogs. most of which seem to be related to poor training and socialization. these cute mugs get away with alot more then any other breed would. LOL

good post patti, i look forward to reading the replies

liz

I haven't had any bad health problem to speak of I did lose one to heat and I think that might have been the small tracea sp Being unable to get enough air in.
From the board it would seem Allergies would be number one.

alergies too, but Moops weren't that bad...
Emily

1. enlongated soft palates
2. allergies and skin problems
3. eye disorders

There are people that don't even realize their dog needs a palate clip or may have entropian or if they do, don't always have it corrected.

The lower tier may be things like luxating patellas, chronic pyodermas, hypolastic tracheas, possible tail amputation due to chronic problems.

Seems HD or severe HD is ruled out in most or many cases when the dog is seen by a bullie specialist rather than a local vet that doesn't know the breed but that is still a major cause for concern.

Even though Murphy has a cherry eye, that is not what worries me most about having a bulldog.

I worry more about their breathing and things associated with how small their little airways are. Murphy has "choked" like 3 times, and every time he does I feel my heart skip a beat. It's the worst thing in the world.

The other thing that is always in the back of my mind is how popular bulldogs are to steal. I had a bad dream one time, and the next day I got him microchipped. He's never out of my sight and when he is he is being "babysat" by a close friend.

Murphy means the world to me....as do Chloe and Paps.
Emily

Thank goodness I have no major problems here and Theo is my first bullie. From reading and listening I would say allergies and eye problems would be the ones that most have.

one that scares me the most is the palate....
because of Cody I can see first hand what happens when he plays for more then 5 minutes..or climbs more then 5 stairs...or gets too happy...the first night we brought him home was an eye opener...he got excited...and couldn't breath ...it happened so quickly ..from sleeping soundly to a blue tongue and gasping...2 days and night in ER...
..so I would have to say Palate....ce

1 male has had 2 palate sections. Also has narrow trachea, allergies, and mild entropian (controlled by diet to prevent extra heaviness in his face). Yes, his face can get "too fat".

1 female has had a palate section. Multiple hospitalizations for lingering bacteria following pneumonia. Also had cherry eye procedures on both eyes.

1 male was neutered because of an undescended testicle.

1 extra large male had no issues at all, but died fairly young from pneumonia as a complication of a neurological disorder (Vestibular Syndrome) that struck suddenly.

1 female lived to almost to 12 .... no health difficulties at all.

Aggression? .... NEVER!! All have been the sweetest dogs anyone could ever hope for.

The health issue that has hit us the hardest has been palate. The symptoms can be subtle and lead to a dangerous situation.

I would say the most common are cherry eyes, allergies, and soft palate. I think all the others happen also but on a much lesser amount. Which is good-they require more serious surgery.

KB

the small tracheas. You can't fix that with surgery of any kind. I have noticed that the folks who have had the worst respiratory illnesses on the board have had small tracheas as part of their problem.

I really hope there is a groundswell movement to focus as much on health issues as conformation within the BCA. I read once that in the UK there is a consideration of adding health qualities in the standard to stave off criticism from a movement in Europe to do away with man made breeds. I got a Bulldog Club magazine from England and there were articles on health issues in that. It seems that breeders in England have been able to improve the overall health there over the last 15years or so. Not by any formal law or anything, but just by trying to breed healthier dogs. Apparently in the 80's there were more problems. I am sure they still have some issues. I am sure when people breed it is hard when the genetics of the various problems are not known specifically to predict what to do. I hope as more people talk about health issues openly here in the US, people will improve the health over here, too.

From what I see and hear, I think skin allergies seem to be one of the more serious ongoing problems. I personally haven't really had that issue, but it scares me to wonder if there is an immune problem that is developing that might become more common.

My personal pet peeve I really strive to eliminate is soundness issues, hips, trachea size, etc.