Hello Jan,

My name is Erica I have a 81/2month old brindle frenchie lately I’ve noticed around her eyes she seems to be loosing hair and today one of her eyes looks a little puffy. I use puppy wipes to clean her face but have stopped using them just in case I didn’t know if it was from the wipes or maybe her food. We use  purina pro plan just wondering what I could do at home first to prevent going to the vet.

Thanks, Erica

Hi Erica,

From your description & your dog’s age that sounds like an outbreak of demodectic mange or a proliferation of mites.  Mites normally live peacefully on a dog’s skin but can get out of hand and start to multiply.  Since they live in the base of the hair follicle they will cause the hair to fall out.  Around the eyes is one of the places it shows up.

Most cases of mites will resolve themselves on their own with no treatment.  It is difficult to treat by the eyes because most products should not be allowed in eyes.

Diet is important in your dog’s immune system’s ability to fight off invaders like mites.  I would suggest you get a higher quality diet for your Frenchie.  Go to your local specialty dog food store (not a big box store) and get a human grade food made with no corn, no wheat, no soy, no chicken.  Try a lamb and rice formula I recommend in my book such as Prairie or a fish diet like Taste of the Wild.

Good luck - keep me posted.

Your Bulldog Pal,

Jan

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I was wondering if you have any remedies for a 5 yr old bulldog that has already
had eye surgery from previous owner but I do not know the DX, but his lids were cut.

He was fine for the first 6 months we had him and then this green/yellow goop
appeared on his eyes, almost like a cataract.  2 different vets said he had dry eye
and gave me optimmun 2X day

So many of your holistic remedies have worked great on him, wrinkles, tail etc
I was hoping you had some suggestions.  I clean his eyes 2X day with eye wash
and washcloth but probably about 4-5 X’s a day we have to wipe his eyes with
tissues to get goop out. I think it impares his vision as sometimes he runs into things.
Optimmun is just OK certainly not a remedy.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you

Ellen

———-

Hi Ellen,

Have you been to an ophthalmologist specialist who could tell you for
sure what’s going on?

It sounds like he had cherry eye and their solution was to remove the
glands, which also make the tears for his eyes.  (I’d like to verbally thrash
the people that think this is a good solution for cherry eye) This type of surgical
removal of tear glands can lead to dry eye, infection, and loss of vision.

If his glads are gone, the Optimmun will not help restore them and the best
thing you could do is to put sterile eye drops (like for humans - not visine, but
just natural drops) into the corner of his eyes up to every two hours if possible.
It’s a lot of work, but the only solution I know of except a surgical procedure
that re-routes some of his saliva to the eye.  This would be expensive.

Here’s an article on dry eye with photos and solutions from a vet surgery
center.  I do think in your case the glad was removed so the Optimmun drug therapy
you are using (also mentioned here) would not work since he doesn’t have the
tear duct glands.
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_kcs__dry_eye_.html

Again, an ophthalmologist could tell you if his tear duct glands have been removed.

I hope this helps.  Let me know how he’s doing.

your bulldog pal,
Jan

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Hi Jan,

I have a question about my english bulldogs eyes.

His eyes began to run about a month ago. I noticed the dark stains about 2 weeks ago. Since then his eyes have gotten worse.

Yesterday, I purchased Eye Clear from the pet store. I used it twice and now he seems to not be seeing very good in that eye. He cowards and flinches when you go to pet him(he has never did this before).

I did discontinue using this product but I am concerned that I damaged his vision permanently. Please advise. Myles

———answer——–

Hi Myles,

I don’t think you damaged your English Bulldog’s eyes, but I do think his eyes may be injured. I’m not familiar with that product but there are bulldog health problems with the eyes. Since it’s both eyes, it’s probably due to a common bulldog
condition. It’s a problem with the bulldog anatomy and breeding.

Bulldogs have eyelashes that can curl back to their eyes and rub on the cornea.
This causes tearing and the constant irritation can lead to permanent eye damage
and blindness.

The best thing to do is get him to an eye specialist who will remove the
eyelashes. You can’t see this yourself without high power magnifying
glasses.

Your Bulldog Pal,
Jan

——follow up——-

Thank you, your info was helpful and accurate. The vet explained it almost exactly like you did.
Your info help me to receive the vets info better and allowed me to feel comfortable and not like he was  trying to get more$.
thanks again.

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what do you know about entropion i ordered your book and would like your input about entropion while i wait to receive your book is it common is it from a bad breeder or is it just another common no fault problem with the breed?

——answer——

Hi Mary,

I think it’s just one of those common to the breed things.  The bulldog has many
eye problems because of the nose being bred back into the face.  It just doesn’t
leave a lot of extra room even for glands, hence the cherry eye.

With entropion, when the nose was pushed back, not only did it widen the face
and stretch the eyes, it also added extra skin that can hang over the eye, hence the
tendency  for the eyelid to curl inward and the eyelashes irritate the cornea of the eye.
It must be corrected with minor surgery or the bulldog may go blind.

Here’s a link to a diary of the entropion surgery:
http://bulldogsworld1.homestead.com/entropion.html

So I’d say that unless it is really severe, in which case the dog should not be
bred, it is not the breeder’s fault, it’s just one of those things.

I’m sending you a link to the downloads page so you can get started reading
the material while you wait for your book.

Thanks for ordering and feel free to write anytime.

Your Bulldog Pal
Jan

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Do you know if Vaseline with boric acid in a 10/1 solution is good for tear
stains? I have always read to keep the wrinkles dry, Vaseline doesn’t seem
like the best thing to keep bacteria at bay, but then again the eyes are
always wet with drainage when there are tear stains anyhow. A breeder told
us about this for our dog. What is your opinion?

—answer—

Tear stains are a natural occurrence caused by trace minerals in the liquid
of the tears, primarily copper. The copper stains the hairs.

I have always thought the best solution was to treat the
cause of the tears.

If your bulldog has any of the bulldog eyelash problems, I would recommend
they be taken care of by an ophthalmologist vet.

If the tearing is caused by allergies, that’s a bit more difficult to remedy.

I have heard of various tear stain remedies ranging from hydrogen
peroxide (which I wouldn’t do) to rolaids.

Here’s some suggestions from one of the bulldog groups:

tear stain remedies:

Dermalone Ointment (Panalog) for tear stains also under the
nose roll. Works great.

—–

use a chewable supplement made by legacy for life called companion. It
works great. really brightens and whitens.
—-

dealing with tear stains is different with every dog. I think
food is probably the biggest culprit. In my experience, my bullies
have had fewer tear stains with food that do not contain any copper,
and if they contain beet or beet pulp, it is way down on the
ingredient list. Of course, daily wiping on the face is a big help…I
try and stay away from using chemicals such as hydrogen peroxide
around the eye..I think it irritates the eye and may cause more
tearing, thus more staining…

I have one dog that it doesn’t matter what she eats..she will have
tear stains, however, given one plain Rolaids (not the flavored ones)
with her food daily eliminated her tear stains totally. (we only gave
them when she was showing)

I have two dogs that changing their food to one with no copper/no
beets cleared theirs up in a matter of about a month. Keep in mind,
they need to loose the stained hair under the eye…you can speed this
up by trimming the hair down and letting new hair grow back..(as a
foot note–these 2 are related to each other–hummmm)

I have one that neither of the above worked, however, someone
suggested benedryl, so she got a benedryl every 3rd day (when she was
showing) and it cleared up the stains..(and this one is not related to
the other 3)…

—-

Our dogs only get distilled or filtered water(PUR waterfilter) .
We were told the minerals in well water would cause them, thus
no spring water either….

We also use tetracycline when showing regularly. I’ve been told
the beet pulp is the main culprit in food and makes sense when
you compare the color of tearstains to beets.

I have not heard of the boric acid, but it sounds like it could really irritate
Biggie’s eyes worse, and I don’t think Vaseline would help either.

One thing is certain. If you can remove the source of irritation, whether it
is from eyelashes gone astray or from allergies, there will be no more tears
and then the stains will go away.

In my opinion it is not normal for a bulldog to have these stains. You need
to figure out why his eyes are running and then treat that. Otherwise you
are just covering up the cause with cosmetic measures.

You can read more about bulldog eyes in my book The Healthy Bulldog

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I do have a couple of questions. First is there anything preventative to
use for potential eye problems and then we need to start treating for ticks
right away as we live in a heavily wooded area in the northern US and I
think lime disease is prevalent here. With a puppy of 9 weeks, what do you
suggest that is a good medication without danger from the chemicals?

Thanks so much.
Sherry

——–answer———-

Hi Sherry,

I’m afraid there are no preventative measures for eye problems. A lot of it
will have to do with the breeding of your bulldog. Cherry eye is common,but
doesn’t appear at all in some lines. It is quite obvious when the gland pops
out. If one comes out, the other is usually soon to follow.

The eyelash problems are the same way,
some get them, some don’t. You will know soon enough if your puppy’s eyes
keep running and get red and do not clear up within a week or so.

I live in Colorado where we have very few ticks so I’m not really well versed
in tick treatment, but I can offer some advise.

You can ask your vet for the least toxic medication and ask about what
possible side effects there are, and at what time of year should you apply.

The following is a thread from one of the online forums about natural tick
repellents you could try.

************

[Bulldoggers] Natural flea repellents

You can also Google natural flea repellents as well. But here is what I found It will come in handy next year…

Here is what the website has:
* Two sources for natural products for flea and tick control:
http://www.preciouspets.org/fleafree.htm
http://www.greenpet.com.au/article_fleas.php

* A growing number of pet owners use natural ingredient-based flea repellents and techniques in order to avoid using pest control chemicals and commercial medications for their pets. Some natural/holistic approaches that people have found effective include:

** Add a tablespoon of organic apple cider vinegar to the dog’s water bowl.

** Put a drop of lemon oil or rosemary oil on the dog’s collar.

** Apply a dab of lavender oil in between the dog’s shoulder blades.

** Some dog owners have reported that garlic in small quantities can help repel doggie fleas by making the animal taste unpleasant to fleas. Grate a small amount of fresh, raw garlic into your pet’s food at mealtime, about 1/2 to 3 chambers of the clove, depending on animals size.

** Boil 6 cut in half lemons, then strain the solution into a spray bottle and spray.

And here is the website:

http://www.paw-rescue.org/PAW/PETTIPS/DogTip_InsectPrevention.php

–Terri
==========================================

RE : [Bulldoggers] Natural flea repellants

Just a quick heads up.

My homeopath mentionned that natural oils can interfear with treatments. So if you are following a homeopathic or more natural alopathic treatment, it is important to speak to your vet before applying any natural oils.

Also, be sure your natural oil is diluted in a base oil before applying. If you have gone out a bought the good stuff that is the all natural extract, it can be to pure and very dangerous for your pets. Fro example, Tea tree oil when properly diluted can have wonderfull effects for many things on a dog, when not properly diluted it can proove deadly. The same goes for lemon oil and many other oils that are often recommended.

Now I use these oils often and know how wonderfull they can be… but I was warned many times over at how dangerous they can be and was told that when i doubt… DON’T use it.

I hope this helps… and GREAT post by the way.

– Susan

PS here are some very popular recipes used by me and many of my raw feeding friends.

- Garlic given to the dogs every day is a first step (protect from the inside out).
- using apple cider vinegar to wash and spraying it on the dogs is a great second step (for a disinfectant you can use vinegar or Coloidal silver).
- The following are a few recipes that I have accumulated.:

Natural Repellent Recipe

Repels fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, flies and also makes the van/car smell great. Spray dogs and blankets. Use before going into the show ring instead of those other sprays; no chemical smell spray. Stuff smells great. Dogs look great and gives an additional shine to their coat.

Ingredients are full strength oils:

Tea Tree Oil

Rosemary Oil

Sage Oil

Cedarwood Oil

Peppermint Oil

Orange Oil

Eucalyptus Oil

Citronella Oil

Pine Needle Oil

DIRECTIONS:

Mix 4-6 drops of each with 32 oz of any natural shampoo and now you have a natural flea shampoo OR Mix 2-3 drops each with 16 oz Water in a spray bottle. Shake before each

application and spray light over entire body.

Health food stores in your area sell the oils or you can purchase online here.

(My new S’pensive people shampoo contains Tea tree and peppermint and I see the difference for myself when it comes to the bugs)

If you feel uncomfortable spraying your dog with this (I know there are all kins of anti natural articles out there… but they mention cases where large quantities were used in concentrated form!), mix a more concentrated version and put it on the harness/colar.

**************************************************************

One of the best natural insect repellents is made from the

clear real vanilla (not the grocery store vanilla extract which

is mostly alcohol). This is the pure vanilla that is sold in Mexico.

It’s cheap there if you know of someone that lives there or in

the US close to the border. If not, health food stores usually

carry it or can order it for you. I use it half

vanilla and half water and find that it works great for mosquitoes and ticks,

don’t know about other insects.

*************************

I hope this helps.

Your Bulldog Pal,

Jan

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Hello Jan
I just purchase your Download!
I have a question! I purchase two girls They are in Quarantine here in Kauai Hawaii! They are 11 weeks old! One of the puppies developed cherry eye and the vet wants to do surgery by tacking it back behind eyeball this will require putting the dog a sleep! They tried to push it back in but it just rolled back out! Can you give me some input! I just want to make sure I am doing the right thing! The vet said if this doesn’t work it will have to be removed!
Aloha John

—-answer—

Hi John,

Cherry eye is very common in bulldogs because of the lack of room in their
heads. Breeding the nose back into the face makes things a bit cramped.
Cherry eye in one eye is usually followed by the development of it in the other
eye, so you might want to wait and see if the other eye ‘pops’.

These are tear glands and they should be sewn back into the eye by an
opthomologist vet. It is not necessary to do the surgery right away. Your
puppy will be fine for some time as long as she doesn’t run into anything
and damage the gland and if it stays moist.

I actually had this with my bulldog Vivy and we waited a month or so and sure
enough the other gland popped out. Then I had them both sewn back in with
no problems thereafter.

You definitely want to have the gland sewn back in because if it is removed
your dog could develop dry eye and possibly go blind. Dry eye requires eye
drops be placed in the eyes daily.

Personally, I would not recommend surgery on such a young dog. This is
not a life threatening event and the puppy is probably already stressed
from being in quarantine. You could wait at least a month without ill
effects.

Cherry eye surgery is not major surgery but does require anesthesia. And
a young puppy is more at risk than an older dog during surgery. It seems
to me it would be best to let them settle into their new home before this
surgery is performed.

Here’s a link to more information on Cherry Eye:
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=567

I hope this helps. Please email with any more questions.

Your Bulldog Pal,
Jan

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