I have been asked if i would care for 3 yr old female bully i already have 5 yr old male do you think it would be ok to have this dog or do you think i will have problems.

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It depends upon the temperament of both dogs.  I’ve found males to be more tolerant of new females coming into their territory than the reverse.  You should let the dogs meet in a neutral territory (don’t just bring her into his house) and see how it goes.

Dogs are very social animals but they also have a pack mentality and sometimes they just don’t like a new dog around their space.  If the dogs meet and bow down to each other playfully that’s a good sign.  If they stand rigid or the hairs on the back of the neck go up then things aren’t going so well.

Also give the dogs lots of positive reinforcement for good behavior.  Don’t be nervous because your dog will pick up on your feelings and that can complicate things.

Here’s an article from the Humane Society on how to introduce pets: http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/dogs/tips/introducing_new_dog.html

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hi jan

Hi G,

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Hi Jan,
My name is Kathy and I know your pretty knowledgeable about Bulldogs.
We have a 3 1/2 yr old male. He weighs about 87 pounds.

He has breathing issues too. We are wondering about a diet for him?
We currently feed him the Instinct brand of food. Approx 2 cups in the am
and 2 cups at night. (is that too much?)

he is a picky eater so sometimes we have to add chicken….canned or packaged to the food.
Do you have any suggestions for a low fat food that he might eat?

He is stubborn so sometimes we have to motivate him with treats.
I buy lowfat baked and limit those to maybe 1 or 2 per day.
He gets no exercise either. We have tried to walk him but he doesn’t
like it at all and will just stop and lay down on the spot when he’s had enough.

Any info you can provide would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You,
Kathy

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Hi Kathy,

Your English Bulldog sounds like a real couch potato.  He may have the dog
equivalent of a beer belly!

A normal male bulldog weighs about 50-55 pounds, so unless he is really
big he is very overweight.  I’d suggest you stick with the Instinct, it’s a really
good food, just cut it down to 3 cups a day.

A low fat diet is not the best way for a young dog to lose weight.  Rather, you
should consider limiting his calories and increasing his exercise.

Adding chicken or other meats to his diet is also a good thing, just take
into account how much you add and subtract it from the amount of
kibble you feed.  Contrary to popular belief table scraps are not bad for
a dog.  If you think about it, all dog food is made from table scraps.

His breathing problems may come from being over weight, although he
could have palate problems as well.

And if you can get him to walk, he will also lose weight as well as live longer.
If he likes treats, get him to move towards you to get one, or better yet, run
around the house a bit or down the block.

Does he like to chase a ball? If you get him moving, especially
when it’s not too warm, he may wind up enjoying it.

When you walk him do not try to pull him forward.  A dog has a natural
instinct to resist being pulled.  Rather turn him to the side or entice him
with a really tasty treat.

Diet and exercise are the key to dog health.  Good luck.

your bulldog pal,
Jan

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Hi Jan;

My puppy is 14 weeks old now and continues to bite.  When we run in the park, she bites my pants instead of running after the ball.  What can I do to inhibit biting?  She has plenty of chewies and toys to keep her occupied….and I try to redirect her as soon as she starts to bite but nothing seems to be working….please advise.

Thank you!

Diana

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Hi Diana,

You must nip this behavior in the bud
I have a few solutions you can try.

Biting is normal behavior for a puppy, but needs to be stopped.
Many  people say to yelp or say ouch loudly when your puppy
bites or to distract them.  But this doesn’t always work.

The current trend is to ignore the behavior and take away their
freedom.  Any type of attention given to bad behavior tends to
reinforce it, so you need to withdraw your attention.  Dogs want
to please you but don’t always know how so you need to train them.

Click this link to see a video on this method of training.

That being said, I trained my dogs the old fashioned way by putting
my hand into my puppy’s mouth and pressing on his gums.
Not too hard, my puppy never yelped, it’s just uncomfortable to have
my hand in his mouth. My breeders taught me to do this. This is unpleasant
for the puppy, and along with a command such as “no biting”, the association
will teach her that biting is not acceptable.

They also told me to flick him on the nose, with my finger, to startle him,
along with the same calm reprimand of “no biting” - no yelling.
I was skeptical but they had been doing this with him for a couple weeks
and it really seemed to work well.

Whatever you do, be sure you are consistent, and calm.  The alpha dog
never gets agitated, is just quietly firm.

To discourage puppy biting of furniture or rugs or your pants leg or
even your hand, anything you don’t want them biting, you can spray
Bitter Apple onto the object.  Available at pet stores.  Be sure to shake
the bottle before you spray to mix in the bitters.

If that doesn’t work, try putting some Ben Gay on the object - the only
problem with that is it smells pretty bad to us too!

I hope this helps.

your bulldog pal,
Jan

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hey jan,

this is off topis but i need some help my english bulldog is so bad,
seriously he bit me and my girlfriend - he will get in our faces and bark
and bite - the more we i scold him he’s 10x worse.
i need beyond a trainer - and he asks like an angle when i have company
over or we go out. no one belives me

what do you thing about a shock collar maybe he can get to know wrong from right?
what do you think?

Matt

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Hi Matt,

I do not approve of shock collars.

This is a classic case of lack of leadership on your part.
Your dog is telling you he’s the leader of the pack, not you,
he’s acting like a pack dog would act.

When you escalate by yelling or scolding, he responds by
growing and biting.

Most dogs are not true alpha dos and do not want to be the
leader of the pack.  But is they sense that you are not in
control, they will try to take over.

You and you dog need proper training.  You need to learn
to be consistent and set the rules.  I doubt at this juncture
you will be able to do this without a qualified trainer.

I know this from experience with my first bulldog who became
aggressive when she got older (not at me but at others).
Out of desperation I hired a company called Barkbusters.
They had her (and me) trained within a few hours.

If you do not get control of your bulldog, someone will eventually
get hurt because he will keep challenging you.

Barkbusters  is expensive, but to me it was well worth it - it
could save your dog from a much worse fate if his aggression is
not stopped as soon as possible.

Your Bulldog Pal,
Jan

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Hello again,

We finally got another English Bulldog that is healthy.  I have question about potty training him. we live in a 15 story apartment in Korea. We live on the 7th floor and its so hard to take him out ever hour or so.. that gets tiring so we are trying to train him two diffrent ways he is about 9 weeks old and we are trying to potty train on pee pads and outside also. Is this to much on a puppy or should we just keep one task.. Thank you

Kim

——-answer—–

Hi Kim,

Congratulations on your new puppy.  Dogs do best with really clear
instructions and by teaching him two different things you may be confusing him.

A puppy can’t hold their pee all that long so they do need to go a lot.  When he gets older
he may still pee in the apartment if you keep using the pads.  However, it can be a
hassle (I lived in a high rise for a while) so you can use the pads on a temporary
basis and then start to take him and the pads outside so he starts to associate
peeing on the pad with being outside.

Do you have a balcony?  You could put a little grass out there or put the pads there so
that he’ll associate peeing with being outside the apt.

Does he have a crate?  Usually they don’t like to pee in their crates and that may help
him hold it.

When he gets a little older he’ll be able to hold it longer and then when he pees outside
just give him enormous praise in a high voice so he knows that’s the thing to do.  Never
get mad at him for a mistake inside, just give him praise when he does the right thing.

Here’s a link to an article on potty training that you may find helpful:
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1548&articleid=157

I hope this helps and congratulations on the new puppy!

Your Bulldog Pal,
Jan

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Hi Jan,
Reggie is as fit as a fiddle and bouncing about and not a thing wrong in the world !!!!!!!!
Then we get the lead out , he will never come to the car willingly , he walks up his ramp into the car and sits down and looks so sad , to get him out the back of the car for his walk is a S.A.S Operation as he wont move , so my husband has to lift Reggie out and put him on the ground to walk , but he wont move , he wants to get back in the car ,if reg does make a move he will walk so far , then sit down and nothing in the world will move him.
he just wants to come back home .
when we get back home reg will stand up , shake his head and look at us and jump out and get back into the house as fast as he can

Jan please could you tell me what else l could try , he is not a lazy dog and is NOT over weight . we have a large garden with an allotment and he runs walks and plays alot with everyone ,
Reg is not stupid either , he will not accept a treat to get him to move and l dont want to start that anyway. Reg is not use to human food so he wouldnt eat that either ./
Some bulldogs l see love to walk , but not my reg
thanks
sue and reggie

——-answer——-

Hi Sue & Reggie,

As I recall Reggie is a few years old? Has he never wanted to go for a walk or is this
new behavior.

If he’s always acted this way, chances are he’s afraid of the “new territory” you’re sending him to. Dogs love a set routine, they don’t like changes in the status quo. So perhaps when you get him in the car and go off to an unfamiliar place, he gets scared and wants to go home to his familiar haunts.

I’d suggest you try to first put the lead on him when he’s at home and comfortable and let him get used to just having it on. Then walk him on leash around the house. Then the yard where he is quite comfortable. Give him enormous praise when he makes even small progress.

Then venture to the front yard, then down the block, etc.

Never pull him on the leash. If you try to pull a dog forward, they have an instinctual reaction to resist. So he has to be enticed. That’s why so many trainers use treats. You can also talk in a higher pitch and encourage him to ‘heel’ and give tons of praise if he moves only a step or two in the right direction.

I haven’t personally had this problem with my dogs who have all loved to walk anywhere, but I did have a problem with Archie being afraid to get into the car. I wound up enticing him into the car by sitting in the back and encouraging him until he’d make his way in. Now he jumps right in.

Good luck!

Your Bulldog Pal,
Jan

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Hi there,

I was recently on your website reading all your knowledge on our adorable friends.

I have two British bulldogs one male and the other female, they are both only a day apart in age and are 10 months old.

I brought them from different breeders so they are not blood related, in the idea of breeding them one day.

All up until a month ago i have come into some problems that have concerned me extremely.

My Female has become very aggressive towards the male, she dominates him over food, toys and human affection. They are calm all up until i walk in the backyard to play with them she becomes very aggressive and attacks him. The male is very placid and does not want to fight with her but she does not stop.

I have tried stopping her with spraying her with water but she likes the water and thinks its a game, I have since separated them at feeding times and this i feel has caused more aggression with her.

Up until 2 days ago i never smacked her but she was attacking him so much i smacked her with a shoe and this has now caused her to be upset with me, she will no longer come to me for a play and he will not come near me for the fact that she will attack him.

I love my puppies and would hate to see one of them go, i have contacted my local vet and there answer was to get rid of one of them. I do not want to get rid of one as i love them both but on the other hand is it cruel to leave him feeling scared in his own enviroment??

With my male he is very loveable but he has an aggressive streak towards children which iam quiet scared of, i would never leave an animal with a child un attended, but it concerns me as he has been brought up with young children.

Kind regards for reading me problems

Ellen

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Hi Ellen,

I’m not an expert on training, but I suspect your problems are stemming from
the fact that there is no clear leader in the “pack”

You need to take control of your dogs so they look to you as the alpha dog.
Your female is stepping in because she thinks you are not doing the alpha
job.  Then the male looks to dominate other threats to the pack (the children).

Female dogs are usually more dominant than male dogs.  They want to
take control and male dogs tend to be more submissive and easy going.

Since both of your dogs are still puppies, they are just learning how to
behave, and they take their cues from you.

It is very important that you become the leader.  You cannot do this by
behavior that she thinks is a game (the squirt water) or punishment (hitting
her with the shoe).  She is very confused because she thinks she’s doing
her job.  When she gets punished for what she perceives as ‘good’ behavior
she will naturally avoid you.  She’s now afraid to come to you.

There was a very good episode of the Dog Whisperer about bulldogs with
the same behavior pattern.  I can’t remember the name of it, but it was on
my local cable.

My advice is you get a very good trainer immediately.  When I had an
aggression problem with Vivy I hired Barkbusters.  They are expensive,
but did a wonderful job in one day!  There are many competent trainers
out there, so you could contact your local bulldog group.  I think your
vet’s suggestion is just plain ignorant.

Part of the training process is to teach you how to be the leader.  In my
case, since Vivy was ten, it took a lot of leash training.

Do not delay because you will have an escalating problem that will become
more difficult the longer you wait.

I hope this helps.  Let me know how they’re doing.

Your Bulldog Pal,
Jan

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hey jan

i have a 6 month old english bulldog and he whines only in the morning and when he get compfortable i was thinking it was just an attention thing, any ideas?

Matt

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Hi Matt,

That’s hard to tell from your description.

English Bulldogs are very ‘expressive’ and often make odd sounds.  If the whine is urgent
sounding or distressed, I’d be concerned.  If it’s more pleading or enticing, like he
wants you to come over, it’s probably attention-getting.

Since he’s just a puppy, he is forming his habits and finding out what will get him
the attention he craves.  And you don’t want to encourage negative behaviors.

If the whining stops when you give him attention, then I’d suppose that’s the case.
If he whines when you touch him in a specific area like his stomach or leg, then
I might think he had some sort of injury or problem and I’d suggest you have him
looked at by your vet.

Jan

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