English Bulldogs?

English bulldogs are expensive. My friends adopted a 2 year old bulldog, and in 4 years have spent over $10K in health bills alone. They constantly have to wipe his face from drull, and wipe his butt each time he poos. They shed like crazy. I don't know if it's because he's a rescue or the breed, but he does not get along well with their 2 kids. He won't go after them, but if he gets jealous, he will knock them out of his way.

I don't own an English Bulldog, but I used to work as a vet tech. They're short-haired, but they do shed some.
The skin folds on their faces have to be kept clean - food and moisture collect in them and can cause sores.
Because they're brachycephalic (squashed nose), they can have difficulty breathing, and are highly prone to heat stroke if left outside too long in hot weather.
They are also prone to flea and inhalant allergies.

We bought our bulldog from a great breeder six years ago. He is the most fantastic dog ever! We subsequently had two children, and he is so great with them - totally patient, never ever a worry whatsoever about his temper or behavior with kids. He only takes a short walk about every other day - that is all he can handle!! If it's hot, no walk at all - bulldogs are EXTREMELY sensitive to heat, and I have heard many stories of bulldogs literally dropping dead from heat exhaustion. He has needed very little grooming, as he has short hair, and cleaning is just a routine thing - the wrinkle about his nose and his ears need to be cleaned about twice a week - we just use baby wipes. He does shed, I won't lie, about as much as any other dog - taking him for a weekly bath at Petsmart helps a lot, and is very cheap. He stays home all day alone, 10-12 hours with no problem, and no accidents.

As with any purebred dog, they have built-in health issues - the "pushed-in nose" means that you will ALWAYS hear them - breathing, snorting, snoring, panting, and what we call "hairball" - a weird gagging thing that they do. They tend to have skin problems (we have been lucky so far), and as they get older, develop dry-eye, etc. But again, any pure breed has its problems. We love our bullie, and will definitely get another one! They are the smooshiest, sweetest dogs we have ever had!

Most of ones I know have great personalities and their exercise requirements are fairly low - they still need regular activity to stay in shape and not get overweight but they aren't like Labs that need to worn out on a daily basis. But their medical needs are fairly high - they are prone to skin issues, ear and eye problems, orthopedic issues, and breathing problems that often stem from anatomic problems like excessive soft palate tissues and narrowed airways - some of which can be corrected with surgery and some cannot. Not every bulldog has all these problems and hopefully you have found a breeder that has worked at not allowing these traits to get passed on in her pups. Bulldogs tend to be expensive to purchase because the pups all have to be born by c-section (mom has narrow hips and pups have relatively large heads) and the breeders have to recoup their costs. And if you end up with one that has health problems, you may find yourself incurring a lot of veterinary expenses as well. I'm not trying to discourage, just being realistic. Their "squashed in" faces making it harder for them to tolerate heat and humidity and more prone to heat stroke. I have pugs and when the weather is excessively hot and humid, they spend most of their time in the air-conditioning. They snore and their breathing and panting is louder than most.

As far as grooming, they should be brushed daily, and bathed routinely about once a month to cut down on "doggy smell". They also need their ears and skin folds cleaned out 2 to 3 times a week at least. Every dog should be taken outside for bathroom trips at least 3 to 4 times a day once they are house-trained, but during the house-training process, puppy will need to go out every 1 to 2 hours during the day and probably at least once overnight until he gets better bladder control.

Personally, a small to medium-sized mixed breed dog from a shelter would probably be your best bet.

One of my best friends have an English Bulldog. Besides the issues Christine mentions (gas, breathing, etc) they are VERY stubborn dogs. They don't need a ton of exercise, but they do need A LOT of training and discipline. Even though my friends are experienced dog owners they've had quite a time training her and getting her to behave - eating everything in sight, being rough with other dogs in dog park, knocking down barriers meant to keep her from eating everything in sight - think butter off the table, crayons, can't have her out when any kind of food is out kind of problems, knocking little kids over to get to things she wants. When she was just 3.5 months old she bolted across our back yard and stole the hotdog out of my son's hotdog bun - even though by then I had her by the collar - swallowed the whole thing in one gulp. She's now almost 5 years old and better behaved, but it has taken a lot of work!

My ex is a vet and I'll tell you what he calls english bulldogs..... "a veterinarian's dream!"

They have so many health issues (and usually very expensive ones at that). Our best friends went against my ex's advice and got one as a puppy. Seven years later they have spent about $6,500 on knee replacements and cherry eyes and major skin problems. Even for a short-haired dog, they shed constantly.

If I were you I'd check out some other breeds, and at least consider a nice mutt from a local shelter. Usually they're the healthiest, and in need of a good home.

We wanted on until we got a Shar Pei. Both have medical issues you don't want to deal with.

English Bulldogs also have MAJOR gas problems and the pushed in nose makes breathing hard for them so they pant a LOT. We we CRUSHED once we started researching them. We've had had some SERIOUSLY huge vet bills and will stick with our rescue Boxers.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

My brother and his family have an English Bulldog. The sweetest dog and great with children however the dog does have issues and goes to the vet often. She has allergies and loses patches of fur during certain times of the year, she has to have a special bull-dog food because of her underbite and so on. My brothers dog does shed a lot! If I were you I would look into pet insurance since these breeds tend to have lots of health problems.

We have an american bulldog- completely different than the english, but have a few of the same features. They have the squished noses and ours does not do well in high temperatures. He very much prefers the central air :) He also has a lot of allergies, so we've had to figure out the source and then deal with getting him well. This website is fairly accurate and I think will answer most of your questions http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/bulldog.htm

English bulldogs have a lot if health problems. Breathing, skin, joints, and autoimmune. If you want a low maintenance breed this is not a good choice. The internet is a wonderful resource to do research. Also check out books from the library about the breeds you are interested in.

Looks like you got great advice :) with lots of training they can be that great family dog that you are looking for. Lots of work and dedication. But I'm sure you will be rewarded with a lovable dog I dnt own one just because I can't afford their price and keep up with what can be high vet vills but maybe when I get a higher paying jobb maybe my dream of owning a Bullie will come true.
Good luck
E.<3

Puppies are work. They are like babies but they require much time, attention and effort.

Our dog is great. We buy him dry food only. (Tried can food but he began to be catlike picky.) He goes to the vet once a year or when needed. We take him to the groomer about once every 5-6 months. i bathe him once a month. He is house broken and has calmed down enough to become a most valuable member of the family. We intend on getting a french bulldog next and down the road two more years add a rottweiler to our happy puppy family. Our dog has the same type of short hair/fur. He doesn't shed much at all.

Our cat won't be pleased but she likes the fights and the dog loves the hissy thing (the cat).

A puppy needs to go out more often. Small bladders. They have to be taught how to not go in the house. Having a proper cage for the dog inside is vital. It makes them feel more secure when they have their own place to be which is enclosed.

Please consider adopting a dog from the pound. There are so many that need homes. All our dogs are from the pound we gave them a second chance at life and we got unconditional love. You can find purebreeds along with the mix breeds. Take a look you might find the love of a lifetime.