English Bulls - advice please

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sonjafoers

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Hello,

I have 2 rotties and as my bitch is getting old now the time is coming to think about possibly getting a pup before she is too old to accept it.

My husband & I have been discussing this for a long time, deciding how we would deal with the situation of our girl ageing and introducing a new dog, and what breed we should get.

We have finally decided on an English Bull girl pup so that our male will have a companion when Tia is gone, and hopefully it will be easier to introduce a girl to the 2 of them. We won't get one in the short term but I have started looking on the net at for sale adverts just to see what's out there ;)

I understand some of the health problems these guys come with and I know to check for heart and skin issues, but can anyone advice exactly what I need to ask the breeders please with regards to this.

Also is there anything I can do to prevent any skin problems once we finally get her?

Finally any EBT pics appreciated!

Thank you
 
Also be careful of deafness.

I used to walk an EBT for a local rescue - Chalky, what a dude. Mad as a bag of badgers that one!! And my mam had one while she was in Milan - Marta, she was a gentle beautiful dog.

Get yourself on an EBT forum and get chatting - thats the best advise I can give :)
 
Thank you Kitsune, is deafness a big problem with them? It does seem there is plenty to look out for - a friend who has always had them told me they were problem children so it sounds like that could be right!

I think they are all mad by the sound of things - yipee :D
 
OK...been a breeder of these great dogs for forty years..so know a bit here and there.Both parents should have CURRANT certs for...UPC/kidney function (kidney failure is a big problem in some lines) A heart certificate,including ECG and even better colour doppler..a BAER certificate of hearing..this is a one off test.Your puppy should be BAER tested with it`s certificate in it`s puppy pack. Both parents also should be tested clear of Patella Luxation..very common in the breed.

Basically your selected breeder should "grill" YOU to see if you are correct for the breed,the mother should be friendly and off lead when you meet her.She should be well covered ,indicating she has had plenty of good food to help her rear her litter without losing condition,she may well be thin coated,as bitches lose their coat during lactation..but NO skin trouble.Your puppy should come with a vet check/first vax/tattoo or microchip done/diet sheet/pedigree and reg. certificate.Good breeders endorse their puppies "progeny not to be registered" and "not for export" .Why? To ensure that ,if you breed ,those vital tests are done before breeding..at which point the breeder lifts the endorsement.Your puppy contract must clearly state this,endorsements and tattooing are the way proper decent breeders do their very best for their puppy`s future.Pricewise bullies from breeders like this are at around £850...£900 at present.
As a breed they are funny,full of humour,comfort-loving..so NOT an outside living dog,completely potty but very loving in a non creepy way.Bit of a fan ,myself:rolleyes:
 
Thank you East Kent, that's really useful. Yes we need to be sure we are right for the breed as much as it is right for us, and we have done a fair bit of research & spoken to people we bump into who have them but to be honest there doesn't seem to be that many about!

A friend of my husbands used to breed them years ago so we have taken some advice from him, but really need to get some up to date info on what we should be looking for, so thank you for your post.

Our dogs are definately not outside dogs - in fact as I type one is asleep upstairs on my bed and one is snoring away on the settee next to me! We want a companion for our 2 that is happy to get 3 walks a day and play down the stables, in the river etc but doesn't need excessive exercise as our rotties are getting older and don't always want to be out for hours & hours at a time. We also want a dog that will fit in with ours, be happy to cuddle up on the settee and also to have character! From what we have found out it seems as long as we can put up with the stubborness the EBT probably fits the bill!

Now all we have to do is find a credible breeder when the time comes, so if I ask the questions you have posted we should be able to narrow it down and get a lovely healthy pup. Thank you again.
 
The cuddle up on sofa bit..excellent!Playing IN THE RIVER....ooohhh might get our tootsies wet there! Mine spook round puddles:eek: even.Funny dogs they are,can ignore real pain like a fracture..but tread on nettles..oh God E.R .at least.::rolleyes:
 
Ah could be interesting, my dogs play in the river for hours during the summer afternoons - perhaps the new one will sit on the bank with me then! They do sound great and I'm looking forward to meeting some pups when the time is right.
 
Definitely do your research really really well, they are not a breed that are suited to most people!! I've had 3 over the years and I would never touch the breed again I have to say.
The first one we had had terrible skin problems and was on steroids pretty much his entire life, he came from a top breeder and was about £800 which 20 odd years ago was alot! He nearly lost a leg because of it and cost a fortune in vet bills - he was allergic to everything! The breeder wanted nothing to do with the dog so we gave up with them. He was a very good guard dog and excellent with people and cats but despite every effort when he was a pup, taking him to classes etc, he was very dog aggressive and could never be let off the lead off the farm, he died of kidney failure at 9yrs old.

Second one we had was a typical terrier with a very high prey drive and was obsessed by balls and would stand outside even in the worst of weathers with his tongue touching his ball - plastic not his own!!:D Very sweet though but didn't really get on with our other dogs and kept himself to himself - he died at a year and a half old after having an allergic reaction to anesthetic when he was being neutered.

The third was a bitch from a breeder recommended to us by the bullterrier club, took us a year to find what we thought was the right pup, I drove from Cumbria to Kent to pick her up - we had her put down at 2yrs old. She was so aggressive it was unreal, absolutely stunning looking dog but lethal to both people, other dogs and animals and even at the end towards us. So we called it a day after she tried to kill our little elderly jack russell for no reason, and she then went for my Mum who was trying to get the little dog out of her mouth - luckily I heard the commotion in the kitchen and ran down to help, I grabbed a leg and dragged her into her crate - the vet was called the next morning to put her to sleep, luckily nothing was broken on the Jack Russell except some really bad bruises and cuts, but our vets have had to put quite a few down because of aggression so weren't surprised.

After working in a vets for years I always thought it was always bad owners who made dogs behave badly, most cases it is, but I see now despite doing everything right there are some dogs who are just born to be that way, we were gutted I have to say to put a healthy animal down but she was a ticking time bomb - could you imagine if that was a child?? - It doesn't bear thinking about!!!
I did contact the breeder - she got very nasty on the phone - turns out she had bred at least 3 other highly aggressive dogs all of which she had taken back and was trusting her little 2yr old grandson with - ALONE!! I also reported her to the bullterrier club and told them the dogs breeding - wether that will do anything I don't know?!!
But I have seen quite a few others and know a few people who have them, all with the same problems in varying degrees - dog/people aggression and serious health problems, which is a shame for the dogs sake but I guess they were bred for aggression and fighting abilities to start with. I'm going to be sticking to rescue mutts from now on!!!!
 
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Thank you Alexart, that is definately food for thought. I have heard of aggression problems and of course the skin problems so I will keep researching before making a final decision.
 
Alexart said:
Definitely do your research really really well, they are not a breed that are suited to most people!! I've had 3 over the years and I would never touch the breed again I have to say.
The first one we had had terrible skin problems and was on steroids pretty much his entire life, he came from a top breeder and was about £800 which 20 odd years ago was alot! He nearly lost a leg because of it and cost a fortune in vet bills - he was allergic to everything! The breeder wanted nothing to do with the dog so we gave up with them. He was a very good guard dog and excellent with people and cats but despite every effort when he was a pup, taking him to classes etc, he was very dog aggressive and could never be let off the lead off the farm, he died of kidney failure at 9yrs old.

Second one we had was a typical terrier with a very high prey drive and was obsessed by balls and would stand outside even in the worst of weathers with his tongue touching his ball - plastic not his own!!:D Very sweet though but didn't really get on with our other dogs and kept himself to himself - he died at a year and a half old after having an allergic reaction to anesthetic when he was being neutered.

The third was a bitch from a breeder recommended to us by the bullterrier club, took us a year to find what we thought was the right pup, I drove from Cumbria to Kent to pick her up - we had her put down at 2yrs old. She was so aggressive it was unreal, absolutely stunning looking dog but lethal to both people, other dogs and animals and even at the end towards us. So we called it a day after she tried to kill our little elderly jack russell for no reason, and she then went for my Mum who was trying to get the little dog out of her mouth - luckily I heard the commotion in the kitchen and ran down to help, I grabbed a leg and dragged her into her crate - the vet was called the next morning to put her to sleep, luckily nothing was broken on the Jack Russell except some really bad bruises and cuts, but our vets have had to put quite a few down because of aggression so weren't surprised.

After working in a vets for years I always thought it was always bad owners who made dogs behave badly, most cases it is, but I see now despite doing everything right there are some dogs who are just born to be that way, we were gutted I have to say to put a healthy animal down but she was a ticking time bomb - could you imagine if that was a child?? - It doesn't bear thinking about!!!
I did contact the breeder - she got very nasty on the phone - turns out she had bred at least 3 other highly aggressive dogs all of which she had taken back and was trusting her little 2yr old grandson with - ALONE!! I also reported her to the bullterrier club and told them the dogs breeding - wether that will do anything I don't know?!!
But I have seen quite a few others and know a few people who have them, all with the same problems in varying degrees - dog/people aggression and serious health problems, which is a shame for the dogs sake but I guess they were bred for aggression and fighting abilities to start with. I'm going to be sticking to rescue mutts from now on!!!!
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That sounds appalling,as I do not have "a two year old grandson" at least that was`nt me.But I am curious to know how someone recommended by the BTC (are you sure about which Club it was?)could breed such a horror.Kidney failure..well we test for that these days,and skin problems are very complex ,but for most dogs it is down to environmental/food allergies.
However you have had a bad time with my breed,so just maybe they are not the right choice for you.
 
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