Puppy care
One should have enough time to take care of the puppy
The ears of the puppy should be checked regularly as they tend to collect wax and dirt. Problems in the puppy's diet are easily seen in the ears and on his skin. Almost all dogs collect some wax in their ears. The ears can be cleaned carefully with cotton-tip applicators or cotton pads. Pharmacies and veterinaries sell ear cleaning products. It is wise to use mild versions of the products for cleaning the ears of sensitive dogs and puppies.
Some bulldogs have a so called tight tail or the skin under the tail is so wrinkled that it gathers dirt. It is wortwhile to check the skin under the tail regularly. Dirt can also gather between the toes or the skin between the toes can became infected if f.ex. the diet of the puppy consist of some foodstuff that the puppy is very sensitive to. When the weather is very humid, bacterias easily find their way in between the toes.
The bulldog should not be washed too often. If the puppy is dirty, his coat should be washed with a very mild dog shampoo. Often it is just enough to clean the dirty spots of the puppy with a wet towel. The coat should then be dried carefully.
The nails of the puppy should be cut once a week. The puppy should be trained gently to the operation. If he gets unpleasant feelings about the whole thing, cutting his nails will never be easy. It takes patience to train the puppy to tolerate nail cutting, but it worth the effort.
The coat of the puppy should be brushed regularly. The brushing should
be done gently with a good brush suitable for short-coated dogs. Rubber
brushes are good for bulldogs.
In Finland the puppy is vaccinated for the first time at the age of 12. This is when he gets a vaccination against distemper, contagious liver infection, parvo virus and parinfluenza. He gets his second vaccination at the age of 16-20 weeks. This is when he is also vaccinated against rabies. The vaccination is being repeated once more at the age of one year.
The breeder has started to worm the puppy. It is wise to worm the puppy a week or two before the vaccination. The grown-up dog is wormed one or two times a year if more wormings are not needed.
Including his heritage, the puppy's behavior is much influenced by how he has been treated during his first months and what kind of stimulus he gets. The more one knows about how the breeder has treated the puppy and how the puppy has been sosialized, the better. It is important that the puppy meets many different people and dogs and gets used to different situations. However, it is good to remember that the puppy also needs regular rest so it is not necessary always to take him everywhere one goes.
A bulldog puppy should not take too long promenades when he is under six months old. He should also avoid running wild wrecklessly. He needs a lot of action many times a day, but this should not be overdone. A soft base is best for a bulldog's promenades. Taking walks in a forest is good training as is moving freely without a collar and a lead. Howeve, this is not enough. When the bulldog gets older, he should also learn to walk regularly in the lead. A young dog should not be taken to a promenade against his will. It is no use trying to take a walk if the bulldog if he is not willing to do so.
There may be many reasons to why the puppy is limbing. A growing dog should not be too rampant because his bone structure is not yet strong enough. Unpleasant accidents can happen while the dog is running wild. If the puppy has very spare knee angulations and if he also is overweight, he has the risk of damaging his knee when he slips or jumps down from a high place. In worst cases the knee may have to be operated. Trying to make a bulldog puppy being still after an operation so that he will not damage his knee again is quite of a challenge, so, if possible, its is best to try avoid accidents like this from happening.
