With dogs, there are many, many questionable breeding practices.
But among the ones that should be obvious anyone with a halfway decent set of eyes and a few functioning brain cells are the ones associated with the bulldog.
To make it clear, I’m referring the “English bulldog,” a creature that has been in the Kennel Club system since the beginning, and is now generally regarded as useless for anything except being a pet.
I’m not referring to other bulldogs or bulldog and terrier types, which are of this same family.
I’m talking about the freakazoids, the monstrosities on four legs that we call bulldogs.
This creature:
Yes, this is a real dog.
Dog DNA has some peculiarities that make the phenotype of the species somewhat malleable.
Thus, it is comparatively very easy to “sculpt” any sort of unusual morphological features with them.
That’s one reason why dogs within the same breed change so much over time, and it’s also a major health and welfare issue.
I remember watching a documentary from several years ago in which a papillon breeder, who was heavily involved in the show culture and show breeding, said that her dogs were her artwork. That was actually the most profound statement I’ve ever heard one of these breeders produce.
Most of these fancy features don’t exist in the wild. They don’t even exist in freely breeding street dog populations. Nature would select very strongly against them.
But we have decided in dog shows that these features are to be celebrated and lauded.
The bulldog monstrosities that we now see are the creation of the show ring.
They were not created in butcher shops or in baiting rings.
They were created because of human caprice and vanity.
Nothing else.
You see, the bulldog has been going sideways for a very long time.
If you don’t believe me, check out the words of Rawdon Lee. Rawdon Lee was a British dog expert who wrote several volumes of treatises on purebred dogs of the late nineteenth century in his native country. Entitled A history and description of the modern dogs of Great Britain and Ireland, these well-written tomes are among the best historical records of dogs of that time period. Lee was very much in favor of dog shows and the dog fancy. Every one of his entries includes some analysis of the breed standard at the time.
For those reasons, his entry on the bulldog is of particular interest. He doesn’t sugarcoat anything. He attacks the nineenth century dog fancy for ruining this breed, which he considered a “national monument.” His entry can be found on the volume that covers the “Nonsporting Division,” and nearly every word of this text could be to describe the state of the bulldog today.
Time is known to play grim jokes with historical monuments, but it probably has never burlesqued anything more than it has our national emblem, the British bulldog.
Evolved for a specific purpose—a purpose long since stamped out both by law and by sentiment— the present day examples can only be looked upon as the result of breeding for certain points not desired or found in any other kind of dog. That the bulldog can claim as great pretensions to antiquity as any other now so-called breeds is not to be denied; but to say that bulldogs are bred to-day on the same lines as they were even sixty years ago would be an assertion that could not by any evidence be defended.
***
Evidence which is far more reliable is at our disposal in the pictures published towards the end of the last and the beginning of this century—the epoch when bull-baiting was in vogue—and, judging from these pictures, the bulldog of that time was but a phantom-like shadow of the animal the fin de sifale bulldog enthusiast has by patience succeeded in breeding.
Thus to him who, nowadays, wishes either to breed or to own an up-to-date specimen, it will be so much useless and embarrassing learning if he hampers himself with any considerations as to the outline and general appearance of what has been handed down to him regarding the animals his ancestors looked up to as bulldogs. Should he decide upon breeding bulldogs he will find, in order to produce a specimen at all approaching the modern ideal, that, instead of wasting time in pondering over the old type, he will have to employ that particular style of dog which may at the moment be in fashion.
He need have no misapprehension that the type in general will in the future change much, if at all; nor need he fear that the goal he is striving for will be advanced. For it must be remembered that the standard laid down for this breed has not materially altered during the last twenty years, though judges’ decisions may have sometimes been at variance with, if not diametrically opposed to, the standard type. The very fact of there being now two bulldog clubs is a guarantee that no radical change in the standard will ever be permitted, as one or other of the clubs is certain to hover round so safe an anchorage as an established type. If either club sanctions what sensible men must know is a departure from what is correct, it is only reasonable to suppose that in the fulness of time that club will sink in public estimation.
The miasma of the breed is that the bulldog in popular opinion has for so long been regarded as the butcher’s able assistant and the ruffian’s faithful companion; but, owing to the interest its peculiar conformation affords to the science of breeding, it yearly gains more ground in civilised society by attracting the attention of men of better education.
***
The picture of a bulldog in Youatt’s book (1845) is peculiar, to say the least. It represents a white dog as big as a mastiff, with bowed legs, a ” roach” back, short whip tail, and cow-shaped hocks. Still, he looks strong enough to pin a bull. However, about that time considerable attention was being given to the production of the British bulldog; but there was little material to work on, though there were enthusiasts in the cause even then, who mostly lived in London and in other large manufacturing centres. When dog shows began to exist, an impetus was given to all varieties of the canine race, the bulldog amongst the rest. Jemmy Shaw had kept some of the best blood in London; and old Ben White, who preceded the celebrated Bill George in his kennels at Kensal Town; Jacob Lamphier, of Birmingham; Charlie Stockdale, William M’Donald, London; James Hinks, Reeves, and Mr. Percivall, of Birmingham; Mr. Ashburne, Mr. Turton, all gave them attention, and to such men as these enthusiasts—if most of them were dealers—we owe what good bulldogs there are at the present time (pg. 205-215).
Youatt's bulldog.
Lee writes that the original bulldog was quite a large animal, but the dog shows changed them.
The final paragraph is full of a rogue’s gallery of dog dealers and half-assed “dog improvers” : Bill George is often credited with creating the modern bulldog at his Canine Castle at Kensal New Town in London. He produced all sorts of different types of bulldogs from tiny toy bulldogs to massive bulldogs that derived from crosses with the Spanish alano. James Hinks may be better known as the creator of the “white cavalier,” the improved English bull terrier. This dog still exists today, but Hinks bred his dog to be the perfect pet of the gentleman. It was supposedly never to start a fight, but if riled, it would gladly finish it.
The bulldog became a dog of conspicuous consumption, a dog to be sold because of what it looked like and what it symbolized.
And Lee points out that not all the esoteric fancy points of bulldogs were the result of breeding. Lee describes cruel procedures that were used to alter the dog’s conformation and make them more likely to win prizes:
In the ” good old days,” about Sheffield and Birmingham, dishonest practices were in force, which were said to improve the face and muzzle of the bulldog. Cruel contrivances called ” jacks” were fixed on to the muzzle in such a manner as to drive the nose back. Sometimes, too, the ears were cut, and the more recent case of the disqualification of Monarch when shown by Mr. D. S. Oliver at Birmingham, in 1880, is not yet forgotten. Monarch had been shown successfully the year before, and was again awarded similar honours. After the judging, attention was called to the dog’s ears, upon which were found certain marks which led to the animal’s disqualification. Subsequent inquiry took place, and at a meeting held on December 16 several experts were examined, who were unanimous in their opinion that the marks had been wilfully made whilst the dog was in the show, and Mr. Oliver was exonerated from all blame in the matter. He, however, took the dastardly action so much to heart as to completely sever his connection with the bulldog “fancy.” Another dog of note known to be “faked” was F. Lamphier’s Tiger, for which Mr. George Raper [ironic name] gave £45, well aware of the defects of his purchase, but he considered him cheap at the money for breeding purposes (pg. 216-217).
Of course, it wasn’t long before they figured out how to breed for extreme brachycephaly in bulldogs, and by then, it was too late.
The difficulty in breeding bulldogs was evident even in those days. Lee writes:
One thing there always will be against the actual popularity of the bulldog, and that is the great difficulty there is in breeding first-rate specimens, and, with very few exceptions, our best bitches are wretched mothers, in some cases refusing to breed at all, in others failing to suckle the puppies, and in others the puppies often enough are born dead. Inbreeding, huge heads, and malformation of chest and forelegs are no doubt responsible for this state of things, nor is it likely matters will improve in this particular at any early date (pg. 228).
He doesn’t mention “water puppies,” which are at epidemic levels in the breed, or the fact that virtually all bitches require a Cesarean section to produce puppies. This procedure was not commonly performed on dogs in those days, so there may have been that control to prevent the most extreme exaggerations in the breed. Lee’s description of the problems of bulldog bitches sounds more like the result of an inbreeding depression that set in among the bulldogs.
Of course, now we have all these scientific methods for producing puppies. If bitches won’t mate, you can always do AI. In fact, almost all bulldogs must be produce through AI or through very carefully assisted matings. Cesareans mean that there is almost no limit on how big the head can get or how narrow the pelvis can become.
The bulldog wouldn’t exist without modern veterinary medicine to keep it reproducing.
But the dog was well on its way into ruination nearly 120 years ago.
However, Lee was very wrong about this breed’s popularity.
For a variety of reasons, this breed has recently become very popular in the United States. The AKC lists the bulldog as the sixth most popular breed in terms of its own registrations for 2011.
This is really quite sad.
The bulldog is caricature of what it once was. Heavily interbred with pugs and terriers, the bulldog is no longer the large mastiff-type dog it once was.
Bred for such extreme brachcephaly, it has issues both in breathing and cooling itself.
These dogs are were used to fight bulls in contests– which were banned because they were cruel.
But then the dog became a show dog, and it became a monstrosity with so many health problems that are related both to inbreeding and breeding for an exaggerated conformation that it would be hard for me to list them all here.
Breeding a dog that is not being able to breathe or cool itself properly is every bit as cruel as breeding a dog for fighting purposes.
In a sad way, it is even more so, for now all rational and humane people denounce dog fighting. But virtually no one says the same thing about breeding for a body type that has very real health and welfare consequences.
It’s cruelty. No matter how you look at it.
***
I’ve discovered in comments that are too stupid to publish that I’m not well-regarded among the bulldog fancy.
I welcome their hatred.
The vast majority of what I’ve seen among these people are the rantings of lower class, poorly educated people whose idea of a good argument tactic is to write “your an idiot.” From what I’ve seen of the Team Jenny (“We was robbed”) Facebook group, the typical demographic of the British bulldog fancier is a working class Tory with very poor grammar and reasoning skills. (Which is probably why they are working class Tories in the first place!)
There are some sane bulldog breeders out there, but very few of them are working within the system and with this particular breed.
But these people are few and far between, and I doubt that they can make much of a different to a breed that is already so common.
The bulldog is most common in the United States, a country that generally scoffs at or has ignored the problems of purebred dogs.
So the bulldog is screwed.
120 years or more of “improving,,” and it’s still effed up– and getting worse.
This is so true, all of it, and I applaud you for saying it.
We had an Englisg Bulldog in our training class a few times and the other (gun)dogs didn’t know what to make of it. Poor thing was coughing up huge pools of mucus which were wiped up by its owner. Dreadful. And he (or his owner) didn’t last long in our class.
I don’t know how anyone can have been so cruel as to have bred these poor dogs in this way. It’s been said before, but, as symbolic representatives of the UK, they invite a truly sad commentary.
Poor things. It’s a shame, because they really are nice dogs. Funny, silly, happy and sweet.
Dogs put up with a hella lot of crap of all kinds from people, yet remain adorable and loving. This breed has put up with far more than necessary… I like that word, ‘qualzucht’; it fits this breed.
Well actually there are some serious attempts now going on to breed that better bulldog, a more humanely constructed one. I occasionally meet up with some of the results when walking over the chiltern hills near Chequers as this is a great dog walking area.
However the owners I met were by no means financially poor individuals, at least not before they emptied their accounts to buy their new age bulldogs. One such owner described to me how he had to travel to the very north of Scotland for his pup and hand over £5000 to the no doubt grateful breeder of this phenomenon, but I have to admit he convinced me it was a quite healthy dog which could breathe and move with natural ease, nor were the limbs anything but straight. Unfortunately he then revealed that he had up to date subsequently spent several more thousands of pounds just to keep the dog alive after various health problems emerged – and yet he still seemed happy with what he got, poor deluded individual that he was.
Unfortunately, of all the breeds in trouble, you will find that the bulldog breeders are the least amenable to take on board criticism, or to change. They feel very superior to the KC, because some of their clubs are older than it.
I can see no prospect of improvement at all.
Elizabeth
That’s EXACTLY what I’ve noticed!
So according to a comment above, there are these working class tories who are sane bulldogs breeders but not actually breeding bulldogs. I see what you mean about “poor reasoning skills”.
To be fair, Elizabeth, there is plenty of evidence of some bulldog breeders opting for change even if they are not numbered among the mainstream members of the breed club. How many pekingese and pug breeders are opting for healthy changes, for example, by breeding for more muzzle and having the courage to enter the results at shows? Hopefully the Kenel Club with public support is now now starting to encourage change via these vet check initiatives
The Canine Alliance reactionary movement will be the last hurrah for the old way of thinking – well let’s hope so.
I was interested in a comment above which seemed to imply that papillons were being stylised, at least by this one breeder who reportedly regarded them as an “artwork” something to shape like playdough perhaps.
It’s just that we have a papillon in the family and so I look at others we meet to make comparison. My conclusion is that papillons in general are very naturally constructed dogs and they prove this by their easily perceived intelligence and athletic ability. The one in our family also has a most delighful personality, friendly and confident towards all the humans and other dogs he meets along the way. Sorry if I seemed to get into defensive mode there.
I wasn’t attacking papillons at all. There’s really nothing wrong with them.
What I was trying to explain was the dog breeders often regard their dogs as living sculpture.
A papillon could be a lovely painting from the Renaissance, while the bulldog is something grotesque, like Picasso.
Not all art has the same aesthetic appeal.
But the papillon is fine even though it stems from the same dogs as living sculpture ideology that also created the bulldog.
I loved the comment about Papillons being “artwork”! My collection of priceless works of art has just been grounded for escaping through a hole in the fence I hadn`t spotted, , chasing a rabbit across 3 muddy fields and coming back in a disgusting condition.
Most of the “artistic endeavour” in Papillons of recent years seems to have gone towards more coat and bigger ears. Construction has been left alone.
I am old enough to remember the fads for tinies in the 60s and all white bodies (reduces gene pool) in the 70s. Fortunately the breed has outgrown those.
I hope you are right about the Bulldog. I find the UK Bulldog people very set in their ways. And the ones I have met aren`t “working class Tories”, really….all sorts, politically. And as Peter Dawson says, they have one thing in common – they have to have very deep pockets. A really expensive breed, the Bulldog.
Elizabeth
Rman I have heard the exact same wording regarding “artwork” from another breeder.Something along the lines of sculpture. Did you overhear this yourself or did you read it somewhere? I believe I heard it while watching Westminster this past year???? Wish I could recall exactly. I was equally repulsed and in that single moment, the entire problem caused by the dog show world was illustrated clearly. Even if not all show people feel this way, too many do. I wish such blind folks were the exception to the rule, but it appears they are not.
Using a reference to “artwork” in a denigrating fashion is pointless. There are many kinds of art, and artists who range from completely incompetent to fantastically skilled. (and likewise among dog fanciers).
If one uses the term “artwork” in regard to dogs, there would be a vast difference between a dog sculpted by Michaelangelo, and another by a hack with no talent or visual sense calling himself a “modern expressionist”. . One needs to determine what sort of artist is at work . The same in dog breeding.
i see nothing wrong in seeking beauty in dogs. And, in my opinion, true beauty in dogs (or any animal) requires proper structure and soundness; everything “right” for its purpose, fitting together into a harmoniously balanced whole. If it also has the size, coloring, coat characteristics, temperament, that one prefers, what harm in that?
Oh, please. I am not a ‘show person’, but I will definitely tell you if one has any kind of goal at all in breeding you are definitely sculpting living flesh, combining genes. I set a goal for a breeding, an idea in my head, and I look at the bitch and pick a sire that will allow me to achieve that goal. You must have an eye for it, there are skilled to be learned along the way, sure, but you must have the innate eye to see what a dog has and what it can contribute. I know people who have been in dogs a long time and don’t have an eye; mostly, they get lucky.
Art is subjective. The goal for a litter of show puppies and the goal for a cross-breeding may be entirely different but a good breeding is still having an image in their head and doing the breeding in order to see that image become reality.
I feel sad for almost every bulldog I see. Poor things. They’re still dogs, although they sure can’t act like them.
I must also comment on your tag for this post. I think it fits perfectly.
Poor thing. It looks like it was exposed to something extremely toxic in vitro.
Did someone say that the bulldog is sixth most popular breed in the USA? This seems hard to believe, sorry!
Regarding the bulldog being almost synonymous with the British, this is embarrassing for us to admit to. There are many breeds of British origin, famous around the world, which could represent us better, so please pick from among those.
However, maybe even more embarrassing is our association with the Cavalier Spaniel, sadly now such a disaster on legs, so heavily contaminated are they with genes for syringomyelia and mitral valve disease, yet so beautiful and gentle that they continue to be collected in droves by adoring owners who are fully aware that it will all end in tears and near financial ruin.
More sensible British dog lovers are choosing crossbreds these days – or even the ubiquitous jack russell is a healthier choice than the doomed Cavalier.
The fashion for crossbreds has indeed taken off here, with huge prices paid for labradoodles and cockapoos and so on, and the sales hook is that they are entirely free from inherited defects (and of course hypoallergenic.).
I remain to be convinced of that. If you are unlucky you will get the worst from both parents.. There are no guarantees in dogs.
Jack Russells are quite a good bet, though, if you get one with a good temperament.
Elizabeth
I agree with your implication that not all Russells are nice to know, Elizabeth, but the pleasant ones are among the best pets anyone can have, and they are usually much outcrossed and consequently often genetically free from a lot of the problems which beset many ‘purebreds’. However, on the subject of labradoodles and cockapoos, the theory that they will tend to be genetically free from inherited disease is good provided they are the result of a first cross, since most inherited disease is transmitted via recessive genes and different breeds tend to have unrelated disease genes, each disease gene requiring a similar gene with which to match. The theory is that first cross pups will have no diseases expressed but carry both sets is tempting to speculate upon.The problem, at least in theory, is when two first crosses are mated together since both parents will be carrying hidden recessive from their two purebred parents the second cross pups will haveTWO MATCHING SETS of hidden disease genes TO MATCH UP AND BE EXPRESSED- which is a potential nightmare scenario you will agree. I did say “in theory” because in practice the F2 (second generation) cross is found from expermental breeding to result in massive variation among the F2 pups, so with strict (or lucky) selection this F2 generation can contain some pups which have no disease genes either expressed or recessively carried. Presumably as DNA investigation and manipulation improves it may be possible to breed out inherited diseases? However back here in the real world I believe that there is already quite a lot of labradoodle x labradoodle and cockapoos x cockapoo breeding taking place so that the doubling up of disease genes may be happening right now. Has anyone out there had any experience of this and could tell us about it?
Working in a vet clinic, I always cringe when a client comes in with a bulldog, especially a new puppy. All I see is a long road of health problems and multiple trips to the vet and getting to watch that happy, wiggly puppy turn into a sad, lethargic, yeasty, oxygen-deprived mess.
[…] Within just a few decades of being bred for the show, it was already a deformed freak. […]
I have a bulldog, he is very very healthy, he runs jumps acts silly and can keep up with any other dog, I know many other bulldog owners and they all have great dogs, why don’t you focus on how to care properly for animals instead of criticising a dog you know nothing about, and taking extracts from books
i think some of you need to get your head out your arse and come and meet lots of healthy bulldogs, i was in the vet today with one of mine for a booster vacc and she was the only only not panting, 4 other long nosed breeds were!!! i have 4 and only time they see the vet is for yearly check up!! so please before you get on your high horses at least come meet some!!!!!!
Bulldogs are a joke. My guess is you’re British and have decided to attack me like a bunch of rabid, ignorant hyenas.
How many bulldogs have died in the United States because of heat stroke? Tons.
Normal dogs don’t just die because it’s hot out.
You people have been ruining this breed for so long, you can’t tell it’s a freak. A freak that should no longer be registered until some grown-ups take over.
You people are living in a fantasy world. You can’t tell how cruel you actually are.
You’re worse than the dog fighters, and I’ll have none of your nonsense.
If you don’t like it, you can go straight to hell for all I care.
I have no use for chavs with fantasy delusions about their cartoon dogs.
I’ve yet to meet a bulldog person with half a brain or anything resembling normal compassion for dogs.
utter rubbish , my bulldogs nearly 5 and never seen a vet for anything but injections , he also dosent cough up mucus ,and he was also born natural no c section needed ,yes he is a pet why would he be any thing else ,, you get what you pay for ,why have a fiat when you can have a ferrari x
Utter bullshit. Bull fucking shit.
As far as I can tell you people are so ignorant of science and reason, that you can’t tell if the world’s flat or not.
You are wrecking these dogs, and you’ve been at it so long you can’t see it.
I can’t convince you. So I’ll happily curse you out.
Your dogs are living cartoons.
You don’t care what they feel or how hard it is for them to cool themselves.
You’re no better than Michael Vick.
What amazes me is that you morons think that you can destroy everything I like with poor reasoning and low n, anecdotal evidence written in a grammar and syntax of someone who obviously was failed by the British school system.
Find a new hobby, assholes!
You & a few more of the idiots on here do not know what you are talking about, I have owned rescue Bulldogs for over 20 years, my 1st one died in his sleep at 13, & my current girl is 10 & a half years old & in perfect health, you have the nerve to slag Bulldogs off, when there are so many other breeds that need destroying, & yes Bulldogs are pets or as in most cases a member of the family, but that is no reason to insult a truly historic breed, ah now I see the problem they have a 500 year plus history, & they are English, that’s the problem!!!!, oh & please correct you ignorant facts, there is no such dog as a British or English Bulldog they are a BULLDOG full stop no other name JUST BULLDOG!!!, OH and one last fact for your bigoted illiterate comments, I am a fully qualified accountant so I am a damn sight more educated than you will ever be, & like my chosen breed of dog, me & my family have a long & illustrious history, something I doubt you have, so here’s an idea you ignorant sarcastic little man, actually find out the true facts about the breed & the people who own them before you spout your hate mongering!.
Well, being an accountant doesn’t mean you can write or reason. It just means you can do figures.
LOL.
That doesn’t give you a right to change what the facts are about bulldog health or to live in a fantasy world in which those dogs are okay, even if they die of heat stroke in 70 degree weather!
again you uneducated moron only Bulldogs that are left out in the midday sun or walked in it die of heat stroke/exhaustion, as with most dogs, you should however check your facts before you spout your idiotic drivel, speak to real Bulldog owners not idiots who have no idea what they are doing so cause their pets harm & distress, my girl sunbathes most of the day, she does however come inside when she gets to hot, so again you analogy of the breeds health problems is,as with all your other views on the Bulldog incorrect, so please rant on a subject you know about, instead of spouting you hate mongering lies about a beautiful breed of Dog!!!
Poor bulldog mascot, died of heatstroke after being left outside in the EVENING:
http://www.ksla.com/story/19170951/tech-xx
“Regretfully, I learned this morning that through negligence of an employee, Tech XX was left outside too long on Sunday evening and passed away from a heat stroke. That employee unfortunately chose to handle it the wrong way and attempted to cover it up. Due to this negligence, the employee is no longer employed by Sexton Animal Health Center.”
Lots of airlines won’t ship them, for the same reason. I guess it’s just an anti-British conspiracy!
Don’t the French control all the airlines?
I’m not taking this bullshit much longer.
“That is no reason to insult a truly historic breed, ah now I see the problem they have a 500 year plus history, & they are English, that’s the problem!”
If you think the modern English Bulldog in any way resembles or has the characteristics of the dog from 200+ years ago, you’re living in a fantasy land.
Before you started with your rude personal attacks on the British I actually agreed with some not all of what you had said in your statement above, however you really let yourself down by shooting your uneducated mouth off, I think the only person with their head up their arse is you!
Your latter comments totally detract the reader from the original statement, by the time they get to this one they will have realised what type of person you are and any respect they may of had will have disappeared
In fact I really can’t be bothered to type anymore as you are now in my eyes a complete joke
I’m not attacking “the British,” I am attacking the stupid people who come on here and write all these stupid and entirely pointless things about bulldogs. I read this crap all the time.
By the way, I hope you know this is my blog. And I don’t censor my foul mouth.
I am entirely happy using it. I flip people off in the car all the time.
If you don’t like it, tough shit.
You may call me a joke, but not a single person on this thread, assuming it’s more than one person, has provided any evidence to destroy my claims in the post.
Instead, you’ve decided to act like a bunch of swaggering bullies, assuming that calling me all sorts of names would get me to shut up.
Well it won’t.
And I’m not changing a word of this post.
Go off and set up the rape rack for your bulldogs!
what a nasty little person you are .and fowled mouthed…i think you need some medical help ..like a mental hospital ..!!!!
Actually, it’s you who need medical help.
And did you even bother reading the comments policy?
LOL.
I’m getting ready to delete any further insulting comments from morons who want to bully their way around on this blog.
I think you people are very good example of the Fuckwad theory, and any further comments will be deleted.
I don’t care. This isn’t a free speech zone!
As for sucking your dick if your anything like the average over weight retriever I doubt I would be able to find it under all those rolls of fat!
Enjoy the rest of your day you vile LITTLE man!
oh dear oh dear, perhaps you shouldn’t throw insults at us & our favored breed of Dog, then perhaps you would not have been outwitted by a load of dumb Bulldog owners, but instead you take your toys away so we can no longer join in your game!!!! boo hoo
Outwitted!?
LOL
No evidence and lots of invective are not outwitted, sweetie.
I think you all need mental help.
And BTW, when you come to a blog with comment guidelines, don’t be a fucking troll.
Technically, you should designate a separate page where one can easily find the comment guideline. Otherwise it is too difficult to find. Clicking on the “About” page is not exactly intuitive.
I do have a separate page.
ha ha he he ……if you cant take it ..dont give it ….byeeeeee
LOOK, BULLDOG MCCARTHYITES. NO EVIDENCE. JUST MY DOG LIVED TO BE 13. SO THERE.
THAT’S OUTWITTING ME?
PULEASE.
There are tons of studies that show that the bulldog conformation is a serious welfare problem.
But I guess not in bulldog fantasy land.
Now, you’re all banned. I’ve got more enlightening things to write about for people who actually want to learn things.
Think you will find your the only troll sweetie and what sort of a blog only allows comments from people who agree with you…?? Are you scared of critisisuim or is it you just like the sound of your own …….can you smell that …….. That’s it bullshit!
“Your” is not the synonym of “you’re.” If you are too fucking stupid not to know the difference, then I’m not listening to you.
You are too ignorant to post here. You’re banned. Get a fucking life!
I can’t troll my own blog.
So fuck you, and have a nice day.
It’s his blog, and he doesn’t like your attitude. Welcome to the internet, where you don’t have the right to post badly-spelled stupidity wherever you feel like.
Well, well, it turns out that Terrierman wrote almost the same post as me!
http://terriermandotcom.blogspot.com/2012/01/is-it-time-to-dump-bulldog.html
Why don’t you guys go over there and try to set him straight?
I bet he’s much more reasonable and cordial than I am.
LOL.
It has been documented for over 100 years that English Bulldogs have health issues related to its structure.
The fact that torture-breeding has lasted for a century and a half into the modern-era despite warnings from many individuals throughout the decades only illustrate how incredibly stupid people are.
No further comments from the bulldog mafia will be approved. Stop trying. All previous commentators have been banned, and you will be, too.
You’re not into having a conversation. You’re into bullying and acting like general horse’s asses.
I don’t have time for this and neither do my regular readers.
If you think you’re going to shut me up with your terribly reasoned and horribly spelled bullshit, you’re quite wrong.
The policy of this blog is never to give dickwads an audience.
And you aren’t getting it from me.
Go and intellectually jack each other off.
I’ve got better things to do.
And if you are that upset that I use “dirty words,” then you’re children.
And I don’t have time to babysit.
bulldogs do have an array of problems, especially those that have been poorly bred. Problems with breathing and over heating being the most serious. They can also be prone to eye and skin problems and many are very short lived. Most bulldog owners understand these issues and spend thousands trying to keep there dogs healthy, never seeming to question why they should have the problems in the first place. You can sometimes get a bulldog who is not effected by these crippling health problems , but it is the minority rather than the majority. Problems in other breeds seem to be highlighted and bred out so the dogs are healthy. However it seems with the bulldog it is just accepted and the dogs suffer. Dogs should live a long and painfree life, where they are nto constantly trying to catch there breath, has to be pumped full of piriton and honey and lemon juice due to palate and allergy problems. fed selected diets due to tear stain trouble. The bulldog is a lovely natured dog, and people seem to celerbrate this. however the poor dogs are left with these deformities and crippling conditions and bred for a lot of money. Looking back at how the bulldog used to look, the modern day bulldog is a million miles away from its ancestors.Man has ruined almost every breed to make them more pleasing to the eye. with disreguard to the health of the animal. You can ussualy hear a bulldog before you see them as most of them have the most horrendous breathing problems. They can not even clean there own behinds, and need assistance to do a lot of things most dogs can do natrually. Even mating is rarely a natural event, it generally involed AI or mating cradles. Then the bitches generally can not self welp and need to be cut open. Man did this to the breed, yet these bulldog lovers don’t question these problems, they just bury there heads in the sand and carry on. if a bulldog eatches its teens its a rareity. I know bulldog owners who can’t even walk there bulldogs becasue there breathing is so bad the dogs pass out due to lack of oxygen due to palate problems. I love dogs, but i would never own a bulldog, simply becasue i could not sit there each day and watch something struggle so much just to live.
May I ask why you have focused specifically on the Bulldog? There are any number of breeds who come with their health issues i.e. Cockers and Spaniels can be prone to skin problems and ear infections, some toy breeds can suffer joint problems and be prone to respiratory difficulties, Labradors and other large breeds prone to hip dysplasia….I could go on.
Yes, I am an owner of a bulldog and a healthy one at that. He is fed accordingly, a perfect weight, takes regular long walks without difficulty and regularly checked by an experienced unbiased vet as all animals should be. My point being that he is taken care of properly. We got him from a responsible breeder. I understand your point completely about poor breeders and owners, who in my opinion should be shot on the spot, but you can’t tar all with the same brush.
You have caused much offence to some people on here. This is your blog and you can say what you like, but you can’t honestly expect people not to respond to you when you post on a forum such as this. People should be allowed to say what they feel and from what I can see you aren’t giving them the opportunity to do so….blocking comments who disagree with your opinion. You also have the right to respond to them although I think your foul mouthed tirades can be unjust and slightly immature at times.
Measures are being taken to work certain traits out of a lot of breeds, not just the bulldog. These things takes time, so maybe we should be patient.
I didn’t specifically pick on the bulldog.
This blog has 4,083 posts on it. I’ve written similar posts about Neapolitan mastiffs, double merle breedings, pekingeses, and Clumber spaniels (just to name a few). I’ve also written about golden retriever health, including high cancer rates. I’ve also written and attacked border collie triallers for allowing too much of a popular sire effect, and Nova Scotia duck-tolling retriever fanciers for lying about how healthy their dogs are.
I did not specifically target the bulldog. It’s just one of several.
The problem is that this breed is beyond screwed because not everyone is going along with any reforms.
In the United States, where the bulk of the bulldog population is located, virtually NO ONE cares.
You are going to have to dramatically change the conformation of this dog if it’s to be viable.
There’s no other way to look at it.
Virtually every feature from the flattened muzzle to the naturally short tail have health and welfare issues connected to it.
I am more than aware of all ailments bulldogs have, and i genuinely believe that in the UK there are a lot of breeders and owners who care about these reforms and will do what they should to abide by them. Obvously this differs greatly to the US approach – not much I can say about that. People with that kind of approach to animal welfare shouldn’t be allowed pets.
Everyone does need to go along with reforms I agree, and I reiterate that it will be a work in progress and will take an awfully long time to enforce. There are ways to educate people about this sort of thing. Unfortunately I don’t think you recorded it in the best way. Having a completely negative opinion on something and not allowing people to discuss is withouth being mouthed off at doesn’t help either.
I hope this, and other breed posts you have written, helps people realise what measures should be being taken, but also appreciate that not all of the breed are the same. Whether you agree with that or not is up to you, but remember the UK iS a very different place to the US – and i mean ni offecnce before i get slated unjustly). Abusing people who will stick up for themselves and what they believe in is less than helpful, especially when they’re trying to help the breed.
The reason why you got approved is because you were reasonable. You wrote in complete sentences and used proper spelling and grammar.
You did not call me an idiot, and you didn’t try to dodge simple, easily-proven facts.
When people do those things on this blog, I get very upset.
I work very hard for factual accuracy on this blog, and I do not appreciate being denounced by people who can’t even bother to use the English language properly.
I do agree with you, but I don’t think there is much hope.
In the US, this breed is used as a mascot for football teams, mainly in the South. The South is known for its subtropical climate, and the dogs die all the time.
No one in the US is pushing for reforms for the bulldog. Our national kennel club doesn’t care.
This is a very important article that came out last year in the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/27/magazine/can-the-bulldog-be-saved.html?pagewanted=all
The other thing is we have native bulldog breeds that are perfectly healthy (in terms of their conformation, breeding practices and population structure, an entirely different story!). They are large dogs, and they have strong prey and protection drives. They are not pit bulls. They are various types of bulldog that represent the strains of bulldog that were common in England at the time of the English Civil WAr, when large numbers of royalists fled England for the Southern colonies.
I find this review if thats what you want to call it a joke, I guess from your review you have owned, breed, and loved a bulldog after all you could only make such comments if you have. But we both know that you haven’t.You have simply jumped on a band wagon and think its clearer to comment on somthing you know nothing about. My bulldogs can run for miles they dont have skin problems or breathing, and are heathly and only got to the vet for there jabs and health check which they pass. I have owned many breeds and my favorite is the bulldog they are so loving and loyal. I wont say you dont get unhealthy bulldogs because you can but all breeds and i mean all breeds have a portion of unhealthy dogs in it.
I don’t make claims without evidence.
And I can tell you that there is copious evidence that the bulldog is horribly FUBAR in terms of its health.
Here’s the OFA stats on hip dysplasia: http://www.offa.org/stats_hip.html
What part of “72% dyslpastic” do you not understand?
Also, what about all the evidence that extreme brachycephaly causes breathing and cooling problems for the dog– and even predisposed it for certain cancers? (Go to the links in that post).
Also, this breed has lots of unhealthy dogs in it. A very high proportion. Let’s look at the UK Kennel Club’s health survey on the bulldog! Median age of death– 6.3 years!
Yep, that’s a very healthy breed there!
Large numbers of vets and if you’ve read this blog in the past 24 hours, lots of vet techs, don’t think bulldogs are just fine and have health problems just like any other breed. This dog is a basketcase of defects, a monstrosity of canine flesh, a freak bred for stupid people who would gladly bet all their money on a carnival game.
Your claim that this breed has health problems comparable to other breeds is baseless and easily disproved through a simple Google search.
I don’t care if your dogs can run miles and miles. You are in the UK. You don’t have a clue what hot weather is, and you can get away with making claims like that.
Even in the temperate regions of the US, we get nasty heat waves, and when we do, the bulldogs drop like flies. And it’s virtually irresponsible to keep a bulldog in the subtropical parts of the country without careful monitoring.
Most normal dogs don’t die whenever it gets warm out, unless they are left locked in a parked car.
Bulldogs don’t even need the parked car. They can’t cool themselves very well anyway!
Bulldogs have been dying young for half a century. I found a video on British Pathe from the 1950s, where they cheerfully state how the dogs generally die at around 6 years old. There was no tone of it being considered a problem or anything, it was just a fact of the breed.
http://www.britishpathe.com/video/bulldogs
My bully is fit as a fiddle, not overweight, breathes perfectly, runs around with other dogs and plays perfectly normal! He’s also beautiful and the mOst loyal companion ever! Can I also add these are also on top best family dogs list because they are so gentle!
I suggest u come to a bulldog meeting before slagging them off! Bulldog owners do not slag off any other breeds so leave ours alone!!!
Do you not know the difference between anecdotal evidence and empirically verifiable, statistically significant evidence?
Obviously, you don’t.
And I have request of the bulldog idiots club who posted this and sicced their toadies onto this blog, please give your minions better talking points.
I will NOT accept anecdotal evidence.
This is what morons do.
You’ve not disproved a single thing I’ve written here.
But you have proved to me that that bulldog– “toaddog“– fancier are among the stupidest people in dogs anywhere.
If you think “I got a healthy one” is an argument against anything I’ve written about a breed–not an individual dog, a breed– then you’re too stupid to comment on here.
[…] English bulldogs have been screwed for a long time. […]
[…] every time I’ve written about this breed, I get attacked by the “bulldog mafia.” (See part 1 here, and Part 2 […]
[…] were perhaps the first dog ever destroyed by the concept. They were already in quite poor shape within two decades of the rise of the modern dog fancy, and they have been messed up for so long that people don’t even recognize the very real […]
I have an 11 month old Bulldog and i absolutely cannot connect with this dog. My fiance brought him home a week before christmas he sais for our 2 year old, but i beg to differ. To make a long story short i have been left with all the responsibility of training, feeding, walking, and bathing. This breed is very stubborn at times seems mentally challanged. I am at my wits ends and the dog knows it. I care for him all day and when my fiance comes home from work the dog starts acting up and tries my patients. I think that this breed is not ment for families with children, instead they need one on one constantly with no other distractions. Could this be due to the fact the dog did not come from a professional breeder. My bulldog looks like the one from the pic from the 1800s. He is tall with longer tail but with bull dog features. All his siblings are short legged with .cork screw tails
These dogs are so messed up that it often doesn’t matter who has bred them, they are a train wreck breed.
Bulldogs are disgusting my bf has one it just get worse . Not a day goes by that there isn’t something… Let’s see yeasty everywhere , skin issues, digestive issues, gas gas gas which is fucking gross, drool , random slop ,his body sticks ,his face is gross like it goes on and on. I will not have a baby with this animal around . I wouldn’t let my kid crawl around with everything he gets on the floor . He has shit stuck in his tail that needs wiped and he leaks ass juice . We have him at the vet all the time buy every and anything we read about to help with everything and nope doesn’t work . It’s frustrating especially when I’m cleaning everything all the time because it’s disgusting . It’s like having a special needs child which is ridiculous in a pet sorry
[…] breeding them to what is clearly one of the most absurd breed standards in the entire dog fancy. These dogs were messed up over a hundred years ago– after only about twenty years of being bred solely for the show ring– and one particularly […]
[…] before effective mating occurs. Here is some info on why Bulldogs are in the poor health they are http://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-exp…r-a-long-time/ Leading vet calls for pugs and bulldogs ban because the pedigree dogs often struggle to breathe | […]
I am not at all in disagreement with the cruelty in which the English Bulldog breed has been tampered with to achieve the so called “desired traits”. It is because of greed and selfishness that most dogs are forcefully bred regardless of health issues or interbreeding just so puppies of “pure breeds ” can be produced for money money money, and selfish society can claim to have a pure bred animal. However, not in contradiction, I do love animals, and I think that all deserve the love and care they need. I don’t agree with continuing the cruelty of breeding an unhealthy dog, but I do think that bulldogs are cute. I have been around many. Their personality is also very loyal, kind, and willing. I may not agree with continuing the breed, but the bulldogs that are here now still deserve the chance to be loved and taken great care of.
I own two Dachshunds. I know about many health issues in this breed as well. A couple of them being hip dysplasia and back problems due to their elongated body and short stubby legs. I didn’t get my dogs because of breed. I adopted them because they both pulled at my heartstrings and needed a loving home. I know it would be the same feeling from me for any breed even bulldogs because as I’ve already said, all animals need and deserve love.
[…] breed has a lot of health problems and not a single one of them is new. This breed was messed up within twenty years of becoming part of the “dog fancy,” and as it became more and more extreme, there was actually a robust debate about bulldog health […]
Hi I have two pedigree british bulldogs. The first a male is now 8 has been to the vet every year for check up and booster shot, other than that was de sexed and had an ear infection when he was four. No joint problems no breathing issues. My second dog is a female from the same breeders again no issues she is 4 years old had to take her to the vet for a very bad bout of gastro she picked up from eating something gross down at the beach. We live in Australia just coming out of an extremely hot summer both got through it with out dying and I don’t even have air conditioning!! Before my current two bulldogs I had another female British bulldog who had a grass allergy which bothered her in spring. I also have sever allergies in spring part of life right? She passed away at 12 in her sleep best dog I have ever had. But hey maybe we just make them tougher down here in oz.
[…] deformed through competitive dog showing, that within 25 years of it entering the Kennel Club, the very “typey” bulldogs were having all sorts of trouble. And one winning specimen couldn’t even finish a walking […]
Hi. I am thinking of getting a female bulldog puppy which I have fell in love with, but reading all these mixed comments about possible health problems with that breed, I am now so confused and wondering what to do. Please help!!!!!!!!!
I strongly advise against it.
The bulldog mafia, who attacked this post, are delusional fools.
Just read this: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/27/magazine/can-the-bulldog-be-saved.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
If you’re in the UK, you’re better off with a boxer or staffie.