English bull terrior

Jen Pigs Fly

Doing some early research on these.

We are hoping to purchase an English bull terrior in the next year or two (we are well open to rescue one if a shelter has one )

Could anyone outline the common health problems associated with a pure bred English bully? I've done research online but a good comprehensive list is hard to come by.

Dog will be sourced from a fully repetitive breeder who had done all necissary health checks - what health checks should we be looking for in this breed? (I've only ever had rescue dogs so a bit out of touch when it comes to pedigree dog health checks)

Dog will be well socialised from an early age with other dogs, children, men, women, horses, cats and all other aspects that he/she will meet in his/her life (I have horses so being well socialised with horses, children and farm machinery is a must for me)

Will be fed on a raw diet to help with any skin/digestion issues that may arise.

We have no problem travelling to England or mainland Europe for the perfect well rounded dog

Knine

Have you ever met anyone with this breed? Is it the standard or minature you are interested in? There has been problems with short lifespan in the mini size. As a terrier person myself I strongly recommend you go & meet owners/breeders & see the dogs as they can be quite a handful for novice owners.

They are generally good with children, are real clowns but many will not tolerate other dogs of the same sex. They are very powerful for their size. There are some decent breeders in Ireland.

Jen Pigs Fly

Knine wrote: »

Have you ever met anyone with this breed? Is it the standard or minature you are interested in? There has been problems with short lifespan in the mini size. As a terrier person myself I strongly recommend you go & meet owners/breeders & see the dogs as they can be quite a handful for novice owners.

They are generally good with children, are real clowns but many will not tolerate other dogs of the same sex. They are very powerful for their size. There are some decent breeders in Ireland.

Standard would be what we would prefer. My boyfriend has an American Staffordshire bull terrior at home who is such a well rounded and happy dog. He's well used to them and the strenght of this dog is unreal! Walked this dog a few times, he's a tank but I managed quite well! I walk my family's huge golden retriever/lab daily who is very strong

This is what is a red flag for me - the tolerance for dogs of the same gender, we also hope to rescue and foster dogs (the EBT would be the only dog we would buy assuming one doesn't come up in a rescue) would a lot of socialisation when young and going to puppy parties, puppy training classes, day care and doggy meet ups help at all in this regard? If we are working full time all dogs that we have will go to day care.

Or would we be better having another dog first before we look into a EBT. I am planning on rescuing one of the "unadoptables" aka staffy, pitbull, blind/deaf etc as I hate seeing them being bypassed day in and out by people.

As far as fostering goes, if all else goes well and the dog is well socialised we would like to foster dogs too as rescues need a lot of help especially with older dogs or dogs with health issues. We would need to go by circumstances at the time however.

All indoor dogs of course

Knine

Personally if you would like to foster etc I would choose a different breed. Some are ok with other dogs but many mature adults would not tolerate same sex dogs & probably not too happy with strange dogs appearing in the household.

Sometimes they do appear in rescue also.

Jen Pigs Fly

Knine wrote: »

Personally if you would like to foster etc I would choose a different breed. Some are ok with other dogs but many mature adults would not tolerate same sex dogs & probably not too happy with strange dogs appearing in the household.

Sometimes they do appear in rescue also.

Thank you, we will weigh up options when it comes to it ... I'd happily rescue first before we buy, even if it's 5/10 years down the line, we would be better to have adult dogs with a puppy EBT if that's the case.

I'll keep researching into the breed, health issues, etc.

Rescued EBT would hopefully have been exposed to other dogs at a rescue ... But again I can't say much about that as it depends on the dog at the time and the individual rescue and how they approach bull breeds and such.

mozzy

I disagree, I think like any dog with the right human they can be super social, we have two EBTs that visit daycare regularly and they mix great with other dogs, they are a strong breed and can be totally oblivious of their own strength and weight but otherwise they need time and patience. There are always a couple in rescue looking for homes, I know of three at the moment so always keep a look out when you are ready for one

tk123

mozzy wrote: »

I disagree, I think like any dog with the right human they can be super social, we have two EBTs that visit daycare regularly

Would they be younger dogs though if they're going to daycare - and maybe not mature enough to have issues with yet?

Jen Pigs Fly

mozzy wrote: »

I disagree, I think like any dog with the right human they can be super social, we have two EBTs that visit daycare regularly and they mix great with other dogs, they are a strong breed and can be totally oblivious of their own strength and weight but otherwise they need time and patience. There are always a couple in rescue looking for homes, I know of three at the moment so always keep a look out when you are ready for one

Most definitly want to rescue! I'm 100% pro rescue which is why any other dog is going to be a rescue it's just a specific breed that the OH in particular loves but he's well on to rescue one too, would prefer to give a rescue dog a chance.

My future pitbull and greyhound are going to be rescues

Rips

<snip>, dog warden picked up two this week, they are on facebook and don't seem to have been claimed so far.

Jen Pigs Fly

Rips wrote: »

<snip>, dog warden picked up two this week, they are on facebook and don't seem to have been claimed so far.

I would love to but as per the op we won't be ready for a good while yet to get a dog

We want to be 100% ready for the commitment and the knowledge that we will have the dog for the rest of his/her life