One look at an English bulldog puppy--with that sweet, jowly face--and you may be a goner. Properly trained and socialized, English bulldog pups will grow up to be endearingly sweet. Knowing the personality traits of the breed will help you bring up a perfect companion.
Origins
One of the American Kennel Club's nonsporting dogs, the English bulldog originated in Great Britain, where aficionados bred them to fight bulls by clamping their powerful jaws onto the bull's nose. After bull-baiting was outlawed, British bulldog breeders concentrated on getting rid of the aggressive tendencies that they previously had worked to cultivate. As a result, the modern-day English bulldog is calm and not easily provoked, and usually they love children (see Reference 1).
Conformation
An adult English bulldog is a short, squat dog with a head that looks unusually large for his body, and short hair. It will weigh 40 to 60 pounds when fully grown. A bulldog does not move fast---he will be happiest sleeping on the couch, or shuffling along behind you when you take the kids for a walk (see Reference 3).
Overcoming Personality Traits
The obstacles to training English bulldog puppies, according to The Purebred Puppy, are that they have a stubborn streak, they can be food-aggressive, and they also may act out around other dogs. Thus, the best action you can take to get your pup off on the right foot is to take enroll her in a puppy obedience class. Most obedience instructors will admit puppies as young as 12 weeks into their classes, provided the animal has received her first rabies vaccination.
In puppy class, you will learn be the pack leader without having to resort to corporal punishment, which bulldogs in particular don't take kindly to (see Reference 2).
Aggression toward Other Dogs
Curbing aggression toward other dogs requires that you socialize your puppy early, and puppy classes will help with that as well. Your English bulldog pup will meet a lot of different kinds of dogs, with widely varying temperaments, in puppy class. The more she's around other dogs and people, the quicker she will learn behave in society, and the easier your life will be.
Food Aggression
English bulldogs tend to be protective of their food and their food dishes, which can be dangerous if you have kids or other pets. You should work from a very early age to counteract this inclination. If you see any sign of it, don't feed your pup around other animals or kids, just to make sure you don't have an unfortunate incident at the beginning. Ask your vet or the teacher of the obedience classes what approach you should take to cure your pup early of this unwanted behavior.
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