hi everyone,
me and my partner have just got a beautiful little 8 week old bulldog boy. His mum is victorian bulldog and his dad english bulldog. he was being fed wet food by the breeder. We have read from every advice site that we will be better giving him dry food.

We have had a look and there seems to be soo many different types of food available. We want something tailored to meet our little boys needs, but is not going to take our full wage every month to buy. Although we do not mind paying for quality, just dont want to pay over the odds for a food thats no better then its cheaper rivals.

The foods that i saw available near us are............
Ardon Grange, James Wellbeloved, Orijen, Wainrights, Royal Canin, Pro Plan, Iams, Eukenuba or pets at home own brand.

Has anyone got any advice on which would be good?

Also, he is not drinking any water at all, but yet is peeing about 20 times a day. Is this because he is getting water from the wet food? There is always a bowl of fresh water available for him but he wont drink any of it. We have given him milk and he will have a little drink of this but is not too fussed on that either.

I have had dogue de bordeauxs previosuly which are obviously alot bigger, and fed them on fresh meat which they loved, but would rather get Alfie onto dry food if possible for obvious reasons as long as it will be healthy for him and meet his needs.

Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Also, the breeder recommended a cage for him. has anyone used one with a bulldog? my bordeaux's never went in a cage but i know bulldogs can be notoriously difficult to house train. he is at that stage at the moment aswell where everything goes in his mouth and he bites it as hard as he can. obviously he is just playing but me and my partner re sporting many scratches to hands, arms, feet, noses and chins. any tips to discourage this?

thanks

alex xx

Orijen or wainwrights.

I feed mine on royal canin but I do know its not as good as Orijen.

Wainrights gave my girl her coat back after she got sick and lost it all.

How long have you had him and how long has he not been drinking for?

My dogs are crated.....mainly as pups and it is a great thing however its not for everyone.

hes been with us since Thursday night, so 5 days. We mixed some milk in with his food so hes getting some liquid but he has absolutely no interest in water at all. its just in a bowl next to his food, is this correct or should we be giving him it in some sort of bottle? its very odd, he just doesnt seem thirsty at all. he is still weeing all the time tho, and its normal puppy colour, no blood or anything out of the ordinary.

What kind of milk are you giving him? Cows milk can upset puppies stomachs. What colour are his gums if they're pink its not a problem at the minute if they're pale then he's dehydrated.

Wainwrights is a fairly good food if you don't want to pay too much but he can handle raw just as well as your ddbs.

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"A dog is not "almost human," and I know of no greater insult to the canine race than to describe it as such."
John Holmes

Owned by Buster cairn terrier mix and Leo netherland dwarf mix bunny

they look quit pale pink, but his face is white. they are the same colour as his tongue, the skin you can see through his fur on his muzzle and his pads.

yeh we were giving him cows milk, are we best off to get the puppy milk that you can buy from pets at home, or just avoid milk altogether?

hes eating loads and his poo seems to be normal, so cant understand the lack of drinking

Did you use puppy milk? Normal milk isnt good for them.

Also, dry is no better then wet at all, just depends what the dog does better on. Of the above available brands I'd go with orijen, wainwrights or arden grange.

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it was just normal cows milk as he had this mixed with his food from the breeder.

anyone else with a bulldog pup, were they drinking water from a bowl at 8 weeks?

Some dogs don't take to water well. My boy will drink from puddles and rivers, but he only drinks fresh tap water, so it needs to be changed several times a day.

Also, wet food is 70% water, so he will be getting most of his water from his food. If you switch over to dry food, you should see an increase in him drinking water.

As long as the meat is good quality, wet food is as good as dry food, but the choice is a personal one. I prefer dry over wet because it is cheaper to buy per bag than per tin/pouch, it doesn't spoil and attract flies in summer, and it's more convinent to weigh out the exact amount of food to give. However, some people may prefer wet over dry, and some may prefer raw over wet and dry.

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RIP David xx Run free at the bridge. Love you always xx 19th February 2011
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There are plenty of 'best food' threads on here if you search. I feed this Puppy Days which Kilo is doing really well on, however you have to find the food that best suits your dog at a cost you can maintain. I have said it before but truly think that every owner with a happy, healthy dog will tell you that their way of feeding is correct - and it most likely is for that individual dog.

I prefer dry for the cost per weight, storage and convenience (Kilo will be coming to work with me in 2 weeks' time). I do, however, supplement his meals with a little variety e.g., spoon of natural yoghurt sometimes.

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Your pup is still quite young and if he is thriving on his current wet food, then I would be reluctant to change him at the moment...maybe wait until he is a bit older then gradually introduce a good dry.....mixed feeding seems to be quite popular at the moment.