The Complete Bulldog Owner’s Handbook · Interactive

Ten years with a Bulldog, without the surprises

The breathing, the heat, the folds, the eyes, the hips, the weight, the bowl, the stubborn sweetness and the senior years. Everything we wish every Bulldog owner had on day one, with tools you tap, slide and tick instead of pages you skim.

Get the handbook $24.99 See what's inside

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11 interactive tools
Works on any phone, no app
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Written by the humans behind Nicole & Nora

The Complete Bulldog Owner’s Handbook cover

Interactive

Sound familiar?

Tap the one that's happened to you.

A taste of what's inside

Flip through a few pages. Swipe on your phone, or use the arrows.

Chapter 4 · Breathing and heat

Watch, vet this week, or vet now

Most Bulldogs have some narrowing of the airway. The signs come in order, and the order tells you how fast to move.

You see	What it means	What to do
Loud snoring, noisy breathing at rest, long panting after short walks, sleeping sitting up	A narrowed airway	Vet, ask for a Respiratory Function Grading Scheme assessment
Heavy panting that won't settle, thick drool, red gums	Overheating	Shade, cool water over the body, fan, ring the vet now
Dark or blue gums, wobbling, vomiting, collapse	Heatstroke	Cool while driving; nearest vet immediately

Above about 20°C, no walk. Never 'wait and see' with a Bulldog's breathing on a warm day.

Sample page · The Bulldog Handbook

Chapter 3 · Eyes, hips, spine and the breeder

The healthy Bulldog buying list

More than eight in ten UK Bulldog litters are born by caesarean. The breeder matters more than for almost any other breed.

Both parents' Bulldog Breed Council health scheme certificates seen
Both parents graded 0 or 1 on the Respiratory Function Grading Scheme
Mother met, breathing quietly in a warm room, nostrils open rather than slits
Parents' tails: some tail, not screwed tight into the body
Puppy's eyes clear: no pink lump, no squint, no thick discharge
Written contract, health guarantee, vet check within 48 hours

A breeder who cannot show you paperwork is selling you the problems. And breed rescue is a real alternative.

Sample page · The Bulldog Handbook

Chapter 8 · Food guarding

Trade, never take

Bulldogs are among the gentlest dogs with people, and among the most likely to growl over a bowl. Here is the short version of the plan.

PreventHand-feed part of every meal. Walk past and drop something better in. Trade for every chew, then give it back. Hands make food better.

NeverTake the bowl away to show them you can. Punish a growl. Let a child near a Bulldog who is eating.

FixFeed behind a gate. Find the distance where the dog stays soft, toss something better, close the gap over weeks.

Get helpA snap or a bite means a clinical behaviourist via your vet, and a check for pain. Early help is a few sessions.

A silenced warning becomes a bite. Trade, don't take.

Sample page · The Bulldog Handbook

Chapter 9 · Skin and folds

Where is the itch?

The location of the itch is the best clue you have. Here is the short version of the map.

Folds and nose ropeDamp folds grow yeast. Wipe, then dry, every day or two. Red, brown or smelly means a vet.

The tail pocketUnder the screw tail. Most owners find it when it smells. Wipe and dry every few days.

Ears, again and againRepeat infections mean an allergy underneath. Treat the allergy or the ears never stop.

Paws in springPollen and grass. Wipe paws after walks, wash bedding hot, fish oil daily.

Dry beats clean. A damp fold is a yeast farm, however clean it looked when you wiped it.

Sample page · The Bulldog Handbook

Sample pages are shortened for the web. The handbook goes deeper on every one, and every chapter has a tool to tap, slide or tick.

How urgent is a Bulldog's breathing?

The signs come in order. Tap a rung to see what it looks like and how fast to move. The handbook's sign checker does this for your dog, sign by sign.

What's inside

Twelve chapters, each with a tool. Tap a chapter.

1Is a Bulldog right for you?

Honest answers before the puppy, the lifespan, the cost, and what a good Bulldog life looks like. Tool: the fit check.

2The first 30 days

What to do, in what order, from the day they come home, including the breathing baseline and the food work. Tool: the 30-day checklist, ticks saved on your device.

3Eyes, hips, spine and the breeder question

Cherry eye, entropion, dry eye, hips, knees, the screw tail, C-sections and the Breed Council health scheme. Tool: the healthy Bulldog buying list.

4Breathing, heat and BOAS

What normal sounds like, the grade, surgery, the temperature rules, heatstroke first aid, anaesthesia. Tool: the breathing and heat sign checker.

5Food, weight and wind

The waist test, portions for 18–25 kg, the raised slow bowl, food allergy, the flatulence. Tool: body-condition slider with a portion calculator.

6Training the stubborn sweetheart

Two-minute sessions, fast pay, force-free, the five skills, the sit-down strike. Tool: doesn't understand or doesn't want to? sorter.

7Adolescence: six months to two years

What's happening, what to do, the first grumble, what not to do. Tool: the motivation picker.

8Food guarding and the Bulldog mind

Why Bulldogs guard food, prevention, the fix, alone time, other dogs, sensitivity. Tool: normal or guarding? sorter.

9Skin, folds, tail pocket and ears

Fold dermatitis, the tail pocket, ears, atopy, food allergy, coat, nails and teeth. Tool: the skin and grooming map.

10Bulldogs with children, visitors and other dogs

Rules for children, heat and play, visitors, the blunt greeting, the new baby. Tool: safe or step in? sorter.

11Health by age and the senior years

The puppy checks, neutering and anaesthesia, the adult years, bladder stones, and what's not just age. Tool: the health-by-age slider.

12Quick-reference charts

Emergencies and early signs, the heat rules, care by age and the six Bulldog rules, ready to screenshot or print.

★The Bulldog test and your certificate

Twenty statements about Bulldogs: true, or a myth? Score 17 or more and a Certified Bulldog Person certificate with your name appears, ready to print.

Who it's for

Get it if you…

are thinking about a Bulldog and want the honest version first
have a new puppy and want the breathing, the folds and the bowl right from day one
have a Bulldog who snores, gags or tires easily and want to know how worried to be
have a Bulldog who has started growling over food
want to keep the weight, the skin and the airway right for ten years

Skip it if you…

have a Bulldog who has bitten. That needs a behaviourist and a vet, not a handbook
want to read your dog's body language across breeds. That's The Dog Language Handbook
only want the free basics. Start with the Bulldog articles

An English Bulldog walking through a park

From the humans behind Nicole & Nora

We live with two miniature dachshunds, which is a long way from a Bulldog. But the questions that fill our inbox from Bulldog owners are the same ones every time: the snoring, the summer, the folds, the weight, and the growl over the bowl. So we wrote the handbook we'd want if a Bulldog came home tomorrow.

It's honest about the breed. Bulldogs have a body that needs looking after every day, a short life, and a bill to match. They're also the gentlest, funniest, most companionable dogs there are, and most of what goes wrong is predictable and preventable if you start early. This is the handbook that lets you have the second part without being ambushed by the first.

Force-free, always. Educational content, never a substitute for your vet.

Which one do you need?

	Bulldog articles	The Bulldog Handbook	The Dog Language Handbook
What it is	Free blog posts, one topic each	The whole breed in twelve chapters, with tools	Reading any dog's body language
Best for	A quick answer	Living with a Bulldog, puppy to senior	Understanding stress, fear and illness signals
Price	Free	$24.99	$19.99
	Read the articles	Get the handbook	See the handbook

Questions

What format is the handbook?

An interactive HTML handbook you download straight after purchase and open in any browser on your phone, tablet or computer. No app, no login. Twelve chapters with tools to tap, slide and tick, flip cards, quick checks, a true-or-myth test with a certificate, and printable charts. Your progress and checklists save on your device.

Is it for English Bulldogs only?

It is written for the English Bulldog: the weights, the lifespan, the breed schemes and the C-section figures are all Bulldog-specific. Most of the breathing, heat, fold and weight advice applies to any flat-faced dog, but French Bulldog owners should look at our French Bulldog Handbook instead.

My Bulldog already has breathing problems. Will this help?

It will give you the signs, the grade, the temperature rules, the first aid and an honest account of what surgery can do, plus the weight and feeding changes that make the biggest difference. It does not replace a vet visit; the sign checker tells you how fast to book one.

Does it replace my vet or a trainer?

No. The sign checker is a triage tool that tells you how urgent things are, not a diagnosis, and the behaviour chapters tell you clearly when to get a professional. Everything in the handbook is educational.

What if it's not for me?

Email us within 7 days of purchase and we'll refund it in full. Details in our refund policy.

Is it force-free?

Yes. Nothing in the handbook uses fear, pain or intimidation. A Bulldog pushed around shuts down and plants; the handbook works with the breed's food-motivated, unhurried nature, not against it.

Sweet face, hard body, no surprises

Read the breathing chapter tonight. Wipe and dry the folds tomorrow. Put the bowl behind a gate. The rest of the ten years gets easier from there.

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