A reputable breeder is a dog fancier who shows their dogs, does health checks for heritable conditions, is a member of the breed club, and has a genuine interest in improving the breed. Their dogs should have show titles, health clearances, and be registered with the AKC. Don’t be fooled by breeders who just have “nice family dogs, ” and nothing to back it up, because nice is not enough. The breeding of a dog impacts its temperament, so the “niceness” of your dog is also at stake French bulldogs for sale. You will not find good breeders selling to pet shops, and you won’t find them advertising in newspaper classifieds or on puppy finder websites. Ethical breeders will also have an interest in what kind of home their puppies are going to, so be prepared to not only ask a lot of questions, but answer them, too. It is not uncommon to be on a waiting list for your next pup, as responsible breeders don’t have constant breedings and may only breed once a year. They tend to have homes already lined up before the puppies are even born. Dogs sold to pet homes (as opposed to show homes) usually come with a spay/neuter contract. With the right breeder, you will have a relationship where you can always get guidance and advice on your new dog.
Another great option is to find a Bulldog in need of a home through a rescue or shelter. You will find Bulldogs of all origins, and of all ages and types, but they have one thing in common: they need a forever home. When you rescue, you don’t expect to get a “perfect specimen of the breed”, although you may end up with a great dog. Some rescue dogs were given up for health or behavioral reasons, others for personal or family reasons. Many rescued Bulldogs are retired breeding females who were used up and throw away. Once they had several c-sections and could no longer be bred, the backyard breeders or commercial breeders simply dumped them. Don’t be set on a puppy, give an older dog a chance. According to the BCA Rescue Network website “The average age of rescue Bulldogs is about four or five, and few Bulldogs are ever surrendered to rescue under the age of three. ”
A rescue organization will help match you up with the right dog for you and your family. The process starts by filling out an application and going through an approval process and interview. They do this not to make you “jump through hoops” but to ensure that the dog will have a good fit, and won’t be bounced around from home to home as some of the dogs have been in the past. Expect to pay an adoption fee that could be around $400, or various amounts depending on the organization. The adoption fee helps pay for all the medical bills of the rescued dogs, including surgeries, vaccines, medications, heartworm treatments, and spay/neuter surgeries provided by the rescue, a non-profit organization. Many people find it worthwhile and very fulfilling to provide a forever home to a dog in need. Little Miss Muffin is three years old. But it has only been the last few weeks that she has been part of your family. Muffin is the second dog to become a member of the family, and it takes only a few hours for you to learn that her previous owner had not taken the time to house break her. The little French Bulldog may not eat much, but cleaning up after her in the house every day is going to get old… fast. But what is there to be done? Doesn’t ‘everyone know’ that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks?
Take a step backward and look at that statement. Why? Why can’t Little Miss Muffin learn something new? And if she can’t, is there some magical age that she stops learning? The last question sounds ridiculous when written down, but if answered no, that there is no age she stops learning, then by default the old saying is wrong. You can teach an old dog new tricks.
The difference between teaching an older dog and a new puppy something new is the new puppy is starting from a clean slate. Muffin will have to unlearn previous behavior before replacing it with the desired behavior. In this case, doing her business outside. The training keys for training an older dog are the same as the younger dog, patience and consistency. Especially the patience part, it may take Muffin longer to learn to go outside then if she had learned as a young puppy.
When introducing a new dog to a household with an existing, trained dog, there is a chance that Muffin will try to mimic your existing dog’s behavior. There is still a need for training, because having Muffin trained for only when Daisy’s around is only half helpful!
After you have identified the behavior you want to change in Muffin, use positive reinforcement to train her to act in the way you want, such as, using the great outdoors as her bathroom. Remember to be extra patient, as she will be confused at first with this change in her normal behavior.
Muffin may be past the ideal puppy age for training, but she is still a younger dog. What about an older dog of say… ten years old? If we’re sticking to the same logic as the beginning of this article, you should still be able to train this old dog. Some argue that it may even be easier to train an older dog. The reasoning behind this is that an older dog is less excitable than a puppy and therefore has a longer attention span, which gives you more of a window to train your dog before losing his attention. The flip side of this argument is that because your older dog is less excitable, he will have less of an attention span because he gets tired easier.
Whichever side of the argument is correct, a point to remember is your older dog will get tired more quickly than a twelve-week-old puppy. Be aware of your new older dog’s energy level as you are training. Don’t push him to exhaustion. Also be aware, especially if you are dealing with a large breed dog that their hips and joints won’t be able to hold up to tricks and running as well as a young dog.