Bulldog Ear Gluing Workshop
Ideally, an adult English bulldog should have the so-called “rose ears”, but the puppies that are younger than 3 months often have V-shaped years. To give them the correct form, we recommend taking the following steps:
1) cut the fur on the outer side of your puppy’s ear (cut, do no shave, as shaving may lead to skin irritation);
2) take a roll of adhesive tape (use the one with textile backing, not the plastic one) and tear off a piece that will match the length of your puppy’s ear;
3) wet the sticky side of the tape with lighter fluid (the brand is of no significance) to make it more sticky;
4) apply the tape to the ear (where the fur was previously cut);
5) apply some quick drying glue (like Pattex) to the backing;
6) let the glue sit for 1-3 minutes;
7) hold out the ear, fold the edge of the ear with the tape on it so that it is facing downwards and then fold it again so that the ends of the tape meet (and the ear forms a “rose”);
8) hold the folds for at least 10 minutes.
When you let go of the ear, it is essential that the puppy does not shake its head or scratch its ears. He will get used to the new condition in some 15- 20 minutes.
The ears are kept glued from 1 week to 1 month, as needed. Occasionally the progress should be checked and the tape fixed, if necessary.
If in the duration of a month the ears do not take the desired form, make a one-week pause and then repeat the above gluing scheme and keep the ears glued for 3 weeks. Then another one-week pause and another week of glued ears. If after the 3rd gluing procedure the ears still have not reached the desired form, all subsequent attempts will be futile. However, such cases are very rare and if the gluing is done while the puppy is younger than 3 months, the results are usually quick, well formed and enduring.