The Alapaha Blue-Blood Bulldog boasts having a smooth, close lying, short coat and therefore they are low maintenance on the grooming front. A weekly or twice weekly brush and wipe over with a chamois leather is all it takes to remove any loose hair and to keep a nice sheen on their coats.
It's also important to check a dog's ears on a regular basis and to clean them when necessary. If too much wax is allowed to build up, it can lead to a painful infection which can be hard to clear up. In short, prevention is often easier than cure with ear infections.
Alapahas are not high energy dogs, but they still need the right amount of exercise every day combined with as much mental stimulation as possible to prevent them from getting bored. They need anything from 20 to 40-minutes exercise a day with as much off the lead time as possible, but only in areas that are extremely safe and secure. It would be a mistake to let an Alapaha off their leads in a public area where there are other dogs because they can be aggressive towards them.
If Alapahas are not given the right amount of mental stimulation and exercise every day, they would quickly get bored and could even begin to show some destructive behaviours around the home which is their way of relieving any stress they are feeling and not necessarily because they are being naughty. A shorter walk in the morning would be fine, but a longer more interesting one in the afternoon is a must. These dogs also like to be able to roam around a back garden so they can really let off steam. However, the fencing has to be extremely secure to keep these powerful dogs in because if they find a weakness in the fence, they will soon escape out and get into all sorts of trouble.
With this said, Alapahas puppies should not be over exercised because their joints and bones are still growing. This includes not letting a dog jump up and down from furniture or going up or down the stairs. Too much pressure placed on their joints and spines at an early age could result in a dog developing serious problems later in their lives.
If you get an Alapaha puppy from a breeder, they would give you a feeding schedule and it's important to stick to the same routine, feeding the same puppy food to avoid any tummy upsets. You can change a puppy's diet, but this needs to be done very gradually always making sure they don't develop any digestive upsets and if they do, it's best to put them back on their original diet and to discuss things with the vet before attempting to change it again.
Older dogs are not known to be fussy eaters, but this does not mean they can be given a lower quality diet. It's best to feed a mature dog twice a day, once in the morning and then again in the evening, making sure it's good quality food that meets all their nutritional requirements. It's also important that dogs be given the right amount of exercise so they burn off any excess calories or they might gain too much weight which can lead to all sorts of health issues. Obesity can shorten a dog's life by several years so it's important to keep an eye on their waistline from the word go.
