Is it time for a vet? The symptom reference

Ten posts a week in the breed's biggest forum carry the flair "Time for a vet?", and the commonest form of the question in UK search is "my dog has diarrhoea but is acting fine". This page does not answer it with a verdict, because a website cannot see the dog. What it does is put the published thresholds from two UK bodies that write for owners, the Royal Kennel Club's health A to Z and the PDSA's Pet Health Hub, beside what each symptom tends to be in this breed, and tell you what to have ready when you phone. The phone call is the answer to every question on this page; the thresholds are for deciding whether it is tonight or the morning.

First, the call

The Animal Poison Line is 01202 509 000. It is not free: its own site says "£35 is charged 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday" and "£45 is charged at all other times including bank holidays" (read 17 September 2026). For something swallowed, that call is often cheaper than the visit it saves. Put your own practice’s out-of-hours number in your phone now, under the dog’s name, because the one time you need it you will not want to be searching for it.

The Kennel Club's own line on emergencies: "With all emergencies, if it's possible, please call your vet first, rather than turning up unannounced." Every UK practice has an out-of-hours number on its answerphone and its website, and it is often a different building. Put both numbers in your phone now, with the Animal Poison Line's, and know which car park you are driving to at two in the morning before you need to. "Never 'wait and see' with poisoning and always take any packaging with you to your vet."

Vomiting and diarrhoea

The full page, with the home care the vets allow and the three things that look like vomiting, is vomiting and diarrhoea in a French Bulldog.

Vomiting: the published thresholds

The PDSA's vets on vomiting: "If your dog is normally fit and well, has only vomited once and seems otherwise fine in themselves, it may not be necessary to contact your vet immediately." Contact the vet if the dog continues to vomit or shows any of: "Continuous vomiting; Blood in their vomit; Bloody diarrhoea; Diarrhoea (without blood) lasting for more than two to three days; Low energy (lethargy); A painful abdomen; Disorientation or collapse; Signs of dehydration (sticky gums and/or sunken eyes); Continuous retching and/or a bloated tummy – these can be symptoms of a GDV (twisted stomach) which is a life threatening emergency." And: "Call your vet for advice if your dog continues to vomit, doesn't seem right after 24 hours, or gets worse at any point."

Diarrhoea: the published thresholds

On diarrhoea: "most cases are mild and resolve within 24-48 hours"; if it has been under 24 hours and the dog is otherwise well, "you may want to try settling their stomach at home". Contact the vet "as soon as possible if it's been ongoing for more than 24 hours, they have an underlying health condition, are taking any medication (especially anti-inflammatory drugs/NSAIDs), are very young, very old, seem unwell in themselves", or with blood or mucus, "severe or constant watery diarrhoea", reduced appetite, vomiting, lethargy, or "a painful stomach – dogs with a painful stomach will often yelp when they are picked up, or stand in a 'prayer position'". The Kennel Club's list is the same in different words, and adds "black and tarry stools". The PDSA's home care, for the under-24-hours-and-well dog only: water, a 24-hour fast "not if they are very young, old, or suffering from another illness", then small bland meals, normal food back over three to five days.

In this breed

Diarrhoea and vomiting are no commoner in French Bulldogs than in other dogs in the VetCompass comparison, and the UK figure for acute diarrhoea is one dog in twelve a year, four in five of them needing a single visit, with blood recorded in nearly a third of the vet-seen cases. What the breed adds is regurgitation, which the PDSA distinguishes for you: undigested food "with no retching, heaving or signs of feeling sick", usually soon after eating, and "gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) which is most commonly seen in shorter-faced (brachycephalic) breeds like French Bulldogs. If your dog regurgitates regularly, or you're worried, you should make an appointment to see your vet." The hernia page has why it belongs in the same conversation as the airway. Retching that produces nothing, in any breed, is the twisted-stomach sign and is a phone call now.

Have ready

When it started, how many times, a photo of the vomit or stool, whether there is blood, what the dog ate in the last day, any medication, and whether it is drinking.

Seizures

The full page, with the first aid step by step and what the charity says about medication, is seizures in a French Bulldog.

The published thresholds

The Kennel Club: "Under no circumstances should you put anything in your pet's mouth, including your hands", and "Most seizures last only one to two minutes, but it is a good idea to time the seizures so you are sure of their length." The PDSA: "if your dog has been seizing for more than two minutes we advise calling your vet immediately", "Do not transport your dog during a seizure unless your vet specifically tells you to", and after any seizure, "Contact your vet once they have started to come round". A seizure over five minutes is status epilepticus, which the PDSA says "has the potential to cause permanent brain damage" and the specialists' 2024 consensus defines at the same five-minute mark. More than one seizure in 24 hours is the other immediate call: "You should contact your vet immediately if your dog has had more than one seizure in the last 24 hours". A single short seizure with a good recovery, the PDSA says, may not need investigating straight away: "many dogs have an unexplained seizure in their lifetime."

In this breed

The Kennel Club lists French Bulldogs among the breeds with a possible predisposition to idiopathic epilepsy, which affects about one dog in 200 in the UK; the PDSA's causes list also includes heatstroke, in which "Seizures are common in severe cases", and the breed's heat page is why that matters here. Not every shake is a seizure: a rhythmic head bob in an alert dog that stops when you distract it is the breed's head tremor, which has its own page. Brain disorders were the commonest recorded cause of death in the 2013 VetCompass French Bulldog population.

Have ready

The time it started and ended, a video if anyone can hold a phone, what the dog was doing before, whether it has happened before, and anything it could have eaten. The PDSA's seizure diary is those four things kept for every episode.

Limping

The full page, front leg against back leg and the spine's different clock, is a limping French Bulldog.

The published thresholds

The Kennel Club: see a vet if the dog is "unable to put any weight on their limb, or they're in pain", or the "limb looks visibly swollen or deformed". A mild injury "may just need to rest for a day or so", and "If the limping continues for more than 2 days, it's important to visit your vet." The PDSA sets the bar lower: "Contact your vet if you notice your dog is limping or appears stiff", immediately "if your dog is in severe pain, is unable to put a leg down or has a serious wound", and it adds the reason: "some dogs are very good at hiding pain from their owners." Where the two differ, the page gives both.

In this breed

A back-leg limp, a wobble, a reluctance to jump, a yelp when picked up or a hunched back in a French Bulldog is the spine until proven otherwise, and the spine does not wait two days: the early-signs check on the IVDD page is built for exactly this, and it says which signs mean today. A front-leg limp in a young dog with no history is more often a foot, a nail or a shoulder, and the two-day rule applies; the cysts and kneecap pages are the breed's usual suspects. A dog that cannot bear weight, whichever leg, is the same day in any breed.

Have ready

Which leg, whether it bears weight, when it started and what preceded it, whether the dog can climb a step, and, for the back legs, whether the feet knuckle over or drag.

Eyes

The full page, sign by sign, is a French Bulldog's eye.

The published thresholds

The Kennel Club's eye-emergencies page describes the signs as a dog that will "blink a lot, keep their eyes tightly closed, produce more tears than usual", redness of the white, and "Sudden blindness may affect one eye, or both eyes". It says all the causes on the page "require urgent veterinary assessment" and to "always contact your vet immediately"; for a chemical in the eye, "carefully rinse the eye with plenty of water straight away". The PDSA on an eye held closed: "Contact your vet ASAP if you notice your dog blinking more than usual or think they may have painful eyes. Left untreated, the problem could become much worse", with an urgent appointment for "signs of extreme pain such as being off their food, lethargic, or crying/screaming". On ulcers: "Leaving an ulcer without veterinary treatment can result in loss of an eye."

In this breed

The same page: "Eyeball prolapse (where the eyeball may pop out of position) is most commonly seen in brachycephalic dogs … because the socket of the eye (the orbit) where the eyeball is located is particularly shallow." An eye that is held shut is, in this breed, a corneal ulcer until the vet says otherwise, and the ulcer page explains why hours matter. A red, weepy eye that is fully open is the same phone call at a different speed; the cherry eye, dry eye and entropion pages cover the breed's own three.

Have ready

Which eye, whether it is open, when it started, whether the dog is rubbing it, and a photo in good light. Stop the rubbing before the call if you can; the collar is the treatment.

Noises: reverse sneezing, choking sounds, fast breathing

The full page is reverse sneezing, choking sounds and wheezing.

The published thresholds

The Kennel Club: "A reverse sneeze sounds strange and is often described as a honking, snorting, sneezing sound", an episode "can go on for around half a minute", and "a single episode is usually nothing to be worried about"; "If your dog has multiple episodes, or you're concerned about their health, then always speak to your vet." On this breed, the same page: flat-faced dogs "tend to have shorter and narrower nostrils that can make them more at risk of respiratory issues, including reverse sneezing", and "If your flat-faced dog has breathing issues, or repeatedly sneezes, then it's important that you speak to your vet about their health." The PDSA: reverse sneezing "is nearly always harmless", and "it's sensible to speak to your vet if your dog starts doing it out of the blue, or frequently and severely enough to affect their quality of life"; among its causes it lists "Pulling on the lead" and "An overlong soft palate – common in flat-faced breeds such as: Pugs Bulldogs French Bulldogs".

In this breed

A noise that comes and goes is one thing; a noise at rest with effort to breathe in is the grading chart's Grade 2 or 3, and the snoring page has how to record it. Fast, hard panting that does not settle in a cool room, or a blue tongue, is heat illness or an airway crisis and is the emergency number: the heat-stroke page has the first five minutes, and the published rule is cool first, then drive.

Have ready

A video of the noise, the room temperature, what the dog was doing, and the breathing rate at rest counted over a minute.

Shaking and head tilt

The full page is shaking, head shaking and a head tilt.

The published thresholds

The Kennel Club's causes of shaking run from "scared, anxious or excited" and "wet or cold" to "epilepsy, generalised tremor syndrome, muscle weakness, ear problems or poisoning", nausea and pain, with a poisons list of chocolate, slug baits, cannabis, mouldy foods, nicotine, xylitol, macadamia nuts and caffeine. Its threshold: "If your dog is showing other signs, is shaking a lot or has been shaking for a while you should contact your vet immediately." On a head tilt the PDSA is plain: "Contact your vet if you notice your dog's head is tilted to one side, even if there are no other symptoms", and for the balance problem that often causes it, "ask for a same-day appointment if they are vomiting or seem distressed".

In this breed

Head shaking with a smelly or red ear is the breed's ear infection, which is a morning appointment and, twice, a pattern. A head held tilted, with a wobble, circling or eyes flicking, is a balance problem and a same-day call, because the Kennel Club's list for that combination includes ear disease and inflammatory brain conditions and only the vet can tell them apart. A rhythmic head bob in a bright, responsive dog that stops when you offer a treat is the head tremor page, and that page's own line is: film it.

Have ready

A video, whether the dog is otherwise itself, anything it could have eaten, the ears, and whether it can walk straight.

What this page is not

A verdict. Every threshold above is a UK body's own wording and is attributed; where two bodies differ, both are given. The breed lines are the site's own evidence pages, which are sourced in turn. Nothing here has been reviewed by a vet for your dog, because your dog is not on this page, and the number that is on it is the one that matters.