House of Issa Bullies | XL American Bully Breeder in Texas

State your name, your kennel, and where your kennel is located.

Hello! I am Natalia Issa, with the House of Issa Bullies, located in Dallas, Texas.

What type of dogs do you breed, and what inspired you to get involved with that particular breed?

We breed XL American Bullies! I became enamored by the breed when I ended up fostering an American Bully from Hurricane Harvey. I never imagined that opening my home to that beautiful girl would open up this door in my life. 

She stole my heart with her personality, her muscled up body and big blocky head! I started to research the breed and realized that I had found my favorite breed. I personally love XLs! I think they are majestic, and I would love to breed more for temperament and structure than anything. 

What is your favorite bloodline?

I absolutely love Primeyards. Every Primeyard dog I have ever met has always had the complete package: the temperament, the size and the structure that I love. 

In your opinion, what are the characteristics of a responsible dog breeder?

Responsible breeders treat breeding as a business with its legalities. A responsible breeder is someone that has done their research, and will breed their dogs with excellence, creating dogs that stand out in looks and in temperament.

In addition, a responsible breeder provides an outstanding quality of life and training to their breeding dogs. They also perform and share openly about health testing and DNA testing on every dog that is part of their program. Lastly, a responsible breeder is able to identify which dogs in each litter can be sold with breeding rights, and which dogs can only be sold as pets and companions. 

What type of diet do you keep your dogs on throughout the year?

We feed our dogs RAW. We are part of a COOP in Dallas, and we have each dog on a blend of bones, organs, minerals and meats that work best for each.

How many times a day do you feed your dogs?

My adult dogs eat twice a day. My puppies, younger than 12 months old, eat three times a day.

How do you keep your dogs in shape throughout the year?

We do resistance training for 15-20 mins a day, with high intensity play time. For endurance, we use the XDog vest on walks, completing 2 miles per day with our adult dogs. 

Walk us through the process of purchasing a pup from House of Issa Bullies from start to finish.

• The first step is visiting our website www.houseofissabullies.com, and filling out the puppy application form. 
• Once our litter is confirmed and the buyer has been approved by us by filling out our form, a deposit can be placed on a puppy based on picks. 
• When puppies are about 6 weeks old, picks will be made. 
• New owners can pick up their puppy from us in person at around 8 to 9 weeks of age, or we can set up puppy delivery through one of our flight nanny partners. 

Do you currently show any of your dogs?

Yes! We are training and preparing to show our stud King Toro. King Toro will be hitting the shows when he is 9 months old. We have also been training with our girl Dolce in nose work. We will be able to attend nose work competitions, post-Covid,  as soon as it is safe again.

What advice does House of Issa Bullies have for any upcoming breeders?

Do your research before committing to a dog, since owning a dog is a long term commitment. Don’t base your decisions on emotions. Base them on pedigree, education, desired traits and what’s ideal for your future program. Above all, do not go cheap. Invest in quality for your foundation dogs. 

What do you think is the most difficult thing for people in the bully game to overcome?

The bully game is very competitive and there are thousands of kennels. So standing out, and being known for something worth it, is the key to the game.

How do you think they can overcome this thing?

A good kennel will overcome it by staying focused on their program. As long as you do the best to create your own lane, and provide excellent service to your dogs and your clients, then the quality of what you are putting out there will do all the talking for your kennel.  

Who do you look up to in the bully game, and why?

I love the Meltons @meltons_xl_bullies. I purchased my dog, Legend, from them and they have inspired me to pursue this dream. The way they treated me as a buyer and as dog owner of one of their productions, made me truly fall in love with the customer relations part of being a breeder. 

I also love how much research and how carefully they plan their breedings. Everything they do is first class and high quality. I hope people can say that about me in the future. 

Tell us about one of House of Issa Bullies main goals for 2021.

I have three big goals this year. One is our breeding with Dolce X Legend. Two, would be performing very well at the shows with King Toro. Third, is to open our studs to the public after their first in house productions. I have already spent months building my website, and setting up our business for growth! So we are starting with achievable goals this year, as far as dogs and our productions. 

Describe how you would want things, in the bully breed Community, to be 10 years from now.

I would love to see more community over competition. We need more educated leaders at the top, and less hype. Lastly, I’d like to see more consistency in the XL category. 

What separates House of Issa Bullies from the competition?

What separates me is the quality of dogs and service I will provide. When someone buys a dog from House of Issa Bullies, they will also receive our mentoring, education and guidance. This will be the case whether you are a first time pet owner or a fellow breeder. Education and knowledge will be at the forefront of everything we do in our program. 

What other hobbies or interests do you take part in?

I love photography and capturing the best of my animals. So when I am not with my dogs on grass, capturing their beauty through my lens, I am flying to do the same for other breeder friends. I would love to be known in the future for my great pet and product photography skills.

What do you think of Bully Girl Magazine?

I love it! I love the community. I like how positive Bully Girl is! The Bully Girl brand is brilliant, and I love the merch! Hopefully one day, one of my dogs can grace the cover of one of your issues.