Without power forward Jonathan Brown, whose ongoing groin problems forced him to withdraw from their selected side, the Lions struggled in attack, with Dale Morris restricting Brendan Fevola to just two goals.
Amon Buchanan finished with three goals for the Lions, while veteran Simon Black gathered 28 touches.
Dogs' spearhead Barry Hall was too strong for returning Lions defender Daniel Merrett, booting six goals - taking his season’s tally to 43 - as the Bulldogs won their seventh game of the season, 7.19 (121) to 8.8 (56).
Daniel Cross (31 possessions), Matthew Boyd (31 in his 150th game) and Adam Cooney (30) were prolific ball-winners in the midfield for winners.
Stung by successive losses to Essendon and Collingwood, and having been urged by coach Rodney Eade to take more risks, the Bulldogs started full of running and were 29 points up at quarter time.
A brilliant snap from Fevola narrowed the margin to 15 shortly after the long break before the home side rediscovered its form, with the Bulldogs piling on 10 goals to two during the remainder of the game.
The Bulldogs, who play West Coast in Perth next Sunday, are now just one win outside the top four.
The Lions, in contrast, have lost seven of their past eight games, their win-loss record slumping to 5-7.
They host Richmond - which had a thumping 47-point win over the Eagles on Sunday - at the Gabba next Saturday night.
Western Bulldogs 5.6 7.9 13.12 17.19 (121)
Brisbane Lions 1.1 5.2 6.4 8.8 (56)
GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Hall 6, Giansiracusa 3, Minson 2, Stack 2, Grant, Eagleton, Hill, Gilbee
Brisbane Lions: Buchanan 3, Fevola 2, Redden, Rischitelli, Staker
BEST
Western Bulldogs: Hall, Morris, Griffen, Cooney, Murphy, Boyd
Brisbane Lions: Black, Rischitelli, Rockliff, Banfield, Buchanan, Rich
INJURIES
Western Bulldogs: Williams (hamstring)
Brisbane Lions: Brown (groin) out, replaced in selected side by Selwood
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Kamolins, Avon, McInerney
Official crowd: 30,831 at Etihad Stadium
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
