Your thoughts on tails or ears being cropped

[knny187]

This topic just came up on a another thread.  Thought it would be interesting to see how some of you view this.

In some places...it's illegal.  Here in California, it's still allowed but having a Rottie...I have heard that the cropped tail may eventually go away.  I've seen a few Rotties with tails & they look like big Labradors.


I personally have no issues with the tails being cropped.  It's done at such a young age, I don't see the puppies in a lot of discomfort with it.  they seem to recover amazingly quick.

The cropped ears on the other hand....bothers me when I see it.  It just looks so painful.

[SinCitysmallGUY]

I wanted to get my lil guys ears and tail cropped but the wife threw a fit and said no can do!!!!! We all know it wasn't worth the argument so I just dropped the idea. Plus he's a cutie even without it... The chicks love the lil shit...

[Tapper]

You crop them when they are young. They have no feeling in the ears when they are still pups. How come nobody says anything when vets remove dew claws on dogs? Or when they neuter or spay them?

Cropping is 100% painless.

[knny187]

Our pup...he has only one dew claw.  Kind of weird & the one that grows in....looks funny....so we lop it off.  It's funny though...neither one of us want to do it.  We're afraid of hurting the poor guy.

[Tapper]

Most people dont even know about dew claws, which is kind of weird. But dogs can suffer terrible injuries and pain if they get ripped out by accident later in life. Best do to it when they are pups.

[freespirit]

It's not natural. To many stupid people on this planet.

[Tapper]

and ignorant.

[~flower~]

My dogs all have their dew claws, never a problem.  But they are not used in the fields or woods where they could be an issue. 

  I decided to look into tail docking and came upon this site:

   http://www.cdb.org/what_is.htm


  Now they make some very good points for tail docking but kind of blow their credibility by bringing traditionally non docked dogs into it.  They make it sound that all dogs should have their tails docked because they wag them and they could hurt/break them.   Danes have been known to do that, but you don't see the breed being a docked breed?

  I do believe that if the dog is not going to be used as a "working dog" then their tails should not be docked.  That was the original reason for both ear cropping and tail docking, it wasn't for cosmetics it was so they wouldn't get torn up by the hunted animal or the woods, brush, etc they were being used in.  Danes had their ears cropped because they were used for boar hunting and the boars would get a hold of them.

  I did find it interesting the section about pain and how the nervous system and pain are not developed in newborn puppies, unlike it is with humans, pigs, or cows. http://www.cdb.org/fritsch.htm.  This would apply to tail docking, but ear cropping is done on older puppies that do feel pain.  Anesthetic  is used though in ear crops, but like anyone who has had surgery knows, you do feel pain afterwards.   I have 2 cropped dogs and both seemed to do fine, but I do know that they did have pain/discomfort, not to mention having your ears taped for weeks which can be annoying to the puppy. 


   So I feel unless the dog is going to be a working dog, or competing in working dog trials they should remain as is, no crop or docking.  Now you could argue (as was brought up on that website) that you might not know if the puppy will be a working dog at 3 days of age so why have to do it later when it will be harder on the dog.  That is a good point.  But a lot of breeders are not breeding "working" dogs anymore.  They are not field training/working/competing them. The cropping/docking is purely cosmetic in those cases.  Maybe you would have to get a special permit after your prove that you are breeding working dogs that will be used where docking/cropping is for the betterment of the dog?

[Hedgehog]

Pet owners who mutilate their pets have no business owning animals.

Why? Because they think their pets are some kind of toys that can be modified, as their owner see fit.

Perhaps pet owning could be heavily regulated, that may be the only way to protect the pets from abusive owners.

-Hedge

[Tapper]

Yes please! More regulation!

[~flower~]

Pet owners who mutilate their pets have no business owning animals.

Why? Because they think their pets are some kind of toys that can be modified, as their owner see fit.

Perhaps pet owning could be heavily regulated, that may be the only way to protect the pets from abusive owners.

-Hedge

  In some cases for working dogs, cropping/docking is for the betterment of the dog.  But since most people aren't using their dogs for those situations, I don't think it should be done for purely cosmetic reasons. 

  Some people still use dogs to do the work they were originally bred for.  They aren't toys to them, they are working animals, they are there for a job.  But actual "pets" should not get cosmetic surgery. 

[knny187]

Seeing a dog like a Doberman or Rottweiler with a tail....is kind of weird when you first see it.


Honestly...I'm glad our dog doesn't....he would be knocking more stuff off the tables if he had one

[SinCitysmallGUY]

Pet owners who mutilate their pets have no business owning animals.

Why? Because they think their pets are some kind of toys that can be modified, as their owner see fit.

Perhaps pet owning could be heavily regulated, that may be the only way to protect the pets from abusive owners.

-Hedge

Hedge

Our last Pit in Vegas would've been much happier with her tail cropped. Our backyard fence was made of concrete bricks and she was very hyper and banged her tail on the walls all day long. This caused her tail to crack open and bleed alot of the time that it would happen. It started happening when she was to big to get her tail cropped. So now tell me that people who get their dogs tails cropped shouldnt own dogs... She was in constant pain when her tail would crack... Had to put gauze and tape on it and lord knows putting anything foriegn on there body is a pain in the ass to try to keep on.

[Hedgehog]

Hedge

Our last Pit in Vegas would've been much happier with her tail cropped. Our backyard fence was made of concrete bricks and she was very hyper and banged her tail on the walls all day long. This caused her tail to crack open and bleed alot of the time that it would happen. It started happening when she was to big to get her tail cropped. So now tell me that people who get their dogs tails cropped shouldnt own dogs... She was in constant pain when her tail would crack... Had to put gauze and tape on it and lord knows putting anything foriegn on there body is a pain in the ass to try to keep on.

I don't too much about dogs, but it seems like maybe it was a problem of not walking the dog enough (a dog should be walked at least 4-5 times a day), the dog wasn't properly trained or that there was a problem with the fence.

My guess is the first case, not being walked enough.

Dog owners who doesn't have the time to walk their dogs 4-5 times a day, minimum, shouldn't have dogs. Unless the dog is on a farm or something.

The tail is for balance. Mutilation of dog tails have been outlawed in Sweden for at least 10 years, and there are no major problems of dogs whipping their tails, ie dogs don't suffer from having to keep their tails.

Some breeds tend to whip their tails a bit, and their tails get somewhat dusted up, but apparently the tail is just as much of a balance rod for these breeds as it is for the flatcoated retrievers and whatnot.

As always, very interesting to discuss with y'all pet owners. You guys sure do care for your pets. Gotta respect that.

-Hedge

[knny187]

I don't too much about dogs, but it seems like maybe it was a problem of not walking the dog enough (a dog should be walked at least 4-5 times a day), the dog wasn't properly trained or that there was a problem with the fence.

My guess is the first case, not being walked enough.

Dog owners who doesn't have the time to walk their dogs 4-5 times a day, minimum, shouldn't have dogs. Unless the dog is on a farm or something.

The tail is for balance. Mutilation of dog tails have been outlawed in Sweden for at least 10 years, and there are no major problems of dogs whipping their tails, ie dogs don't suffer from having to keep their tails.

Some breeds tend to whip their tails a bit, and their tails get somewhat dusted up, but apparently the tail is just as much of a balance rod for these breeds as it is for the flatcoated retrievers and whatnot.

As always, very interesting to discuss with y'all pet owners. You guys sure do care for your pets. Gotta respect that.

-Hedge

A dog needs to be outside 4-5 times a day (if thats what you mean).  They only need to be exercised once a day depending on the breed (in my opinion).  The Rottweiler we have gets 1 decent walk a day.  That type of breed needs exercise for muscle tone & keeping excess bodyfat from coming on.  When I walk him....I try to put out a good 3-4 mile walk at a decent pace. 

As with the tail for balance...yes....but it depends on what kind of dog it is.  Some working dogs use the tail to help steady as they jump or when they swim (hunting dogs).

[SinCitysmallGUY]

I don't too much about dogs, but it seems like maybe it was a problem of not walking the dog enough (a dog should be walked at least 4-5 times a day), the dog wasn't properly trained or that there was a problem with the fence.

My guess is the first case, not being walked enough.

Dog owners who doesn't have the time to walk their dogs 4-5 times a day, minimum, shouldn't have dogs. Unless the dog is on a farm or something.

The tail is for balance. Mutilation of dog tails have been outlawed in Sweden for at least 10 years, and there are no major problems of dogs whipping their tails, ie dogs don't suffer from having to keep their tails.

Some breeds tend to whip their tails a bit, and their tails get somewhat dusted up, but apparently the tail is just as much of a balance rod for these breeds as it is for the flatcoated retrievers and whatnot.

As always, very interesting to discuss with y'all pet owners. You guys sure do care for your pets. Gotta respect that.

-Hedge

Well as for the dog not getting enough exercise, no way was that the case. My dog litterally was just to damn hyper. All of my dogs get more then enough attention and also exercise. My dogs look good she was very muscular and taken care of. I treat my animals like my kids. If I dont take care of them then who will. And at the end of the day I am responssible for my dogs actions and well being as its owner. The gate was right next to the wall and she just smacked the damn thing on the wall and concrete wall against tail. I will let you decide who wins. The only time she wasnt wagging her tail is when she was asleep. Sometimes even then the damn thing moved it just wasnt a full wag.. I wish she had her tail whacked so that she didnt have to have a craked dry bleeding tail every other day.

[body88]

Having owned a few pits and my current pup (American Bulldog) I can attest to the fact these breeds need a lot of exercise. Pits and Ab's def need 1 hour of exercise per day imo. I am not talking about "out in the yard walking around" , I mean legit exercise. They need mental exercise also. A bored bully breed can be destructive.

A lot of times people think letting the dog out for an hour is exercise. If you have a large yard and see your dog streaking around running and playing that is fine. But a lot of times you see dogs in there yard laying around bored. Laying around bored in the yard is the same as laying around in the house.

A spring pole is a good toy for a bully breed. They can go out in the yard and exercise on it for hours without you having to run all over the place. You can make one if you have a tree, or you can order one off the net. I have found these to be the absolute best way to drain the "high moter" energy out of dogs like Ab's and Pit bulls. They play on them for HOURS. I tend to take my dog to the beach for a swim/run when I get home from work, along with letting him exercise on his swing for an hour or so. Thats jus me tho. I def notice the difference of his energy levels in the winter when the weather sucks and he cannot go out for hours.

http://www.springpoleusa.com/