Dog ear cropping costs/issues.

[koda6966]

I know this can be a controversial topic, if you don't have something intelligent to say, just do us all a favor and don't post.

A friend of mine has a doberman, and she is going to give birth sometime next month. I can get the buddy discount on a puppy of my choice (after the owner of the male picks, he did the deal for a puppy instead of cash) and I was wondering what a vet would charge for ear cropping. Most vets that I have called have told me that I need to take the puppy in and then they will give me an estimate. (odd right?)

I plan to have his (or hers) ears cropped because I just can't stand the look of an uncropped Doberman. Boxers and whatnot it looks just fine, but not on a doberman in my opinion. Makes them look like a skinny lab. I am also debating whether or not I should have his tail docked, but I will most likely consider leaving the tail natural. I do somewhat like the look of the "Doberman Pinscher Standard" but I hate how not having a tail alters the dogs walk and stance.

Just throw up some prices if you have ever had this done, and let me know about any issues you may have had etc. Voicing your opinion on the matter is ok, just don't go over the top and start an argument/offend people in this thread. I reserve the right to dish out bad rep for such posts.

 

[AllanD]

Have you ever been anywhere near a happy doberman that has an intact tail?

You'd remember the bruises if you did

Those dogs don't have a tail, they have a lead filled pipe.

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[koda6966]

Have you ever been anywhere near a happy doberman that has an intact tail?

You'd remember the bruises if you did

Those dogs don't have a tail, they have a lead filled pipe.

AD

It's like a long muscular whip right? I've never seen one in person with an intact tail, but I've seen just one photo from in front of the dog, and the tail looked REALLY long. Or it could just be because it was so skinny looking.

I'd feel like I was crippling the dog if I removed the tail, your essentially removing part of the spine. The three dogs that I have experience with that had docked tails walked funny or had complications with them. Although, one was done too short and one was on a mix breed Rotty that should never have had it docked in the first place. (longish hair)

 

[koda6966]

I guess I shouldn't hate wikipedia as much as I do. I found a photo of an undocked tail from the side on there.

 

[li7in6]

I'm not much for either cropping tails or cropping ears. But IMO cropping ears isn't nearly as bad as the tail.

 

[souldoubt88]

I'm not sure about the ears but definetly do the tail (ecspecially if you have a coffee table...) my dog has a cropped tail and she's perfectly happy, and you can tell cuz she still wags her little stub all the time. If she had a tail she would probly brake twice as much stuff then she already does.

 

[koda6966]

I know about tail issues. My Dalmatian (RIP) used to sleep on the other side of the wall from where I have my bed.. she would have a good dream at night and "thumpthumpthump" for hours.

I've heard that cropped ears can cause nerve damage, and that sometimes it gets "messed up" and is only a half crop, where one eventually falls down or bends in the middle. I am looking for the full alert look, so I would keep the ears "taped" for as long as it is safe to have them that way.

 

[dennis461]

We had more than our share of dob's.
The ear thing, most vets may not be good enough for you.

It must be done RIGHT, after, it requires constant watching to keep the dog from scratching it's ears. They wear a large collar so they don't bump their ears.
We had one with a failed ear and a good ear, looked lopsided for life.
Had one with two failed ears, that looked a little better.
Had one with long ears and long tail.

 

[koda6966]

We had more than our share of dob's.
The ear thing, most vets may not be good enough for you.

It must be done RIGHT, after, it requires constant watching to keep the dog from scratching it's ears. They wear a large collar so they don't bump their ears.
We had one with a failed ear and a good ear, looked lopsided for life.
Had one with two failed ears, that looked a little better.
Had one with long ears and long tail.

That's what I was thinking. How do you keep the dog from scratching? I thought about one of those big cone things, but it would get in the way of the ears.