Plastic Surgery For Dogs: Dog Ear Crop and Tail Dock

No, I'm not speaking in terms of doggy clothes and accessories. No bling- bling collars or jeweled leashes. I'm thinking more in terms of plastic surgery for dogs. It's not necessarily a new thing, a new trend, a new style. Dog's don't care what they look like, but people do...

Basically, those interested in ear cropping and tail docking procedures are not looking out for anything but their own ego and how they appear walking the dog that is missing at least 2/3 of his ears. Dogs are not accessories; dogs are not pawns in the human game; dogs are man's best friend...

Would you have your best friend's ears cut off just because you think he'd look better? Now, ok, that's really a different situation, but you get my meaning.

Where in most countries, it has become illegal to dock a puppy's tail or crop his ears, that's no the case in all countries. It's time to become illegal in all countries...

Dogs don't know style. Dogs know, or at least need to know, love, care, and kindness.

How Does Ear Cropping Work?

• Puppies between the age of 7 to 12 weeks old, are the best candidate for the procedure- think about that. You're putting this small pup under general anesthesia, which poses a risk for any dog, especially puppies.
• The veterinarian gently cuts away on average 2/3 of the puppy's ears, this includes all the nerve endings and acupuncture zones.
• The opened ears are closed with stitches from the bottom up.
• Once the wound heals and the stitches are removed, the puppy isn't done yet. He has to go through months of ear taping, which even to me just looks uncomfortable.

In some ear cropping cases, the ears still don't stand properly, which means another surgery for your puppy. Many Great Danes pose this concern. And, think about it, the older the puppy, the longer it will take to heal. If you choose not re- crop the ear, then he's stuck looking uglier than he ever looked. So, you just may not get the same ego boost with a dog with a goofy ear.

Many people claim that ear cropping doesn't cause the pup any pain, but think about it, when you go into surgery, get cut open, and wake back up, you usually feel some kind of pain. Some people say, "I had my dog's ears cropped when he was a puppy he never showed signs of pain." Well, to that I have to say:

1. Just because the puppy didn't show any signs of pain, doesn't mean he wasn't in any. Some dog breeds are able to hold their pain and illness better than others.
2. When the pup hit his head or ear on something when playing or accidentally scratches it because, face it, healing wounds itch, and he yelped... He was in pain.
3. YOU PUT A SMALL PUPPY UNDER ANESTHESIA AND CUT OFF HIS EARS! HE WAS IN PAIN!

There is absolutely no medical benefit for cropping any dog's ears. There's just no proof that cropping dog's ears reduce the risk for ear infection. It's you, the owner's, responsibility to clean the dog's ears from debri. It's just not a quick fix to responsibility to cut them off.

Many dog breeders believe that certain breeds have to have their ears cropped to be successful in the ring. Well, the ears have absolutely no determination as to whether the dog wins or losses. He will have the same, equal chance, as any other dog. Natural- eared dogs can and do with best in show competitions.

And, lastly, when you crop your dog's ears, you inhibit communication with other dogs. Body language is the key to dog communication, and when you remove 2/3 of the dogs ears, you remove valuable communication skills.

Wait, one more thing. When you remove a dog's ears, he may have phantom scars and wounds for the rest of his lift, which can result in behavioral problems. Ever heard of phantom limbs? It works the same way.

How Tail Docking Works?

• All the hair on the tail is shaved so to properly sterilize the tail.
• A tourniquet is applied to stop the bleeding.
• A clamp is placed on the desired length of the tail, which is usually determined by breed.
• A scalpel is used to cut off the rest of the tail.
• Stitches are put in place to prevent the wound from opening, and the tail is bandaged.

A puppy's tail is generally docked when he's only a few days old. Many breeders prefer to dock their own puppies' tails, but this is unsafe and unsanitary, so professional veterinarians should perform the procedure, if you must have it done.

Although, there is more debate about tail docking than ear cropping, personally, I find no real excuse for it.

Working dogs and hunting dogs that are true workers and not just in the category, may actually benefit from the procedure, as when running through the brush which chasing or flushing out game, it can prevent injury to the dog. But, there's no reason to remove the entire tail.

Like a dog's ears, his tail is very important for communication with other dogs. He needs his tail to show pleasure, fear, friendliness, dominance, playfulness, defensiveness, inquisitiveness, aggression, nervousness, and submissiveness.