Ears cropping

[Guest Anonymous]

I have a pitbull which is 6 mon., I would like to get his ears cropped. Is it too late?If not , what is the usual age dead line?
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[Guest Anonymous]

[quote name='Anonymous']I have a pitbull which is 6 mon., I would like to get his ears cropped. Is it too late?If not , what is the usual age dead line?
[email][email protected][/email][/quote]


There are some vets out there that will crop ears at ANY age --- just slap some money down on the table.

This is a heated controversy over crop vs don't crop.

You are cropping for LOOKS only ------ DON'T DO IT! You are cropping because YOU want to. You are cropping because it LOOKS good etc...

Do you have any medical reason why you want to crop? Oh, purely for LOOKS, right? Let me cut your ears off and see how it feels.

[Guest Anonymous]

it is to late for you to have your dogs ears cropped. I think most and I say "most" not all vets like to do it before 12 weeks of age. Some will do it after, but I have heard that after 12 weeks that the pain can be severe. I myself don't really believe in cropping ears. My bullboxer has huge floppy ears, but I love them. Lots of people said I should have the cropped since most people that have boxers and pits (the breeds that she orignates from) have it done, but I just couldn't part with those ears. She looks so sweet. Mainly it is personal preference, and either way it doesn't bother me what you prefer, but I think at this age I would just refrain from doing it.

[Peng1zrule]

six months is too old...eight weeks is when most are done. A vet assistant told me that she has seen dogs come out of the anesthesia crying because they were done too old and it really hurts them.

[Guest Anonymous]

I believe that the age for cropping is 6-12 weeks of age.

[Guest Anonymous]

By six months, it is too late. I love pitbulls with floppy ears though, they look gorgeous. :P Don't go to any vet just because their willing to crop, if one does such a thing, then they're a vet that's in it for the money...don't risk your dog's ears for that. Oh and by the way, ear cropping is done with laser surgery, no more cutting so there is pain but not so severe that the dog is looking it.

[GizmoRedNosePit]

Laser really! Thats cool....Yeah I picked up a pair of scissors and Gizmo was right there and she started moving her floppy ears and I was like HOW could anyone hold a dog down and cut their ears the way some peaople do it made me sad :(

[Guest Anonymous]

Giz-

I believe you know that they dont hold the dog down and cut the ears with scissors. It also must make you sad when people own a Very Dangerous dog like the Pit and expose people this to type of terror??
I to believe that 6 months is to old to crop ears.

For all the people that think cropping ears are crule, you must not know about the procedure.

[Guest Anonymous]

Yeah, my dobe (she's 4 months now) had her ears done by laser when she was with her breeder at 9 weeks old. Right now she's just wearing "braces" (simple home made) and getting her ears exercised as well to move and stand on their own.

Hey Underdog, your pooch looks like mines except mines have a pink nose!

[Guest Anonymous]

[quote name='sashagirl']Underdog, I do not think that is what she meant. The PROPER procedure is not done that way. But there was an article posted here a while back about a backyard breeder cutting of the ears with a pair of scissors to save money... :evil:

I, personally do not think it is cruel. When I get a male I will be getting his ears cropped.[/quote]

Now that is horrid! :evil:

[GizmoRedNosePit]

Thanks Sasha....NO, No, No!! That isn't what I meant...I know the Proper procedure is not done where they just hold down the dog and cut their ears with scissors, then it would be cruel....but Sasha is right, I was refuring to another post.... :wink:

But I also heard of someone taking a butcher knife and cuting of the whole ear on a pitbull before...it makes me sick to my stomach just thinking about it

[Guest Anonymous]

Lina Star-

I have never seen a Dobie with a pink nose :D :D . A black and rust Dobie with a pink nose, now thats a sight to see. Do you have picture up??

How much does your Dobie eat? Onyx is eating 2cups in the morning, 1 1/2cups in afternoon, and another 2 cups at night. And he still can't keep the weight on. He is 5&1/2 months old and wieghts 51 lbs. Our vet says that he must be going through a growth spurt(long legs) or he has a very high metabilsiom(sp?).

[Guest Anonymous]

Woops, I thought your dobe was red/rust! I have a pic of her but I have to post it on the web somewhere

Right now, I'm feeding her 2 cups in the morning and 2 cups in the evening. Mines is leggy and lanky! She's not bony but just lean.

She's a super alert pup, every time I take her out on a walk she's always looking around at everything! She just stops and look. Hard to get her to use the bathroom when she's so distracted. I'm anxious about her ears standing on their own. Before I got her, the breeder taped her ears up for me, so I'm going to check on them by the end of this week.

[Guest Anonymous]

[quote name='sashagirl']At this age it will be too painful for the dog. Please leave them natural. They can communicate so much better with their natural ears.[/quote]

Actually this is untrue - its never painful they do it under anesthetic.
Dogs can communicate just fine with cropped ears - its the drop ears that are unnatural to canines past puppyhood. Those drop ears are a human modification to the dog and not natural to any wild canid.

[julie45]

[b]
its not really nessasry to have your dogs ears done is it,by having them done dose it make you feel better or the dog.?some vets will do it at any age just for the money, but is it worth putting your dog through all that pain. 6mths is to old so just love your dog the way it is.
its not pain full when they do it because they are a sleep but when they wake up it is.[/b]

[Guest Anonymous]

[quote name='julie45'][b]
its not really nessasry to have your dogs ears done is it,by having them done dose it make you feel better or the dog.?some vets will do it at any age just for the money, but is it worth putting your dog through all that pain. 6mths is to old so just love your dog the way it is.
its not pain full when they do it because they are a sleep but when they wake up it is.[/b][/quote]

No it is not 'full of pain' if it is done properly and properly cared for afterwards. The dogs with cropped ears usually have far less ear problems than the dogs with the human created drop ears do.
As for how old the dog can be when it is done - well if the ear leather is good and the carriage is good it can be done later than if both are not correct for the breed.
My preference would be do have it done when the pup was younger. I don't think the breed mentioned is even normally cropped by anyone other than dogfighters :evil: or people who want their dog of that breed to look 'bad' however in breeds where this is quite normally done I know of show people who crop dogs much later than 6 months of age if they deem it neccessary for a show career.
Personally I also hate the horrid job done by vets who don't really know how and poor owners stuck with aftercare they do not understand. IMO its something either the good breeder has done before the pups leave to ensure proper care and proper surgery or its not done at all!

[Guest Anonymous]

Why do people crop ears! Just to make your dog look tuff! :cry: My older sisiter just bout a puppy Doberman, and had his ears cropped yesterday. I think it's mean to do it, just so your dog looks tuff.

[Guest Anonymous]

:o My point exctly Malina :o




:wink: -Goldenluver!

[Guest Anonymous]

[quote name='Mei-Mei']I hate to make people upset, but a lot of unscrupulous people crop their dogs ears themselves to save money. [b]A LOT[/b]. :x

I cannot comment on the guest's statement that prick ears are more natural to the dog. I do not have that information. I do know some breeds of great antiquity, like the Tibetan Mastiff, have natural drop ears.

I do not think personally that it is ever necessary to crop. I do not agree with the argument that it doesn't hurt; of course it hurts afterward! I had an operation recently that didn't hurt while I was under the anasthesia, but once I woke, yes, it hurt quite a bit. I suppose it is the choice of the owner, but I would rather hear someone say, "I'm doing it because I like the look," than "It doesn't hurt the dog," because that statement is so frankly erroneous.[/quote]

Look carefully at all the wild dogs in the world and you will see there are no drop eared dogs - its not a survival trait its anti survival - only dogs bred by man and selected for the drop ear mutation (its a dominant mutation too prick ears are recessive).
From witnessing how pups act after and before proper surgery was done on ears I can tell you the pups do NOT act like it bothers them much at all - less than a play bite from a sibling in fact. Critical of course is proper after care to avoid infections - THOSE for sure hurt!
I'm not sure how someone who does not crop a litter could say they know how the dogs feel afterwards :roll: I do know having observed the entire procedure from start to completion (and by that I mean full healing and ears up which for me takes about 10 days of careful care) the pups don't act like they are in great pain from it being done. Pups in pain definitely act differently IME. The pups I have seen in pain were ones I got elsewhere already cropped and already with rip roaring infections from the miserable taping methods done by the veterinarian who cropped them.
Thats why I say properly done and properly cared for when I talk about it.

[deepseasnake]

I dont find it necessary to crop unless working security or training for war

outside of that, cropping has become an accepted form of mutalation, even I have fallen victim to its global complacency in regaurd to tail docking. I like the idea of my boxer having a docked tail, my girlfriend thinks its mean and cruel. I dont know why I feel so differant in regaurd to ears, but I do. I think it is sick and I am reinforced by the fact that Malina's sister's dobie spends time scratching and rubbing its taped ears on walls and furnature, it doesn't seem right to me to see that dog in so much discomfort

[Rowie-the-Pooh]

:o I hate it when ppl say it's ok to crop! :o

I'm like Mie-Mie and Bullboxers, I believe it IS a personal prefrence of the owner, BUT i would like to say somthing about guest's posts....

Guest, you say that we shoul crop ears cuz it bothers the dog later in life? Sorry, but I think that IS quite silly. So, what u r saying is I should go and cut my Golden's ears off cuz she has drop ears? Why is it that just the "dangerouse" dogs get cropped ears?! Cuz they have more "wolf" blood in them? Or is it cuz U guest, want them to look dangerous? Don't Dobe's, APBT's, and other "dangerouse" dogs have a bad reputaion already?! What's next? Chopping off poodles ears? Or what about Retrievers? Hm? Now, I don't want to start a fight about ears and tails or anything, BUT I am just giving an opinion, that is what this forum is for!

Anyway, ppl who believe in cropping, I HOPE I DIDN'T ATTACK OR OFFEND YOU IN ANY WAY! :( I AM TRULEY SORRY! :cry: i was just giving my opinion. Sorry. pls nobody attack me cuz im just givin an opinion! :)

[deepseasnake]

rowie FYI
IMHO
IME (first time using these)

[quote]Anyway, ppl who believe in cropping, I HOPE I DIDN'T ATTACK OR OFFEND YOU IN ANY WAY! I AM TRULEY SORRY! i was just giving my opinion. Sorry. pls nobody attack me cuz im just givin an opinion[/quote]!

when you write an apology like that, at the end of your post it dilutes the potentcy of your arguement. Instead try finishing the post and leave out the "I'm sorry" then immediatly repost and say sorry. That way it looks like you got carried away but your opinion still stands as when you do it right away it seems like you only half believe what you just wrote.

just something I picked up from a debate class years ago

[deepseasnake]

I almost forgot, Rowie I liked your post and agree :D

[Guest Anonymous]

[quote name='Mei-Mei'][quote]I'm not sure how someone who does not crop a litter could say they know how the dogs feel afterwards [/quote]

I'm sorry, I must misunderstand you. Are you honestly saying that only a person who has decided to crop their dogs' ears can comment on whether or not they think it hurts the pup? :o What about people who have been in the position to observe pups with both cropped and uncropped ears? I know I've seen a Dane whose ears were done by a vet, but not properly, and who has had to have several subsequent procedures which influenced my decision not to crop.

But as I stated before, it is a personal decision on the part of the owner.[/quote]

Oh you can comment on it of course but you are not commenting from having any actual experience in doing it right. I feel there is a BIG difference between the people who only know what the AR folks say about it and the people who really know what it is about for the pups.
I also agree there is a difference between doing it right and not doing it right. But then I feel that way about ALL surgery!
I mean I can comment on how much it hurts to be tattooed or pierced and what awful mutilation it is and how horrid it is to see but its not from any real experience so I cannot possibly say for sure what it is like - see?

[Guest Anonymous]

[quote name='Rowie-the-Pooh']:o I hate it when ppl say it's ok to crop! :o

I'm like Mie-Mie and Bullboxers, I believe it IS a personal prefrence of the owner, BUT i would like to say somthing about guest's posts....

Guest, you say that we shoul crop ears cuz it bothers the dog later in life? Sorry, but I think that IS quite silly. So, what u r saying is I should go and cut my Golden's ears off cuz she has drop ears? Why is it that just the "dangerouse" dogs get cropped ears?! Cuz they have more "wolf" blood in them? Or is it cuz U guest, want them to look dangerous? Don't Dobe's, APBT's, and other "dangerouse" dogs have a bad reputaion already?! What's next? Chopping off poodles ears? Or what about Retrievers? Hm? Now, I don't want to start a fight about ears and tails or anything, BUT I am just giving an opinion, that is what this forum is for!

Anyway, ppl who believe in cropping, I HOPE I DIDN'T ATTACK OR OFFEND YOU IN ANY WAY! :( I AM TRULEY SORRY! :cry: i was just giving my opinion. Sorry. pls nobody attack me cuz im just givin an opinion! :)[/quote]

I wish if you were going to quote me you would do it accurately.
Man has created drop eared dogs because he likes 'babyish' looks and behavior in dogs (in comparison to wolves) The drop ears are *known* problem spots in dogs and many suffer from ear infections due to this man made creation. Some breeds were 'designed' to have *either* natural up ears or ones that were cropped to be up. Not to 'look tough' but to keep the ears from being hazards in a working dog situation. Ditto on that last for docked tails.
I wish people would not presume that only 'tough' dogs have their ears cropped - lots of breeds from giants to toys have this done. I *can* tell you from having both cropped and uncropped dogs the ones most likely to get an ear infection (or worse a hematoma of the ear flap) are the drop eared dogs.
I know exactly what proper ear cropping does and does not do to pups. I've taken care of enough ears to say that it really is no big deal to the pups the way some people pretend it is. I also know many vets and owners should not be involved in this procedure because they do not do it right and take proper care of the dogs.
So to think it through it sounds like a lot of you think no surgery should happen to dogs because some people take lousy care of some dogs who have surgery done to them by not so hot vets. Sorry I don't buy into that line of thinking at all.