Opinion on Ear lopping/tail docking

[No Coop No Problem]

It's completely unnecessary cruelty 99% of the time. The overwhelming majority of dogs will not be getting into serious fights where ears and tails present a dangerous liability. Even most LGD in the USA will never get into a serious fight

My Central Asian Shepard is perfect just the way God made her. If she was fighting bears and tigers in Kazakhstan maybe I would have removed body parts for her safety- but she's not

It's the same with dewclaws. God gave them to wolves (and dogs) because he thought they needed them. If you chop off an animals dewclaws you're saying that God is wrong and you know better than Him. The vast majority of dogs have easy lives and will never encounter issues with their dewclaws

Wolves have far harder lives than the average dog and they have dewclaws for some reason

So in short, it's wrong to chop healthy body parts off

 

[OrpingtonManiac]

I don't have any problem with docking or cropping. People have their reasons for it whether it be usefulness or appearance. Although since I worked at a vet clinic, it does make me a sad. The screams of the puppies as their bones are cut in half and the wounds cauterized is almost unbearable.

Thats horrible, those poor dogs!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I guess I have a hard time seeing what the difference between docking tails on a dog and on a sheep are. Is it because they're predator VS prey? Because when we docked lamb tails, they didn't show any discomfort after a few minutes and didn't have any back issues at all as long as we kept the first tail bone, which is where most docked dogs are also kept

 

[TOMTE]

I guess I have a hard time seeing what the difference between docking tails on a dog and on a sheep are. Is it because they're predator VS prey? Because when we docked lamb tails, they didn't show any discomfort after a few minutes and didn't have any back issues at all as long as we kept the first tail bone, which is where most docked dogs are also kept

Sheeps' tails are docked mostly to prevent flystrike and to keep the rear clean. But also to make the rump look rounder and meatier for showing and auction. Depending on the breed of sheep, as well as your environment, docking may or may not be necessary.

It's common belief that the younger the lamb (or other animal), the less pain it will feel during and after the procedure. I don't know how true that is. What I do know is that prey animals are very good at hiding pain, illness, etc. because they have to. So a lamb not showing signs of pain absolutely does not mean that it isn't hurting.

 

[AinaWGSD]

It would not hurt my feelings one bit if these procedures were outlawed except in the case of medical necessity.

Ear docking is purely aesthetic, there is no medical reason for it. Some of the worst ear infections I've ever seen have been on dogs with naturally upright ears. If anything, docking makes ear infections worse, especially during the months of training the ears to stand upright.

An argument can be made for docking and dewclaws preventing future injuries. I'm not entirely sure it justifies the procedure on day old puppies, but the argument can be made.

 

[Squawkers]

What are the uses for dew claws? I didn’t think they had any uses. If I ever bred dogs (it would be Dobermans) I always told myself I wouldn’t crop or dock, just remove the dew claws.

 

[TOMTE]

What are the uses for dew claws? I didn’t think they had any uses. If I ever bred dogs (it would be Dobermans) I always told myself I wouldn’t crop or dock, just remove the dew claws.

They help with stabilization, climbing, and holding onto things. As others have mentioned, some dew claws are free floating, but others are attached by bone and tendons.

 

[No Coop No Problem]

What are the uses for dew claws? I didn’t think they had any uses. If I ever bred dogs (it would be Dobermans) I always told myself I wouldn’t crop or dock, just remove the dew claws.

Just because the purpose of a body part isn't known doesn't mean that it should be removed. Doctors once thought that the human appendix was completely useless and dangerous. They called it "vestigial". Now we know that it functions as a reservoir of gut microflora & fauna so that the body can heal itself after illness of the digestive system

I believe dewclaws function for balance and climbing, but again, even if we don't know what they're for doesn't mean we should arrogantly chop them off

 

[Squawkers]

They help with stabilization, climbing, and holding onto things. As others have mentioned, some dew claws are free floating, but others are attached by bone and tendons.

Are the free floating better to remove? It would seem like those would get caught on things easier

 

[TOMTE]

Are the free floating better to remove? It would seem like those would get caught on things easier

I don't know, but probably. I imagine cutting through bone and tendons would cause more issues in the long run, than snipping off a free floating dew claw.