Can someone tell me WHY even the most novice breeders chop tails off dogs?

Question

I'd like to know why you can't get certain breeds un-mutilated, even if they're destined to be a household pet, and nothing else. BTW I am in favor of spaying or neutering.

Looking forward to refuting the answers.

So far so good! You guys rule. One ups for everyone!

I'll probably let the masses fight over best answer, since they're all good right now. As I said in the question, my dog would not be shown or 'worked' in the traditional sense (so the long, drawn out answer was unnecessary.) But I've just remembered one good reason for docking: My sister's dog died way back due to an infection in her tail. She probably chewed on it too much. The tail seems to be an excellent entry point for infection. However, it seems just as likely that the docked puppy would die in the whelping box.

I'm still not sold on the idea, and I'll probably just end up avoiding these traditionally docked breeds when the time is right.

Answer 1

History:
The practice of docking dogs originates in the old Roman empire when the worm-like muscles in the tail of the dog were thought to cause rabies, leading to the tradition of cutting off the tail as a preventive measure.

For dogs who worked in fields, such as some hunting dogs and some herding dogs, tails could collect burrs and foxtails, causing pain and infection; tails with long fur could collect faeces and become a cleanliness problem; and particularly for herding dogs, longer tails could be caught in gates behind livestock. These arguments are often used to justify docking tails for certain breeds, although the same rationale is not applied to all herding or to all hunting dogs with long or feathered tails.

Many hunting dogs’ tails are docked to prevent them from becoming injured while running through thickets and briars while fetching hunters' prey. The few hunting breeds that are not docked, including English Pointers and the Setter breeds, may have chronic injuries to the tips of their tails. Such injuries cause continuing pain and discomfort and are at risk of infection throughout their lives.


Boxers with natural and docked ears and docked tailsIn working dogs used for guarding property (such as Dobermans or Boxers), cropped ears often make the breed appear more formidable; hanging ears could be reminiscent of the juvenile flop ears of puppies. In working dogs used for ridding vermin, such as rats, the dogs’ ears are cropped to make smaller targets for infectious vermin bites, which could lead to serious systemic infection.

In many breeds whose tails (or whose ancestors' tails) have been docked over centuries, such as Australian Shepherds, no attention was paid to selectively breeding animals whose natural tail was attractive or healthy—or, in some cases, dogs with naturally short (or bob) tails were selectively bred, but inconsistently (since docking was done as a matter of course, a natural bob did not have an extremely high value). As a result, in many of these breeds, naturally, short tails can occur, but medium-length and long tails also occur. Occasionally, tails have developed with physical problems or deformities because the genetic appearance was never visible or because of the inconsistent emphasis on natural bobs. Breeders often consider many of the resulting tails to be ugly or unhealthy and so continue to dock all tails for the breed.

Present Day:
Docking is usually done almost immediately after birth to ensure that the wound heals easily and properly. An old belief said that newborns hardly felt the injury, but now reputable breeders have cropping and docking performed only under licensed veterinary care. Today, many countries consider cropping, docking to be cruel, or mutilation and ban it entirely. This is not true in the United States, and the breed standards for many breeds registered with the American Kennel Club (AKC) make undocked animals presumably ineligible for the conformation show ring. The AKC states that it has no rules that require docking or that make undocked animals ineligible for the show ring, but it also states that it defers to the individual breed clubs (who define the breed standards) to define the best standards for each breed.

In such an environment, even people who desire undocked dogs often cannot get them. Most people prefer to choose a puppy from a reputable breeder after the puppy is old enough to determine personality and conformation, whereas docking is done immediately after birth. A breeder normally will not withhold docking on an entire litter so that a potential owner can later have one of the puppies with an undocked tail, as docking an older dog is a major surgery-requiring anaesthesia.

Show dogs of many breeds are still routinely docked in the UK. Kennel Club standards allow for docked or undocked dogs to enter conformation shows. However, many owners believe that an undocked dog is at a disadvantage when judged. An undocked dog's tail must be within the standard, so a docked dog is at an advantage by having one less attribute to be judged. There is also a perception that many judges prefer docked tails.

Although docking should be performed by a veterinary surgeon, often the methods used are far from ideal. In the UK, a common method is to apply a rubber ring around the tail base, so that circulation is cut off and the tail dies. This extends the period of pain for the puppy and increases the risk of infection.

Personally, I think its cute to see a breed like A Rottweiler, or a Boxer with their tails still there. Its rare, and you get to see a part of the dogs personality that before seemengly didn't exist.

Answer 2

Some breed standards dictate that tails be docked. Tail docking was originally performed for function - to prevent injury in thick brush for spaniels, for instance. However, now it is just ruled by each breed's parent club that this is how the dog must look. I agree that it is a terrible practice. The trend seems to be very slowly shifting towards not allowing docking of tails or cropping of ears, but it will be a long hard fight.

If you are asking if it is possible to get a dog of a certain breed without having its tail docked (as docking generally occurs when the pup is days old), you will need to find a very good breeder who is also flexible. Talk with the breeder and explain what you want. If the breeder agrees, be prepared to wait until a litter is born and one pup is "saved" for you.

Answer 3

i comprehend that via docking the tail for some breeds is definitely safer via fact the dogs won't knock something over mutually as wagging their tail, etc. whether docking and cropping is an previous prepare completed for aesthetics frequently. i do no longer agree or disagree with it via fact provided that's meant to be completed interior the 1st couple days after a puppy's start, the ppl adopting the dogs have not got a say in it. That puppy will already be docked/cropped whilst taken homestead at 8-12 weeks previous. If I did have a call i'd bypass the cropping the ears, yet nonetheless dock the tail because it truthfully serves a purpose.

Answer 4

I have a friend with a pet Pit Bull and he's always wagging his tail and knocking things over with it. He even wags the tail that bangs against the door jambs as he passes through. Sometimes his tail bleeds from it and all the door jambs have bloody slash marks. I had both a Boxer and a Boston Terrier that of course had their tails docked and I had no problem with that and they didn't seem to have one either. Both dogs passed on after living long lives and I think of getting another dog, possibly a Pit Bull and if I did, I would see about getting it's tail docked even though that's not the standard for that breed. I like the way it looks and would not have the problem that my friend has with his Pit Bull. By the way the Boxer had floppy ears and I think if you knew a breeder and asked before the birth of a litter not to dock a tail and made commitment to buy, they might honor your request.

Answer 5

Because, someone, sometime, decided that a doberman isn't a doberman if it has a tail. I'm sure it began as a good idea, with a logical reason that I don't know behind it, but now, people aren't able to think for themselves. Europeans are moving away from docked tails and clipped ears, even in the show ring, because it is horrendously painful and unnecessary. They aren't saving the dog the pain of having it's tail ripped off by a wolf anymore. It's mutilation for the sake of mutilation.

Answer 6

The history has been well documented by other people. I will say that I am not in favor of docking, unless for medical reasons. In England it is, or will be very soon, illegal to dock or crop without a medical reason.