Cruel or Painless?

Question

I love great danes a lot, just the way they are and I dont see the need for cropped ears. i think it's just as silly as docking puppies tails. does anyone agree? its cool if you dont.

Answer 1

I think docking ears is cruel. It's done for the human not the dog.

Answer 2

I have mixed feelings about it. I like them both ways IF the natural ear hangs properly. I crop my show pups. I do not suggest cropping for pet owners but leave it up to them.
The actual cropping procedure is not painful because the pups are under anesthesia and don't feel anything the same as you or I when we have a surgical procedure done. But what I do find cruel is the way they are all playing one day and wrestling and the next day they can't because they are hurting each other until they are healed. Another thing is that there is said to be many pressure points in the ear flap that correspond to different organs in the body and when you crop, you are cutting more then half of them off. Not sure how true that is really as my cropped pups are no less healthy and don't have less desirable temperaments so who knows. I just think it is personal preference and there is nothing more striking then a nice Male Dane with a chisled head and cropped ears. I love the look.
I have seen some very poorly bred Danes from back yard breeders where the dog doesn't look much like a Dane is supposed to look and the cropping vet did not know what he was doing either! Very ugly. So beauty is in the eye of the beholder here and I do not see a crop procedure as being cruel. I have been by my pups sides while a vet crops and they honestly do not appear to be suffering at all. They are asleep and are not feeling a thing.

Answer 3

If you plan on "showing" the dog than its a requirement that they be docked. If you only intend to keep as a pet, than I agree that its cruel.

Docking of tail and ears used to have a purpose as are hair cuts etc. For example, poodles get that funny looking hair cut because when they hunt, the short hair will get less burs, while the poofs are left for protection of sensitive areas. Ears get docked on a lot of water dogs to allow for the ears to dry out better as they stand up after having been docked. So there is a purpose, but most people who have these specialized dogs do it simply for aesthetics, which, like I said, I think is lame.

Answer 4

Danes are born with ears that (according to the breed standard) should be "high set, medium in size and of moderate thickness, folded forward close to the cheek. The top line of the ear should be level with the skull." Ears may also be cropped. "If cropped, the ear length is in proportion to the size of the head and the ears are carried uniformly erect." Ear cropping is an optional cosmetic surgery which enables the ears to stand. Aftercare (taping, etc.) is also necessary to ensure that the surgery will be successful. If you choose to have your puppy's ears cropped, please contact your breeder, or your local Dane club, for a referral to a Veterinarian in your area who is proficient at performing this surgery and after-care.

If not in competion or show I wouldn't clip the ears. Why put the dog through surgery if not necessary.

Answer 5

I really love the look of the Great Dane with natural ears. I think it makes the head look noble rather than fierce.
FYI tail docking is a painless, bloodless procedure that's done when the pup is just a couple of days old. It really can't be compared to ear cropping.
P.S. Cropping is NOT required for the show ring. It's OPTIONAL.

Answer 6

I 100 percent agree with you. I think great danes look extremely cute with uncropped ears!!! Now for docking the tail, I personally like nice, long tails.

Answer 7

It is cruel, as the dogs will have phantom itches for the remainder of their lives (their brains register itches in the part of their bady that has been removed, and thus they cannot scratch).

The only situations where I agree with tail docking are those cases when the breed has a reputation for injuring their tails a lot during their lives. As far as ear clipping, I've never heard a good reason as to why it should ever be done.

Answer 8

I'm personally against these procedures. God made them with floppy ears and with tails, and should be kept that way.

While it's true that docking of the tail should be done when the pup is two days old, it is not true that it's bloodless and painless! I watched my vet doing it to a breeder's yorkie pups, it angered me, and felt it was totally unnecessary.

Answer 9

What does the animal gain out of these things?
They can hurt their tails, but they can also be taught to the majority to not be around those things, or be less boisterous around them, so they don't get hurt.
And I really care less what breeding standards say, they follow what they think looks right, they care less what the animal was born with or why.
Some dogs (rare but it happens) need their ears done or they get weird infections, but by now it's fashion, it's more for the human than the animal.
I would not do either unless there was a medical reason from the animal's part, I have enough respect for the natural animal not to, since it's not for me to decide which parts I think it needs.
I respect what it is, and work around the rest.

Answer 10

I couldn't agree with you more. I don't see the need at all. Its supposed to be for show but I thought show dogs were judged on breed standards. It doesn't seem to me that cutting the animals ears or tails is a breed standard. It seems more like an odd form of aesthetics.