I’ve got a 7-month-old Doberman with a long crop, somewhere between a medium and large length. At first, I only taped them for a few days, and although the ears stood up, it wasn't right. I then switched to a posting method for a few months, but they didn't stay up permanently; one was fine but the other would stand for a few minutes and then flop back down. Recently, I tried taping them with straws and had better results—the floppy one didn't drop as quickly. This past week, I used a taping method with a water bottle and after 5 days I changed the dressing and saw a good result. The ears are standing up exactly as they should. I’ve put another lot of tape on just to be sure. Do you think there’s a chance they’ll stay up now? Food-wise, I’m feeding him Royal Canin—I mix the Maxi Puppy dry food with steamed chicken and carrots once a day, plus a calcium tablet every two days. What do you reckon?
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Hi everyone!
Basically, I’ve got a really simple question... Everyone, as well as the law, obviously says it’s banned! Fine! I know all the various reasons for it by now...
But I literally cannot find what the actual consequences are for breaking this rule!!!
What are the actual risks? Prison? A £45,000 fine? Having our dog seized?
It’s impossible to find the penalties for this offence, even though there are entire pages telling us "IT’S BANNED!"
If we’re looking at those three consequences I just mentioned, then fine! No problem!
But what are the actual risks? (For us and our dog).
On top of wanting an answer to that... WHO DEALS WITH THIS!??
Are there inspectors, like tax inspectors but for dogs with cropped ears???
Do they travel across the country ringing everyone’s doorbells to see if they’ve got a dog, and then checking if its ears have been cropped??? Is there a lot of "grassing" by local old ladies, jealous neighbours, or self-righteous "animal protectors" who report you?
Do the police, when they’re out on patrol, clock it straight away if they see a dog with cropped ears out for a walk with its owner???
I’d really like to know all this! Aren’t there more important things to sort out than making laws about whether you can crop ears or not??? Whether it’s for looks or practical reasons!!
Obviously the most serious thing is having your dog taken away!!! That’s top of the list!!!
Going to prison for having your dog’s ears done, even if it’s done hygienically and properly!
Or paying a massive fine!!!
Basically, the point of my question is that once the ears are cropped... they’re cropped, aren’t they? What’s done is done... they aren't going to grow back!!!
So what are the risks... if it’s just a one-off fine of £200, I’m tempted to say if you want to crop your dog’s ears, just do it!!! When you get caught, you pay the £200 and it’s sorted!!!
Who judges this? Who writes the ticket? Who actually comes to check???
Thanks a lot for your help.
Ear cropping is illegal in the UK. Unfortunately, there are still some dodgy vets who’ll carry out the procedure, mostly for fighting dogs.
It’s not necessarily just for fighting dogs, but mainly for owners who prefer the look of a 'mutilated' dog—no tail, no ears. To be honest, I really like the look of a Dobermann with cropped ears; it gives them a certain presence, but it’s definitely for the best that it’s banned now. Their welfare should come before aesthetics, in my opinion anyway.
Plenty of vets still go along with ear cropping; you just have to play the system a bit, get on their good side and agree to claim the dog has a supposed ear infection. But if the owner gets caught with a dog that has cropped ears, both the vet and the owner will be in serious trouble... I’m pretty sure you can even get a prison sentence for it.
Lol, so the update is that he’s in a standard splint now. I’ll wait a few days to see the result. The thing is, when I take the bandage off they are standing up nicely; I just reckon that because of the size of his ears it’s going to take more time to tape and strap them, even though all those stories you’ve just mentioned are a load of rubbish. Cheers.
Why do you want to take the conversation elsewhere? Because people are being critical? That criticism is completely justified; since ear cropping is illegal, you’re basically making a rod for your own back. Besides, if you get stopped with your dog, given his age, you're looking at a hefty fine. Anyway, that’s not our concern; what’s done is done. But regarding his health and to avoid any risk of infection or the ears not standing up properly, follow the advice I gave you; doing some research online might help as well.
I’d rather keep the discussion here for the simple reason that it might help someone else in the same boat, though I hope it doesn't come to that.
