Crop?!

[aussie]

I just got an australian shepard puppy my dad says that we have to crop her tail but i don't want to. Will not cropping her tail physically hurt her?

[Kfamr]

NOT doing it won't hurt her.
Docking it WILL.
I personally don't agree with docking, and you don't "have" to dock any dog's tail -- it's all just personal preference to the owner.

[wolf_Q]

I may be wrong about this but dont' they usually crop puppies tails when they are only a few days old? How old is your pup? I'm guessing at least 6-8 weeks old? I find tail docking and ear cropping an unnecessary procedure...it's painful and just for cosmetic purposes. So in my opinion there is no reason that her tail must be docked and it will not physically hurt her to keep the tail she was born with. I've seen several aussies with natural tails, it's cute!

[aussie]

this guy said it would cause back problems and kill her sooner but i lover her tail but i love her more

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

It's actually called docking if you're talking about a tail. Most Aussie's are born with natural "bobtails" which is a short to almost no tail but in some cases they are born with long tails like what you're saying. How old is she? docking should only be done when the pup is a few days old (That's what my vet said). She will not be hurt in anyway if you don't dock it. If she is however, over 5 days old then docking her tail will hurt her and I recommend not doing it at all

Welcome to PT though, I hope you enjoy it here and I look forward to getting to know you and your Aussie better You can see all of my dogs in my sig, below...

[wolf_Q]

What guy told you that? How could having a tail cause her back problems? Border collies are very similarl in size/structure to aussies and they have tails which do not cause them harm.

The only thing I have heard about having a tail being a problem is dogs injuring their tails by hitting them against things. Dogs use their tails for balance, I would think it would cause more problems by not having a tail.

[aussie]

aussie is 8 weeks old

[aussie]

this breeder he said wagging it causes the problems aussie is 8 weeks old

[Kfamr]

Originally posted by aussie
this breeder he said wagging it causes the problems aussie is 8 weeks old

All three of my dogs have tails - LONG tails. Not one of them has ever had a problem and they wag their tails constantly.

That 'breeder' is crazy. She/He does not need to have it's tail docked. It will hurt her if you get it docked.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

it doesn't cause any problems not to dock it! If you got your dog from a responsible breeder he would have docked them when the pups were only a couple days old. I don't see a problem with having a natural tail at all. Your dog will be fine, it is too late to dock it now anyway....

[Shelteez2]

In the grand scheme of things I don't believe docking tails is that bad. That being said I would not get your pups tail docked. I have a friend that breeds dobermans and she won't dock a tail of a pup that's over 3 days old.
There are literally hundreds of thousands of dogs out their with tails that do not have back problems. It is not likely your pup will develop back problems from having a tail.

Good luck with your new pup and have fun!

[Amber]

My pup Elvis had his tail docked when he was only a couple days old. He can wag it, and he doesn't have back problems.

Just leave his/her tail alone. Leave it natural because its too late to do anything about it.

[bckrazy]

Your dog will have NO problems at all with their tail, unless she will be a working ranch dog for the rest of her life.. the breeder sounds like a tard. If the breeder thinks docking is that important, he would've done it when the puppy was under 1 week old. At that time, puppy's tails are soft and can be easily clipped by a vet. Now that she is 8 weeks old, the only way you can dock is during a major surgery, where she'll have to be anesthetized and it will hurt her A LOT more. It could cause chronic pain in her tail. Print this page out and show it to your Dad... and if he does want to dock her tail, be sure that he goes to a vet and NEVER tries it at home or through a friend


Print this out!

[Miranda_Rae]

I have a dog with a docked tail. They generally dock their tails when they are only a few days old. Docking it at her age now would be VERY painful for her. I would suggest that you do NOT dock it. I think the only reason you should dock a dogs tail when they are older is for medical reasons. Docking when they are younger, I haven't quite made up my mind on that one seeing I have a dog with a docked tail as thats the breed standard for GSPs. I agree, your breeder is very ignorant. As for the balance thing, I don't know, Heidi seems to balance pretty well.

[vinjashira]

I agree with what the others said, you don't need to dock the tail which is good since you like the tail anyway