KayAnn, some dogs are born with them, and some dogs are born without. The breeders to purebred pups will often take the 3-7 day old puppies to the vet to have their dew claws removed. They usually get their tails docked at the same time, if it's that type of breed.

There are front and rear dewclaws. The rear dewclaws are the ones that most often get torn and injured. Sometimes the dewclaws (especially in the rear) are not attached to bone. They have a little nail and a blood vessel that keeps the nail growing, and a tiny little pad, but the whole dewclaw is not attached to bone. Kersey had rear dewclaws that just flopped around. Whenever she took a step, the rear dewclaws just sort of jiggled around. They were not attached to bone so the surgery was easy and relatively painless. I had hers removed because I had big plans of agility for Kersey, and rear dewclaws could get ripped and torn on some of the agility equipment. Also, they flopped around and it just didn't look good to me. She does have front dewclaws, as does Graham, as did my yellow labbie, Beener, and I have never had a problem with front ones.

When the dewclaw is attached to bone, removing it is similar to amputating a finger. It is extremely painful for the dog. If the vet is charging $300 (which is an aweful lot) then chances are Honey's dewclaws are attached to bone and it is a more extensive and painful surgery. If that's the case, I would absolutely not do it.

Give Honey a kiss for me, please