Is Cuttin a pitbulls ears considered as animal cruelty?

Because their are NUMEROUS health reasons to spay & neuter also combined with the fact that it helps to prevent unwanted & unneeded litters. There are no health reasons to crop ears.

 

But is it cruel?
I think not!!!!

 

If you do crop use proper follow up care and stay within the age guidelines used by vets with good reps. Ask the vet if they have any photos or records of previous procedures. APBT's have an extremely high pain threshold, but we don't necessarily have to test it. Most APBT's are up and playing shortly after surgery though. Is it animal cruelty? I really have to say, to each their own. Some may feel that putting a dog on a chain and it repeatedly yanking itself is cruel, and some may say if your dog isn't tired and bleeding at the end of the day, it hasn't done enough...anyone could probably compile 2 even lists of things that make it right and things that make it wrong.

If you don't crop, don't worry they are still just as lovable!

 

Home crop jobs are cruel. I never said I consider vet done ear crops as "cruel". I just think they are unnecessary & are only done for the owners ego & taste. Cropped ears offer nothing to the dog & only force the dog to undergo an unecessary surgery/anesthesia risk.

 

I have seen just as many messed up ear jobs done by vets as I have seen by experianced people who crop them at home.I would never get ones ears cropped by anyone other than a vet, but a lot of vets don't know what they are doing either.
Most vets who don't do it or say its cruel are the ones that have messed someones dog up, and/or they just don't have the talent or ability to do it right.

I say to each thier on.

I like mine with ears, but I like the cropped look also.

Just because its done at someones home as oppossed to a vets office, doesn't mean its any less safe or sanitary, and it doesn't mean pups aren't sedated.
Some of the nastiest, most unsanitary places there are are vets offices.

I've seen it done both ways and by far seen more crop jobs messed up by vets or vet techs then by an experianced dogman.

 

Stillwater think of it in this way..
Spay /neutering is done for health reasons. It prevents certain cancers, prevents unwanted uneeded overpopulation, helps a dog live longer and cuts back on the money it costs to clean a carpet.. and it doesnt affect the dogs personality one bit (allthough if done early enough can reduce some hormones, which actually makes for a better pet!) Dogs do not view their "nuts" as a symbol of manhood nor do they view sex in the same light as a humans do.. for them is an intstinct they cannot control. It really doesnt matter to them one way or the other if they can reporoduce..

Ears on the other hand are cosmetic ..its not done to benefit the dog in any way shape or form seeing as other dogs dont pick on other dogs becasue their ears are floppy, large, small or whatnot. There is no medical reasons to crop ears (unless say a tumor or the ear was ripped off in an accident) Its purely because the OWner of the dog feels it has to be done for some reason. UKC, AADR and ADBA all state dogs can have natural or cropped ears.. it makes no difference.

So the biggest differences are spay/neuter has lots of important benefits for the dog while croping ears serves no purpose what so ever other than a look..

Also it is ILLEGAL to crop ears at their house ...

 

Ear cropping is not cruel!

 

It nice to hear from someone who knows how dogs feel about thier nuts and thier perspective on sex.
Very interesting indeed !!!!
I would be very interested to know if you base these statements in documented fact or from personnal experiance.
LOL !! Just kidding

Don't get me wrong.
I like my dogs with ears, but in my years with the dogs, I have seen more dogs killed and or really messed up by Vets or Vet techs then by EXPERIANCED Dogmen who know what they are doing.
I don't get my dogs ears cropped, but if I did I know TOO MANY Experianced dogmen who do a lot better work, then licensed vets and they do it, just as humanely as any vet.
I am sure thier are horror stories about butcher jobs, but don't paint them all with the same brush.

 

STILLWATER - I SEE WHERE YOU ARE COMING FROM. VETS AREN'T PLASTIC/COSMETIC SURGEONS. YOU ASK THEM TO CUT EM OFF AND THEY DO AND TRY TO MAKE THEM FAIRLY EVEN. WHAT KIND OF PLASTIC SURGERY DO PEOPLE EXPECT TO GET AT $75-$300? ON THE OTHER HAND, DOGMEN CAN TAKE TIME IN PRIDE IN DOING IT. IT MAY BE A BETTER JOB, BUT THE POLICE WILL STILL WANT TO SEE SOME LICENSE AND A PLAQUE ON THE WALL!

 

Thank You Very Much!!!!

Just because it legal, don't mean it will be done right, and just because its illegal don't mean it won't be done safe and humanely.

Again, let me say I like my dogs with ears uncropped, but if I decided to get ones ears cropped, I would take it to the best qualified person, regardless if they were vets or not.

 

In case you haven't noticed there aren't a lot of experienced dogmen on this board. The ones that are on here don't condone cutting a dogs ears for the reasons already posted. My major issue is that the ear is MORE vulnerable after a crop job. Once again, in a yard "accident" would you rather have a dog bite an ear or somewhere else that is more vital? We're addressing the general public for the most part on this board so you need to take that into consideration. I understand where you are coming from because I do 90% of my own vet care but the general public should find a good vet and use them. There are plenty of vets out there and there ARE good ones. You are the paying customer so if you don't like the way you or your dog is treated then go elsewhere. Just my $.02....

Kind Regards,

B

 

But only about 1 out of every10,000 "dogmen" is probably truly experienced. So why in the hell would I condone something that is MOSTLY done by inexperienced thugs?

And I'm not arguing that vets can botch ear crops. But at least they MEDICALLY know what they hell they are doing. You cannot make me believe that the majority of home crops are done by professionals that truly care about their dogs' wellbeing. It's usually some no-good wanna-be that wants a dog to look cool so he takes some shears or a knife & hacks the ear off. I've seen many, many pups brought in to us sick, only to let the owners know that the pups are dying/dead b/c of their home crop jobs. It's by no means a simple procedure & can take upwards of an hour to do properly. So there is NO way I will ever condone home crop jobs b/c it would only serve to justify the stupid & inexperienced.

 

I quess it goes back to who you know and what circles you run in.

Again, I am not condoneing the cropping of dogs ears by inexperianced thugs.
I am just stateing a FACT, that I have seen better jobs done by Experianced dogmen then by vets, and I have seen more crop jobs messed up by vets or vet techs, then by Experianced dogmen.

Being a VET does not "Qualify" a person to crop ears, it only gives them the right under the law, to perform the procedure.
A "Qualified" person doesn't have to be a VET either, but performing the procedure is against the law, if they aren't vets.

That being said, If I ever decided to get one of my dogs ears cropped, I would take them to the most QUALIFIED person to do the job, based on experiance, Vet or not.

 

leave them the way god made them..god made them perfect..humans are giving them a bad name.

 

I'm not disagreeing with you. There is no course in vet school on cropping ears & docking tails so basically they learn on unsuspecting people's animals. Trust me, take a look at my dog Shaker in my gallery. His ears are a royal mess.....all for the wonderful price of $240 by a vet in New Orleans. I could've done a better job with my eyes closed.

Also, I'm speaking in general terms of the general public who are cropping ears. Those are the majority of the people viewing this site so I just can't condone it (whether or not I believe that there are some experienced & knowledgable people who do wonderful jobs or not).

Plus, in almost every state, if not all, it is against the law. Not only is it considered animal cruelty (by law, not by me) but it's also considered practicing a medical profession without a license (which is a felony). So MY job is to try & educate people on the legal issues & logical issues of this procedure.

 

I like the crop look. Does it serve any purpose? Not that I am aware of. I think its just for looks. It makes a pit look more like a pit... to me

 

actually I am stating facts here, not some made up bs. Dogs are not humans and too many people apply human "qualities" to them.

 

I prefer natural ears, but I don't believe cropping is cruel. I have a bigger issue with putting a young dog under anesthesia than removing part of the ear. One of the things I look for when I'm looking at pups is good natural ears, and I will use stuff like glue to try and keep them good. If I feel a certain dog would look better with cropped ears, I would do it, but to me its easier not to have to deal with hunting for a good vet, paying out the price for a good crop, aftercare, stitches, keeping the pup from scratching, so on and so forth.

That said, I don't buy the "leave them the way God made them" argument. God made wolves and prick-eared dogs. Man fiddled around amd made flop-eared dogs. But c'est la vie.

What about removing dewclaws?

 

I would really be interested to see the facts that support your statments.

I find it very hard to believe that "FACTS" exist that can determine what a dog thinks and/or feels about his nuts and its sexual being.

 

I don't think it is cruel, the whole point behind it is for working purposes. There are less "handles" on working dogs, pits, dobermans, great danes, beacerons, etc. I think there are benefits for danes and dobes because normally their ears are very large and they don't have a lot of control over movement. It also allows more air passage (less chance for infection) of course they also need more cleaning because they get dirty...hmmm. I love the look of a GOOD crop and there ARE benefits of cropping, docking and dew claw removal.
NO ONE should ever do ears themselves, I've seen dogs who's idiot owners decided to save a buck and mutilate them. The ears require stitches or to be carterized.
I Germany and Europe also made cropping and docking illegal.
I think that if they want to illegalize this they should also make circumcision illegal (unless you're Jewish), that is also primarily cosmetic.