[dablindfrog]

i know there is a broad range of age at which it is possible to crop the ears,but following your experiences,what is the optimum age?

also,should i let the ears heal before taping,or is it advisable to tape as soon as the ears have been cropped?

 

[tootsie]

Hi, and welcome to the forums!
There was just a great thread about this a couple weeks ago. Just click on the link, and it should answer all of your questions.

http://www.boxerforums.com/modules.php? ... r+cropping

 

[dablindfrog]

i did read that thread,i even replied to it,but there was no mention of optimal age,nor was there a definitive answer as to wether it's best to crop and tape,or crop/heal then tape

 

[mom2scoutandgunner]

We did both of ours at 8 weeks.  That is the oldest that our vet will do them.  Some will do it up to 12 weeks.  Ours both had a cap with a turban style taping left on for 10 days.  On our first one, we did not need any further taping.  On our second one, we waited for the scabs to fall off and we only had to tape one ear.  If you tape when the ears are not healed, you risk hurting the ear again when you take the tape off.  

If you have a good vet that has done many of these croppings, they are excellent with instructions and questions.  They will show you what you need to do to tape them on your own and many of them will even retape for you if you are unsure/uncomfortable with it.

Hope this helps!

 

[tootsie]

I believe the optimal age to crop would be between 8 & 12 weeks. I've never done it so I really don't know.

 

[BurningRiver]

As tootsie mentioned, the best age is between 8-12 weeks. Some vets will do as early as 6 weeks, others as late as 14 weeks. Any older than 14 weeks, and you run the risk of them not standing.

The ears absolutely have to heal prior to being taped.

I've had one cropped at 8 weeks and one at 10 weeks. I'll crop again at 10 weeks, just because the one that I waited on seemed to go more smoothly.

When choosing a vet to crop ears, you want to contact your local boxer club and find out who the show breeders use. Too many vets do bad crops and you don't want your dog to end up looking like a pit bull or mickey mouse.

Good luck.

 

[dablindfrog]

thank you all for the advice

 

[lisa2265]

Hi, I am getting a boxer in two weeks and I was wondering if there is anyone out there in the long island area that knows of a vet that crops. We have had a boxer for 12 years now but the person who the ears then is no longer doing ears. I am out in the east end of Long Island. Thanks

 

[BurningRiver]

Hi Lisa,
As was mentioned previously in this thread, contacting your local boxer club and inquiring as to what vet the show breeders use is your best bet in finding a vet who does a good ear crop.

Good luck,

 

[Honeyec]

Why bother cropping the ears at all?  There is absolutely no medical reason for it whatsoever and the reason that so many vets are no longer doing it because they've realised that it's putting the animal through a very uncomfortable experience for no reason other than than the owner's vanity. Ear cropping is on a par with foot binding or neck-stretching in human cultures - do you condone that?

I'm sorry, but this is an issue I feel extremely strongly about.  Ear-cropping is almost entirely a US phenomenon - it's virtually unheard of to crop a Boxer's ears in Europe and I don't think you'd find a single vet willing to do it even if you wanted to.

It's not even part of the breed standard, so I genuinely can't understand why so many people persist on putting their dogs through it.

 

[tootsie]

Just a personal preference...

 

[SIR-NIKKO]

(I'm sorry, but this is an issue I feel extremely strongly about.  Ear-cropping is almost entirely a US phenomenon ?????)  This is what get's me mad!!  They did not ask for your option.!! They only ask for a answer..!

 

[Honeyec]

Yeah, but in fairness Nikko, this is an open forum and everyone is entitled to their opinion.