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When to take out posts permanently

1K views 9 replies 7 participants last post by  brw1982 
#1 ·
Hello everyone, I searched around and found varying answers on the internet so figured I would ask all you great Dobi owners. I have a 4 month old puppy who was cropped at 9 weeks old. He has the long cut which look great. We change out his post every 5 days approx and let them stand free for around 12 hours before reposting. We had them out yesterday for 24 hours and his ears still looked great, however the tips droop a little bit. I have read that we should wait until he has finished teething before permanently removing his posts, my vet (who did not do the crop) said it was a myth about the cartilege not developing in the ears when teething and it is ok to remove as long as the ears are standing up, I have also ready wait until 8 months old etc... so can you please help me? Should we take them out and see how long they stand and just use breath right on the tips? Wait a few more months? Thanks everyone.
 
#2 ·
I don't think I'm going out on a limb to say 99% of vets are wrong about everything with ear posting. Keep posting. Don't leave them down for 24hr periods anymore! You will be backtracking if you do. Just take them down long enough to clean, air out, and re-post. If he has a long crop continue to post until he's 7 months before you even test the waters on how well they're standing.
 
#3 ·
What GK said^^^ Many pups as they enter and finish serious teething will experience ear failure (falling, drooping, inconsistent cartilage formation, if one does not post though this stage. My youngest was posted totally though 7 months and into his 8th month. His long show crop is perfect. Plus, he really got to enjoy having his ears posted (weird, but very common.)

BTW... Welcome from the Pacific NW.

Also you can find the absolute best tutorial (IMO) on ear posting here on DT. It is curtesy of above poster greenkouki.

Here... I picked it up for you. Study it and follow it to a "T".

https://www.dobermantalk.com/ear-cr...sting-show-cropped-ears-using-backer-rod.html

Best to you and your pup

John
Portland OR
 
#4 ·
Yes, GK is right. Most vets don't know much about posting. Don't leave the ears down 12 hours, and definitely not 24! Just take them down long enough to clean them and let them dry and then right back up. You're seeing drooping because the ears aren't done. There are VERY few puppies who are done having their ears posted this young. Typically you do need to post through teething, and usually it takes until 7 months or longer...it all depends on the quality of the ears...it varies depending on the crop, the ear leather, the cartilege....some dogs are done at 5 or 6 months even with long crops, while some dogs take closer to a year.
 
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#10 ·
I would err on the side of caution and keep posting.

I have a 5 month old pup right now who has a medium length crop and I'm 95% sure one of her ears is standing...but I keep posting it because I'd rather post a standing ear than let an ear fall at such a young age. Every time they droop or drop, you're essentially making more work for yourself to get them back up and then keep them up.

I posted my last girl's ears for 8-9 months and then used breathe-right strips for a couple of months to finish the tips off. Still one of her ears was just weak and the very tip was always flippy. (It stood all the way to the tip, but the tip had a lot of wiggle when she moved.) Maybe I could have strengthened the tip but the cartilage in that ear just felt thinner and weaker than her other ear, so I called it quits at a year old.

My plan with this pup is to post through 6-7 months old at minimum and then evaluate them. No matter how tempting it is to think one ear might be standing.
 
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