[eurocyber]

Look at that progress!!

Wondering why there's a little fold-in on the left edge of his ear though

 

[eurocyber]

Yes they are much improvedl Are you posting with just a wrap at the base and one at the tip? Sometimes people find that if they aren't using wraps all the way up the ear they get some funny looking edges. It's one of the reasons I use taping that goes all the way up the ear. However I taped ears for someone elses puppy and she didn't want it done that way (even though it made the ear edge kind of bumpy--once his ears were standing and we finally stopping posting altogether after about a month out of posts the ear edge evened out. (He was posted with three places where his ear was taped.)

Maybe that's all it is.

dobebug

Yes, the very very base of the ear is left unwrapped. I guess since the tape starts right were the indent is, it’s pulling in a little. Thank you!

 

[eurocyber]

You've made huge progress.

Thank you!!

 

[eurocyber]

.

 

[eurocyber]

Oh, and I think you asked somewhere how to know when they are done? There's no easy answer except that you can kind of tell, but it's also just a matter of sort of "testing" when you think they are. Each dog is different in how long their ears take, and it isn't necessarily a matter of how long the crop is. We generally recommend to wait through teething, because it's safer. You can kind of get a sense of how firm the ears look as you are changing posts. If you start to think they really look strong, maybe you leave them down an hour between posts instead of putting them right back up and see if they look any softer. Maybe the next post change if they still seem really firm, you try two hours. But again, this is if you truly think they are standing well. Since you got started a bit late I would personally probably post a bit longer before "testing" because I'd really want to be sure, but that's me.

For reference, Richter's ears were done fairly early - it's been a decade, so I can't really remember, but probably around 7 months, maybe? Sypha's ears took much longer...I was posting one ear until she was a year old, the other ear was done maybe a month earlier. Leon's ears are doing quite well - I'm shocked at how quickly they seem to be finishing up. He was six months this week. I'm leaving them down today to see how they are doing all day ...last week they were down all day with his post change as well and were looking great. I think they are very close if not done.

Definitely gonna wait at least till 7 months, then we’ll start testing. can we see a pic of Leon ?

 

[eurocyber]

Of course. This is last week on his day unposted.

(I try to post reasonably regularly on Leon's thread here: Introducing Leon... Protea's Bring It On Home)

View attachment 155217

He’s so big! Something I always loved about dobermans was their big head - his ears and ear tips look so straight

 

[eurocyber]

He's a big goof. Sometimes at this age they do something that seems nice and grown up, but most of the time you have to remind yourself they are still such babies, because they LOOK like grown up dogs, but they very much are not.

Cyber still has the babiest personality which reminds me
If you don’t play with him immediately he’ll smack you with his paw

 

[eurocyber]

.

 

[eurocyber]

Keep after them Euro ! LOL

Maybe need to stiffen your posts a little more to take that curl out of the tops OR are you taping them all the way up to the very tip ?

Congrats !

Not currently taping all the way to the tip as our posting method doesn't reach the tips, BUT we have a plan! Gonna attempt some full posts once the bases are more sturdy. Also - has anyone had luck with those breathe right strips?

 

[eurocyber]

Breathe-rite strip work to fix a very tip which is not straight up--but only the very tip--if you try to use them to keep half an ear from bending either in or out the strips will weight that part of the ear down because the cartilage already wasn't strong enough to keep the ear erect all the day to the tip. Ditto for try into use mole foam for anything except the very tip.

How about some pictures of the posting method you are using that only supports the center of the ear? Is that still the rolled up tape?

dobebug

Yes we’re still doing the rolled up tape. I’m just wary to switch posting methods after the success of this one.

 

[eurocyber]

He probably really looks so sad because you are using elasticon tape on those ears. Is that what you are using? If so bad idea--very adhesive stretchy tape--intended for entirely different thing than ears but whatever you feel works for you.

But if you don't figure out a way to support that ear tip you'll have one heck of time trying to straighten it out later--even extending another section of rolled up tape could work but you can already see that they are bending --because your method basically is training them to do that.

Or you might be able to put a piece of mole foam cut to the shape of the ear tip extending down to below where the rolled tape stops--that would support the ear tip and shouldn't interfere with the rest of the posting.

dobebug

Not elasticon! I will say that yes, this tape is a little stretchy, and I do worry about the circulation, but I check his ears multiple times per day and it was okayed by my vet. I don’t stretch it at all, I lay it on quite gently, that’s why there’s so much excess tape near the top. It’s the only tape I could find that wasn’t extremely stretchy or too short. It comes off quite nicely! Little to no hair loss. I have a nice white tape similar to zonas but it doesn’t work with this method (tape used for the bridge). I could try to add another rolled up tape piece on the tip using the white tape though. This is the only method that he doesn’t mess with either. Never scratches the ears.

 

[eurocyber]

Breathe-rite strip work to fix a very tip which is not straight up--but only the very tip--if you try to use them to keep half an ear from bending either in or out the strips will weight that part of the ear down because the cartilage already wasn't strong enough to keep the ear erect all the day to the tip. Ditto for try into use mole foam for anything except the very tip.

How about some pictures of the posting method you are using that only supports the center of the ear? Is that still the rolled up tape?

dobebug

Just wanted to clarify something.. you said breathe rite strips are only for floppy tips? But I’m thinking that once Cyber’s bases are sturdy, the only issue will be the tips. Once we’re done posting the bases, do you think breathe rite strips would help out with the tips? (If the current tip taping doesnt work)

 

[eurocyber]

I'm not sure I quite understand your posting method, but if you are making some kind of post that goes in the ear, there's an old method that several of my friends loved and used - it was the "shop towel" method from Bruda Dobermans. I had to use the "Wayback Machine" to even get it to come up, as Sandra Hunter died a few years ago and Bruda Dobermans is no more. But I did get the page to come up in the archives... using a shop towel as the post itself may work for your pup (or not, who knows?), but it's a successful way to create a post out of a different material that may work better, and it can create a tall enough post with no trouble.

Link to tutorial: https://web.archive.org/web/20121209051837/https://brudadobes.webs.com/earpostingguide.htm

I’ll look into that! Our “post” doesn’t go into the ear. I just get the tape and start to roll it into itself (so that it becomes a rolled up piece of tape sticky side out) and at this point I have no cut anything yet. So it’s a rolled piece of tape, still attached to the rest of the tape on the roll. I put the rolled up tape in the center of the ear and wrap the excess tape around the ear. Then create a bridge out of backer rod & tape. That’s why he has floppy tips. The roll of tape doesn’t reach the tips of the ears.