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Gunner's Ear Crop

356 Views 16 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  doctordave, 
doctordave
My lil boy Gunner just got his pre-crop exam at Angelcare in Mt. Pleasant, WI with the wonderful Dr. Limpach of Dynasty Dobermans. Just listening to her wealth of knowledge regarding simple behavorial training techniques was eye-opening as a first-time Dobie Dad! He has his crop scheduled for June 5th, and I just know that Dr. Limpach is going to do an incredible job! I figured I'd start this thread to document his progress! He was born on April 1st, so he'll be getting his crop at 9 weeks and 2 days! He's going to be one handsome lil man!


He's been eating over 2 cups of Pro Plan Large Breed Puppy food, and he's still quite skinny, so I'm going to take Dr. Limpach's advice and feed him 3 times a day for 15-20 minutes each time and just let him eat as much as he wants. I'll know I'm getting it right when he starts leaving some kibble behind! I've been worried about overfeeding him, but I have a feeling he's gonna be a big boy, so I'm going to let him eat! 😁
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Allforblitz
Puppies will over indulge. I would give him 1 cup 3x daily or 1.5 twice daily. Leave food down for 15-20 minutes then remove. If his stools are soft, then he is eating too much. Feed him as much as he will eat as long as stools aren't soft and he isn't getting fat, but it should still be a measured amount.
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Allforblitz
Aside from feeding I have to say he is very cute and I hope you guys have many many fun adventure in your future! Doberman puppies are the most joy. My boy is the highlight of my day. My life really. I never used to mind going to work, but now I just want to stay home and train my puppy.
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doctordave
Allforblitz said:
Aside from feeding I have to say he is very cute and I hope you guys have many many fun adventure in your future! Doberman puppies are the most joy. My boy is the highlight of my day. My life really. I never used to mind going to work, but now I just want to stay home and train my puppy.
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Thanks a lot! I know exactly what you mean -- I'm just as obsessed with him as he is with me!

I let him pig out on as much food as he wanted last night after his pre-op exam because he was a good boy and slept peacefully through 4 hours in the car. It was no more than 2 cups max, though. I did the same thing this morning, and he looks pregnant now and his poop looks like DQ soft serve, so I came to the same conclusion as you advised and I'll be feeding him 1-1.5 cups for each of his 3 meals and picking up any leftovers after about 15 minutes. I'm glad to see him looking full now, though! He's sitting at a lil over 13.5 lbs now 😁
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Sunje
He's a cutie! I would suggest that when he is cropped, you have the vet grind his nails down to nubs while he's anesthetized. Then scratching at his recovering ears won't be an issue. My puppy had just been cropped a few days before I picked him up, and I noticed that his nails were almost non-existent--this had been done when he was cropped. We took the cup off and put him in his first posts today (2 weeks post-crop), and the nails are just starting to grow out now.
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doctordave
Sunje said:
He's a cutie! I would suggest that when he is cropped, you have the vet grind his nails down to nubs while he's anesthetized. Then scratching at his recovering ears won't be an issue. My puppy had just been cropped a few days before I picked him up, and I noticed that his nails were almost non-existent--this had been done when he was cropped. We took the cup off and put him in his first posts today (2 weeks post-crop), and the nails are just starting to grow out now.
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That sounds like a really good idea! I'll be sure to bring it up with Dr. Limpach! I'd also like to take that opportunity to have him microchipped while he's out, since I hear the needle they use for that is quite large.
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Allforblitz
Sunje said:
He's a cutie! I would suggest that when he is cropped, you have the vet grind his nails down to nubs while he's anesthetized. Then scratching at his recovering ears won't be an issue. My puppy had just been cropped a few days before I picked him up, and I noticed that his nails were almost non-existent--this had been done when he was cropped. We took the cup off and put him in his first posts today (2 weeks post-crop), and the nails are just starting to grow out now.
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This is excellent advice. This was also done for my puppy. It helps starting to maintain nails as you have time to get them desensitized to the Dremel before it is imperative that you just have to do it whether they are ready or not. Great idea to do the microchip at the same time. my puppy was tattooed and chipped at the same time during cropping. Crop day is a big day haha
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doctordave
Allforblitz said:
This is excellent advice. This was also done for my puppy. It helps starting to maintain nails as you have time to get them desensitized to the Dremel before it is imperative that you just have to do it whether they are ready or not.
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Right on! I've actually already started introducing him to the Dremel when he's nice and sleepy, so he's getting used to the vibrating sensation! At his first vet visit (our local vet, not Dr. Limpach), the vet started clipping his nails and I asked her to stop because I didn't want Gunner to associate the pressure and discomfort of clippers with human contact of his nails. Getting him started early with his nails also helps to reduce the accidental puppy scratch. Their lil nails are like talons! :p
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Allforblitz
doctordave said:
Right on! I've actually already started introducing him to the Dremel when he's nice and sleepy, so he's getting used to the vibrating sensation! At his first vet visit (our local vet, not Dr. Limpach), the vet started clipping his nails and I asked her to stop because I didn't want Gunner to associate the pressure and discomfort of clippers with human contact of his nails. Getting him started early with his nails also helps to reduce the accidental puppy scratch. Their lil nails are like talons! :p
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Great idea to have them stop. I had a vet tech try to force Blitz through the door his first visit and I nicely stepped in front of her and said it's his first visit and I want it to be very pleasant. Let's just give him a second. I let him sniff for about 5 or 7 seconds then tossed a treat in and he went right in. They can just push him in now, but they will not want to do that when he is 90 pounds, so I think it best to allow me an extra 20 seconds to let him do it on his own free will. Good for you for advocating for your dog.
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doctordave
Allforblitz said:
Great idea to have them stop. I had a vet tech try to force Blitz through the door his first visit and I nicely stepped in front of her and said it's his first visit and I want it to be very pleasant. Let's just give him a second. I let him sniff for about 5 or 7 seconds then tossed a treat in and he went right in. They can just push him in now, but they will not want to do that when he is 90 pounds, so I think it best to allow me an extra 20 seconds to let him do it on his own free will. Good for you for advocating for your dog.
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Thanks! I realize that this is a critical stage in his development, and the things I do now will affect the way he behaves and sees the world in the future, whether for better or worse. I'm just doing my absolute best to make sure it's the former! :)
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Control_Freak
Allforblitz said:
Great idea to have them stop. I had a vet tech try to force Blitz through the door his first visit and I nicely stepped in front of her and said it's his first visit and I want it to be very pleasant. Let's just give him a second. I let him sniff for about 5 or 7 seconds then tossed a treat in and he went right in. They can just push him in now, but they will not want to do that when he is 90 pounds, so I think it best to allow me an extra 20 seconds to let him do it on his own free will. Good for you for advocating for your dog.
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Fantastic display of advocacy for Blitz, kudos to you! I’m also ver y particular about vet visits for puppies, I want it to be a good experience so that when they are 90 pounds it’s no big deal. When Maui had his first visit, everyone was so excited and wanted to rush him, I had to step in and say he’s a little unsure, give him space to warm up. Subsequent visits for vaccines were just tech services, they wanted to take him from my car and inside without me for the service, again I had to advocate for him and say I’d like to accompany him so that he has reassurance that it’s not scary, they were a little put off because I think they thought I thought they were going to make it a bad experience but it wasn’t that, I trust them and know they have great care but I didn’t want him at such a young age to be taken away by strangers into a strange building and be stabbed with a needle. I explained to them that it’s very important to me for My dogs to be comfortable for everyone’s safety.
@doctordave absolutely have him microchipped when he is under!
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Allforblitz
Thank you so much for saying that. They took him back today for weight and Lepto booster. They let you go back for exams, but not something simple like that. He pancaked on the floor by the door and they just scooped him up. They said he was afraid of the scale and just laid down on it the whole time. I keep wondering if I should have been more vocal and asked to accompany him. I am like you, I absolutely trust them. I just want him to be a good patient for his whole life. I think a bad experience (even when not serious) when they are young can take a lot of work to undo. I'm glad to see so many awesome owners here that care about their dogs mental and physical state. You do so much for little Maui to make sure he is getting a well rounded life while he is hindered by his injury and it's very inspiring. Just remember it is only temporary and you're doing brilliantly!
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doctordave
Control_Freak said:
@doctordave absolutely have him microchipped when he is under!
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Will do! (y)
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Allforblitz
doctordave said:
Thanks! I realize that this is a critical stage in his development, and the things I do now will affect the way he behaves and sees the world in the future, whether for better or worse. I'm just doing my absolute best to make sure it's the former! :)
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That's wonderful. You guys are going to do great! Some things are out of our control, but I believe as long as we worry about what we can control, it will all turn out okay in the end.
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Control_Freak
Allforblitz said:
Thank you so much for saying that. They took him back today for weight and Lepto booster. They let you go back for exams, but not something simple like that. He pancaked on the floor by the door and they just scooped him up. They said he was afraid of the scale and just laid down on it the whole time. I keep wondering if I should have been more vocal and asked to accompany him. I am like you, I absolutely trust them. I just want him to be a good patient for his whole life. I think a bad experience (even when not serious) when they are young can take a lot of work to undo. I'm glad to see so many awesome owners here that care about their dogs mental and physical state. You do so much for little Maui to make sure he is getting a well rounded life while he is hindered by his injury and it's very inspiring. Just remember it is only temporary and you're doing brilliantly!
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My vet doesn't allow us in the back for certain procedures either, when vaccines are performed by the vet, they do it right in the exam room, they also removed his ear stitches for me in the exam room but for his cast changes they take him in the back. Which is perfectly fine, they have to learn to go into the back by themselves at some point, it's all part of the learning experience. It's a fine balance of trying to let your puppy work things out and also not letting them give into their fears or be stubborn about things, sometimes they don't want to do things but its not their choice and they have to. When Maui went in for his cast change this week, he wanted nothing to do with the tech that came to get him, she spent a couple minutes coaxing him to her with treats but he was still a little unsure, he still has to go back and once he relaxed a little she picked him up and took him back. I have a great relationship with several of the techs that provided care for Sully, one of them came in to confirm Rizzo's cardio appt and I asked her to see how he was doing (it had been like 25 minutes) She came back and said he was being a perfect gentleman and they were just finishing up, sometimes the unknown is more scary and sometimes they feed off of our energy, take us out of the equation and they do just fine. I wouldn't worry too much about what happened. You could always talk to the office staff about bringing him in for just a friendly visit a few times so that he doesn't always associate the going there with being poked and prodded.

Thank you for the kind words, we're trying our best but there are moments when I feel like it's not good enough....most days I'm just in survival mode.
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spocksdad
Control_Freak said:
My vet doesn't allow us in the back for certain procedures either, when vaccines are performed by the vet, they do it right in the exam room, they also removed his ear stitches for me in the exam room but for his cast changes they take him in the back. Which is perfectly fine, they have to learn to go into the back by themselves at some point, it's all part of the learning experience. It's a fine balance of trying to let your puppy work things out and also not letting them give into their fears or be stubborn about things, sometimes they don't want to do things but its not their choice and they have to. ...
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Neo loves going to "the back" in vet's office as he gets attention from lots more of the staff along the way! When he comes back to exam room he acts like he's been gone for 2-weeks! 😁
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doctordave
I went ahead and created a thread dedicated to Gunner so I will be posting updates on his ear crop progress there!
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