[Dillon]

This is my first posting and brand new to the site.

I am going to be getting a Dobe puppy and am in the process of trying to determine which crop to have done(working,medium or show)

Can someone guide me to a site or picture section that may offer some good examples of the three types of crops available?

Thanks in advance-
Dillon

 

[micdobe]

Responsible breeders usually crop the ears of the whole litter before they leave for their new homes. I've never had to have a puppy cropped, they all came already cropped from the breeder. Sometimes the breeder will work with you as to what lenght you want, but they still have good croppers who they know will do a good job and they want their puppies' ears to be cropped attractively, and they want to be sure the aftercare is started correctly, so the puppies have the least amount of discomfort.

I take it your puppy is going to come uncropped. Have you discussed this with the breeder? There are not "three types" of crops available. Ear cropping done well is an art and the best croppers consider the shape of each puppy's head as well as the weight of the ear leather and the strength of cartilage when they do the crop.

What you seem to mean by "working" "medium", or "show" is short, medium, and long. I guess medium would be a good length for a pet puppy. But medium means different things to different people. Have you found a vet to do the cropping? And are you sure that s/he really knows what they're doing?

 

[LapDog]

when are you getting your puppy? Is it too late to keep looking around...I agree with Micdobe that usually a breeder that wants to makes sure every one of their dogs look their best and get the crop done before they leave for a home. This way their dogs arent running around with some goofy, some good, some real bad, some to short, some to tall etc crops..
If it isnt too late I'd search around and ask more questions.
Duchess ears were done before we got her....In my signature there are clear pics of her crop...I believe it is a pet crop which is medium and curvier...

 

[TracyJo]

Dillion,
My girl is natural so the only advice I can give is based on what I've seen here in the past year. Please, please, please do your homework - choose a reputable breeder who has the pups cropped before they go to their new homes and who provides all the support you'll need through postings. If you are locked into this pup and are set on having her cropped on your own - make sure the vet you choose knows what they're doing. There are a couple people here now that have recently had their dogs recropped because the orginal crops were wrong. Maybe if you could post your general location, someone here could put you in contact with a good breeder or vet....

 

[BackInBlack]

Like everyone else has said, if you have the option, choose a good breeder who crops the pups before they go to their homes. I am not saying that you have chosen a Back Yard Breeder because I don't know...but just in case you have, please take it from me (I own a backyard bred dog) that once you start really researching the breed, you will wish you had gotten a well bred puppy.

When I was looking for a puppy, I looked on the internet, found some of the commercial puppy mills, saw the prices and said "No way Jose" looked in the newspaper and found a litter that would be ready in a few weeks. The money I "saved" buying him this way, turned out to not be a discount at all.

Between the cost of the first vet who first cropped his ears, the taping supplies, the re-crop (The 2-3 hour drive to that vet about 4 times) the cost of the re-crop, the time involved, the medicines, and the worries I went through....I surely did not save any money.

Because I don’t know his health history, there is no telling the amount of money I will have to fork out in the future to make sure he is taken care of to the best of my ability. I understand this can happen with well bred dogs as well, but good breeders work to keep certain preventable problems from effecting their puppies (for example VonWillibrands) which we believe my dog has. They also will offer guidance throughout the life of the dog, which will prove to be VERY useful. I wish I had it! I wouldn’t trade him for any puppy in the world, but if I had the choice to do it over, I would have done alot more homework before deciding on a puppy.

If you do decide to get the ears done yourself, please, please, please find a vet who knows Dobermans, can help you with follow-up care, and knows how to do good ear crops. You don’t want to go through it twice, trust me.

Here is a picture of my puppy at 5 months old after getting his ears cropped for the second time....

If that isn't enough to make you do your homework, please visit the album:
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2107133864

I really am not trying to be a bummer, I just hope that you can learn from my mistakes. Good Luck

 

[Zucker]

awwww.... poor Rommel

I was under the impression that perhaps Dillon's pup's breeder is giving him the options of a different crop.

 

[LapDog]

I was under the impression that perhaps Dillon's pup's breeder is giving him the options of a different crop.

That would be good!

 

[MrDesi]

Yes please do more research on the "breeder" side of getting a puppy. A lot of times we do a lot of research on the breed itself but not on the type of breeders.

I did all the research on Dobermans but not on breeders and even though I couldn't ask for a better dog I got Princess from a backyard breeder who just wanted to "sell" a puppy. I had to find the vet who crops and went through a lot of trouble as well. A breeder who has the experience and has built up a relationship with the vet that does all the croppings for the breeder will end a much better result.

Here a picture of Princess that shows the "long crop", and each vet has a different way of doing them as well:

The ears look long for the body and head but she has grown since then and they look great on her now.

Good Luck
Naveen

 

[BackInBlack]

That is a great picture of her ears Naveen! I know it has been your avatar, but I have never seen it full size.

 

[MrDesi]

That is a great picture of her ears Naveen! I know it has been your avatar, but I have never seen it full size.

Thanks, I have a few more recent pics I need to upload. Should do that soon.

Naveen

 

[DobiLove]

here is one of my boy.. his was a standard crop it only took 3 weeks to get his ears standing properly. The shorter the crop the faster they stand.

 

[doberkim]

It is not just the length of the crop - your dogs crop also has a LOT more bell left than many croppers prefer to leave. His ears are not necessarily that short.

 

[Dillon]

Thanks to everyone who responded thus far!
I have a vet picked out in NJ and she seems to have a wonderful reputation for cropping. Seems that my preference would be to lean torwards a short or medium crop. I have seen only a few of medium and very few of short.
The breeder brought in 2 solid imports from the czech republic which come from very solid lines. Any additional feedback is greatly appreciated.
Dillon

 

[Murreydobe]

Thanks to everyone who responded thus far!
I have a vet picked out in NJ and she seems to have a wonderful reputation for cropping. Seems that my preference would be to lean torwards a short or medium crop. I have seen only a few of medium and very few of short.
Dillon

Think long and hard before you put a short crop on a doberman..it's just not something that enhances their appearance. Once the ear is gone, it's gone-and you've got to live with those ears for the lifetime of the dog.

 

[micdobe]

I agree with Murreydobe and Kim. The ears in the picture posted of the black puppy with standing ears are very wide which is what helps them stand fast. It's not a style of crop that many of us here like or have on our dogs. I would go with medium rather than short.

You say the breeder brought in two puppies from Czech. So the "breeder" is in Europe and you are buying your puppy thru a broker? And the puppies were shipped over here uncropped? As far as I know the former Eastern bloc countries don't have bans on docking and cropping and so the breeder should have cropped them there.

Is your vet's name Sophia, by any chance?

I don't know what you mean by dogs from "solid" lines. What does that mean? You aren't getting this puppy from Marcia Jasinski, are you?

 

[Murreydobe]

You say the breeder brought in two puppies from Czech. So the "breeder" is in Europe and you are buying your puppy thru a broker? And the puppies were shipped over here uncropped? As far as I know the former Eastern bloc countries don't have bans on docking and cropping and so the breeder should have cropped them there.

I could be wrong, but I interpreted that statement as being the breeder imported two dogs as "breeding stock". Bred together, these dogs then produced a litter in the US.

 

[micdobe]

Oh. You could be right. In that case, the breeder should have cropped the ears before sale. IMO.

 

[Murreydobe]

Oh. You could be right. In that case, the breeder should have cropped the ears before sale. IMO.

Yeah, I tend to agree with you about that. Unless it's an experienced home, I think the puppies themselves are better served by staying with the breeder until the stitches are removed, ears healed and ready to be posted. Quality aftercare can really reduce the amount of discomfort for the puppy.

 

[VegasDobe]

We did the shorter crop for reasons stated in other posts. but here is a pic of his as well. and he is almost 2yrs old in this pic.

 

[Dobesanddragons]

Time to dremel those nails =)