No idea re. culling.

Taping is pretty common on natural eared dogs in America from what I have seen on DT, never heard of anyone here in NZ doing it.

Cropping is banned here, but we can still dock and remove dew claws, but many people don't remove dew claws. In Australia where cropping and docking is banned, I think they still do remove dew claws in some cases, but mostly leave them on. I think they have always left dew claws on in some European countries, even where they used to crop and dock.

 

I'm not sure about the culling in Germany.

In England ear taping is done by some breeders, mainly only dogs which have particularly small ears as these tend to become flyaway. Bigger ears lie flat anyway. On the dew claws, I don't think it's illegal to do them, but most vets won't remove them unless a dog is having problem with them

 

I think the ruling for dew claws in Australia is the same as the UK...not done for prophylactic reasons anymore.

 

Here in my area of Spain it is illegal to crop and dock but the removal of Dew Claws is permitted though most Vets will only do it if the dog is having a problem with them.

Regards culling, can you not contact the German Kennel Club for their take on this subject.

I know in England they recently changed the law to read that the maximum number of litters a breeder can produce from one female is 4. (of course there are folk who flout this ruling but the penalties are stiff enough if you get caught to make you wince).


May I ask why you want to know the answer to the culling question?

 

Just to make it clear though, nobody will be culling puppies if the bitch has more than 4 litters! Just the kennel club won’t register more than 4 litters from one bitch.

I would be shocked if Germany ever advised on culling puppies, I believe overall they are a country with very high standard in animal welfare. Apparently, the RRB club in the UK used to advice the culling of puppies born without a ridge down their back though, which I've read is 1 in 6 puppies. I dont know how true this is though.

 

Elly has a good tutorial on taping natural ears here: http://www.dobermantalk.com/puppy-corner/22602-aiko-von-rosamburg-iko-4-months.html#post361968

 

Dobermann - VDH Rasselexikon

This is some information that the GKC uses for Dobermans or Dobermanns as they like to spell it. In regards to culling we have never heard anything like that and living in Germany at the moment I would of thought to of come across it. Germany is a massive dog loving nation and I could not possible see how they would allow dogs to be culled because a bitch has had too many litters. They have strict rules on dangerous dogs here and some breeds are just full stop banned but I can not imagine them ever being that cruel!

Taping I never did with Odin and his ears have fallen naturally flat. However some people may choose to tape to make sure they fall correctly!

 

I hope the guidelines changed , but in England, the kennel club suggested the culling of puppies who didn't show a ridged back in the breed: Rhodesian ridgeback.

 

Apparently (I have been told by people) that culling is common in breeds that have large litters and aren't very popular, like sighthounds and pointers. I heard that someone in NZ bred their Saluki, had 12 puppies or something, and culled all but about 4 of them, as the breed is so unpopular here the breeder kept 1 and had to sell the rest off overseas.

Fawns and blues would have been culled in Germany at some point I guess?

 

I don't know about any of the countries that have breed laws and a breed warden to enforce them like Germany does but I do know, dog lovers or not the Germans have been culling fawns from very early on and I hear that no one is producing blues any more since the standard revision that removed them from accepted colors.

Should be interesting now that there is an actual gene test for color including dilution to see what happens to some of the imports who were touted as not carrying dilution--imported to the US and promptly threw some fawns and/or blues in the the very first litters.

But I'm easily amused. Part of the amusement stems from the fact that the first gene test for dilution was available through a German University.

 

I may be talking out of term, but I find it pretty sickening that someone would have the stomach to cull puppies the wrong colour! I'd have thought spay/neuter and go to a home as a pet would have been sufficient

 

To us it may be sickening, but to others it is all in a days work to bring the breed into line with their ideals. (hmmmm, where have I heard that before).

 

Thank you all! I am on another forum with some very vocal anti-cropping people and basically, the idea hit me that for a country such as Germany to enforce no cropping and docking rules while advocating culling was sort of bizarre and I wondered if it was still the rule. I am going by memory as well. I thought in the 80s while I was working with a Schutzhund club, mainly comprised of German Shepherds, I heard someone say the parent club in Germany would not allow a bitch to raise more than six puppies and it seems to me the guys were arguing over what they actually did with those puppies. Yeah, I know, sort of a gross subject.

I'm not going to get into cropping and not cropping here, but on the other forum I'm on, I'm fighting against almost a PETA like reaction to it and unlike here, none of those people have ever owned a Doberman or been around any puppies after cropping so the outburst is purely emotional and based on a lot of misunderstood facts. One person told me a dog should never be cropped, citing problems in surgery with anesthesia, blood loss, and pain. I did not win friends and influence people when I suggested maybe spaying and neutering shouldn't be done either for the exact same reasons. Perhaps my sarcasm was hard to discern.

Anyhoo, I thank you all for your answers!

 

Culling is done here in the USA for all kinds of reasons and for all different breeds. I think culling is done less and less as most people dont care about breed standards anymore. One of my vets is a big boxer fan and for the past 25 years she has only owned all white boxers as they are commonly culled by their breeders. Sad but true!!!