to judge people whose dogs'

[Fabulousfreaks]

tails have been docked? Is there ever a justifiable reason for this?

Thanks for the information Cackle and Freddie. Very interesting how different the view is from the parks of West London! I think that's one of the problems with 'judging'. I've never been shooting or hunting and I'm sure I never will so it's easy to misunderstand how many genuine working dogs there are out there

I met someone with a docked rescue rottie yesterday and she said that people are more intimidated by him because he is docked , even though he is a big softie . I think that's probably true as I suppose if he approached people with a waggy tail he would look friendlier .

Both my jack russels are docked. Big dog was a rescue dog and came that way and fat dog we bought as a puppy and I have a vet certificate to say she was done at three days old. She doesnt have dew claws either, but big dog does and they are a right pain. They do have very waggy stumps though and she can certainly tuck it under when shes in trouble !

I really hate seeing dogs with docked tails. To me it is a mutilation because tails are clearly very important to dogs for both balance and communication. I don't particularly judge the owners unless they specifically told me that they had themselves asked for the tail to be docked for vanity reasons (where I live it's sadly not illegal).

When I was looking for a puppy I went to our local rescue to see a Springer/Collie cross and went in very excitedly to see him (we had both breeds as family pets growing up). He was a gorgeous little thing but when he turned around and I could see the tiny little stump I found it really quite distressing to see.

I can't imagine that the law on docking took a vast amount of time away from the legislature or civil service or is particularly expensive to enforce. It looks like a fair bit of paperwork for breeders and vets, but I don't think that's particularly problematic.

We had a collie (from working stock) with a very long full tail and he did get things stuck in it and one terrible time he got it caught on a barbed wire fence and was suspended for a minute or so. So I can understand the concern. However surely the proportionate response would be simply to clip the tail hair short? I'd be interested to know how the rates of tail injury vary between England, Wales and Scotland as the rules are more restrictive in Wales and docking is outright illegal in Scotland.

i am a german veterarian who often performs such before mentioned operations sometimes for fashion and other times for genuine vetenary purposes, such like accidential breakages fox hunting training exercises

YABU - invariably the people who own dogs with docked tails did not do it themselves.

The the large majority of dog breeds have been "working dogs" in the past. Ears and tails were docked to limit likelihood of injury.

The majority of older jack russells and Rottweilers have docked tails. Because they all came from the breeders that way.

My dog has a docked tail. She came from a Spanish killing station and frankly the tail was the least of her troubles. Her 6 puppies were slaughtered, she weighed 13kg (her ideal weight should be 35kg), her fur was falling out, she had mammary cancer and she had thick, oozing scars everywhere.

4 years on and the docked tail is the only remaining sign of her past. People do comment on it but I'm happy to explain.

YABU.

I agree with you that we shouldn't be cutting bits off without a very good reason, but the actual current owners of a dog may not have had a say in that. But I see from following posts that you have adjusted what you were saying anyway.

Rotties in particular look so much better/happier with a tail, they have quite a magnificent one IMO and it was a bloody crime that they were getting cut off for no good reason.

Wish I had a tail.

What is a Spanish killing station? Or do I not want to know?

I met two rotties the other day with gorgeous wagging tails. I was still terrified

They kept power leaning me and sniffing politely at my dogs, with occasional play bow thrown in.

I felt sick the whole time convinced they were going to maul me and eat my dogs.

And before any rottie owners jump on me I know they are not savage by nature and it is my own unfounded prejudice but I am scared stiff of them. I have no idea why, none have ever shown me any malice and it's not their size because I adore Akitas and Mals, I don't know what it is.

Dd1 has a 'friend' Rottie called Amy. She runs to her and hugs her every time she sees her while I panic in the background [ashamed]

Rotties are sheepdogs. Not designed to rip your throat out.
I know this but still get a little intimidated!

Dooin, my friends Rottie growls and shows his teeth when he is happy. Scared the bloody pants off me the first time I met him.

Turns out he is purring and smiling!

He goes mad when he sees DD, but sounds like he's about to eat her - DH is still wary of him

topbanana
I know exactly what you meant, I'm still questioning how you think it's right though.

We have laws for a reason. I'm sure littering is far less important offence than murder, for example. Doesn't mean we should ignore it though

We are talking about dogs being mutilated, its very important to dogs and people who care about animals.

I don't pretend to know anything about dogs, but I was talking to an anaesthetist the other day and he said that not that long ago all sorts of painful procedures and operations were carried out on newborn babies without anaesthetic really not that long ago as it was believed that their nervous systems weren't developed enough. Newer evidence has found this to be complete bollocks.

I know it is a different species, but I can't imagine there is much money spent in research into whether puppies feel pain, so I would imagine the theory that they don't is backed up by flimsy evidence at best.

I think it is awfully sad that dogs are not only bred to form characteristics that suit their human owners, but are then mutilated after birth as they haven't quite been able to "breed" tails out of them, and this is even worse when it is done purely to look nice.

I once took a phone call in my old job from a man wanting to book his 9 week old boxer puppy in to have his tail docked! I don't think people really think about what docking tails actually involves.

Our dog was already done, we had no choice, she is 10 so it was legal when she had it done.

I actually prefer the look of dogs with undocked tails.

As much as I don't agree with docking tails, I'm trying to imagine if all 3 of mine had them. I think i'd be blind in at least one eye.

Domesticgoddess, I don't know about other places in the UK but it's illegal here in NL where I live. You only see much older dogs with docked tails these days.

Both my rescue rotts came to us with docked tails. You can judge me if you like, but I have no idea how I was supposed to make them grow back .

theo you've given me an idea for a thread.....

ooo what?

here

A killing station is a lovely place. They seem to exist in a lot of southern European countries, but Spain and Greece for sure.

Basically, it's a slaughterhouse for unwanted pets.

Docking is horrible. But they may not have done the deed.

We had a badly docked Doberman-Weimeranner cross when I was a child, the tail was too long but not long enough, iyswim. Breeder had failed to sell her because of the bad docking.

My uncle often went out into thick scrub hunting birds with his gun dog: an undocked Labrador. So am not very convinced about the safety argument.