The procedure is known as trail docking or ear-cropping and is typically performed on this breed as well as other breeds. However, they’re actually amputations under other names, which are more poetic. They’re believed to have been introduced by the Romans who believed tails were the cause of rabies. This belief has been continued by hunters, ranchers, and dog fighters who believed that they stopped prey or enemies from eating dogs with their tails or scalping them with their ears.

These surgical changes are now so commonplace for certain breeds that it’s becoming difficult to recognize dogs that have ears that aren’t damaged and tails. In fact, they’ve become so common, Katelyn Mills found out that a shocking proportion of Americans think that dogs were born with stumpy tails and pointy ears.

Mills who is a graduate student studying at The University of British Columbia, became interested in the subject of animal surgery that is not medically necessary — which includes dog declawing and cat debarking — when she was an undergraduate in her third year. Along with her professor of animal welfare, Marina von Keyserlingk, and another student, Mills published a review of the literature on science and the history of docking and cropping earlier in the season in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. In her research, she explained she was struck by the fact that studies regarding the practices were based on vets and breeders’ views of these procedures. She wondered how people were able to perceive them.

This inquiry led to research that was released in PLOS One. The first step was that Mills and coworkers interviewed 810 people from all Americans that were online surveyed to take a look at the image of the cropped and docked Doberman and images from three different breeds whose tails and ears were altered, in the same way as they’re typically such as the Boxer as well as smaller Schnauzer as well as the Brussels Griffon. When presented with a list of 10 characteristics such as the color of fur and the number of teeth and asked to rate the degree to which they are hereditary or caused by humans, the majority of participants stated that the dogs were born with tails that were short and straight ears.

Then, 392 more attendees were presented with the two Doberman images above, or similar sets of photographs of the three other breeds: One that was surgically altered and one with its original form. Participants were told that the breeds were purebred and had siblings. When asked to explain the difference between the ear and the tail the majority of the respondents said “individual dogs of the same breed vary in appearance, meaning some will have tails and ears of different shapes and sizes.” In other words, some breeds were just born with that particular look.

“They don’t want to be informed what it is’

Von Keyserlingk, a co-author of the study, stated that she believes that the findings suggest that people are now accepting the appearances of dogs in their entirety, not as a result of the centuries-long process of human decision-making. Mills also said that she believes that a lack of awareness may be deliberate.

“People disconnect themselves from things if they find it uncomfortable,” Mills stated. “They don’t want to know about it.”

They’re not exactly the most pleasant procedure to be aware of. Tail-docking can be performed by veterinarians or breeders at 3 to 5 days old or by cutting the tail using a scalpel or scissors, or by putting on an elastic wrap around the area which reduces circulation and makes it fall off. Anesthetics are not often used.

Veterinarians typically do not necessarily, but they often apply ear-cropping to seven- to 12 weeks old puppies and employ anesthetic. Following the cutting of ears to the shape that the owner prefers (Dobermans could be given an “military crop” or a show crop’) The ears are held in place for months at first , in a styrofoam container and later with tape until they are healed and standing independently.

The practice of ear-cropping and tail docking in dogs is now prohibited in a large portion of Europe as well as Australia. However, this isn’t the situation with North America, even though the American and Canadian veterinarian medical associations do not support the practices and veterinary schools do not offer ear-trimming classes. Two states restrict the practice, but they do not prohibit the practice of tail-docking. Nine states limit ears-cropping.

The reason these surgeries remain in place is resistance from breeders. The practice of cropping and docking is included in numerous “breed standards,” detailed guidelines on the way show dogs should appear. Certain breeds aren’t so strict when it comes to ears. The American Kennel Club says a Doberman’s ears are “normally cropped.” However, the guidelines of all breeds of Mills’s research describe them as having tails docked and the ones are for those of the Boxer as well as miniature Schnauzer stipulate that dogs with the natural tails they have are “severely penalized.”

The AKC states that the procedure is not painful, nor are they solely aesthetic. According to the AKC, instead they assist the dog “perform the tasks it is meant to do.” Brussels Griffons were typically kept in stables to prevent vermin, and having their ears trimmed kept rats away from bites as the AKC states. The AKC also claims that cutting ears can prevent ear infections or injury, and docking helps prevent tail injuries. Some make a back alley argument against cropping when vets aren’t permitted to do it, then dog owners will look for someone who isn’t certified to perform it.

Research hasn’t supported all of these assertions. According to what Mills discovered that the breeds which are most susceptible to getting Ear infections aren’t usually cropped, although some, like cocker spaniels, have large ears that are pendulous. Some working breeds, including spaniels and retrievers, have ears that flop. As per Bronwen Dickey who has written a book about pitbulls and dog fighting, the majority of dog breeds have opted out of ear cropping in the 1970s due to the fact that they believed that it made dogs more prone to attack.

While gauging the level of the pain of animals is a challenge there is evidence that suggests the tail docking process is painful. One Australian study found that vets believed it was painful but breeders, overwhelmingly, didn’t. Another study of 50 pups found that they all “struggled and vocalized repeatedly and intensely” both during as well after docking. The claimed benefits don’t seem to be well-substantiated: Two studies, Mills wrote, concluded that tail injuries are very rare that it’s necessary to do hundreds of dockings in order to avoid one.

There’s also the fact that the majority of American dogs of today are city-dwelling pets that are not used for burrowing and hunting. These procedures are generally performed for aesthetic reasons and “tradition,” or because the public wants dogs to appear tough.

“On the one hand, dogs are revered as much loved companions and family pets,” Australian anthrozoologist Pauleen Bennett and a colleague wrote in a critique of docking tails concerns in 2003. “On the other, they are seen as objects, able to be bought and sold, disposed of, euthanased, mistreated, exploited and surgically modified at will.”

Tails have the ability to speak

The methods can also impact how dogs are perceived by their human companions and peers.

Imagine a dog that is friendly. Most likely, its ears are loose — just like most of the ears of a majority of household animals -and its tail is relaxed and waving.

The tail could be saying that it is saying something. In accordance the findings of a study that found large dog breeds were greater likely walk up to a dog model controlled by remote with an extended, wagging tail which could signal that they are eager to playand less likely to come up to one with a non-moving tail. The dogs approached docked models equally, whether moving or not, suggesting they were unable to discern the dog’s signals in any way. Another study revealed that dogs wagged their tails to the right when they’re relaxed, as well as to their left when they are nervous -and that dogs who were observing the silhouettes of waggers become more anxious when they saw left-facing waving.

“In intraspecific communication, it’s important to have all the body parts,” explained Julie Hecht, a canine science blogger for Scientific American. “The tail is an instrumental part of this whole communicative repertoire.”

There are no research studies that have been controlled on the ears of canines’ communication, although dog behaviorists have said they can communicate the feeling of alertness or even aggression. However, Mills discovered that they could affect a dog’s image they are paired by docked tails. In her latest study, she had participants to examine pictures of owners and dogs and assign traits to the pictures. The dogs with cropped or docked ears were perceived to be more dominant and aggressive than those with no modifications.

It could cause unneeded conflict between humans and their dogs She wrote that it may have an impact that reaches shelters for animals, where people often decide to adopt dogs because they think they look attractive.

“What is scary to me about the cropping is that you’re essentially creating a very alert, forward-looking appearance , even if that is not how the dog is wanting to present itself,” Hecht declared. “In regards to the way the dogs’ appearance is perceived by human on their own I feel extremely sorry for them. It’s nice to be viewed as friendly and friendly.”