Insufficient ear cartilage - Page 1

I have a 7 month old male pup who has one soft ear. We have tried taping it to no avail. He has now been to the vets who state he has insufficient cartilage to hold the ear erect. We are now looking at corrective surgery as a possibilty. We are in the uk. Has anyone had this done and was it successful? Is this genetically determined, i.e will it pass to his pups if we bred from him in future years? Also anything else we can try or is there anyone who could be recommended to do the surgery? Thanks

If I were you I'd keep taping his ear till he's about 10mos old before considering surgery. I had to tape both my females' ears until she was about 9-10mos old and they finally stood correct (don't worry peanut gallery... she's spayed). I was not prepared when I started for it to take that long, I figured 1-3 weeks and it would be done (started around 6 mos old when her adult teeth were all in). The breeder urged me to keep going. I tried a few different methods (mole skin & gule, splints purchased for $50 out of "Dog Fancy" magazine..that didn't work for shit, etc.) but what finally worked for me was pink hair rollers (spongy) and tape. I had to keep adjusting them and re-taping for 2-3 months before both ears stood. Before they stood she had a definite crease where the ear bent, I thought it was hopeless many times, but kept at it. I even called around to vets asking if there was a surgical correction that could be done, but they also said just keep taping. Someone else I know glued the ears together, I asked "won't they tilt in and stand incorrectly?", she said her breeder said no. Like I said, I think its too early to seriously consider surgery (if that can be done). Good luck, Melanie

Taping or otherwise correcting ears might not be a great idea if you are planning to use these dogs for breeding. Soft, flacid ears that fail to stand without help are genetic. It's really no different that correcting tails or bites, is it?

Making surgical alterations to fix an ear not standing would be considered dishonest, at the least, in any German or American show. You do not say what your plans were with this dog, but sometimes one has to simply realize a dog has a disqualifying fault. Even ears that stand, but are really soft and flop as the dog moves are indeed faulty. This is a dog who should never be bred and yes, soft ears, too much ear leather, too little, weak cartiledge etc. is something that often happens in this breed. It will continue until people stop breeding dogs who have soft ears, or produce soft ears. That being said, it is not impossible that the ear might stand if the dog is fed appropriate nutrition. Taping the ear may help. But it must be done right and constantly checked to make sure the ear is not becoming irritated or infected.

I knew of one dog that the owner tried taping the ears twice and gave up, then the ear went up on its own at 8 months...

Bob-O or hodie: can you please find the site with the article: jessie:earsnotup. I can¿t find the correct HP. I found this article very valuable.

GSDFAN, (don't worry peanut gallery... she's spayed). TO FUNNY, best laugh all day..