GSD - Soft Ears Should Not Be Bred - Page 4

Jyl, in Europe we name the day first, followed by the month (03.11. = third of November)

I have had Dobermans for over 30 years.  There are some big differences in the ears.  With Dobermans you usually have the ears cropped at around 9 -12 weeks.  The earlier the better.  Then they are taped till they stand.  It is done that early during the time that the cartilage is soft, keeping them taped till the cartilage becomes stiff.  Taped wrong you will have kinks in the ear or misshapen  ears.  A person would never think of starting to tape a GSDs ears at such a young age.  Usually more attention is given to get the GSD pup to exercise those muscles.  Both by chewing as well as by getting the pups attention so that it will try to stand the ears up watching.  Taping the ears is actually a simple matter with ear forms for the GSD if a person was inclined to do so.  Ear forms can be found at many suppliers.  http://www.caniscallidus.com/shop/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21&products_id=64  The ear forms for the GSD in my opinion if a person is going to tape is the better option over taping them the way of the Dobie.  The ear forms hold the ear in the desired position of an open ear, where as the way it is done for a Dobie it makes more curved.  For a Dobie that is great, not as good of a look for a GSD. 

Cowboy posted a link http://en.working-dog.eu/dogs-details/2546501/Utta-vom-Salztalblick

At the bottom of this link there are pictures of the dog in question - kindly said I´ve never seen a German Shepherd dog´s ears taped like this.
I simply don´t know what happened, but there is the chance you made things worse instead of better.

Sorry

It's probably not a geat idea to use GSD's for breeding that have needed to have their ears taped. Let them alone, either they stand or they don't and if they don't the dog is eliminated from the breeding program.

Agree about the "not breeding", but I´m not against taping ( if necessary ...) A German Shepherd with floppy ears does look weird, as an owner of a dog with floppy ears I´d tape them, but I wouldn´t use this dog for breeding.

Blitzen, the progeny groups are running right now, did you order the lifestream?

Suzie - thanks

The pup was born on November 3, 2013. In Europe that's 3/11/13. She's 10 months old.

That taping job shown in the photos was left on for about two week before I switched to gluing with GSD inserts. Still no luck.

Anyway, that taping method was recommended on the Leerburg Website.

The bottom line is that her ear won't stand and that her ears are large and very very soft. Even if they did stand after 3 months of gluing and taping I don't think that's right for a GSD. This is a genetic flaw and should not be passed on to other generations and other unsuspecting dog buyers. When someone buys a pup there are already enough challenges ahead without dealing with floppy ears!

Cowboy

I am not against taping ears on a dog intended as a pet and not to be bred. I am against taping ears on a dog that will be bred in the future. Dogs with "friendly ears" were most  likely dogs that had their ears taped as puppies. They are bred as adults and produce more of the same.

I didn't order the livestream, Susie.

Rd,

I realize the differences in had and Doberman ears but after being around sl dogs for far too long I have seen a bunch of taped ears.  The op didn't make the ears worse with the job he did.

I have also seen gsd ears that were taped by Doberman breeders and they usually turned out the best because they knew how to shape the ear and how to tape the bridge that is needed to help keep the ears up.  Tapping ears up is a several month process and not a couple of weeks.

I would tape it for aesthetics and to keep moisture from being trapped and causing a health problem but I too wouldn't breed the dog.

bz

Never said he did make it worse.  But at the same time you can't discount that possibility.  I have seen Dobermans in the ring whose ears brought undue attention to them because of the way that they stood as resulting from how they were taped. 

One of the best as far as the Dobermans go is a very reputable breeder Robert Vandiver who is also a AKC show Judge.  I don't know anyone who knows the Dobermans better.  Here is a link to his website and how to properly tape ears.  http://misteldobermans.com/earwrapping.htm

This is an older Doberman that I got as a pup from Mr. Vandiver.  This ear taping method is great for any dog.  But you have to keep in mind that not all things work equally for all breeds.  The slightest fold in the ear while taped, could be there forever more.  I have had probably close to 50 Dobies over the years.  No I don't keep track of how many.  And I have taped the ears for literally hundreds of Dobies.  Ear taping is one of the things that I non egotistically say,  I know.  I am learning the GSD and you won't hear me try to speak as an authority on hardly anything regarding them.  I will listen closely to what everyone else has to say in their areas of even claimed expertiese.  But there are differences in the ears of these two breeds.  Have a GSD sit next to you and a Doberman at the same time, (which I am currently doing)  And look at the ears and the shape of the ears.  Not the same at all.  The reason a Dobermans ears are taped is because when cropped they absolutely won't stand  with out being posted unless they are cut real short.   The longer ear crops (show crop) are much harder to stand.  An example of a good show crop is in the picture above.  Done by a Vet on the north east side of Atlanta.  Yes I traveled hundreds of miles to have a vet that I trusted to do the ears.  With Dobermans the ears standing the emphasis is put on Cartilage development.  With GSDs the emphasis is put on muscle development.  By the time you would tape a GSDs ears the cartilage would already be fully developed.  So taping the ears would  have almost no effect on the cartilage. 

Reggie

Rd I agree with most of your post which is why dobie people are the best ones to tape ears.  Tapping ears it's an art and dobie people have the experience at it.  Every dogs ears are taped somewhat uniquely and dobie people know what to look for.

The ship has already sailed on the dog having perfect ears.  I have seen ears taped this late on a gsd and they stayed up.  They are always soft but they are up and that's my point.  The OP has already stated that the dog shouldn't be bred.  This isn't a tape job for show.it's for aesthetics and for ear health.