Flying tail - Page 1

Does anybody knows if it is possible to correct a flying and slightly moving upwards tail in my female (9 months old)? Any suggestions would be appreciated... Thanks in advance. Petros

I would leave it alone. I have a male who had such a tail and as he matured, it became normal. Different dogs carry their tails a bit differently and all dogs carry it high at periods of certain types of stimulation. Unless it is completely abnormal, I say just let the dog grow up. Hodie

I have seen a trick used by a German handler several years ago in India. He applied lots of ice under the tail near the root. Now, when the dog runs wind blows aganist the tail, the dog will feel cold and keep the tail down for warmth. This is not a permanent fix - not even a fool proof one, and I DON'T RECCOMEND IT. I have also seen a European Import, who had an operation done to remove some nerves that lead to the tail. The importer found this midway through the dog's campaign - and being an absolute gentleman - retired the dog right away. What was disgusting was that the broker ad breeder involved did not help any with getting a replacement.

Thank you all.

I have an import show dog with what is often called a gay tail. This is where the tail is held like a scythe--a position most GSDs use when getting ready to attach prey or are hunting. I got the dog at 15 months. I found that when jogging, his tail went into a more relaxed and normal normal position. The more he went jogging, the more his tail relaxed when he was just walking around the house. At shows his tail has completely calmed down, now so when he chases squirrels. Anyway, one SV Judge told me that in most dogs this conditions corrects itself by 2 years old. Where it does not, it is usually the result of the croup being too short. I would not, however, under any circumstances "do anything" about it. It is not threatening to your dog's health, only his performance in the show ring.

Some of the old German breeders used to be able to bend the joints of the tail around and downward up to about 90 degrees or so. I knew an American breeder who was taught to do this in Geramny and it worked for him almost all the time. If this was done a few times over a few week period the scar tissue would give you a normal appearing tail. If is was done wrong you got what's called a "dead tail" where the nerves are damaged and the tail does not suspend properly. This used to be called "a gay tail" and basically it is an unsightly genetic fault and will show up in the offspring with about the same dominance as bad ears.