Puppy EARS please help

by ali2020 on 21 April 2010 - 04:04

my puppy shane is turning 7 months this week. his both ears are up sometimes,sometimes right one up left one down,sometimes left one up right one down and sometimes both are down. im really confused. i did order the tear mender glue so i can glue then togather like a (hut). all the pros in the ear department please help me, thanks alot.

by GSDtravels on 21 April 2010 - 05:04

I don't like taping or gluing ears, personally. Sounds like he's got heavy leather and they'll probably eventually go up on their own. If they were down all the time, the chances would be less. Give him meaty knuckle bones, as he chews it will strengthen the muscles that hold the ears erect. Others will instruct on how to tape/glue but a good bone works wonders.

by Jyotisdad on 21 April 2010 - 08:04

Up or down, as long as the dog can still hear well, what's the problem? My own dogs ears are sometimes up (Food or the door bell) and sometimes down (Rubbish on the TV). One up one down, (Feeding time and an animal on the TV.

I love my dogs, and they look cute when floppy and alert when up. I was also initially, a little concerned about the ears, but only because they are more prone to infection when down.

Don’t worry; be happy, as the song goes.

NB; Look back, there lots of posts about the floppy ear thing.

by Archania on 21 April 2010 - 09:04

I don't think i will ever understand the worry with ears.

My personal opinion is that they should be left alone. They will either stay up or stay down. You love your dogs regardless - does it really matter ?

Would you like your ears taped or glued if your partner decided they didn't look like they were supposed to ? My answer would be no, and mine stick out !

Love me and my ears for who i am...same goes for a dog imo

by Kimmelot on 21 April 2010 - 15:04

When my puppies have soft ears ( floppy) , I rub them upwards. The motion of handling the ear inbettween the thumb ( inside the ear) and then the pointer finger on the other side ,and rub/milk upwards. By rubbing the cartalige inbetween the fingers you can cause good scaring that will make the ears harder. Much like the foot pad can be soft from walking around on carpet, and gets harder from walking on concrete- or like our feet and caluses. Once they go up they usualy stay up.

When puppies are teething sometimes the hormones cause the ligaments in the jaw to loosen up and the ears will flop no matter what you do. I apprecaite GSDTravels idea of letting them chew on meaty bones, as this will streinghen those ligaments back up.

As for ears up or not, the GSD should have errect ears, its part of buying into this breed. If I sold a puppy as a pet and the ears did not come up I would think it was either from malnutrition or damage as its in there genetic code for them to come up- we are not talking Cocker spaniels here.

Whisper

by Jyotisdad on 21 April 2010 - 17:04

Kimmelot

You are talking about an animal here, not a plant or a tree that does not come up to the standard that you require for the purpose of bearing fruit or whatever. You are talking about an animal that has been genetically altered by man for his own special and sometimes dubiously intentioned purposes, it is still a life, and a living creature that has been produced by mans inadequacies to fulfil a task that he himself was unable to do.

If the quality is not equal to the required intent, who is to blame? The dog? I think not.

You have expected, for whatever propels your ambitions, a perfect man made specimen of an unnatural animal for whatever purpose, and because it does not come up to your expectations you have got the hump.

Is it your intention to make lots of cash from the activities and discomfort of the animal? This would be akin to the Queen bee in a hive. Do you need to get the perfect KC animal as a path to your ambitions?

You are not purchasing a second-hand Chinese motor car here, this is a living creature, and do you need a clone? Purchase a Wolf.

Get a life.

Probably get my ass kicked here but WTH

by GSDtravels on 21 April 2010 - 21:04

I won't kick ya Jyo, I agree. With that said, there is a standard by which to comapre any dog. NO DOG fits that standard exactly. I totally disagree with Kimmelot as no specimen is perfect. You'd blame the customer? There are some dogs that have soft ears and others that have heavy ears, both will produce ears that will not stand.

by noddi on 21 April 2010 - 21:04

kimmelot,MALNUTRION????i,ve had adults here in my kennel who have had inerect ears.my archie only ever put one up and 3 siblings i kept for showing were not good in the respect.2 did have their ears erect but they were very flappy and the other did not put hers up till would yu believe 5 years old.i got up one morning and they were both upright and they never went down again.i swear that is the honest truth.none of these dogs were malnourished,in fact most were on the plump side.weak ears is in the breeding.they were not used for breeding and i did not pass them on.they lived out their lives indoors with the others as much loved companions till they passed away.Carole Spelman.

by noddi on 21 April 2010 - 21:04

kimmelot,MALNUTRION????i,ve had adults here in my kennel who have had inerect ears.my archie only ever put one up and 3 siblings i kept for showing were not good in the respect.2 did have their ears erect but they were very flappy and the other did not put hers up till would yu believe 5 years old.i got up one morning and they were both upright and they never went down again.i swear that is the honest truth.none of these dogs were malnourished,in fact most were on the plump side.weak ears is in the breeding.they were not used for breeding and i did not pass them on.they lived out their lives indoors with the others as much loved companions till they passed away.Carole Spelman.

by Kalibeck on 22 April 2010 - 00:04

Yes it is in the breeding, but even a sire & dam with nice stiff ears can can sometimes produce a soft eared pup. And sure, you love them whether or not their ears stand, but it's also normal to worry about it if they're not after a certain age. I tried taping 1 of my dogs to encourage them to stand.....BIG mistake! Made my dog miserable, & I think it kept them softer, longer! When I finally gave up & left them alone.....sure enough, up they came! And it was the nice meaty bones he got to chew that did it! Good luck! jackie harris

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