new boxer puppy questions...

[Bo's Mamma]

Hi All!! What a great community these guys have got going on here...
My question pertains to ear cropping. I have read lots on the subject, and we've decided to get Bo's ears done. Luckily, the breeder who has 10 full grown boxers with their ears done, and done well, has agreed to take Bo to her vet (with compensation of course) and watch Bo for the first week after having her ears cropped. She suggests that once Bo comes home, we should bring her back to have her ears taped because she can do them properly. My question is this; what is the average time it takes for a puppies ears to take to the cropping? I have heard stories of times between a couple of weeks, to years. I don't want Bo to be deformed, and have bad ears, but I also don't want her to have to walk around with taped ears. Especially because this is my first puppy, and I want to be able to enjoy her as a puppy. Any thoughts?

 

[Shakira's Ma]

I can't help you on this as I don't crop. I enjoy my babies without the cropping, I know it is an individual choice but I like the look of the soft floppy ear. I am sure others will give you the advice that you need. You always have the option to not crop, a boxer can still be shown without cropped ears. Please give us some pics, we would love seeing them.

 

[Emily86]

How long the ears must be taped depends on the individual dog and how long it takes for the ears to heal and stand on their own. Cropping is a major surgery so it can take a while to recover, and can be quite painful for a while afterwards. I am sure your puppy will play but its hard work to keep those ears up until they are fully finished because if they aren't up long enough they can flop. I didn't have Violet cropped because I think its too painful for an unneccessary surgery. Good luck with your new pup!

 

[Morgan3]

Never did

my boxers ears. My first boxer we were going to and I spoke to the vet who was going to do it (because mine refused to do it) and he said it is purely cosmetic if your not going to show (and now you can show floppy earred boxers). That they remove about 2/3's of the ear and can be quite painful and very much work and still possibly not turn out...

Having said that, it truly is a personal decision...

If you are willing to put in the time, energy and care that cropped ears take and love the look, go for it.

At the time, I had a 3 yr old and I wanted him to be able to play with the puppy without worrying about his ears getting hurt or messed up. That was 13 yrs ago. In fact that is how my husband got his boat, he bartered for it. He wanted ears cropped and I wanted floppy , so I told him if he let me keep the dogs ears floppy, I would cave and let him buy his fishing boat...

 

[KCboxer4]

We did it twice, the second time was so bad we vowed to never do it again. I do hope your sweet baby has much better luck :( It took me 13 months to get Dylans to finally stand properly. Roxies took one taping and she was done. I think that's a difficult thing to judge as they all can be different. Best of luck

 

[Maxwell's Ma]

It truly is a personal preference. My preference is floppy. I love the way Max looks at me and his ears give him so much expression. Let us know how your baby does.

 

[lafsalot]

I don't crop either - I love the feel and look of their velvety soft floppy ears. ~ Cathy

 

[sminoleboxer]

If it had been left to me I would have chosen not to crop. However my Penni was a rescue and came with a bad crop job. Her ears do not stand up and are terribly scarred. She doesn't like you to touch them much either.

 

[bucca]

chloe is a floppy also- we didnt want to put her through the pain of surgery and we personally prefer the floppy look(dont get me wrong all boxers are gorgeous whether they have cropped ears of not )

 

[Brynn1508]

I also prefer floppy. Although the first week may be the worst for the puppy - you are still going to have weeks of caring for the ears. On top of preferring the floppy soft velvety ears, I also would never want to be worrying about house training, training in general, health issues and on top of it an unnecessary – VERY EXTREMEMLY IMPORTANT - item of maintaining a crop job. Once again though this is my preference… good luck with your choice