Hi

I have been told by our vets that it is £140 per puppy for them to have their tail docked. I have a weimarnaer litter due end of January and some are to go to working homes.

Does this look about right?

Janet

Are you a member of the CDB?  If not, join!  They will give you a list of vets in or around your area that will dock.................£140 per PUP or litter??  if it's per pup I should find another vet!

Out of interest how much is the average to dock?

The vet I use charges £5 per pup and you get a receipt!
Diane

My vet used to charge £7.50 to dock and remove the dew claws and he used to come to our house to do it.   Not sure what the going rate is now though as we no longer dock!

£15 for dock & dew claws. I agree, join the CDB.
hth

Many weimaraners that "work" retain their tails...............................

Very few actually do though, work that is! :D

You have to join the CDB, and if you think the vet nearest to you is too expensive, then they will given you alternatives.  It varies between vets from £5 to £20 per puppy, and that includes dew claws.

£50, then £10 per puppy.  As you can see there's a lot of variation !

If dogs are born with a tail they should be left ,docking is awful.

Its down to the owners to choose though isnt it. Whats best for the dog. Ive seen some pictures of what 'CAN' happen to working dogs tails if not docked, and Boxers tails, as they're very active and hit everything, then split and slice their tails. Sometimes docking is beneficial for the breed.

IMHO anyway! :)

Some dogs are also born with short tails and it's unfortunate that people come up to you without knowledge and start saying what they think of you.  This happened to me at Discover Dogs, though the person soon walked off when I told him that my dog was naturally born like that !

My vet only charged £1 per pup for docking.  He would only dock actual working dogs and NOT working breeds only and by personal recommendation.

The poster asked a question and not for a debate. I paid £5 per pup for docking and dew claws. The rights and wrongs should be addressed when requested.

The number of animals (including wildlife) injured and traumatised by fireworks is much worse.

Let them keep their tails. I'm a veterinary nurse that used to have to hold pups for tail docking and dew claw removal and anyone who says it doesn't hurt them is talking rubbish. You wouldn't cut off a baby's thumbs off at 3 to 5 days old would you? I live in the South Yorks area so plenty of working dogs over here and since our practice stopped docking and dew claw removing we have had plenty of dogs working and non working come to the practice with tails they look fab and in 17 years in a vets i have only seen 2 dogs come in with damaged tails 1 was a non working springer that took a dislike to her own tail and a non working border collie ( well renouned for self harming ) that did the same. As for the working aspect of it aren't Labs and Retrievers working dogs too? Sorry about this but after years of holding sreaming squirming puppies having their tails chopped off without anaesthetic with a pair of sterile teeth clippers or scissors it sends a shiver down my spine. Let them have their tails off IF they need to properly under anaesthetic. And shame on the people who won't buy a breed with a tail.

<<<<And shame on the people who won't buy a breed with a tail.>>>>>>>

Are you telling me there I shoudl go out and buy Aussie shepherds because they are docked even though I love the breed to peices!  also without docking Aussies as one breed for example will be left with tails of all shapes and sizes as some are born deformed due to carrying the natual bob-tail gene!

I must say, if it tramatised a puppy do you think that they would have their little stumps waggling and let people touch them?  I'm sure if it DID hurt the puppies they would suffer in later life and wouldn't like people touching there back end. 

And for all of those who think tails look nice, I dissagree, a tail on a boxer/rottie/doberman to me look horrible as they go to a very fine point :( and overall just doesn't suit a large dog!

I am a g.p and have seen young babies with accidental injuries to limbs,fingers etc, they scream like hell through pain!!  Why should maiming not hurt a puppy???  same damn thing, they have nerves/feelings like human babies do. Its fashion gone mad!!dogs should be left as nature intended, full stop!!  Iown 2 rottweilers and i have had this breed for 14 years and i was unable to find an undocked one when i bought my last puppy.  When docking is banned i will definately still have the same breed, its the breed itself i love not just because its been docked!!

I can see your point, but remember human babies are a lot more developed at birth than puppies, though. Human babies have their eyes open, their ear canals open ...

Just to get back on track, had my pups done this week and it was £6 per tail plus VAT.
Diane

i cant believe anyone would actually say they prefer a dog with a docked tail, like rotties, dobies and boxers.  You only prefer it because it is what you are used to!  I personally think these dogs look better with tails and shouldnt be docked for the sake of standards!
Fair enough if a working breed will benefit from having their tail docked.

I bet you dont think labradors, staffies or other look weird with natural tails? why? because they just arent docked and they would look different if they were. Same goes for boxers for example. Its what ur used to and its disgusting IMO.

This gets onto the argument of ear cropping... is it for the sake of standards? or because its what your used to seeing?
I had never seen a doberman with natural ears up until a few months ago, beford i had heard about ear cropping.  To me it looked strange, but only because it is what i was used to.  I think all animals look better natural. IMO

And also, for the person who says they are a vet nurse, how can u say to them that it doesnt hurt the puppies when the fact that it does comes from someone who has experienced it first hand.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion as to what they think 'looks better', Jenny.
:)

Gosh Danny, not sure what sort of GP you are but your medical knowledge is very limited!

Am well aware of human development differing to canines,  what i was trying to say is that to have an item of your body being physically cut away  is painful, some of you are trying to say it doesn,t matter due to a dog not being so developed at birth!! jacky jat,thanks for the rude comment!!  charming!! yes, i am a doctor and have been for some time now, successfully, thanks

No, that's not what people are saying! Why do you think vets would do something which would cause an animal unnecessary pain?

((( quote)))) No, that's not what people are saying! Why do you think vets would do something which would cause an animal unnecessary pain? (((((quote)))

maybe for money? high demand? but surely if docking is for the sake of standards or for the sake of what u prefer then shouldnt vets be against it?  why would anyone want to cut parts of their dogs body off because its what they prefer? doesnt seem fair on the dog, JMO.

this doesnt include working breeds who i hear benefit greatly from it.

Jenny, you seem to misunderstand. My reply about pain was to Danny. In reply to you about the aesthetics of a docked dog, I personally agree with you but I'm willing accept others are entitled to differ! However, the vets I know do not like to dock, but when in the past they did the procedure they made sure a local anaesthetic was used.

I was a Veterinary Nurse many years ago and every puppy that I saw docked at the surgery yelled, perhaps because it hurt or perhaps they were being held firmly by an unknown person.  Not all Vets were confident about docking and handling such newborn pups as they didn't do very many at all. When they did, there was often infection a few days down the line and frequently whole litters would go down with viruses, having been exposed to outside influences.  A bit like going to a doctors' surgery with an ingrowing toe nail and coming out with 'flu??!!
Conversely, in those days, pedigree dogs were only bred by experienced breeders, not as it is now, by anyone who fancies producing a litter.  Your average family had a mongrel, not a pedigree dog.  The old breeders would dock their own pups, some would cut but most would band the tail.  In these circumstances, being handled by a familiar person, and using a band, I have never seen a puppy yell, or any infection because the dog's end of the tail would have healed before the unwanted end dropped off.
I'm not for or against docking.  My breed is not docked.  Whilst I understand why the change in practice has evolved, I know what I have seen to be better for the pups.

I am against docking generally, but would say that I think to remove a body part WITHOUT anaesthetic is barbaric and there is no other way of looking at it!  Very young animals usually only make noise when there is something wrong - hungry, cold, in PAIN.  In comparison with human babies, often young animals are far MORE developed at birth than human babies, as they need to be for survival, so I am sure a puppies nerve system is quite well developed.  Anaesthetic should be used without a doubt.

Jeangenie, I think the answer to the question about why would vets do it then, is as usual the money aspect.   Vets also crop ears in some countries, this happens in my own breed and I can see no reason whatsoever why it would benefit the dog.  Saffy has the most gorgeous ears ever!

Fiona

"I think the answer to the question about why would vets do it then, is as usual the money aspect"

Goodness, are you really suggesting that some Vets doing unnecessary things to animals FOR MONEY???  Have they really been giving unnecessary annual boosters when the manufacturers have said they are unnecessary for money?  Do they unnecessarily neuter everything on 4 legs for money?  Do some Vets suggest complicated, stressful operations for insured animals when the kindest thing would be to give them sleep, and then make the owners feel guilty if they don't agree? 
I thought that all Vets had animals best interest at heart?  Please say that I've misunderstood you!  You'll be telling us there's no Father Christmas next!!!!!!!!!!!

I quite agree with you about ear cropping. I can't find a single reference as to how it can possibly be of benefit to the dog. (I did read on one US site that Great Danes had to be cropped, otherwise they would suffer terribly from ear infections! Sorry, but none of the Danes I've met (only about a dozen I admit) have ever had any more ear problems than any other breed!) And if it's of no benefit to the animal, then I don't believe it should be done. (Which is one of the reasons why I have an undocked breed, even though they have a reputation for damaging their tails, but will always opt to have their dewclaws removed.)

Cropping is done under a GA

Yes, but what is the reasoning behind it? No matter where I look I can't find any reason other than for cosmetic purposes. (I'm not 'having a go' - I genuinely want to know.)

Um, surely lopping off the tails is not a cure for the problems Aussies HAVE with their tails is it? Thats just hiding a problem... the only way to get rid of that problem is to stop docking them and breed it out!

I dont disagree with docking working dogs going to working homes.

Im not really bothered either way with docking dogs for personal/aesthetic reasons, although i DO think it should be done with some pain relief and that vets should be taught mroe about HOW to do it.

As far as ear cropping goes, there is only one breed where i can see a slight vestige of a reason for pricking the ears. And that is because in the Briards proper job, i presume the dog with the cropped and pricked ear will hear more, and will have less ear infections than the dog iwth the drop ears covered in heavy fur.

Other than that, i dont like ear cropping/pricking, and most o fhte breeds ive seen it done to, bar the Pyrenean Sheepdog and the Briard, look ridiculous.

Em