A WUM has posted under another heading about ear cropping.  This is illegal in the UK and most of Europe (the more civilised countries ? :) )

In countries where it is done it is carried out under a general anaesthic by a vet well before teething.  By the age at which a dog could be imported into the UK it would be far too late to carry out this barbaric practice.

I thought (from info on the Net) that this barbaric practice was generally done between 8 and 12 weeks of age? But definitely only by a vet, and under GA. Also there are several months of taping and aftercare involved.

Thank heavens the civilised countries (as you so succinctly put it!) refuse to countenance such a procedure.
:)

Perhaps I should have said well before the second teeth come though.  Not only taping and aftercare but also getting pain relief into the pup as well from what I have read

Hello all,

If this is the same person I'm thinking of, their idea of ear-cropping isn't even the one which is legal outside the UK. I think that they mean the taking off of pretty much the ENTIRE ear lobe (floppy bit). This seems to be done to the bull/fighting breeds in the USA especially. Many programs that you see that feature pit bulls or crosses, show dogs that have no outer ear to speak of, just a hole in the side of the head,  originally it was done to stop the other dogs from grabbing hold of the ear flap when fighting, now its more of a cosmetic thing (although not always, unfortunately!)

The legal cropping is the one where the ears are taped up and is normally done to breeds such as Rotts, Dobies, Great Danes and Mastiff types.

I just thought that I'd clear it up for people in case they were unsure.

Ali :)