Docked or not docked?

[JudyN]

Sometimes people will ask if Jasper is a boy or a girl, bend down to have a peer, and then say 'Oh, it's a girl' I tell him he's 'compact, neat and tidy' so as not to hurt his feelings But then maybe being well endowed isn't such a great thing in dogs whose intended day job can involve jumping barbed wire fences and spiky hedges at 40mph?

 

[Jack-Russell-Lover]

Awww, poor Jasper!
I have to say it's rather unsightly seeing a male dog's bits!!
Yeah, probably a good thing to be 'neat and tidy'...that could be a nasty injury if caught

 

[JudyN]

Yeah, probably a good thing to be 'neat and tidy'...that could be a nasty injury if caught

That very nearly happened to him once... He spotted deer on the other side of a barbed wire fence and tried to climb over the middle strand, which caught on his undercarriage. When I looked, at first I thought it had caught on the end of his willy and as he moved forward, his willy had wrapped itself around the barbed wire. I had awful visions of what long-drawn-out treatment would be needed, but thank goodness it was just his belly skin that had caught and then got wrapped round the wire.

It was still bad enough though - he was completely stuck and in a lot of pain, I couldn't leave him as he needed me there to stay calm, and OH couldn't go and get wire cutters as he had to help hold the barbed wire to try to stop it either pulling down on him or pushing up into him. In the end we were rescued by three firemen who had had to park their fire engine some way away on the nearest road His tummy was an absolute mess of brusies and scrapes, with one cut, and he was really sore for a few days, but luckily there was nothing that needed vet treatment. (I suspect a vet would have popped a stitch in the cut, but I didn't want to put J through that so just posted photos on a couple of forums with experienced members for reassurance and kept a close eye on it.)

Sorry I've managed both to lower the tone and go off topic!

 

[leashedForLife]

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Dogs bring us back to reality, @JudyN , & the reality is that they get into a lot of bizarre fixes, which often lead to needing various repairs, minor or major.

That’s not lowering the tone, it’s just everyday fact, & kids as well as dogs get into the most unexpected predicaments... come to think of it, men especially those under 22 to 25-YO tend to get into more problematic pickles than their same-age female peers, & that would truly be an altogether different topic!

- terry

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[Whippylove]

Ahh so that's why Marley has a little tinkle

 

[Shalista]

I do feel bad for a mastiff that comes into work. he had a truly massive set of *cough* and when he got neutered it left quite a bit of skin that just never tightened up. gorgeous dog though

 

[Jack-Russell-Lover]

Awwww bless him!!

 

[leashedForLife]

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A mature M dog who is neutered will often have excess skin left, on the empty scrotum, if the vet does not remove a small crescent from either side. :shrug:
Many vets never think of it, & functionally, it makes no difference - it’s purely cosmetic.

M dogs who were neutered pediatrically (before 12-WO) will have an undeveloped prepuce - the sheathe covering the penis - & a small scrotum.
M dogs who are desexed prepubertally (between 3-MO & 5-MO) will have a prepuce closer to average size, but rarely have a saggy scrotum post neuter.
Ms who were desexed at or shortly after puberty (between 6-MO & a year) will have a fully developed prepuce & scrotum, but generally have only a little sagging sack.
Usually it’s Ms of larger breeds, desexed at 2-YO or older, who have a noticeable “saggy bag” even months or years after their neuter.

Retired multipara dams will similarly often have hanging dugs, & that would be a far more extensive, invasive, & often unjustified surgery; however, if she develops breast cancer, later, reducing or removing the mammary glands may extend her life, if the cancer is caught before it metastasizes elsewhere in the body.
But most ex dams just live out their lives with long teats.

- terry

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[Jack-Russell-Lover]

Thanks for that info

 

[Jack-Russell-Lover]

Back to tails..my mum's dog had to have the end of hers amputated because there was a draught and it got caught in the front door when it slammed shut!

 

[Whippylove]

Poor Oliver had to have some off his tail amputated as i shut my door and caught it in it, my vet did a brilliant job fixing it. It took Oliver months to stop looking at his tail he was really upset, i felt terrible and guilty for ages.

 

[leashedForLife]

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Ow, ow, ow-wow-ow! ...
Tails caught by doors are similar to fingers caught by doors - I have never experienced the former, but I have experienced the latter, & it’s very painful. Poor dogs.

Thank Goddess, even after 35 years in restaurant kitchens, I still have all 8 fingers & both thumbs; no amputations. Lots of scars, but no missing digits.

- terry

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[Mad Murphy]

Medical accidents are one thing but the docking and cropping of dogs for cosmetic reasons is disgusting. Like de-barking and de-clawing of cats .


Luckily in Europe we are civilised and laws protecting our pets have been introuduced ,,who knows when the rest of the world might catch up?

The European Convention for the Protection of Pet Animals was opened for signature in Strasbourg on 13 November 1987 and entered into force on 1 May 1992. This Convention states that: 'Surgical operations for the purpose of modifying the appearance of a pet animal or for other non-curative purposes shall be prohibited and, in particular: the docking of tails'. At present, 15 of the 27 States in the European Union have ratified this Convention (with or without reserving their position on tail docking) and have prohibited cosmetic surgical operations. In addition, four European States have prohibited these operations, even though they did not ratify the Convention. These policy positions agree with both the current knowledge on tail amputations in dogs and the opinions of official veterinary associations in Europe and North America.
(PDF) The European Convention for the Protection of Pet Animals and tail docking in dogs. Available from: (PDF) The European Convention for the Protection of Pet Animals and tail docking in dogs [accessed Oct 20 2018].