As you can imagine the tail docking ban has stirred up quite a bit of debate and heated argument in Australia.

Some breeders say they will now get out of their breed. Some say they will carry on docking. Some say they will bite the bullet and show their breed with tails. It's early days yet so will have to see how things go.

There are substantial fines for docking. They vary from State to State but, for example, I think that in Queensland it is something like $5000 per docked pup!

Trouble is no-one really knows how their breed's tail should look/be carried. Also, part of the reason people buy dogs as pets is appearance, and in breeds such as Boxers, Rotties, etc. the docked tail tends to be a large part of the way the dog looks. It is easy (and true) to say that a Boxer is a Boxer regardless of colour, tail length, etc. but I do wonder if we will see a decrease in the demand for the short-docked breeds.

I have bulldogs with short tails they are born with funny tails so thats how it is but i also have a breed which is docked Cane Corso and i have to say that they look stupid with a tail it spoils the out line of the dog and the ones that we do have in the country with tails all tails are different it will take a long time to breed in a good tail carriage that goes for the Rottie/the Boxer some curl up and over some hang some go to the side i love my breed with there docked tails, and if done correctly the pups dont feel to much if any pain we make sure of that this is just MO.

Myself I prefer a dog with ears and a tail.

I prefer ears and tails too. Savannah's tail was docked. I emailed the breeder to tell him I wanted her ears and tails intact, but it was too late, the tail was already docked He said it was because most of the litter were going to be indoor dogs and the tails really can wreak havoc in the house. Tigger's tail whips me in the face periodically and it really hurts. Knocks things down too. Although I like the look of tails, I guess they are a pain on the larger breeds. With the ears cropped; I don't like that at all. In the winter the cold air gets in and hurts. The Presa I watched had cropped ears and you could see he was suffering when outside in the cold weather.

Mia's tale is docked, we got asked if we wanted it doing, i said yes because her mum wasnt docked and to me it just didnt look 'right' but then again i suppose its your own liking to have docked or un-docked dogs

JMHO

Yeah it's personal preference. I also heard that it's really doing the dog a favor because their tails are so powerful they end up breaking them, cutting them, etc. by wagging and it's very painful for the dog. I guess it's looking out for them in the long run.

God the way Mia's 'stub' waggles its like its gonna fall off ! god help us if we didnt have her docked

Getting wipped in the face with a big hard tail hurts like hell. :smt005.

Yes, and even in the back of the head :smt101

Unless a dog is going to be used for working, there is absolutely no need to dock a tail or crop ears, it's pure vanity and mutilation of the dog!