That is interesting Dawn, I didn't realise. Is it common practise abroad to still crop/dock? I have only ever seen one cropped/docked Dobe in the flesh and that was years ago.

Its cause of this pair :P

Not so much now I dont think, not sure of the laws out there, certainly the US etc.. still do and I think Russia but not 100% People tend to import adults rather than puppies so if they are a couple years old they will be cropped and docked.

Haha yes Apollo and Zeus

And these guys ...



They don't make them like that anymore

My mum used to have dobes, one had cropped ears...will have to dig out some old photos. She had these & pyraneans for years...I guess that's why she married my father and he brought the staffords with him she saw them as "ankle biters".
I quite like the look of the cropped dobe, but then again I still prefer the traditionally docked breeds to be traditionally docked. And still see a lot of litters advertised with legally docked pups, I do wonder how though.
There's a family who live near a friend of mine who've recently moved back from the states, they have a cropped boxer and he is lovely.

I'm not a fan of docking or cropping purely for cosmetic reasons - only medicalI much prefer the look of Boxer, Dobes and all other cropped/docked breeds, I think they look much better - just my opinion

couldn't put it better myself.

Dog's communication with each other is essential for a happy, well-rounded and fulfilled dog. To deprive them of this ability to communicate with other dogs is asking for trouble.

Funnily enough my dog with 'flat ears' has perfectly clean ears all the time, but the dogs with upright ears need regular cleaning