WhiskerFeathers News

I live in what is probably the plastic surgery capital of the world, Los Angeles California. People seek perfection and sometimes go way overboard in the process if you ask me. This has to do with the demands of Hollywood, if you want to be a star you have to look the part. It is really up to the individual and their ambitions, we do after all have freedom of choice. When it comes to our pets, that’s another thing.

I recently read an article about Banfield, The Pet Hospital’s decision to stop performing ear cropping and tail docking. Banfield is the exclusive provider of veterinary services for the Petsmart pet supply chain. The Portland, Oregon based company has 730 hospitals and 2,000 veterinarians nationwide, so this is making quite a statement.

“After thoughtful consideration and reviewing medical research, we have determined it is in the best interest of the pets we treat, as well as the overall practice, to discontinue performing these unnecessary cosmetic procedures,” said Karen Faunt DVM, MS, DACVIM, vice president for medical quality advancement for Banfield. “It is our hope that this new medical protocol will help reduce, and eventually eliminate, these cosmetic procedures altogether.”

Ear cropping is a surgical procedure where a portion of the ear is removed. It is done to produce ears that stand erect. Ear cropping is performed on puppies around 8-12 weeks of age and is common on Great Danes, Boxers, Dobermans and more.Here is a picture of two Boxers, one with cropped ears and the other one without:

The surgery is also used on Pit bulls to shorten the length of their ears and is most often seen in dogs used for fighting.

Tail docking is the surgical removal of part of the tail of a dog. It is performed on healthy puppies when they are between 2 – 5 days old. It is commonly performed on breeds such as Boxers, Schnauzers, Doberman Pinschers and Rottweilers.

These surgeries are principally done just so that the dogs will comply with a certain standard of looks for the breed. When I first came to understand this fact I was horrified! By my own ignorance I thought that a Boxers ears just stood up like that naturally or my Silky’s  stump of a tail was as long as it grew.

The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals- Angell Animal Medical Center of Boston was founded in 1868. It is the oldest society for the prevention of cruelty to animals in the United States. In their statement of beliefs they clearly list tail docking and ear cropping among one of the procedures they find as cruel. Cat declawing is another practice they find is neither minor or painless.

I say congratulations to Banfield in their stand on the behalf of pets. Our cats and dogs are beautiful just the way our Creator made them.