# Someone told me not to touch ears till they stand



## jnnmn7 (Jun 21, 2016)

Someone told me not to touch the ears till they stand or you could cause problems and they may never stand up. Just wondering if there is any truth to this.


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## dogma13 (Mar 8, 2014)

No.You need to check them periodically to see if they need cleaning.


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## jnnmn7 (Jun 21, 2016)

What about petting the ears though? I always rub/scratch his ears and other people always seem to go for the ears too.


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## Shade (Feb 20, 2012)

As long as you're not being overly aggressive I doubt you can do any harm. I played and still play with Delgado's ears constantly as they're so soft and they've never dropped or gone down. Genetics play a big factor IMO


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## Julian G (Apr 4, 2016)

I have always been told for many years not to touch a puppies ears until they stand up. And even after they stand up because they may flop back down. But make sure to clean them atleast once every 2 weeks.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

I've always stroked their ears. Still do. Never a problem


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Same here, never had a problem. How can you not touch these fuzzy puppy ears? If they will stand, they will, whether you touch them or not. Unless you damage the cartilage of course but who does that?
(That ear stuff is crazy to me actually. Cam has one ear up and one down and I hope with all my heart it stays that way. He is a Collie).


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## Dainerra (Nov 14, 2003)

have you seen what puppies do to each other's ears? If they were that delicate, all GSDs would have floppy ears.

honestly, handling every day is an important life skill for puppies. Feet, mouth/teeth, ears, tail. The entire body gets a quick touch and look over every day. 

To make the ears not stand, you would have to be rubbing/pulling them hard enough to break the cartilage. Feel your earlobe. How hard do you have to squeeze before you feel pain? Now imagine how much harder you would have to pinch than that to actually crush your ear. My point being, long before you get rough enough to cause permanent
damage, you're going to have a puppy in pain.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Dainerra said:


> have you seen what puppies do to each other's ears? If they were that delicate, all GSDs would have floppy ears.


:grin2::grin2: Super convincing.


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## wolfmonte (Aug 28, 2019)

jnnmn7 said:


> Someone told me not to touch the ears till they stand or you could cause problems and they may never stand up. Just wondering if there is any truth to this.


It might be true if you hold the ear too tight that the puppy yelps. If your dog's ears are soft due to genetics, playing or not playing won't affect them.


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## middleofnowhere (Dec 20, 2000)

This is sorta like someone told me Santa was real, the Easter Bunny left candy on my door step.....


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## crittersitter (Mar 31, 2011)

You can damage cartridge in their ears by rubbing and massaging them while they are developing. It's always been hand off ears in our house and gelatin until they are grown.


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## MineAreWorkingline (May 2, 2015)

I have seen people really massaging and rubbing the ears hard and to excess. I can't say for sure but I don't see why that would not stretch the cartilage. It is not something I do, allow other people to do to my puppies, nor is it something I would recommend.


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## Steve Strom (Oct 26, 2013)

Now that he's a little over 3 years, I wonder if they stood?


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## tim_s_adams (Aug 9, 2017)

Not sure, but I had a lab once and nothing I did, though I tried everything thinkable, helped his ears to stand. Could have been genetics, but how can one know for sure...


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## SeniorGSD (Aug 22, 2019)

Wish someone had told me this 30+ years ago. I’ve rubbed, cleaned, and played with both my rough collies and gsd’s, and have never had an ear issue. If they are weak, they won’t stand whether you touch them or not. If they are strong they will stand on their own, in their own time. Rubbing, cleaning, played with or not. Some of my collies have had mostly erect ears with the tip flapping down, some have had completely erect ears. Didn’t change the way they worked at all. Let a dog be a dog in whatever state it decides to be physically.


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## huntergreen (Jun 28, 2012)

tim_s_adams said:


> Not sure, but I had a lab once and nothing I did, though I tried everything thinkable, helped his ears to stand. Could have been genetics, but how can one know for sure...


That's funny. Should be a sticky.


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## MineAreWorkingline (May 2, 2015)

SeniorGSD said:


> Wish someone had told me this 30+ years ago. I’ve rubbed, cleaned, and played with both my rough collies and gsd’s, and have never had an ear issue. If they are weak, they won’t stand whether you touch them or not. If they are strong they will stand on their own, in their own time. Rubbing, cleaning, played with or not. Some of my collies have had mostly erect ears with the tip flapping down, some have had completely erect ears. Didn’t change the way they worked at all. Let a dog be a dog in whatever state it decides to be physically.


I can't say the same. There have been many times I have seen GSD owners lament that their dog's ears never stood as I watched them yank, crank and maul the dog's ears as it sat beside them. Is it proof? Nope! Is it cause for suspicion? IMO, yep.


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## tim_s_adams (Aug 9, 2017)

Seriously, my neighbor who has a GSD and whose parents had a kennel for years was telling me that they never allow any handling of the ears until after they stand up. I was curious because I'd never heard that before, so I mentironed it to my Vet. She had never heard anything like that either! And said that "normal" handling of the ears doesn't harm them a bit. Wrenching on them wouldn't be a hood idea, but IMHO neither would never handling them just to get a puppy used to it.


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## MineAreWorkingline (May 2, 2015)

tim_s_adams said:


> Seriously, my neighbor who has a GSD and whose parents had a kennel for years was telling me that they never allow any handling of the ears until after they stand up. I was curious because I'd never heard that before, so I mentironed it to my Vet. She had never heard anything like that either! And said that "normal" handling of the ears doesn't harm them a bit. Wrenching on them wouldn't be a hood idea, but IMHO neither would never handling them just to get a puppy used to it.


I don't think that anybody is talking about routine care. I never teach my dogs to have anybody fool with their ears or any other body part. It has been my experience that some dogs are innately going to be tolerant of a stranger's touch (vet / vet tech) while others simply are intolerant to the same. I have dogs that no amount of desensitization is going to make things any easier because it really isn't a matter of what body part as it is who is doing the handling. I have to rely on me knowing the dog's tolerance and my dogs trusting me to let someone else handle them.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

:thinking::thinking: Most ears are up by 16 weeks. How much yanking are people doing?


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