# bleeding from scratching taped ears



## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

like the subjects says... I taped Lucy's ears (pink rollers method) and she was scratching this morning and scraped her ear up by the base pretty good. I try not to let her scratch, but this one doesn't like this new stuff on her ears.

I don't want her to keep scratching this same spot and making it worse and worse with more bleeding. Anyone have any ideas or experience with this?


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Take the tape off. If it's irritating her skin then it's not good for her to wear it! That can cause other problems.


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## MTAussie (Dec 9, 2007)

Alex was doing that, and was having a lot of flaky skin. He has allergies, and he was on steriods for a couple weeks and it totally cleared up. But now that he is off the medication he is getting itchy again, not as bad as before he isn't scratching his ear until there is no hair and bleeding at least. I would go and talk to your vet and see what they recommend.


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## fourdogsrule (May 10, 2007)

I second bowwowmeow. Take the tape off.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

It's below where it's taped though so I don't think it's the tape that's doing it to her... It's the scratching she gets in when I'm not watching. She did the same thing when her ears were glued... She scratched The glue off in one day and that happened in two seperate attempts to glue. Now she has her ears taped and it's actually holding. She's over 5 months with ears like a lab so I really don't want to take the tape off so early... It's only been a couple days.


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## tracyc (Feb 23, 2005)

You could try an Elizabethan collar (one of those cone things they put around dogs' necks to keep them from chewing at a wound, etc.)


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

I was actually thinking about putting on one of those e collars. I just feel bad having her wear one for an extended period of time like this. I was hoping for some kind of band aid type fix.


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## WiscTiger (Sep 25, 2002)

If you try the Elizabethian collar, make sure the there is enough room for the taped ears to stand.

Are you planning on showing? If my dog was so unhappy about having ear taped I would stop. I am a strange person and I don't believe in taping ears, either the pups ears will stand or they won't. I also believe that a large part of the ears standing up are the results of people taping ears so they stand and then breeding those dogs.

Val


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

not planning on showing and def not going to breed, but I do want my dog to look like the breed she is. She really doesn't seem uncomfortable at all... She runs, plays, and does everything like her ears weren't taped. She just likes to scratch. 

If her ears don't go up that's fine, but I at least want to do my best to help her get them up. In two years when I have people asking me what breed she's mixed with because her ears are floppy, at least I could say to myself that I did everything I could instead of just hoping for the best... That's why I don't want to take the tape off.


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Scratching is a sign of stress. It's actually a calming signal. I understand that you want your dog to look like most people's image of a gsd but there are thousands of gsds whose ears never stand. Some eventually go up on their own much later, at 1 or 2, some have one ear that stands and one that's floppy, etc., etc. 

If the tape continues to bother her I would remove it so that she does not get an secondary infection from the scratching. Forcing her to wear an e-collar seems pretty drastic as they are very uncomfortable for dogs. 

I think either her ears aren't ready to stand or she doesn't want them to stand.


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## LandosMom (Nov 30, 2005)

i wouldn't put an e-collar on. they squish the ears....


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## shepherdbydesign (Mar 7, 2007)

Here is a picture of our spirit with her ears taped. We have had great success with her ears but had to put a cone on to keep away from doing what has been happening with your girl







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We went to a woman that docks ears for Great Danes and had her tape them, what we had to do is keep the tape on for 6 days and then one day off and then repeat for 3 weeks and now we have ears that are the way they should be. Most importantly you have to tape the two ears close together cause the weigh of the tape will make the ears spread out instead of them standing straight up. Hope this helps. Also we used tampons instead of anything else


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Chuck,

Will you breed Spirit? And if so, isn't that why all of these dogs have soft ears in the first place? If the genetics aren't there to keep them up then that will just be passed to the pups.


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## shepherdbydesign (Mar 7, 2007)

Spirit was a case of her brother knocking the one down. She was the first out of the litter that had her ears up and stongly up. It wasn't the case that they didn't come up at all. This is what happened when we socialized her with her brother. And we waited until she was almost six months before we did anything think that they would come back up, As for breeding her the answer is yes we will. If it was a case of soft ears than we wouldn't but we do know that this wasn't the case.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

heres a picture of the Luce and her ears. Oh and that red stripe is electric tape on the outside of the sports tape if you're wondering... i used it as reinforcement for a stronger hold.


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## MTAussie (Dec 9, 2007)

How does a puppy's ears get knocked down? Are ears that sensitive if they are really going to stay up in the long run anyway? Alex has had all kinds of things happen to his and we haven't had any problems. Just wondering if this supports the general consenus for others wondering.


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## shepherdbydesign (Mar 7, 2007)

well it was from her and Fantom rough housing. she had the strongest ears and had a crease in one ear that wounldn't have stood up on its own. Since then her ears are real strongly up. Fantom would attack her at the ears when he would play with her.


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