# Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ears?



## Smith3

I know it is ignorance on their part, but I have had 4 people ask me if I cropped my dogs ears. Most people ask as if they are disgusted at me as a person (thinking i cut my dogs ears to get them to stand up).


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## Chris Wild

A couple times, but only every with our solid black dogs and it was phrased as "why did you crop your black LAB's ears?" followed by trying to convince me that GSDs don't come in black....


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## MayzieGSD

Yes, I've been asked if I planned on cropping her ears when she was a puppy and they weren't standing yet. I was like "What?? you don't crop GSD's ears!!" but the person insisted that cropping was what made a GSD's ears stand up.







I think some people think that any dog with ears that stand up got that way from cropping.


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## SunCzarina

I think it comes from people are familiar with dobermans and other breeds that you have to do that to. Doesn't bother me much, probably becuase none of my dogs had soft ears past 3 months.


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## maxsmom1229

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

thats so funny you say that. i thought i was the only one to get that bizarre question. i got it asked once. by a very close friend actually. it kinda took me off guard i was like uhmm his ears are all there i assure you. if they are this big now, imagine how big they were before i cut them!! lol i kinda laughed it off, wasnt sure how to respond really...


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## MayzieGSD

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*



> Originally Posted By: maxsmom1229if they are this big now, imagine how big they were before i cut them!! lol










good repsonse!


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## crazyboutdogs

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

i get the entire opposite since storm has soft ears. i get, is he purebred or what is he mixed with? i guess people think that all gsd's ears should be erect........i simply say, well, his ears never went up, but this is what makes him so special....he is a different gsd!!!!


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## Yvette

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

No one has ever asked me that, but I questioned this to myself at a dog show once.
I was watching some of the GSDs in the ring & most of them looked like they had cropped ears!? The ears looked way to thin & tall. 
It didn't look as natural as the other GSDs that I have seen.


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## Nikkoli110

> Originally Posted By: Chris WildA couple times, but only every with our solid black dogs and it was phrased as "why did you crop your black LAB's ears?" followed by trying to convince me that GSDs don't come in black....


I've had people get mad and tell me that German Shepherds don't come in all black! Like we were duped by some breeder into thinking Titan was a German Shepherd, lol. 

When he was younger and smaller, I always got "Whats up with your lab's ears?"







Never heard the cropped thing though. Now he's turned into a handsome young Shepherd, and looks nothing like a lab anymore. Now people are asking in amazement "Is that a German Shepherd???" I always want to answer back "No, he's a Yorkie".


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## SunCzarina

NIkki, you should say he's a yorkie and you have no idea why he's so tall, just for giggles!

I've approached people with black shepherds and found most of them act pleasantly surprised that I knew what their dog is


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## Jake's Mom

I've had people ask when do you "crop their ears?" but since Jake's are struggling to stand now we don't get that as much.

Thread drift: I did have a Petsmart employee tell me Jake was a 130 pound dog if he ever saw one. Argghh! He's really not even that big, people just see his nice solid leg bones and assume he's gonna be a giant. Then the "trainer" came and started bouncing his ball, trying to engage Jake. Jake was great. He looked at me and I said "nope, let's just down." The poor trainer didn't get the reaction he was looking for.


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## GunnerJones

the only ppl that have done that were ones that got Dobies and GSDs mixed up


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## blondee127

Yes, and it is usually when I am already a bit upset and worried that my shepherds ears aren't going to stand up on their own.


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## Kava3

I get that all the time. Even now. Kaio's ears have been up since he was 10 weeks. I actually had a lady argue with me that ONE of his ears must have been cropped or they wouldn't touch like that


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## blondee127

Yeah its great when you get people arguing about your breed that they know nothing about!!!! You just have to laugh at that.

Oh and I also get people telling me that my "sable" shepherds are not shepherds but wolves.


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## JKlatsky

Well when my sable puppy had his floppy ears, I was asked if I was going to crop them to get them to stand. Also was asked about my "Catahoula-Shepherd mix". "What kind of Shepherd is that?" What do you say...Ummm, German. 

Nobody knows what a sable puppy is. 

Even now that he's older and LOOKS like a standard GSD...At a drive-thru someone asked if he was an Australian Shepherd. I've also gotten K-9, POlice dog, Belgian shepherd, wolf, and get ready cause this is my absolute FAVORITE....this 8-9 yr old girl peeks around the corner at PetsMart, opens her eyes real wide, and yells back down the aisle..."Mom! There's a hyena!!"

A hyena? He was sitting a little weird, had just sort of pulled himself up from a relaxed down...but really. A hyena? Ouch.


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## I_LOVE_MY_MIKKO

i was in petsmart with mikko once when a couple with a pitbull came up to us and asked where we got his ears done, as they've been looking for someone to do their pitt's, but couldn't find anyone that would do it







i told them that GSD ears stand up naturally and they didn't try to argue at all. 

i have had someone argue that he is a k-9, not a GSD, or at least mixed with K-9. also, another person argue that he's too small for a GSD (he's 70 pounds 26.75"...i wouldn't want a bigger dog!)


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## Lin

Tessa is 70 lbs and 24", I ALWAYS get "isn't she too small to be a german shepherd?" No, actually she's at the max height according to the standard for a female... And the first time I took her to my vet the vet asked what she was mixed with. I said nothing, she's german shepherd. The vet said but no where did she get her coloring from? She has to be mixed with something. You guessed it, she's a sable!


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## blondee127

Bianca is 65lbs. She had hip surgery when she was younger so she needs to remain light. Just last week someone asked me what type of German Shepherd she was that she looked to small to be a "regular" German Shepherd. I explained that females are usually smaller than males. He has a black and tan female shepherd puppy. He commented that he didn't know the females are smaller than males.... isn't that usually the case with all sorts of living creatures... including humans???? LOL


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## Iannotti

My pup is only 4 months and her tips cross each other alot while we are out walking..People always ask if I had them cut, taped.. etc....


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## Iannotti

> Originally Posted By: I_LOVE_MY_MIKKOi was in petsmart with mikko once when a couple with a pitbull came up to us and asked where we got his ears done, as they've been looking for someone to do their pitt's, but couldn't find anyone that would do it
> 
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> 
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> i told them that GSD ears stand up naturally and they didn't try to argue at all.
> 
> i have had someone argue that he is a k-9, not a GSD, or at least mixed with K-9. also, another person argue that he's too small for a GSD (he's 70 pounds 26.75"...i wouldn't want a bigger dog!)


LOL I had the same exact argument!!! She is a K-9!!!


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## angierose

There was a group of school bus drivers parked in front of the house yesterday, socializing before they went on their routes, and Kaylee went over to meet them. One did ask if we had cropped her ears but before I could say anything, another said "That's a German Shepherd, their ears come up naturally." We ended up talking a little bit and Kaylee got to meet some nice new people.


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## Caledon

I've had that comment a couple of times and I had one young adlut look at me as if I were making up stories when I told her that the ears come up naturally.


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## JazzyGirl

I am glad I am not the only person to get that question. I don't understand why people think that; their ears are huge in comparison to dogs that do have cropped ears. I guess it is just a lack of knowledge.


edit to add: I have also had someone ask me if Jazz was a wolf pup! I couldn't believe it!


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## Mandalay

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*



> Originally Posted By: maxsmom1229 if they are this big now, imagine how big they were before i cut them!!


ROFL! The visual I got if a GSD with these HUGE fan like ears on his head was too funny!!

I have been asked this question a few times. 

When I had my Doberman, she had natural ears and I was asked more often why they did not stand. When I would explain that they were not cropped and I did not want the hassle of taping, retaping, untaping, maintaining, etc etc and decided to leave them natural, they would then usually say that she would look better with them cropped. (I have to agree, a Doberman with properly cropped ears has such a look of elegance, but there are so many that were done incorrectly - I was afraid of that or that I'd do something to mess them up while they were healing, and all I wanted was my dog, not pointy ears).


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## Sigurd's Mom

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

I've never got asked if my puppies ears were cropped! People usually just say "Look at those ears!!!!!! Will they stay up?"


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## Daisy1986

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

My husband is not the GSD or the dog person in the family. He recently came upon info on the net about cropping Dobermans ears...He was appauled!









He said "Do you know what they do?" I said yes. I said Boxers too. Also tails they crop tails like our JRT. 

He said do they do that to GSD's ears? So, I think it might be common for people to know. 

I think Dobermans look friendlier with their ears floppy and really cute (Boxers too), I would never do that to their ears I would leave them. 

BUT OK, I am to admit...I would be sad if Shadow did not have his big satillite dishes...but I would love him anyway...


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## Liesje

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

Yeah, my neighbor's do b/c they got a pit bull and cropped him. They asked if Nikon and Kenya had cropped ears, and when we were going to crop Coke's.


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## Daisy1986

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

See shows what little I know...I did not know people put glue and foam in dogs ears... Is this common? 


http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1095143&page=0&fpart=1


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## GranvilleGSD

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

I've only had people asking me if I was worried that the ears wouldn't stand and why I wasn't taping them. Berlin's ears were up at 4-5 weeks, they stayed up then flopped a little when he started teething. They are up, strong, and beautiful now, no taping, glueing, etc.


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## george1990

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

No, but I've had a really interesting experience about puppy ears. Before I knew better, I was visiting some local BYBs I found in the newspaper and online for a german shepherd pup. Well, there was two males and one female, and I told her that I was also looking at another litter with someone else. She says, in a VERY serious tone, and you had to be there to understand that she was dead serious... "Well, this female here has her ears up already, she's so smart"

"She's smart, why?"

"Her ears are up already at 7 weeks! She's going to be so intelligent."

I think I literally ran out of their house.


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## sagelfn

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*

wow, it happened to me today....

I was walking Sage this afternoon and we walked by the local coffee shop and a woman was just staring at Sage. I thought she was scared of him at first and then she asked why I cropped my little dogs ears...

I said that he was a 3 month old puppy and a german shepherd

she said well why crop a puppies ears

ugh... "german shepherds ears naturally stand you don't crop them"

then she said oh i like them but they look big i thought it was a bad crop job i have a black lab and i couldn't imagine cropping his ears like some people do

uh huh...me walking away fast. she must have been referring to black gsd's


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## Stephanie17s

*Re: Do people ask you if you cropped your dogs ear*



> Originally Posted By: george1990No, but I've had a really interesting experience about puppy ears. Before I knew better, I was visiting some local BYBs I found in the newspaper and online for a german shepherd pup. Well, there was two males and one female, and I told her that I was also looking at another litter with someone else. She says, in a VERY serious tone, and you had to be there to understand that she was dead serious... "Well, this female here has her ears up already, she's so smart"
> 
> "She's smart, why?"
> 
> "Her ears are up already at 7 weeks! She's going to be so intelligent."
> 
> I think I literally ran out of their house.












I was actually asked the opposite:

"Are you going to cut your dogs ears?"

"No, why would I?"

"So they don't stand like that"

huh????


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## cooperskin

I've been asked by two or three different people now if we had his ears cropped. I blame it on TV, no one has any cool dogs on TV anymore...just floppy eared dust mops that fit in purses!


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## SpeedBump

Rommel's ears are so huge and wide nobdoy would think they were cropped.


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## tintallie

When I was walking Miya in the neighbourhood, a lady with a little girl (clearly skittish around dogs) asked if she was a black Lab and I had to explain she's a German Shepherd.

Most people recognize the black and tan colouring, but not the sable or solid black around here. Working lines are quite rare here because we have too many BYBs.


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## Bcannie

> Originally Posted By: JKlatskyWell when my sable puppy had his floppy ears, I was asked if I was going to crop them to get them to stand. Also was asked about my "Catahoula-Shepherd mix". "What kind of Shepherd is that?" What do you say...Ummm, German.
> 
> Nobody knows what a sable puppy is.
> 
> Even now that he's older and LOOKS like a standard GSD...At a drive-thru someone asked if he was an Australian Shepherd. I've also gotten K-9, POlice dog, Belgian shepherd, wolf, and get ready cause this is my absolute FAVORITE....this 8-9 yr old girl peeks around the corner at PetsMart, opens her eyes real wide, and yells back down the aisle..."Mom! There's a hyena!!"
> 
> A hyena? He was sitting a little weird, had just sort of pulled himself up from a relaxed down...but really. A hyena? Ouch.










That is the BEST one I have heard!! Years ago I had a shepherd that had teepee ears and one was crossing in front of the other...looked like she had a turbon on. And people STILL ask when they see her picture..."what is WRONG with her ears? What did you DO to them!?" This question even came from someone that has had shepherds!


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