# Puppy Mill Ear Tagging



## CindyM

I was wondering if anyone was familiar with puppy mill ear tagging. I was at Pet Supplies Plus yesterday and someone came up to me and said she thought Al's ears were cut by a puppy mill to mark him. Both of his ears have the same slit in them. Here's a picture. I would be really interested to know if he came from a puppy mill. His animal control papers just said that he was taken to AC because his owner was taken to jail.


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## CindyM

You can also see how his ears look in al's - alabama's - urgent post

http://www.germanshepherds.com/foru...derson-xl-ym-nebraska-poss-hip-displasia.html


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## onyx'girl

I would think it wasn't due to a miller actually nicking them for ID'ing , but a scrap he may have gotten into early in life(lack of supervision)? 
If they were to ID all their pups, that would take way to much time and time is money....that is what it is all about in a millers' frame of mind. Your Al probably was in a fight or something. I haven't read or heard anything about this, but it is possible that the "breeder" did this to ID Al.
After looking at that PF link, it looks like fly bites or a skin condition that caused it.


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## CindyM

The only strange thing is that he has the same slit in both ears in the same spot. I guess I also wouldn't think they would tag both ears. The person at the pet store was adamant about it though!


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## onyx'girl

Maybe the employee knew more then? I'd go back and talk w/ them just to learn why they think that. Maybe the millers have a system for ID'ing.
I shouldn't have posted on this(my ignorance), there aren't millers in my area, Thank God! plenty of BYB's though to keep the rescues and shelters busy.


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## Emoore

My last foster had almost the exact same mark in one of his ears! Hmmmmm. . . .


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## CindyM

Jane - I am glad to have your opinion!! It was actually just a customer at the store, and she came up to us and said, "Oh, they cut his ears, too!" I was surprised and asked what she meant, and that's when she explained that the puppy mills will cut their ears for identification. I told her I didn't think he was from a puppy mill, but she asked if I was sure, and said it looked like it to her. I had just never heard of it before. 

All of that got me thinking, and based on his condition and behaviors maybe he could have been??

I did some more googling, and found this,

The Wisconsin Puppy Mill Project: Existing laws and legislation that is in the works

Emoore - don't you wish we could just ask them!!


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## Rerun

I don't think it looks like fly bites on his ears, I see that was suggested. My boy Micah lived in an outdoor pen from puppyhood to 2 yrs old *at his former home* (before I adopted him, just so there is no confusion) and was all fly bitten, bad ear infections too. It's completely healed now but doesn't look anything like the precise cuts on your dogs ears.


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## GSDSunshine

My guy has a nick on one of his ears and i was told is was because they used that at the shelter to mark which dogs were altered. not sure about the validity of it. It would make sense for a female sense you can't see her organs outright, but a male dog neutered looks pretty different than one with ball still in tact.


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## GSDSunshine

I search google and it seems that they clip ears for a feral cat neuter and release program and other animals were either marked in their ear or had their ear clipped after neuter/spay.


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## Emoore

GSDSunshine said:


> I search google and it seems that they clip ears for a feral cat neuter and release program and other animals were either marked in their ear or had their ear clipped after neuter/spay.


Maverick had an ear marked like that and was intact. Kinda hard to see because he's in motion but it's on his right ear.


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## GSDSunshine

Emoore said:


> Maverick had an ear marked like that and was intact. Kinda hard to see because he's in motion but it's on his right ear.


 Well i'm not saying all GSD with ear knicks are from that, but shelters down Clip ears to mark for a spay or neuter, as well as feral cats.


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## Liesje

GSDSunshine said:


> I search google and it seems that they clip ears for a feral cat neuter and release program and other animals were either marked in their ear or had their ear clipped after neuter/spay.


We had a cat like that


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## Emoore

GSDSunshine said:


> Well i'm not saying all GSD with ear knicks are from that. . .


I know.  I'm trying to conjecture the reason for Mav's and disregarding that as an answer.


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## CindyM

He was intact when we got him, but interesting!! I never knew about clipping for spay and neuter either!


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