Looks Aren't Everything

Doberman. Rottweiler. Boxer. What do these dogs have in common? Docked tails.

A docked tail is a procedure where they remove a portion of the dog’s tail, usually for looks.

How do people dock a dog’s tail? There are many ways to go about it.

Some people use rubber bands. They tie the rubber band tightly around the base of the dog’s tail– so tight, in fact, that it cuts off circulation to the dog’s tail. It dies off in about three days because there’s no blood or oxygen going to the dog’s tail.

Or they can use a knife or scissors to quickly end the procedure in 5 to 30 minutes. They don’t even use anesthesia.

The majority of people dock their dogs’ tails at a young age, from two to five days old. They dock it so young because most people believe that the puppy can’t feel pain, since their nervous system isn’t well developed. But this isn’t true.

A veterinarian in Australia, Dr. Wansbrough, explains that the puppy would feel even worse than an adult dog because of the way the pain shoots through its fibers. They clarify, saying that cutting through muscles, tendons, bones, or tissue would inflict a level of pain that would normally never be allowed on a human being.

Scientists argue that most puppies never cry during the procedure, but most dogs instinctively do this to protect themselves. If injured animals would whimper in the wild, a predator would find them, so when puppies don’t cry out, it can’t be considered a lack of pain.

Some people disagree because after docking a puppy’s tail, they go straight back to their mother to nurse, so people believe that this translates to no pain. But scientists have found that nursing releases endorphins, which help the puppy cope with pain, so this is probably not the case.

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) claims that tail docking is painful to the dog, saying, “there is no obvious benefit to our patients in performing this procedure.”

The Department of Companion Animals carried out a study involving 50 Doberman, Rottweiler, and Bouvier puppies between 3 to 5 days old. After docking them, the puppies were visibly and audibly distressed, and “stumbled and whimpered for some time.”

But what if docking a dog isn’t just painful? What if it has other effects?

Researchers decided to figure this out by using a robot that closely resembled a Labrador Retriever in size, color, but most importantly, the tail.

The robot dog, otherwise stiff, had a rapid wagging tail. When scientists exposed other dogs to the robot, they reacted normally: investigating the robot dog with their nose and wagging back in a friendly manner.

When researchers made the robot’s tail go stiff, the dogs acted unfriendly towards it.

But when the researchers switched the robot for one with a docked tail, dogs acted differently.

It didn’t matter whether the docked dog wagged or not. The dogs avoided it otherwise. This suggests that it’s harder to read behavior of a docked dogs’ tail.

Every dog’s tail has a function. Let’s go back to the Labrador’s example.

Labrador Retrievers were used for retrieving, as the name implies. If a hunter shot a duck, the dog would go off and find it for the hunter. This often meant they would have to jump into water to retrieve the game, or animal they were hunting. Their fluffy tail was used to help them swim through the lake they were in.

Tails also have other uses. Take the Samoyed, for example. This white fluffy dog was used for sled pulling. In the middle of the night, they could get frostbite because of the cold. A Samoyed could use their tail to cover their nose, so they don’t freeze.

So why do people dock a tail? Apparently, to help them complete their jobs.

For example, rottweilers get a docked tail to help them navigate through thick and dense forest, and if they have a long tail, it can snag on vegetation or get cut.

Not a lot of people use their dogs for jobs, though. Who do you know that uses a Labrador Retriever or Poodle for actual retriever work? Who do you know that uses Beagles or Basset Hounds to track actual animal scents?

Most people don't, so why bother with cropping the tail? A lot of people do it to conform to the breed's standard.

According to the AKC, the Doberman Pinscher's breed standard about tails states, "Tail docked at approximately second joint..." In other words, the AKC will not let you show your dog if the tail is not docked.

Same goes for the ears as well. "Ears normally cropped and carried erect," the AKC says. Although you aren't required to, they're normally cropped. By cropping a Doberman Pinscher's ears, other dogs may perceive the dog as alert or unfriendly. This could cause dogs to react aggressively to the Doberman unnecessarily.

Sometimes, however, it's necessary to dock your dog's tail. If you were showing your dog, it's required, but another example could be a medical issue. If your dog was chasing their tail and biting at it, a good idea would be to dock it. This way, they don't keep hurting themselves.

In conclusion, it is often unnecessary to dock the tail, and yet people continue to do it.

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