Rant - why can't greyhound breeders remove dew claws!

CAYLA said:
I am dealing with an ancient though:p, you have to speak up, as either they are deaf or simply WON'T hear you.;) I am also contending with the possibility of poor eye sight too...all factors I must account for :D:p
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Won't rather than can't I feel.... :D
 
CAYLA said:
Alec Swan said:
....... Im saying dew claws will "indeed" be used when turning for some dogs at least, but I did not say they make a "difference" in the dogs ability to turn, they can still turn! they don't become impaired and unable when they are removed. ......., ......
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Of course a dog with its dew claws removed can still turn, has anyone said that they can't? Just as a sight hound generally has a longer than average tail, so it uses it as a rudder and as a balancing aid. Dock the tail, and all that it does is it makes the dog just a little less efficient, just as it may be when its dew claws are removed, though it would be a moot point, unless one conducted tests on an adult dog, whilst it still had dew claws, and then repeated those tests once the claws were removed, there would be little way of knowing whether an individual animal, was any more, or less efficient with, or without its dew claws.

The main and the original point of the discussion is that the reason, RIGHTLY OR WRONGLY (whispered!), why many professional greyhound breeders leave dew claws in place, is because many feel that they aid the dog, in turning. As you seem to agree that 'some'(?) dogs do indeed use them, so we can only conclude that it's possible that the dog has dew claws, because perhaps they actually need them. They manage without them, just as they do without tails, it's all a matter of efficiency, perhaps.

It would also be true that any sight-hound, whilst putting in tight turns, would only use one dew claw on each turn, that being the one on the outside leg.

It may be Cayla, that you will be better informed than those who are professional breeders and trainers of greyhounds, and perhaps their held beliefs, are in fact old wives tales. You could of course, very well be right in everything that you say.

Alec.
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Spring Feather said:
But you see this is where I'm confused; you said you'd never seen a dog using it's front dew claws; that I find a very odd comment to make because I've never seen a dog not use it's front dew claws. My dogs use theirs for holding things, climbing, scratching, motability etc.
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This- dex uses his all the time!
 
Alec Swan said:
CAYLA said:
So then you understand? Im simply saying they/some may use to as extent but dont need them to the point it renders incapable and can still do the intended job. Neither of us have carried out tests so im going from what i have (noted) in my own dogs having been the one between the 2 of us who has has dogs with and without dew claws.
Better informed than professionals or trainers? .......well i can only simply guess as to why they leave them in situ. I certainly dont believe im better informed.
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Surely it is just a case of some people feel the risk of damage/injury to the dew claws outweighs the fact that they 'may' use them in coursing. Freya's sire (whippet) was Dutch lure coursing champion 3 years on the trot with no dew claws and surely if having them gave a significant advantage then competition breeders would never remove them.

Plus the fact that some dogs are now born without them (I didn't realise this) means that perhaps evolution is moving in the direction of getting rid of them.

Freya had hers removed as a puppy and doesn't seem to miss them for grooming, climbing or turning. I'm just happy its one less thing she can have a drama queen fit over ;P
 
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Fides said:
Katikins - is that Freya in your av? She's gorgeous!
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Yep that's my little monster and pride and joy :) My first whippet and I can't see me having another breed now, they are just so fantastic. And another couple of gratuitous pictures :)

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Oh Katikins she is absolutely gorgeous :) :) :) Please stop tempting me with whippets, I cannot have one just yet.... :D :D

I think your first sentence summarises the position very well. I guess it is all down to the experiences that an owner has had - personally I have too many problems with dew claws to make me think that they are useful, clearly others have not had those bad experiences so feel differently :)
 
6yrs ago I adopted a Saluki cross Greyhound every time she ran on the forest she was dripping in blood from her front dew claws. They stuck out at odd angles so my vet suggested to remove them, so we did.

My Greyhound who's nearly 9 has hers still with no problems but hers are quite small and lay flat to her leg. When she did flyball she had leg wraps just incase, or I wrapped her leg in vet wrap.
 
Thankyou for that Katikins, very interesting and as I thought it has never altered the efficiency of these little speed demons even at the top of their game it seems. Your girl is adorable, she is perfect.
 
We have always left the dew claws on our dogs bar one.

my big collie had his fronts taken off last year. Everytime he ran chasing his ball he would rip them back when going flat out and on tight.turns. After the third infection we decided along with my vet to take them off at age 7. We had put it off that long as we really wanted to leave alone.

i will leave them on any future dogs i get unless its like the big collie and just rips them back everytime they run.

the op hasn't changed how he runs, took him a few weeks to get the idea they aren't there but now he is fine.
 
connieconvert said:
Does any one know why they are called dew claws ?

Genuine question, not a trick.
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I've read two explanations for why dewclaws are called dewclaws.

I've read that when "dew" is used relating to body parts, it probably comes from a Scandinavian word that has been altered. Danish
doglæb, Norwegian doglæp and Swedish dröglapp refers to the hanging flap of skin that hangs beneath the lower jaw/neck of e.g.
some types of cows and dogs. That is the likely origin of the English word dewlap (according to what I've read). Since the word dewlap
refers to a piece of hanging skin, and some people thinks dewclaws looks like just a piece of hanging skin + a claw, I've read that some
people believes that the origin of the word dewclaw is dewlap, which comes from doglæb/doglæp/dröglapp.

There is also those that believes that the word dewclaw refers to that from its higher position, it only brushes the dew off the grass.


Personally, even though I feel that the second explanation sounds more poetic, I think the first explanation makes more sense.
 
vieshot said:
I have a whippet and a Lurcher. Both have their dew claws. Never had a problem.
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vieshot said:
Take it back. Now have a Lurcher with one less dew claw :/
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What happened, I hope the lurcher is okay now?

Almost always when I say or write something like "My dogs have never...", I usually get the thought in my head that it will probably soon happen.
So usually I add things like "It hasn't happened this far", and similar.
 
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