Removing Dewclaws

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clarejones

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I was just after some advice, my Springer Spaniel(show type) bitch is due to have her pups on 5th Feb, the pups will not be docked but i am unsure whether i should or still can have the dew claws removed does anyone have this done to their puppies and is it advisable to have it done? Any advice much appreciated thanks
 
I much prefer to have it done, preferably at 2 - 3 days old and get the vet out because I wouldn't want to take pups to a surgery at that young age; it's well worth the callout fee to my mind! It hardly takes a minute each pup and they soon forget about it as you put them back on a teat again! Once done there is no more trouble with them but if you don't do them, they can easily get caught up and rip which makes a real mess and is forever tender and vulnerable again. Also, being Springers they are quite likely to get into situations where they can be caught I think so why invite trouble?

On a different topic, I do wish you still stood your stallion at home, I had my eye on him until he moved to The Twemlows!
 
Some vets won't do it but most will. Are you talking hind dew claws or all round? 2-3 days as MFH says and they just snip them off with scissors and then stub them with the quortizone (spl) powder. Mine screamed blue murder and probably best to take someone with you to control the bitch, dad had a job holding Skye back.

Just out of interest if they're workers why aren't you having them docked? Docking is far less painful than snipping their dew claws off.
 
Thanks for the advice , they aren't workers they are the show type and new laws state that if anyone buying a springer to show can't show them at shows where the public are going to be i think it's ridiculous but thats how it is now so thats why i am not having them docked. Regarding the stallion he is only going to Twemlows for 2 weeks this season to have some more semen collected then he is coming back home pm me for more details thanks.
 
Used to always dock back dews on GSDs but left the front ones on. Strangely in latter years very few pups had back ones. Agree with MFH mine used to hardly squeak when they were done.
 
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Agree with MFH mine used to hardly squeak when they were done.

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Mine screamed blue murder
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the people in the waiting room asked what on earth was going on in there
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lol
 
gonna get shot down in flames for this I bet but my mum does it herself with a pair of dog nail clippers. Super sharp.

Her theory is that it is less upseting to the pups to have a moment of unpleasantness then go back to mum than to bundle the whole litter into the car at a few days to go to vet. I have seen it done, initially I was horrified but out of a litter averging 7 she will get 2 pups that squeak, 4 that whine because they have been picked up but nothing more and one that wont' even wake up!

She takes dew claws off all round, reason being we have an older bitch who she bought with dew claws and the poor girl has torn them so many times, causing her AGONY when it happens and a wound that takes ages to heal. After 9 years and countless tears to the dew claw, Twiglet has lost almost all sensation in it and my mum now keeps it clipped right back as far as she can but it is still a worry.

My personal advice would be to get rid of dew claws - get the vet to do it the first time but then think about if you could bear to do it yourself depending on how your breed reacts. Whippets - like I said - hardly seem to feel it, some don't feel it at all.
 
Thanks everyone i will ask my vet if he will do it i am just a bit worried about asking him because i know he is dead against docking i don't want to upset him but i do need know whether he would do it or not oh well will make the phone call and see what he says thanks again for the advice
 
You won't get shot down in flames from me, my dad was horrified at £30.00 to snip off about 6 claws (with scissors) which took seconds. I'd rather a vet do it but its just like jabbing, it amazes me that its illegal to vaccinate your own dog (which is an under the skin injection) yet vets will often give you a course of intra-musclular antibiotics to inject yourself.....crazy really.
 
My JRT doesn't seem to have hind dew claws, or am I being particularly blind. She is docked though, could she have had the hind claws off at the same time as being docked.

Sorry - bit of a tangent??

Fiona
 
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My JRT doesn't seem to have hind dew claws, or am I being particularly blind. She is docked though, could she have had the hind claws off at the same time as being docked.

Sorry - bit of a tangent??

Fiona

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Only three out of my litter had hind dew claws
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We take the bassets dew claws off within hours, as everything is still soft and have done so for years. We were shown how to do it properly by the vet. I had to have the staffs done when one was spayed and the other had his eye out, as we didn't breed those.
 
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