Dew Claws

[05whippet]

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I have a question..........regarding dew claws on or off????

I only have Whippet with them left on (I got him like that) my others all them off and my own litter I had them removed.But one of my Min Poodles has them left on even though both came from the same breeder & both were shown.

Just would like to know the pros and cons regarding these please!

 

[nina]

I would say in a short coated, long legged, running breed like ours DEFINITELY OFF.

It is far kinder to take them off in the first 48 hours of their birth, if its done correctly,one quick snip, it doesn't even bleed, put them back with mum & its all over & done with.

The alternative is have them tear them off when fully grown running through long grass or shrubs etc which is terribly painful for them, bleeds like hell & can end up with them in the vets under anaesthetic having to be stitched up.

I had 2 Rescue Lurchers many years ago & used to take them to Richmond Park every day where they loved bounding in & out of the bracken rabbiting & both of them over the years tore both dew claws off their front legs at different stages, each time resulting in vet trips anaesthetics & stitching.

Funnily enough I've found that my 2 affies both have theirs left on & that Affie breeders dont seem to take the dew claws off but i guess this is probably cos they have such a long thick coat covering on their legs that the dew claws are well protected & dont get the same chance to be caught on anything & torn out.

Just my opinion anyway but i always remove the dew claws of my IG's & whippets.

Nina

 

[Paula Roberts]

Don"t know about Poodles but with Whippets take them off definatly.

 

[Pennymeadow Whippets]

After seeing the damage done when dew claws get ripped back or off i would say take them off every time :thumbsup:

 

[EJW]

Yep! Me too.

 

[Seraphina]

I take them off my Whippet puppies, as Nina said is quite simple procedure in the first few days of life. However, once the pups are over 6 days it is a major op, only done under general anesthetic. You could wait until the dog gets desexed, but it is still. as my vet put it; a major bone crunching procedure. My vet would not do it on an adult unless there was some particularly compelling reason to do so. There is a small chance of injury, but there is also a chance nothing will happen. Borzois also do not have them removed, I had 7 of them over the years, all running regularly in the country over very rough terrain and i had never had a problem. I certainly would not worry about poodle.

 

[playawhile]

Hi!

I never touch the dew claws and have never had any problems! I dislike putting the puppies through a thing like removing the dew claws.

So I say, leave them like they are!!

Henrik Härling

 

[05whippet]

Thanks, everyone has their own views again.

But for me personally I like to remove them,as our dogs work as well as show.

Was just wondering why one of the poodles was done & one was not? as they were from the same breeder???

 

[Mark Roberts]

A lot of people have them removed at a vets so maybe (and i'm only guessing) but either they didnt have the time to take them and get them done (maybe due to working) or they changed their minds on whether they beleaved they should be removed.

We always remove the dew clays at 3 days old, the pups dont appear to suffer much stress from it because as soon as they are put back with mum they imediatly start feeding again within seconds of having them removed and it also saves the possibility of a ripped or broken due clay at a later date which might then need to be removed under anethetic (I know which I think it safer to the pup/dog)

 

[wild whippies]

Another possibility is a different veterinary surgeon, mine was reluctant to remove them. With hindsight I probably would of had them removed but my whips dewclaws are very flush to their legs, I meticulously keep them short and I always bandage them when racing. So far (touch wood) I've been lucky and I'm reluctant to subject them to a general anaesthetic to have them removed as an adult unless of course they injured themselves to which at that point, I'd personally feel more justified in proceeding with surgery.

I've seen loads of dobermanns have their dewclaws removed as 3 day old pups and with a decent vet, the whole procedure is usually minor and uneventful.

 

[Phoenyx]

Molly has had hers removed (she was a racer) but the stubs of where they used to be do seem to bother her sometimes. She chews at them a lot, as though they are uncomfortable, although there's no signs of soreness or any obvious problems. Anyone else notice this?

Jules

 

[Paula Roberts]

Ours have all had theres removed and there are no stubbs if you didn"t know you wouldnt say there had been dew claws there in the first place.

 

[mally]

Hi!
I never touch the dew claws and have never had any problems! I dislike putting the puppies through a thing like removing the dew claws.

So I say, leave them like they are!!

Henrik Härling

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

​

You obvously hav'nt seen a whippet rip there dewclaws off when doing what they were bred for working. I'm really surprised you havn't had problems yourself. DO YOU LET YOUR DOGS OFF THERE LEADS?. I wouldn't buy a whippet with dewclaws and i'd never recommend anyone else too.I recently bred a litter of ten and i removed there dewclaws at two days old, they didn't bother when they were removed. I 'd sooner subject the puppy to 10 seconds of stress than days of agony for an adult dog through a ripped dewclaw.

People whom know me on k9 know i speak from experience when it comes to working dogs. Take dewclaws off at birth if you care about the dogs welfare.

 

[Mark Roberts]

Molly has had hers removed (she was a racer) but the stubs of where they used to be do seem to bother her sometimes

Hi Jules, from the sound of it i'd say they wern't removed properly when your dog was a pup.

This is why Vets should still (IMO) remove dew claws then they are definatly removed correctly and theres no chance of the re-growing and causing the dog any problem (or as in your case leaving stumps)

 

[Dar Khan]

Have read somewhere and been told that removing the dew claws can cause arthritis in the dogs wrists .

 

[rls22]

Have read somewhere and been told that removing the dew claws can cause arthritis in the dogs wrists .

Talk about resurrecting an old thread!!!

I would be interested to know where you heard that, it is certainly not one I have ever heard before.

 

[Esty]

My two have their dew claws and so far we've had no problems but I know it could happen in future. I first saw the pups at 5 weeks old and wasn't about to refuse them just because they still had their dewclaws as I knew we wouldn't be racing or working them. They do run off lead but it's a chance you take - equally they could break a leg or suffer skin tears when freerunning. I understand that it is not as stressful when they are a couple of days old but still :unsure: .... and I've heard people saying it looks better and that is the main reason to do it, which is wrong. I can see it from a health point of view, but to do it cos it looks more streamlined is wrong.

We had an Afghan who had his dew claws and he never had any problems - I think the long hair does protect them as it completely covers the claws.

 

[k4tie-d]

Have read somewhere and been told that removing the dew claws can cause arthritis in the dogs wrists .

Talk about resurrecting an old thread!!!

I would be interested to know where you heard that, it is certainly not one I have ever heard before.

i always wonder how old threads get brought back up like this out of no where, :wacko:

but while we are on the subject lol, definatly off, Star snapped hers last week playing in the garden, very close to the cutical (if thats what you call it) loads of blood, looked awfull, she was limping for a few hours, vethad to ive her a local to cut the hanging bit off and then anti-bis and dressed it, and a £102 bill for us.

deffinatly 100% take them off. :thumbsup:

 

[Janimal]

God Katie what a nightmare for you, hope Star is recovering. My very first whippet Lady ripped hers off

and had to be put under aneasthetic to have them removed at around 1 year old.

(Trevor did get someone to take the little gems litters dewclaws off, but some of them grew back..they obviously were not done correctly...Stars likewise

Kobi and Oscar both have no dewclaws, but Archie has his...so far had no problems...touch wood... :blink: but I agree I prefer them OFF

 

[Dar Khan]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewclaw fourth paragraph down is all I can find for now .