Been trying various taping methods. Here's the one that's working for us. Bought 1 1/2 split pipe insulation (about 1.50 per 8 feet). It comes with a sticky side. Split the insultation down the middle and stick the stuff together making TWO solid round foam pieces. Cut into the size of the ear. Reinforced each round by wrapping with tape. Proceded to tape the ears as usual - we do the closed method, as it's really dusty here and the open method seems to unwrap in 24 hours. The insulation is rather stiff, but bends easy enough when the dogs play or run into stuff. It's cheap and light-weight. I don't worry about wooden sticks or stays in the ear. No reaction with the foam has been noticed either. Rewrapoing every three - five days. Ears are up and tight, but will wilt after 24 hours.
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
I have tried the same thing you are talking about with the pipe insulators, and I have the same problem, the ears will stay up for about a day and then they fall. I have tried to add in several braces in the middle to keep them up longer and it does not work. I was recommended to try the tentups. Their website explains everything about how they work, why they work, advantages, etc... I am thinking of trying them it can not hurt anything. The website is www.tentups.com. Hope this help and good luck!
Kameron
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
Our ears are ups at 5 months. The pipe insulation worked great. The ears are not floppy in the least. They seemed to "wilt" when the pup hit a grow spurt. I can not see paying the price for tentups, plus I've heard negative things about what the adhesive can do to the inside of the ear. I got the idea for pipe insulation from looking at their site. Believe me, the insulation has worked great, especially if you take your time wrapping. Plus it's dog friendly, no catching the ears on objects. The only thing I don't like is that it does close off the ear canal and the dog's ears can get stinky if you don't take care of them.
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
I too, have had great success with the pipe insulation, as for Zoey's ears are standing and she is only about 4 1/2 months. I would definitely recommend this procedure to anyone, since it is very simple and works great. Once in a while Zoey's ears will wilt from her growth spurts like Jenn stated. I then use Breathe Right strips (thanks Carolyn!!;-))wherever they are breaking over, since her bases are always very strong!
Mandi & the stooges
www.geocities.com/mandikehoe
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
Mandi,
How do you use the Breathe Right strips on your dogs' ears? I've never heard of that.
Mary & Heidi Ho Ho
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
I just put the strip wherever the cartilage is breaking over, on the inside of the ear, usually closer to the tips.
Mandi & the stooges
MandiComment
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
Where do you get the Breathe Right strips at ??
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
Any Pharmacy should have them (breath-easy strips)...they do work nicely! Another trick that a friend of mine discovered by accident was to use white glue if just the tips need some support but the ears themselves stand fine. She was going to retape the whole ear but decided that the tape wasn't sticky enough. She bought some Elmors white glue (you know the kind some kids like to eat at school) she was putting the glu on the ear when the phone rang...well if you were to know this friend she chats on the phone forever! so when she got back to taping the dog the glue had dried and voila! Perfect ears, couldn't even see the glue because it dries clear. This glue when dried gave just enough stiffness to hold the ear perfectly and did not cause any sensitivities to the ear at all.
It worked so well that you would think now that she invented every 3M product in use today! She brags about her 'find' to all that will listen! :7
Michele
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
Just thought I'd let you know that your link www.tentups.com doesn't pull up at all. We have tried to pull it up several times.
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RE: Pipe insulation support.
Mihi ... read your post on the elmers glue. We use the pipe insulation for our Zena's ears, which works great. But when our breeder instructed us on the tapings, she was using a product called Skin Bond (made by Smith & Nephew, also available at pharmacies/medical supply stores). It actually looks similar to an elmers glue type product. It comes in a bottle with a brush attached to the lid, and you just "paint" it on the pipe insulation. We then place the pipe insulation down into the ear canal (we have already cut and shaped the piece of insulation to fit the ear), press the ear against the "sticky" side where we have applied the bond and then we wrap tape around the ear in 2 places (near the top of the ear canal and just below the very tip of the ear). We then wrap tape around the top of each ear and through the center (as a brace).
To remove the bond, we use adhesive remover pads (like the little wipes they give you when you eat ribs .... lol). I was wondering, how do you remove elmers glue from the dog's ear when you change the tapings ??????
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