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After Cropping Care / Treatment - Help

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  • After Cropping Care / Treatment - Help

    We got our pup’s ears cropped this past weekend (see attached pic). It was kind of traumatizing for us, and left the vet’s office without getting a detailed explanation of what was to follow… or maybe they said, but all we could think about was our poor little baby looking all sad from the anesthesia & wondering if we had made the right decision.

    We did our research and found a reputable veterinarian from this forum. His name is Dr. Ken Main from the Allegan Animal Clinic in Michigan (http://allegananimalclinic.com/services/ear_clipping/index.htm). They perform hundreds of crops a year and obviously know what they are doing. I had my last Dane’s ears cropped, but the ends flipped and we associate that somewhat with a sub-par crop. This is the first time that we have had experience with the ears being taped to cups (i.e. cone-head). I’m not 100% clear on what we should be watching out for, and what the proper next steps are. When we left, the vet simply said, “stitches come out in seven days.” I admit, we were probably only ½-listening because our intention was to take the pup to our local vet to have the stitches removed, as the ear-cropping vet is a three-hour drive away.

    Now that we got him home, we started thinking… maybe we should have the vet that knows about ear cropping remove the stitches because he can evaluate things properly and let us know if everything is going okay. Plus, he mentioned that he would do it at no charge.

    Well, I just called my local vet and the receptionist said that they do not charge to remove stitches. I told her that it was for ear cropping, and assumed that she knew that they weren’t put in at that location (because they don't do ear cropping), but maybe not. Wouldn’t they normally charge for that?

    I called the ear cropping vet, and their receptionist told me that only the top stitches come out in seven days. The ears stay taped to the cup, and then the bottom stitches (metal in the bell) come out in 14 days. That’s something that both of us missed. So, now if we go back we will have made three trips, totaling 18 hours of driving. Is it worth it, or are we over-reacting and our local vet should be able to do a fine job? How the heck are they going to remove the stitches (especially the bottom metal ones) without stabbing / hurting my poor little baby; won’t he be squirming around like crazy?

    I asked the ear cropping vet if after the removal of the bottom stitches if they would perform the first tapping for us, as I figured that would at least make the drive more worthwhile. They said typically they do not because they need to wash the ears out really well and then they are too wet to tape for a while.

    Does anyone else have experience with regular + metal sutures, tapping to a cup, or Dr. Ken Main that can chime in and give me a detailed explanation of what the proper next steps are?

    Also, we’re worried about how the ears are doing. Granted they were cropped on Friday, and this is Monday – 72 hours later, but he is really shaking his head a lot, trying to scratch his ears, etc. Is this normal? I don’t remember it being that bad with the first pup, but that was 10 years ago & there wasn’t a cup. There is a little bit of wetness/puss, but I have taken the advice from this forum and applied Gold Bond powder to the edges and that seemed to dry them up nicely. The vet gave us some pain killer, but they sure do seem to be irritating him. The ears do kind of smell funny, which I have read is a sign of infection. However, since they are really tapped up, including something inside of the ear, we’re kind of assuming that the smell is normal… especially since he’s on antibiotics.


    Are we over-reacting? What should we watch out for? Should we worry about him shaking & scratching so much?

    Is it worth another couple of six-hour round-trip drives to have the ear-cropping vet remove the stitches, or should we just go to our local vet if the edges look to be healing fine?

    Sorry for the long post. Thanks in advance for your help.
    Attached Files

  • #2
    I was told that any vet can remove the stitches. We had stitches removed by local vet (same story - 3 hours drive one way to the vet who did cropping). Result - I removed 2 stitches that he missed at home, and we completely missed one more, at the very top of the ear - so now she has a little bump where the stitch was left. It's not too noticeable, but still..
    So with this experience, if I do cropping again, I'll have original vet to remove stitches - at least they know how many stitches are there, and where they are.

    Mine was shacking her head and trying to itch the ears too; Gold Balm helped a lot, and we also put a collar on her, so she wasn't able to reach the stitches. We used inflatable type of collar, it was much easier for her

    Comment


    • #3
      If that is vet wrap around the pasterns on his legs, those should be removed by now.

      Side stitches come out at 7 - 8 days. I do day 8. I also take out the bottom stitches at 8 days. The problem with waiting too long to take out the stitches is that a Dane's ears grow fast and it becomes harder to get the stitches out as they tend to grow into the ear tissue. I have never had metal stitches in the base of the ears. But, I can see why some vets would prefer that.

      Yes, a regular Vet can remove the stitches. My regular vet charges me to remove stitches if they didn't do the surgery. If yours doesn't then that is
      great.

      The pup might be shaking his head because the ears feel different. I see shaking usually only the first day. Another reason may be that the ear canals were not completely cleaned of blood from the surgery. I assist my vet when doing my ear crops. We take a lot of time to clean the entire ear and the ear canal.

      If the edges of the ears look clean and not inflammed (red), then they are doing ok. The edges of the ears should not be covered with tape at this point. Sometimes they are covered for about 48 hrs. But, I believe they need air after that or they get gooey.

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      • #4
        Many vets tape to a cup immediately after the surgery. It allows the ears to be posted, while still allowing the cut edge to breathe. Provided there are no set backs, I would have your local vet remove the stitches and save the gas/wear and tear on your vehicle.

        My handler (former vet tech) and I removed the stitches from Kaos' ears on our own. I have never had metal stitches (staples) though, so I can't help there.
        sigpic
        Logan, Member GDCA and Past President GDCMF
        Int'l CH & AM GCH Legacys Killer Instinct, TT, CHIC (Kaos)
        www.lokenigreatdanes.com

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        • #5
          Originally posted by saharadane View Post
          If that is vet wrap around the pasterns on his legs, those should be removed by now.
          Did he have his dew claws removed at the same? I wonder if that is what the bandages are for?

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          • #6
            Dew claws are typically removed at 3 days old???
            sigpic
            Logan, Member GDCA and Past President GDCMF
            Int'l CH & AM GCH Legacys Killer Instinct, TT, CHIC (Kaos)
            www.lokenigreatdanes.com

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Amiabull View Post
              Did he have his dew claws removed at the same? I wonder if that is what the bandages are for?
              Yes, those bandages on his legs are from the removal of his dew claws. I figured since he was under anyway that he could get those removed. I was worried that the combination of those + his ears would be a lot for him to handle, but his claws/legs don't seem to bother him at all. He picks at the tape/wrap a little, but it doesn't seem to hurt him. The vet said to leave the tape on for a week or when they get dirty, whichever comes first.

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              • #8
                Good news... when I came home from work today he is now much better than yesterday. He is still shaking his head a little, but crying much less - and his energy is WAY up. He is either getting used to the cups, and/or the ear cropping is healing and not bothering him as much.

                Now I just need to figure out what to do about removing the stitches. On the bottom there is a few of the thread stitches followed by three metal staples... looks like they would be a challenge to take out, but maybe they use a special tool or something.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by arwun View Post
                  Good news... when I came home from work today he is now much better than yesterday. He is still shaking his head a little, but crying much less - and his energy is WAY up. He is either getting used to the cups, and/or the ear cropping is healing and not bothering him as much.

                  Now I just need to figure out what to do about removing the stitches. On the bottom there is a few of the thread stitches followed by three metal staples... looks like they would be a challenge to take out, but maybe they use a special tool or something.
                  Hi you can remove these with wire cutters.But with that said be very careful you do not cut his ears.

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by lwrees72 View Post
                    Dew claws are typically removed at 3 days old???
                    Correct all my pups had dew claws removed at 3 days old.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by daneslave View Post
                      Correct all my pups had dew claws removed at 3 days old.
                      The breeder did not have of the dew claws removed on any of the pups in the litter, so I decided to have it done at the same time as his ears. I had told her that I wanted her to do it, but by that time it was way past three days old (they were already five weeks old), so she offered to take $125 off the price of the pooch to pay for their removal.

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by daneslave View Post
                        Hi you can remove these with wire cutters.But with that said be very careful you do not cut his ears.
                        Umm, there's no way that I'd trust myself to do that & I hope that the vet has a quicker / better way to remove them.

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                        • #13
                          Originally posted by arwun View Post
                          Umm, there's no way that I'd trust myself to do that & I hope that the vet has a quicker / better way to remove them.
                          Thats what they use wire cutters.

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by daneslave View Post
                            Thats what they use wire cutters.
                            Well at least they have some practice, and they are not charging me for it.

                            The only practice that I have with wire cutters is cutting wire that is not attached to a dog.

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                            • #15
                              I haven't seen a vet cut staples with wire cutters.... But maybe some do.
                              When I had my very tiny Chi girl spayed they stapled her as well as internal sutures. We had to take her back to the vet to get the staples taken out, they had a special tool that is made specifically for the staples. Not sure exactly how it works but some how it grabs the middle and pushes it in a certain way that causes the stapled in ends to lift away so they can just take the staples out. My girl made a big deal about it screaming and such, but supposedly it really doesn't hurt (she's a big drama queen). But no experience with the ears, just wanted to chime in about that part.
                              sigpic Halpert at 28 months

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