It consists of cutting between the bones in the tail to shorten its length and the amount of the tail that is cut or "docked" will depend on why it is being removed to begin with. Tail docking is a surgical procedure recommended to be done by a veterinarian, regardless of the age of a dog, but is sometimes done on newborn puppies by breeders at home. It is also known as a tail amputation even if only a portion of the tail is removed.
Historically, puppies had their tails docked as newborns because the ancient Romans thought it would prevent rabies and make them better at hunting. We know there is no factual evidence for either of these claims so today it is typically done in puppies for one of two reasons - appearance or to prevent injuries. Certain breeds of dogs are known to look a certain way and tail docking is sometimes done to achieve this look.
Other breeds have tails docked as puppies to help prevent tail injuries in the future. This is especially true with hunting breeds or in breeds like viszlas and doberman pinschers that naturally have very long, slender tails if they aren't docked.
These dogs may hurt their tails while running through bushes and trees or from excitedly wagging their thin tails against a hard surface. They will be docked as puppies to help prevent these injuries from occurring when they are adults. There are many dog breeds that commonly have their tails docked as newborn puppies. These include doberman pinschers , rottweilers , various spaniels, Yorkshire terriers , German shorthaired pointers, poodles, schnauzers, viszlas, Irish terriers, airedale terriers, and others.
If an adult dog needs its tail docked it is because it has an injury or other medical reason for the amputation. Tail docking in adult dogs should not be done simply for aesthetic reasons. Tail docking is painful even in puppies. Cutting through skin, muscle, nerves, and between bones is never a non-painful procedure, even if a puppy is only 2 days old.
It will still feel the procedure but many breeders do it without anesthetics or sedation since the puppies are easily restrained. This is a controversial procedure but still widely accepted by many. Adult dog tail docking is even more painful though and should never be performed without anesthesia and by anyone other than a veterinarian. Tail docking is not without complications, even if performed by a veterinarian.
Thrusfield P, Holt M. Association in bitches between breed, size, neutering and docking, and acquired urinary incontinence due to incompetence of the urethral sphincter mechanism. Behavioural observations of puppies undergoing tail docking. Appl Anim Behav Sci ;4: Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology ; The emergence of adolescent onset pain hypersensitivity following neonatal nerve injury.
Molecular Pain ; Canine homolog of the T-box transcription factor T; failure of the protein to bind to its DNA target leads to a short-tail phenotype. Mammalian Genome ; Emily G. Patterson-Kane Sheilah A. Robertson New veterinarian Answers to the questions you're facing as you start out in your professional life. Rising professional Early-career resources to continue your professional and personal growth.
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Site search. A: Tail docking seems to have emerged for a variety of reasons, but for some breeds it was proposed primarily to improve appearance. Books from different periods openly refer to docking of some breeds to create a pleasing appearance e. The American Book of the Dog , , p.
Rules for pedigree dog shows in the United States established during the mids formalized the docking tradition within some breed fancies regardless of the origin of the practice. The history of veterinary opposition to cosmetic tail docking is long. Opposition to tail docking is also the stated policy of other veterinary associations e. This is not the case; the basic nervous system of a dog is fully developed at birth.
Evidence indicates that puppies have similar sensitivity to pain as adult dogs. Tail docking is usually carried out without any anaesthesia or analgesia pain relief. Puppies give repeated intense shrieking vocalisations the moment the tail is cut off and during stitching of the wound, indicating that they experience substantial pain.
Inflammation and damage to the tissues also cause ongoing pain while the wound heals. There is also the risk of infection or other complications associated with this unnecessary surgery. Tail docking can also cause unnecessary and avoidable long term chronic pain and distress to the dog. For example, when a chronic neuroma forms at the amputation site. Neuromas are often very painful.
The tail is a major communication tool between dogs. Thus the tail also serves as a protective mechanism for dogs, part of the various strategies employed by dogs to communicate with one another; establish boundaries and to avert aggressive encounters.
The tail also communicates important messages to humans during human-dog interactions. Thus the tail plays an important role in public health and safety. Therefore tails must not be removed for any reason other than for therapeutic purposes. The few remaining advocates of tail docking give a range of unconvincing explanations to defend their views. For instance, they say that some heavy coated breeds need to have their tails docked for hygiene reasons even though many undocked breeds have thick coats and regular care is all that is necessary to maintain good hygiene.
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