For better or worse, the Doberman Pinscher, as defined by the AKC-recognized DPCA official breed standard, is a “cropped” breed. This means that a portion of each ear is expected to be surgically removed from the dog in a “normal” way, such that the cropped ears of a dog will stand erect when the dog is alert. By dog, I mean puppy, successful crops are performed at around 7 to 12 weeks of age. After cropping, the ears must be kept clean to prevent infection, and be “posted” to help them stand erect and maintain their desired shape as the puppy grows and their ear cartilage hardens.
Prerequisite
The actual cropping procedure is a surgical operation that is best performed by a veterinarian and under the guidance of an experienced breeder. A breeder will have done a ton of behind-the-scenes prep work to arrange for and care for the foundation of a “good crop” before the dog ever gets to the owner. For every one way to get it right, there’s a dozen ways to screw it up. There are always exceptions, but in general, if you find yourself with a dog that was not copped while in the possession of the breeder, then you’re more than likely going to be better off not having the dog cropped. Love them as they are and enjoy not having to deal with the pain of posting ears for months.
Steps
- Keep the ears clean to prevent infection
- Add a support structure to the ears so they stand erect and maintain their desired shape
- Repeat (unless there’s an issue) about every 6 days until the ears stand on their own
Reality
There are as many posting techniques as there are examples of cropped ears. Every dog and every crop will have it’s own unique characteristics. An experienced poster will be able to select the right type of ear post to best suit the dog.
Insider Knowledge
The first person to ask for posting advice is the breeder. The breeder will have intimate knowledge of the cleanliness of the healed wound, the state of the ear cartilage, the type (shape) of crop, and how the ears are likely grow over time. They will likely tell you the type of ear posting technique that works best for them, and the brand of materials that they like the most. Try to copy-cat the breeder’s technique for as long as possible, or as long as the ears are healthy and maintaining the desired shape.
In-Person Guidance
Even an experienced Doberman owner should have someone checking over their work to ensure that the ears are healthy and that the posting technique is having the desired effect. If you’re close enough, ideally the breeder is available to consult for assistance in posting. If that’s not possible, ask the breeder to put you in contact with someone near you who has either posted one of their dogs, or is known to have experience posting. Otherwise you could reach out to your local DPCA chapter club to put you in contact with someone nearby who can help.
Remote Guidance
Obviously, with ear posting being such a hands-on process it’s best to have in-person assistance, but if for whatever reason, no one is within reach, you’re going to want to join the Doberman Ear Taping Methods “The Original” private Facebook group. I’m typically the first to be suspicions of anyone looking to Facebook for good advice on anything important, but this group is different. The original Doberman ear taping group typically has about one photo-post every day or two, and it’s not uncommon each post to receive dozens of candid replies from knowledgeable Doberman owners across the world. Always use your best judgement, who knows, sometimes all it takes is one look by experienced eyes to know if an ear posting healthy and effective or not.
Online Information
Besides the Facebook group, if you go searching, it’s easy to find encyclopedias worth of ear posting information that has been shared on the internet over the years. And, like anything, you have to be careful how much weight you ascribe to any one method or opinion, especially when it comes to health of your dog. But, there are two resources that I feel are good places to start.
DPCA Seminar Recording
At a recent DPCA national, Dr. Kay Backues DVM gave a seminar on ear posting. This seminar was recorded by Elizabeth Barrett and graciously uploaded to her YouTube channel The Doberman Way. This is a great resource to both see and hear how (very) experienced people in the Doberman community would approach various types of ear posting challenges. Definitely worth a watch or two.
DPCA Ear Care/Taping Articles
The DPCA Breeder Education section on Ear Care/Taping Articles
The DPCA site is a little clunky, but if you’re willing to read a bit, you’ll find troves of hard learned lessons, documented over the decades by some of the best people to ever set hands on a Doberman. Some of the articles on this section (like Taping: Backer Rod) were actually written by Dr. Backues herself.
Good luck and savor the time you have with your dog as a puppy.
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