between 11 and 15 weeks

A: Most vets recommend getting your pups ears cropped between 7-12 weeks of age. You can crop your dog’s ears at any age. However, most vets will not crop the dogs ears once they reach a certain age. Other vets have no age limit and will crop a full grown dog’s ears.

around 8 to 12 weeks

Four months of age is really too old to crop. Most reputable breeders crop their puppies between the ages of 7 to 10 weeks, with the average being 8 weeks.

Ear cropping is painful and completely unnecessary. Despite what some breeders will claim, cropping a dog’s ears does not benefit them in any way. It can be detrimental to their health, behaviour and welfare in the short-term and in the long-term.

Doberman ears aren’t long or heavy, so infections are less of a problem; however, cropped ears do generally stay cleaner than uncropped ears do. Additionally, a cropped ear is less likely to develop a hematoma (a blood-filled pocket on the ear leather), which typically requires surgery to repair.

Essentially ear cropping is done to comply with show standards or because the owners like the way it makes the dog look. There are people who want their Doberman to appear as intimidating as possible. As this study found, dogs with cropped ears are perceived as being more aggressive and dominant.

How Is Ear Cropping Done? In order for the ears to heal in the desired upright precision after surgery, they must be “posted” to a hard surface and taped until completely healed. Bandages need to be changed weekly, typically. The entire process can last from 4-8 weeks.

How Long Does the Procedure Take? The procedure takes about 45 minutes to 1-1/4 hours to perform in most cases, including the needed time for preparation and anesthesia.

You can also find local vet that performs ear cropping surgeries here: Vets That Crop Ears in the United States. On average, you can expect to pay anything from $150 to over $600.

A Doberman’s ears are generally cropped when the dog is between 7 and 9 weeks old. However, some veterinarians will perform the procedure as late as 12 weeks. Any later than 12 weeks of age and it isn’t likely that the dog’s ears will stand because the cartilage in the ear has hardened.

Ear cropping in dogs It serves no other function than to help a dog adhere to a certain breed standard. It does not prevent ear infections or improve a dog’s “balance.” While it’s illegal in most of the Western world, it’s only regulated in nine US states.

Animal Benefits—It has been suggested that dogs with cropped ears are less likely to suffer from infections of the ear canal. Although the development of some serious infections has been linked to the presence of a heavy hanging ear8, there is no evidence that cropping prevents or successfully treats these infections.

The American Veterinary Medical Association states that “ear-cropping and tail-docking are not medically indicated nor of benefit to the patient. These procedures cause pain and distress and, as with all surgical procedures, are accompanied by inherent risks of anesthesia, blood loss, and infection.