This involves cutting off a puppy’s tail between 1 and 3 days of age. Most people don’t know that it is usually done with a pair of scissors or nail- clippers and always without anaesthetic. The pro-dockers will have you believe that some puppies won’t even notice because it is so painless. This is absolute rubbish. It is the equivalent of cutting off a human baby’s little finger. Do you think it would notice? So why do it?Primarily it was done to working animals like Spaniels to prevent damage while hunting. How many docked breeds still work? When was the last time you saw a working Yorkshire Terrier or Poodle? Now it is done because the ‘breed standard’ says it should be.
Tail-docking is not only barbaric and an unnecessary mutilation it also removes one of the primary means of communication of about 50% of our dogs. A certain number are incorrectly done, illegally by the breeders and can result in horrific spinal cord infections which can be fatal. We condemn places like the States where they still crop ears and declaw cats but we are SO hypocritical.
Get into the 21st century and STOP IT!
