Tail Docking

aparently some dogs are prone to tail injuries that are far more painful than docking the tail at a young age...

some countries have already outlawed tail docking.. when i went to germany last winter i saw my first cocker spaniel with tail. i had always wondered how that would look and i really liked it!

if you check the archives you will find previous threads discussing this...cropping, dewclaws and numerous other such topics. My viewpoints have been gone over in those pretty much

Okay, I skimmed through a couple other posts about it... now I have another question.  Is is possible to get a Weim with a tail?  Are there breeders out there that would leave it?  If I ever decide to get a breed other than beagle, I think weims are just beautiful, but the tail thing irks me. 

Be tough IMO. It's not like docking is done when the breeder knows the quality of the pup. It's done at 3 days old. You'd be hard pressed to find a fault at that age

You'd have better luck importing your Weim from a country that does not dock. I am pretty sure even folks who solely do working/sporting/hunting...dock,here in the USA so...perhaps looking outside the USA would be an option.

I cant comment on the history of tail docking however if I could have docked my girl's tail I would have....heck I tried but no vet would do it at such a late age.

At the very best she can leave bruises on the elderly and young. From my knee down I continously have welts or bruises.

But the worst is when she busts it open on things as dull as a door frame or coffee table. I dont mind cleaning up her spattered blood from my walls. I dont mind refraining from greeting her to eagerly when her tail is busted for fear she'll bust it open again.....heck I dont mind fighting with her to keep it wrapped, covered in salve and adminsitering peroxide and pain killers. I've even tried tieing it to her leg.

What I do mind is her whincing after she hits it on something turning her normal happy demeanor to pain. I hate feeling the bumps up and down her tail or seeing her licking at it frantically when it hurts the worst. It can be stitched and it takes a long time to heal do to the nature of the injury and repeated opening of the wound. Its hot to th etouch and very painful

This is one injury that was mild, not even her worst............

 My Aussie mix, Sioux, has an awesome full beautiful tail, but it sure sucks trying to get the burrs out of it...  I would love to have seen Sequoyah with a tail, but it was gone by the time I decided to take her.

Weims are awesome!! Big difference between them and beagles, be warned! lol (if you need help finding a breeder at some point do let me know, I can get you in touch with weim lists and clubs that will help. Just send a PM.)

You will not find a reputable breeder that does not dock their dogs tails.  As Gina said you cannot tell pet quality from show quality at that age. An undocked tail ("very serious fault" http://www.akc.org/breeds/weimaraner/index.cfm) will make the dog un-finishible, even though it is not a DQ.

When I did research into the docks it made me understand why they do it and I have no problem with it, it's one of the things that gives the weim the unmistakable silhouette. Also their tails are long and whip-like and usually unstoppable, and as poor Rory has demonstrated, they are prone to serious injury.

If you are deadset on an undocked tail, you could contact breeders in Aus and Europe, but I think you may have a problem getting one, as that's a LONG way for a breeder to send a pup solely on the merit of wanting an undocked dog, that's very hard on a puppy.  I do not think we will be going anti-docking here in the States (or Canada from what I know) for a longtime if ever, although due to the changes in Aus and Europe it may change the rules to make tailed dogs OK, but placing them one in an AKC ring may take a lot of time and a highly superior dog (in every other way).  They recently lifted the Longhair DQ on weims in Canada and I'm hearing stories about how many judges will not place them.  It takes time to change those set in their ways.

Again, don't hesitate to let me know if you would like help or want to talk weims! :) 

 From what I've read, back in the day, the farmers didn't have to pay taxes on their Pembroke Welsh Corgi, if the tail was docked. Its also done at three days old and yes they squeal for about a minute, then its over. Its nothing tramatic. I can't imagine Tootsie with a tail. I love her wighle butt.

the reason for the docking depends on the breed- some sporting breeds are docked because hunters noticed high rates of injury in un-docked tails; some dogs are docked because of weird taxes based on number of tails; some dogs are docked just to look more ferocious (think doberman). Personally I think only the breeds that have demonstrated high rates of injury should continue to be docked. It's not entirely painless and not entirely benign- some dogs develop painful neuromas at the site of the dock, and noted sports vet chris zink has some data that suggests tailless dogs have much higher rates of knee injuries than tailed dogs.

mudpuppy

chris zink has some data that suggests tailless dogs have much higher rates of knee injuries than tailed dogs.

This is interesting since one of the breeds most prone to knee injuries is the Chow Chow....Akitas have their fair share of issues back there as well. Perhaps it's more a question of tail CARRIAGE than tail length...assuming all dogs in the study had the exact same amount of flex and angulation...two other major contributors to knee issues.

 It's entirely possible that you'd find an undocked Weim in a shelter, somewhere. I've known loooots of BYB dogs that were undocked. Some of them were totally ok, and some had big tail issues.