Pets

[MistyoC]

Depends on the owner for Great Danes. I know of one owner that decided to have her Dane's tail docked because he was too destructive with it. Not that he injured his tail, but he broke decorative items in the home. But yeah, their tails really can hurt you if hit by them!

Another time when declawing might be beneficial would be those cats with skin/collagen defects. Those cats can't even be scruffed without potentially significant consequences.

True some individual Danes have their tails docked, but it is not the norm for the breed,.

[Kitei]

Boxer types are very prone to damaging their tails, that I know. Interestingly, in the UK, an ex-judge of the breed (I believe that's what he was) dedicated years producing a line that naturally have bobtails. I'm not for docking for aesthetic purposes, but am -neutral- on the side for working animals. A lot of dogs in the UK that are docked are actually from working lines, but purchased by pet homes. As docking is done on puppies rather than adults, it can be impossible to predict where exactly these dogs will end up. Of course, I'm certain that some breeders are not so honest.

I'm 100% declawing a cat in all circumstances. A dog can get by without even noticing the lack of a tail, and won't suffer consequences from it. Declawing usually removes the last bone of each toe, and is far less humane. There's plenty of information on the internet about it, if you really want to know why so many are so against it.

[Rainwater]

I'm 100% declawing a cat in all circumstances. A dog can get by without even noticing the lack of a tail, and won't suffer consequences from it. Declawing usually removes the last bone of each toe, and is far less humane. There's plenty of information on the internet about it, if you really want to know why so many are so against it.

Even for medical reasons? As I mentioned, declawing is mentioned as a potential treatment aid for cats with certain skin/collagen defects. I have personally seen one of these cats. If she scratched at a fly that landed on her back, she would remove chunks of skin with ease. If someone scruffed the cat, chunks of skin were easily removed. Would you rather see these cats euthanized (and if you do, I'm not saying you are wrong)? I'm not saying all cats have this condition. But, if the cat was treated with appropriate nerve blocks and multimodal analgesia, is it really inhumane to try and prevent the cat from skinning itself alive by normal activities?

Don't get me wrong. I don't like how some owners jump on board with declawing without considering what the procedure is and how it can affect the cat. I wish more owners would use claw trims, claw caps, scratching posts, etc. I hate when owners say their cat must be declawed or it will be thrown outside to the coyotes to munch on. I hate it when people get new furniture and to keep it "pretty" the cat must be declawed. I know well enough about the procedure, so I don't need to do any reading (unless there are new findings in peer-reviewed veterinary journals). However, I still wouldn't take away the option for medically warranted declaws. Similarly, I am also not against declawing individual digits as needed (too much damage to save the claw or cancerous growths for example) so long as appropriate analgesia is provided.

[sammythethief]

I'm just going to shoulder my way in here, no need to be alarmed, just a wild Red on the loose...

We bought Slash a new tank! I'm working at PetSmart now, so I got a discount on a tank that was already on sale. It's the NatGeo Reptile Sanctuary, and it's great.

Spoiler

The first and most important reason why I wanted it was because it's got front opening doors. Admittedly, we haven't been getting him out as often as we'd like or should, but it was also a pain to remove the lid and dig around for him, only to come in as death from above. With this tank, we come in on his level, and there is much less noise. Virtually none; we don't rattle the tank trying to get the lid off. We just unlock it and the doors glide open noiselessly. The only thing I have an issue with is the screen on the right side toward the back. It allows for more air flow, but also lets a lot of humidity escape. It's not such a big deal when he's not shedding; he's a desert snake, so if his humidity stays at around 30% most of the time, it's okay. But during shed time, I mist his habitat three times a day and put damp terrarium moss in there. We have a sheet of thick plastic cut to fit the size of the top lid (was for the old tank, also fits the new one) that we put on when we want to keep the humidity in. But it's going to slip right out through that side. B is going to cut a piece of plexiglass at work, and we're going to fit it over that wire mesh. Fortunately, at six and a half years old, he doesn't shed as much as he used to, so we have some time to get that done.

But overall, it's a lovely new tank for him! There's nothing wrong with the old one at all (well, one locking tab is melted, but the other is fine and the tank is perfectly secure). We think that next year, we're going to budget and shop around for a bearded dragon I'd like to go to ReptiCon and see what they have, or maybe go through a rescue. A beardie will fit into Slash's old tank for a while, and then we're going to build him his own custom enclosure, nice and roomy. And then maybe I'll get my blue tongued skink that I want so bad :3

Here's Slash enjoying some basking time. He was soaking up the heat all day yesterday~



And here is Sora.

He's doing well, no hip problems lately to speak of. He loves having such a huge yard to run around in, and he goes visiting to the neighbour's yard every time he sees their dog out. He remains the best dog we could have asked for, and we love him more every day

[Flyte]

I have a (almost) 2-year-old Blue Weimaraner named Juno.

She is crazily energetic, brilliantly intelligent, and frustratingly disobedient. She has her tail docked- almost all Weimaraners and their relatives, Vizslas, have their tails docked within a few days of birth because of their delicacy. The two breeds are barrel chested, energetic hunting dogs that are in constant need of stimulation and play. When the tail, which tapers to an incredibly thin point, is left intact, it is very, very likely that, as a combination of its inherent weakness and the rambunctious lifestyle of the dog, the tail will break or be ripped off. I'm no expert, but I know that (in these breeds at least) a tail injury results in the entire tail being amputated. There is no saving an injured tail. An amputation is vastly more painful and confusing for the dog than having their tail docked at two days of age (at which point the dog's nerves are so undeveloped that they feel little to no pain). I love my dog very much and I would never, NEVER want to put her through an amputation. The anxiety of being at the vet's office for a prolonged period of time, let alone having an appendage hacked off, would have serious mental repercussions for her.

[Silenxia]

Oh a medicine hat horse, very pretty and the gelding is quite a dashing boy.

Sadly...today was a day of sorrow. We had to put Jackson down...recently he was making moaning sounds which the vet said was due to inflammation in his back. He was given medicine that seemed to have been helping...but today...he couldn't walk. His front legs were fine, but he could only drag his hind legs. There was a problem with one of his spinal disks which made him pretty much paralyzed in his lower back and legs, he had some feeling in one leg, but not much. We took him to a surgical clinic and the doctor said his chances were 70%...but it sounded like it could fall to 50:50 on him being able to ever walk again...we had options and they just weren't enough for us to save him...we took him back to the vet and that was the end of it. Now all we have is Muka.

It hit everyone hard, including the vet who was going to do the proceedure. One of the nurses is an old family friend and she told us what he was taking it hard. Not surprising because he was a good job, kind of spoiled and bratty at times, but he liked meeting new people and would always give free kisses. Also he was a movie star, he was going to appear in a movie.

[Brynmala]

I'm really sorry to hear this, it is always hard to lose a pet. It sounds like you made the kindest decision for him though. Hugs



On the docking issue, I think its a bite of a catch 22 situation - the breeds ahve 'weak' tails because they've always been docked so no-one has put any effort into breeding 'good' tails into the breeds. Greyhounds also have thin whippy tails, but they get to keep theirs as they can't corner on a dog track properly without them. Racing dogs are kenneled during their careers and yes they do injure their tails by wagging them hard against the walls, and a tail injury willl bleed like a fountain! But they do also heal - sometimes they'll need a bit amputated (lots of retired dogs with only half a tail), but only as far as the injury, not the whole tail. To be honest I think a dog could cope with the loss of its tail far better than of a leg, but people don't seem to have any qualms about having a three legged dog. In the UK tail docking is now illegal (I think there are some exceptions, for genuinely working dogs).

On declawing cats - don't get me started! There is absolutely no excuse for this barbaric practice, unless there is a sound medical reason, and even then it should be a last resort.

[LightningDragon]

Silenxia, I'm so sorry to hear that.

[Silenxia]

Thank you, it was hard...but we're doing okay now. At least he survived one year more and...he didn't end up going like Rusty did. Ruby swallowed a piece of hamburger (got into our trash) and he began choking until he collapsed and wasn't breathing. My mom used CPR on him (which revived him) but then things started going wrong. Maybe when he stopped breathing something happened...but he lost his eye sight and began to let out a piericng cry...it was horrible.

Does the hair on the dock tail still act normal? I've haven't seen him for years, but my Uncle's Brittany has a docked tail and one time that I saw him, there was a little tuft of hair on its tip. It's been a long time since I saw him, but I do recall that strange lock of hair on his stubby tail.

Is that common? At least in Spaniel breeds?

[Grimace]

Anyone else here keep big snakes? I'm up to 4 retics and 2 anacondas haha