Dews

Can you remove a dog's dew claws at any time? I know it's usually done soon after birth, but I heard someone complaining that they should of done it when the dog was neutered.

 

no,,I wouldn't remove them when they are older,,dew claws should be removed at days old,,not at altering age.

 

i've never really understood the desire to remove dew claws for the average pet owner, or the seasoned dogger. what's the deal?

 

They can get snagged on things and sometimes are torn. My roommate's dog had to have one removed as an adult. It can be done, often extra toes of a cat will be removed by a vet as well if they are just hanging there. The nails can easily grow very fast and sometimes go unnoticed.

If the dog is having issues with his/her dew claws the owner should discuss it with the vet. It's very simple to do and may be worth it.

 

When we had our first litter, we had the dew claws removed shortly after they were born.

 

Just a note:

rear dewclaws should generally be removed unless the breed standard calls for them. There is actually a FUNCTION the front dewclaws preform. They are there for a reason beleive it or not and not always should be removed. Read this article, it especially pertains to terrier breeds. I have to agree with the article, as I too have yet to see a dog snag and tear its dewclaw on anything.. (not saying it couldnt happen)

http://www.workingdogs.com/doc0019.htm
http://netpet.batw.net/articles/dewclaws.html

 

dude...you got links comin out your ass!!!! lol. you have all these saved?

 

Its always good to be well informed.. whether it be from one's own experince or another who is even more experienced.

 

My dogs have their dewclaws. And when asking the vet about them, he said there's really no need to remove them now, unless they start to irritate the dogs - in which you can tell by if they are licking or biting them and such.

 

Oops wrong thread. My apologies.

 

Thanks rocksteady. I used to think that they were purely vestigial, now I don't think I'd want to remove them. Nice to know the front dew claws have purpose. I'd remove the rear ones if he had them, though.

 

my dog only has one dew claw left he chewed off 2 of them and lost another in training behind my pick up truck.