Dew Claws

[D1]

what are the pros and cons of removing or not removing them

and what about removing them at 7-8 weeks of age

[Judy Chute]

We have two Golden Retrievers with dew claws..one boy is now 12 and the other 6 years. Our youngest boy..under two years old...does not have them. I do wish that he did.

There was a good thread on this within the past year..you might try to find it.

Judy

[mostlygold]

Yes to what Judy said. Dogs doing performance events of any kind need their dewclaws. They have found a lot of injuries to tendons and carpal bones from removing the dewclaws. Dog use these to stop and especially to corner. They are also part of the "shock absorber" system on a dog's front feet. If you ever get a chance to watch agility dogs run in slow motion, you will see just how important dewclaws are. Lure coursing and field dogs use them as well, especially for turns and to help absorb impact when jumping over things. Without dewclaws, dogs have to bear all of their weight when cornering on their 2 inside toes which puts a lot of strain on the carpal joint and the tendons. When jumping the dog spreads out his front feet to absorb shock. Without the dewclaws, again, a few toes are taking all of the impact. Many breeders used to remove these in the mistaken view that the dewclaws would get ripped off when the dog was doing field work. That is simply not true. If the dewclaw is properly situated, tight to the foot, it is not going to be injured anymore so than any of the other toes.

[Juli H]

in all my yrs of being a taxidermist I have yet to see an animal missing a dewclaw....be it wolf, coyote, wolverine, pine marten, fox, or cat....

also had a lab mix for 11 yrs that had her dew claws..never had an issue.

Juli

[MRGD]

Interesting. I would like to hear more views on this. Does anyone have a good pro-removal position?

tt

[DEDEYE]

Yeah, I would like to hear more about this also. I always wondered what God put them there for since they just seem to hang there.. Don't most people expect breeders to have them removed? Just wondering for the future.....

[louisianadukdog]

Well, my lab didn't have them removed as a pup. She DID tear one during training one day and it bled A LOT and seemed to be very painful. After it healed we went back to training. Within a month she tore it again. Seems like once they tear one it is more likely to happen again. And let me tell you...whe I say it bled a lot...I mean it bled a lot. If she had been out on a very long retrieve or in an extended hunt out in the field it could have been real bad. I decided to have them surgically removed after the second incident.

[spaightlabs]

I've had hard hunting dogs with them and they did fine, and I've had hard hunting dogs with them that have torn them badly. All in all, I like 'em gone to elimnate the possibility of that particular injury. My dogs don't do agility and we've never had a tendon or carpal bone injury that has manifested itself so I could tell despite the fact hat they do pull all day upland duty frequently...

[Rainmaker]

Removing dewclaws on pups after 5 days would require anesthesia and sutures, the pups are far too developed and it would be very painful, even if you could hold them still. They are done within days for that reason. The pups squeal but it's quick and they are over it nearly instantly.

Dewclaws are located near an artery and bleed a lot if they get ripped off, to the point where it can become dangerous if that artery actually gets damaged in the process too, particularly if you are out hunting in the middle of nowhere when it happens. Most field dog puppy buyers expect dews to be removed. I have two older Labs that never had their dews removed, I don't see where they function any better/differently than my dogs that don't have dews. It's just another nail to keep trimmed, and more often since it doesn't get worn down like the regular nails.

[afdahl]

I had not heard about the artery being at risk of damage. My understanding was that a hung dewclaw can cause the dog to go into shock, which is dangerous if you are out hunting hours away from a vet clinic.

Amy Dahl