View Full Version : German Shep puppy - ears not standing up
Hi all,
A breeder i contacted mentioned that the ears on one of her dogs flops over and doesn't stand up. She said there's something you are supposed to put in the ears that makes them stand up and after a while you can remove it and they will stand on their own.
My 11 week old pup (http://www.flickr.com/photos/merk/sets/72157600086692546/) has floppy ears.
So I have some questions:
1. Is there any health reason for having the ears stand up or is it just cosmetic?
2. Should they start out floppy and standup on their own eventually? if not, what has to be done to make them stand up?
I have to admit i think it looks better when they stand up. but if there's no health reason for it and it would be any sort of pain for her, i'm not going to bother doing anything about it.
thanks
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 01:12 PM
There is nothing wrong with your puppy. Looking at the back skull ( that is the part of the back of the head between the ears area), this puppy is wide- which is perfectly normal. Its not until the cartiledge gets some strength will ears come up. Quite frankly, a pup that stands too quick will have a narrow head.
I have had some males that ears did not stand up til as late at 8-9 months old! Females are usually up at 6 months unless the female is too big, and the muscles in the head are still " puppy lazy"..
I would not start messing with the ears. They arent standing yet because of young muscles, none formed cartiledge in the ears, and the muscles in the ears and the head are too young. Eleven ( 11) weeks old is still such a baby- please do not be concerned- do not mess with them, and let your baby grow up.. Trust me... They will stand up on their own but not until as I said, the muscles are stronger, and the cartiledge thicker which occurs anytime after at least ( at least) 4 months old- ie 16 weeks- and even that is premature for sure. Just leave them be. Its not like a doberman or a boxer that after the edge of ear is cut- then has to be taped- this is totally different. I can attach photos if you want to see the difference- but really- they just need time to grow up.
You have a very cute puppy btw!!! :cheers:
Areias
04-18-2007, 01:13 PM
They should stand up on their own after a while. I forget the time line, but my GSD had floppy ears for a while. Although I don't think hers were quite as big as your pups!
I have heard that giving a calcium supplement (I think thats what it was) will help. There are many GSD people here, they will be able to help.
Areias
04-18-2007, 01:17 PM
This was my pup at probably 10-15 weeks old, I don't remember. So I wouldn't worry just yet. :)
http://tinypic.com/f4lik1.jpg
thanks for the tips. I'm not worried about it and I wont do anything about it. Just wanted to make sure there wasnt any medical reason for having them stand up. I didn't know what the time line was for this so i had no clue what was normal or abnormal.
Besides, right now I'd be much happier when she'll learn to pee on the training pads instead of the carpet to worry about her ears too much :)
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 01:19 PM
Calcium supplements will throw off the balence of calcium and phorophorus making calcium deposits on the joints.
Just make sure the pup has a balenced diet- and time will do the rest.
This was my pup at probably 10-15 weeks old, I don't remember. So I wouldn't worry just yet. :)
Your pup was good enough to be around a baby? Mine still likes to play fight. I'm working on that.
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 01:22 PM
thanks for the tips. I'm not worried about it and I wont do anything about it. Just wanted to make sure there wasnt any medical reason for having them stand up. I didn't know what the time line was for this so i had no clue what was normal or abnormal.
Besides, right now I'd be much happier when she'll learn to pee on the training pads instead of the carpet to worry about her ears too much :)
I would suggest not teaching her at all to go in the house. With a puppy, you will have accidents, but in the long run learning to go in the house- even a pad, can come back at you with housebreaking problems. Remember- she is just a baby, accidents will happen, but teaching her to go outside in one place or area especially will keep her from getting confused..
KatzNK9
04-18-2007, 01:22 PM
Cute pup! I thought your pup was a little too young for ears to stand up. I'm surprised the breeder didn't tell you not to worry for that reason alone. I don't remember how long it took my Akita's ears to stand up but it was lots longer than 11 weeks & then one ear stood up before the other.
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 01:25 PM
Your pup was good enough to be around a baby? Mine still likes to play fight. I'm working on that.
My daughter was raised with shepherds. What I did was distraction. When the pups get too keyed up, I would call the puppy back to me and play with the pup.. Having lots of toys that are the pups helps alot. This is a fine age to teach to retrieve- ie fetch- which also teaches the pup to work WITH YOU not against you...
I would suggest not teaching her at all to go in the house. With a puppy, you will have accidents, but in the long run learning to go in the house- even a pad, can come back at you with housebreaking problems. Remember- she is just a baby, accidents will happen, but teaching her to go outside in one place or area especially will keep her from getting confused..
The pads arent in the house, sorta. They are outside on a balcony. The vet said (and others on the forums have said) not to take her for walks until she's 4 months. Which is ok because right now she's not too happy about going for walks anyhow.
I just got a crate for her this week. So far she's not too thrilled about being in it. She starts whining as soon as i close the door. So i've started throwing treats in there as well as putting her food bowl in there during feeding time so she'll get more comfortable with it. I'll probably put her in there for an hour or so while i watch tv so she can get used to being confined in there but she'll be able to see me. Getting her to stay in there overnight is going to be an interesting experience though. Right now she prefers to sleep on the balcony. But I want to get her out of that habit so that she thinks of inside as her home/bed.
She's relatively good about going outside. But far from perfect. She hasnt pooped inside in several days and most of the time she goes outside when she has to pee. Hopefully once i get her sleeping inside she'll be less inclined to pee inside.
Cute pup! I thought your pup was a little too young for ears to stand up. I'm surprised the breeder didn't tell you not to worry for that reason alone. I don't remember how long it took my Akita's ears to stand up but it was lots longer than 11 weeks & then one ear stood up before the other.
The breeder who mentioned the ears is not the breeder i got Kay from. This was another breeder with a 1+ year old dog and she mentioned it. I forgot to ask my breeder about kay. I didnt know what the timeline was for that. But I'm not worried about it now. Besides, she does look cute with floppy ears :)
My daughter was raised with shepherds. What I did was distraction. When the pups get too keyed up, I would call the puppy back to me and play with the pup.. Having lots of toys that are the pups helps alot. This is a fine age to teach to retrieve- ie fetch- which also teaches the pup to work WITH YOU not against you...
Ahh, thats like me. i was raised with a german shepherd for a big brother. Although he acted more like a mom then a brother. After my mom came back from the hospital with me, she left me on the bed one day and realized she left me in there with brutus and ran back into the room (since some dogs react badly to a new baby) and she found brutus on the bed with me. He had wrapped himself around me so i couldnt crawl off anywhere. That's when my mom knew there's be no problems with brutus :)
Right now kay's favorite toy seems to be playing tug of war with a toy tied to the end of her leash. Fetch would be a nice change of pace :) Should be getting some more toys for her today in the mail.
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 01:34 PM
ohhhhh okay- I gotcha.. When she finishes her shots, then after that spray a enzyme that is made to take out urine smells. There are several on the market.
As far as crate training- go back to basics. Feed her in her crate- with the door roped open so it can not suddenly bang in her face. After she quickly goes " in the food box", then you start closing the door behind when she goes in to eat. Slightly increase how long after she is done and you let her out- but no more than a few minutes as the baby has to go potty outside. With my young pups as my dogs sleep in the room with me, I put the crate near my bed at night, give a cookie, shut the door. Ignore the whinning completely- no treats, no words- Remember- a pup has no clue you can hear them, but they will learn you can hear them if you respond in anyway. AT night is a good time because the rest of the house is quiet already. I know its hard to listen too- but put a pillow over your head.. lol.. If whinning gets her anything- she will never stop. Just make sure when you put her in there, she already went potty, got a drink of water, and fed..
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 01:35 PM
Also- your baby looks like she is going to be a rich colored sable.. VERY VERY pretty!!!!
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 01:47 PM
Ahh, thats like me. i was raised with a german shepherd for a big brother. Although he acted more like a mom then a brother. After my mom came back from the hospital with me, she left me on the bed one day and realized she left me in there with brutus and ran back into the room (since some dogs react badly to a new baby) and she found brutus on the bed with me. He had wrapped himself around me so i couldnt crawl off anywhere. That's when my mom knew there's be no problems with brutus :)
Right now kay's favorite toy seems to be playing tug of war with a toy tied to the end of her leash. Fetch would be a nice change of pace :) Should be getting some more toys for her today in the mail.
Okay- tug of war can teach a pup to work against you. Second of all- those teeth are not set and you can pull her bite... With shepherds- I like solid rubber toys- you can even put them in the freezer like a cold pacifier on those hurting gums and teeth. At this age- the pup should not learn it can distroy things- teething will pass, but learning if I chew on something long enough, I can eat it. Remember at this age they are bottomless pits- and they will learn they eat things. Rubber toys, kongs, rope toys dipped in water and frozen are great too- until they start to chew it up. I also give very large stuffed toys if you can supervise not to eat them. They will shake it building muscles in the shoulders, back and neck.. Also- empty 2 quart soda bottles ( top and ring cut off!) teaches just because something makes alot of noise, it wont hurt me- also one gallon milk jugs ( rinsed out of course) is another good one! Tennis balls- and kongs helps build not only muscle in the chase but also agility to movement to keep up with the movement of the bounce..
ohhhhh okay- I gotcha.. When she finishes her shots, then after that spray a enzyme that is made to take out urine smells. There are several on the market.
As far as crate training- go back to basics. Feed her in her crate- with the door roped open so it can not suddenly bang in her face. After she quickly goes " in the food box", then you start closing the door behind when she goes in to eat. Slightly increase how long after she is done and you let her out- but no more than a few minutes as the baby has to go potty outside. With my young pups as my dogs sleep in the room with me, I put the crate near my bed at night, give a cookie, shut the door. Ignore the whinning completely- no treats, no words- Remember- a pup has no clue you can hear them, but they will learn you can hear them if you respond in anyway. AT night is a good time because the rest of the house is quiet already. I know its hard to listen too- but put a pillow over your head.. lol.. If whinning gets her anything- she will never stop. Just make sure when you put her in there, she already went potty, got a drink of water, and fed..
Yeah I'm not too good at the ignoring the whining part. I tried that last night and only had moderate success :) But I'll try again. If i feed her at around 6pm and put her (and myself) to bed at midnight, at what time should i expect a wakeup call from her for the bathroom? I know she'll have to at least pee at least once during the night.
And i picked up some solution (i think its called miracle cure or natures miracle, something like that). Although a friend suggested just using a 50/50 solution of white vinegar and water. I've been using the solution i picked up anytime i catch her going anywhere in the house.
Thanks again for the suggestions.
Okay- tug of war can teach a pup to work against you. Second of all- those teeth are not set and you can pull her bite... With shepherds- I like solid rubber toys- you can even put them in the freezer like a cold pacifier on those hurting gums and teeth. At this age- the pup should not learn it can distroy things- teething will pass, but learning if I chew on something long enough, I can eat it. Remember at this age they are bottomless pits- and they will learn they eat things. Rubber toys, kongs, rope toys dipped in water and frozen are great too- until they start to chew it up. I also give very large stuffed toys if you can supervise not to eat them. They will shake it building muscles in the shoulders, back and neck.. Also- empty 2 quart soda bottles ( top and ring cut off!) teaches just because something makes alot of noise, it wont hurt me- also one gallon milk jugs ( rinsed out of course) is another good one! Tennis balls- and kongs helps build not only muscle in the chase but also agility to movement to keep up with the movement of the bounce..
ahh, freezer sounds like a good idea. Plus i forgot to mention, she really seems to love chewing on some ice from the freezer. She seems to get a kick out of swatting it on the floor and then chasing after it as it slides across the floor. I will try freezing her rope toy and see if she likes that.
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 01:56 PM
ahh, freezer sounds like a good idea. Plus i forgot to mention, she really seems to love chewing on some ice from the freezer. She seems to get a kick out of swatting it on the floor and then chasing after it as it slides across the floor. I will try freezing her rope toy and see if she likes that.
Okay- that can be a problem. I have had a pup that choked on ice that slid down their throat. Just try solid rubber toys or kongs, or a thick rope.
One more thing about tug of war.. The only time I ever did this was a pup that was going into sch/ police work or to build confidence with a shy dog- and the dog always wins. However- that is rare to encourage a dogs confidence in a shepherd. lol..
Mine loved to bat the tar out of gallon milk jugs.. lol.. Makes the dog less sound sensitive.. and down right FUN.. lol.. Remember once the pup starts chewing on the plastic the game is over. I also used 3 gallon jugs like they use for water like deer park. Those are harder to chew and really are fun to play with.. lol. If you watch the video of my dogs- you will toys littered all over the floor for zubin as a baby. One by one they go bye bye, but there is plenty of stimulation for a active mind. One of the stuffed toys was a big heavy duck. Talk about building shoulder muscles as he goes flying by it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWfRFveoEto (need the sound on..)
I thought about the ice down the throat, but i'm thinking if i am there watching her, she should be ok. But I'll try to get her more onto the toys then the ice. And I'm waiting for the video to finish downloading...piss poor download speeds here at work.
borzoimom
04-18-2007, 02:09 PM
Puppies with cutting teeth love cold things! I also have taken dish towels, tied a knot in them, soak in water and frozen them.. Again- watch they do not eat the towel.. My pups use to rock them on their back teeth at 6 months old about when those molars start to erupt.. If they know the toys come from you, they are less likely to find their own... lol..