Okay, I've searched for some info on here for this and I need some advice. We are planning to pick up our new puppy this Saturday. He is 11 weeks old now. Well, this afternoon his breeder emailed me and said that one of his ears had fallen (they had been up so far) and that she wanted to let me know just in case. She seemed a little worried in the email. Now, I've read that sometimes the puppies ears will fall again if they are teething, has anyone had this experience? I'm not even sure I'd care if one of his ears stayed down, but that she thought to email me about it. What do you guys think? Should we opt for another puppy from the litter (I had my heart set on this one...). Has anyone had a Corgi that had erect ears that fell and came back up??
Thanks guys!
It's very normal for them to need some bracing/taping. In Cardis we actually get a little worried if they come up early on their own, because that often means that they're going to be a little small. If they are not both up and strong in another week (sometimes they do bobble up and down for a while), you can tape the weak one and get it up.
Oh, and you would not actually have to worry about ear infections; the dogs who have ear issues are the ones with ears that are extremely low-set and basically sealed to their heads (Bassets, etc.). There's no real difference between an upright ear and a drop one for dogs with ears like a Pem's would be, or a Lab or a Golden, etc. But since taping is easy and works well, there's no reason not to get his ears up if you would like him to have upright ears.
Well, Grover is almost 2 years old now, and his ears are just as perky as can be! The ear in questioned popped back up the day we took him home and has been up ever since...unless he thinks he's in trouble (they both zoom down when he's guilty!)
Our dog, Sherlock, is apparently a rare case. We got him at 8 weeks old, from a breeder that only breeds every five years or so. Every other dog in the litter had their ears erect, but Sherlock's didn't. Even though his ear weren't up, we decided to get him because we thought that he had the best personality. At first, we thought it was because of teething, but now he is over two years (almost three in june) and not one ear has ever popped up. We still like the little guy, even though he has a defect.
I personally think you should choose the dog you love because of him, not his looks. You could also tape his ears. Ask your vet, also, even over the phone. They should be able to help
Did you try to tape Sherlock's ears? My Mom has a Cardi with one floppy ear. She never taped it but the breeder who had him the first 9 months of his life did and it just didn't want to stand. This just happens sometimes but is not a big deal and you're right, it should not effect how much you enjoy the dog. We had to tape Finnigan's ears but had they not stood, we would have loved him just the same.
Grover's ears just went back up on their own. We just took him anyway and now, ears up or down, he's the best dog around. Sherlock looks like a real lover too! Adorable no matter what his ears do!
With adora somedays they were up some they were down. We were told to give her a little plain yogurt or cottage cheese with her kibble and to message the ears daily. with the week they were up all the time and stayed that way. yogurt and cottage cheese is used because the calcium helps grow the cartlidge and the massage helps with the mussles. Plus yogurt is also good for there digestive track.
Our first corgi, Odie, had ears that dropped upon theathing. After that they somethimes were up, sometimes down. we used to joke that he could signal with his ears! At times you could almost read his mood by his ears, I think his ears were the best of all our corgis.
I have questioned the ear thing myself, and have read on some site that when the pups start teething the calcium goes to the teeth and therefore the ears will flop. They suggested some calcium supplement for this to help the ears. I guess one could try it.
Before the breeder let me carry Rogue out the door, I was sternly lectured that once an ear started to flop, to tape them up or otherwise my dog would forever have a floppy ear. She was three months old at the time, so the first time one flopped down a few days after brining her home, I took some masking tape and taped them up (pretty badly, too - the picture of her looking like space dog is on her profile page). After a day or so, the tape came off and all seemed well until another few days passed, and one flopped again. So back out with the tape, another day or so with tape around the ears...and they never flopped again. Maybe I should have let them flop, because she gets great reception with her satellite dishes - hears things clear across the street!
Our female tri will be 3 in April. A learned lesson here: don't purchase pups on the internet unless you can meet with the breeder and take a look at the parents. We purchased our tri female through the internet from Iowa, her ears have never come up. I sent the breeders an email and they replied "yeah, our vet says it happens sometimes". Our own experience, our first male pup (now deceased) had his ears come up about 12 weeks of age. Then around 16 weeks, one flopped, but stood up again by 4 weeks later. Our red and white male now...his ears stood up at 12 weeks on the dot and haven't flopped down. It's interesting to know we aren't the only ones who have "flop ears", and we love every one of our puppers dearly :) We have an offspring of our floppy-eared female and non floppy eared male, he is a beautiful tri with one ear up and one ear down. We will continue with the massaging and taping and hopefully get his one lop ear up and standing!