i have always had them removed on my dogs. however, my new lab puppy Ruger will not be getting his removed. my vet said that having their claws removed can adversely affect their gate. they said that they would only if they became a problem or if i wanted them too. i trust my vet and my family has done business with them for years, but i was just curious if any else has heard this as it is a first time for me.

News to me. Don't worry about getting them removed. It's really not that big of a deal that he has them.

Angie

I just got a pup that still has hers and wondered the same.

I have owned and hunted dogs from the time I was about 7 years old and never had them removed. Purchased a dog with them removed, but I didn't notice anything wrong with his gate. (he was a lab)

I wouldn't worry about having them removed either until they become an issue for the dog.

Sorry, noob here, what is "gate?"
Starting acceleration?

Gait

we removed my pups, didn't want to have an issue in the field...then its too late at that point

Yes, the reasoning to having them removed is that they'll catch on something in the field. Most breeders remove them.

But if they're not removed you'd be hard pressed to find a vet to do it now. There's an artery involved with the dewclaw I believe...

Angie

hey angie wondering what it would cost for training my lab for just basic retrieves upland and water. i forgot your number and website. i am in azle / ftw area and heard alot about your company

On hunting dogs, I recommend removal of the rear dewclaws if they're loosely attached to the leg. These floppy dewclaws seem to get caught on wire and brush frequently. I like to leave the tighter front dewclaws alone. Yes, they can get sliced too, but so can footpads, tails, and ears.

To refute a previous poster, dewclaws can and are removed from adult dogs every day. But like circumcision, the older the patient, the more involved the surgery.

If you hunt where you need to boot the dog remove the dew claws. A few years ago I was in Alaska and visited the kennel of the lady who won the Iditarod and she had the dew claws removed on all of her dogs. I remove them at birth within 2days. If you are booting the dog the taping of the foot will cause the dew claws to cut the leg. On day no problem several days in a row a real problem.

Yes my wife works at a vet and they do dewclaw surgeries all the time it just cost more when they are older because they have to be put under. But i agree with dawaba about removing the back ones but not the front. and also tigger makes a good point to about them cutting to legs while wearing boots or taping them. i guess it just depends on how you hunt your dog.

Pups i buy usually have them removed when they are only a week old, which is cheap to get done but the older they get the more it costs. Never heard of it affecting a dog in any way what so ever.

its really easy to do it your self, use super glue to seal up the cut, two days old is perfect, after I saw the vet do it, I saved myself a bunch of money, tail docking the same way.

kinda makes me nervous.... kind of thinking about getting them removed now. they don't seem real floppy yet, but he is just about to turn 6 months in June. We live on a farm and the more I think about it the more I am afraid they'll be a problem.

at 6 months it will be major surgery, general anethesia, stitches, scars and some major $$$. I've had hunting dogs with and without and I've never had a dog have a problem as long as you keep them clipped. boots can be an issue as mentioned above, but you can find boots that don't bother the claw or make it rub the leg. I would just leave them if i were you and if the dog ever tears one, then that's when you get them removed, because you'll have to get it worked on anyway.

I agree with First Chance. I have had and raised bird dogs all of my adult life and I have never had a serious problem with dewclaws. Grouse Ridge Setters in New York is one of the most prominent English Setter Kennels in the U. S. and they don't remove them from their pups. Boots could be an issue, but I would not put a dog through that unless a serious problem comes up.

Raising pups I would do it when born within 2 days. On an older dog I would not do it until I had a problem. I have had 4 older dogs done and it is a painful experience for the dog. I watched my vet do a 6month old pup and even he did it fairly quick it was very obvious that it was quite involved.

Done within a week of birth = routine snip.

Done after that and it is a bigger deal.

How big a deal is it to get it done later?

Put the dog asleep and surgery and stitches. About 125 in cost at my vet.