I see a lot of posts here and elsewhere where breeders are removing dewclaws.

Do you know why you're removing the front dewclaws, or just doing it because "it's always been done"?

Before removing your dogs dewclaws, read this article.

I personally will not buy from someone if they have removed dewclaws, they are an important part of the dog's agility and they need to stay.


https://www.caninesports.com/upload...__claws__rev_apr_10_2013__with_logo_.pdf

https://www.avidogzink.com/do-the-dewclaws/

Try booting a dog with and without dew claws and you will see.

To each his own. I will never own another with dew claws.

While I have been staying up on this, just had a litter of pups, I realize there maybe some reasons to leave them. However I still decided to remove them from all the pups. Primarily, I think the research is a little flawed as most hunting dogs have them removed already. There is no way to know how much of an issue they pose if left attached. Secondly, if the dewclaw has to be removed at an older age, the procedure is certainly more invasive and the recovery takes time. My personal experience from working at a vet while in college for 4 years, is I don't want to put my dogs under anesthesia unless its absolutely necessary. Animals don't come with a medical history and unfortunately sometimes they don't wake up. While it only happened to a handful of animals while I was there the possibility exist. Lastly, a vast majority of the market still wants them removed, probably 99% of them. If the trend continues then I will evaluate again.

But why remove them? Almost every excuse I see to remove them is because the owner is lazy.
Who was the first to do it, and why did they do it?
Wolves, coyotes, and foxes all have theirs.

It's hard to compare it to our thumb because dewclaws aren't opposable, but that's the closest thing you can compare it to really right? No one wants their thumb removed because you might rip it off or the nail grows long right?

Not sure how removing dewclaws equates to lazy? From my experience, they can easily get caught on briars, brush, fences, and kennel fencing ect… When that happens it is painful and takes complete sedation to remove and will require several weeks of recovery most of the time. That can equal a loss of the remaining hunting season which most people spend all year anticipating.

I think this discussion comes more from breeding dogs that are not sound, at least in the Labrador Field Trial, than actual health. Dewclaws have been removed for 50+ years, now we are worried about arthritis and the stabilization of the knee. There are two really predominate lines in competition Labradors where torn acl's are fairly common, but its a taboo subject because everyone is searching for the next winner and nobody is willing to offend the owners. Also the torn acl's aren't traceable like hips, elbows, eyes, through a third party service.

If I hunted up north in the ice I would probably lean towards keeping them as they help when trying to climb.

👏
I always remove the day they are. Born

I have doga that have them and I have dogs that don't have them. I've booted both. Doesn't matter to me.

Matters to me. Cut them off.

I like them removed from upland dogs. I owned and hunted a lab that had them and had no problems. I hunted her in North Dakota every year. In deep water she used those dew claws to help pop herself up on the ice.

My dog broke hers off