Cairn Ears

[NDMike]

Just wondering if anyone has experienced problems with their Cairn's ears. Reagan has one ear that sticks up pretty well, but the other bends backwards!!! The vet told us to put a piece of tape around it so it sticks up, but he keeps shaking that off! Anyone ever heard of a clip or some sort of brace that would stay on? Thanks for your help!

[NDMike]

Oh, I forgot...the Vet also said that it wouldn't stick up naturally now and we'd have to do something or his ear wouldn't ever look normal.

[Cairnmania]

Hi Mike,

I don't understand why your vet would tell you to brace the ear up if it is never likely to stand up.

Here's one way to do it though. Get a small to medium sized sponge hair roller, remove the plastic bit, all you need is the round spongy roller. Place the roller vertically inside the outer part of the ear. Don't shove it into the ear, but rest it at the base. Using surgical tape, wrap the ear leather around the roller. This needs to stay in place anywhere from a few weeks to a month. If the ear is going to stand properly this will "train" it to do so.

How old is your Cairn? I think one ear up and one ear sort of down looks cute. It may not be the standard, but who cares?

Stacey

[hallswel]

My brother fed his Shepard gummy treats to help with his ears. He said the gelatin helped with the ears. He swears by it. I have never tried it. He actually gave Hobbs a couple of gummy bears each night with his food. After about 10 days the ears were up and have been every since.

I have always wondered if really works or not. I thought about doing it with Rebel but in another week his ear was up and I didn't have to try

[Tribo64]

I would wonder, also, how old the pup is. It is common in Shepards, for example, that the ears don't always stand up together immediately. Perhaps he just needs to grow a little more...

[Kramersmom]

Missy and Kramer there ears were straight up when we bought them.

My girlfriend has German Shepards and she said its the cartlidge in the ears that have to get strong to make the ears stand straight, don't know how true that is. I think one up and one floppy looks cute. The standard is both ears erect but who cares I think it's cute as well.

[hallswel]

Found this info on ears this might be what your vet was talking about Boston terrier ears

[Cairnmania]

Liz,

Checked the Boston site. The bit about cropping ears was gruesome.

Stacey

[savannahsmom35]

Savannah had one floppy ear when we first got her. Little by little it started standing up better. Now both are erect. My breeder said it sometimes takes up to 6 months for both ears to be up correctly becuase the puppy has to "learn" how to hold them up. Either way, I wouldn't worry about it. I agree with everyone else that a floppy ear is cute!

[Eliz222]

I wouldn't worry about it either. How old is your dog? I have heard that it may be take 4 or 5 months before they stand up. I, too, think the one up, one down looks so cute! Scout's ears were already up by 10 weeks (when we adopted her). Finch's stood up at about 11 or 12 weeks, but for a few days she had one ear up and one down.....so cute!

[NDMike]

Reagan is only 3 months but, it's not the normal way down. It's backwards. When we bought him he had both ears down to the front. Ever seen one with backwards ears?

[Eliz222]

Mike, I have never seen or heard about backward ears. Maybe you can ask the breeder or your vet what they think? 3 months is still very young, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Sorry I couldn't help!

[Cairnmania]

Mike,

If your puppy is only 3 months old I would try taping the ears for a little bit. I don't know what you mean by a "backwards ear", but the ears are not yet set and there is time for them to straighten out properly. Sometimes they need a little help, that's all.

I had a German Shepherd whose ears were desparately trying to stand upright. If she ran and didn't think about them, up they popped. However, she didn't like the feeling and every time they went up she shook her head until they dropped down again. "Down" was not straight down, but they sort of seemed to bend at the middle and then stick out straight to the sides of her head. I taped the ears for a couple of weeks and that was all it took for them to stand upright, permanently.

Stacey