To dock or not to dock.... Controversial

So who can honestly say that even at 4/5 weeks they can pick what is going to be the best working dog/bitch in a litter.

You can't! Their characters have not formed, their bodies will change dramatically and what can be the bravest, boldest pup in the litter at 5 weeks may be far from that at 8 weeks.

It is a lottery at such young ages and the only way to make sure one gets the dog with all the desired traits would be to wait until, maybe, six months.

You takes your pick and hope for the best.

Steve

Which is why most working breeders dock the whole litter and run at least two pups out of it to see which develops best.

i am a very close family friend of the breeder ok? is that better? i help train her dogs, i am not some stranger she bumped into on the street.

i would like to add i will also be present at the birth to assist as it often takes more than one pair of hands and the husband is in a wheelchair and unable to use his hands due to ms

But if I am reading this thread correctly the breeders no longer work their dogs due to illness but the line is a working line. They are therefore trying to adhere to the law by only docking pups that will go to working homes.

When this law was brought in many people pointed out that it would be nigh on impossible to choose those pups in a litter that would end up in working homes. As a result in many litters all the pups are docked (legally) but some of them will end up as pets.

I cannot decry this breeder for trying to adhere to a law that is so loosely put together. If the breeder were to dock all the pups because one will be worked (which is legal) I suspect lots of people would complain about that.

As far as I can see Panamint Hunter and the breeder cannot win whatever they do

Steve

Your right there but we both know what actually happens in most working homes and I was actually speaking in general terms.

after much debate i have decided i will not get her docked purely because i feel she will b a pet first a working dog second if that makes sense, although both mysellf and partner enjoy shooting we feel like we would only be able to do it as a hobby at least to begin with. thank u for all the advice.

Sorry I have only skim read all the replies but PH if you are going to work your Springer then I strongly suggest you get it docked as a pup.

Obviously, as already mentioned is it usual practice to dock the whole litter - you just need a letter from the gamekeeper or shoot manager to say that the pup will go to working homes.

I have seen so many spaniels with split tails (even docked ones) and it truly is a nightmare not just for the owner but very, very painful for the dog. And once they split it is almost impossible to stop it happening again however much eletrical tape you use!

If you are planning on FT you dog then you want a fairly long dock as the judges like a flashy tail but if its just going to work in the beating line then you want a proper dock.

I just can't emphasis enough how important it is to dock a working spaniel otherwise you and your dog could have a life of misery

Personally I dont agree with docking, that being said we own two Boxers who are docked - before the ban came in, we have had Boxers with tails and gundog breeds with tails who have never had a tail injury - people grasp onto tail injuries [not speaking of working dogs here] as if every dog in the street got tail injuries

I see you plan to breed and work your bitch when you get her. Asides from good working stock you will need to make sure the breeder has done all the necessary health checking with their dogs which you will also need to do before you consider breeding your own little bitch

All of the litter our pup came from where docked, the breeder at 8 weeks had one dog he planned to keep, when we went back about three months later he had kept two as he saw potential in another, but when he saw our pup he admitted that we could probably have the best dog from the litter, when he saw him at 5 months and watched him moving etc. But the dogs he kept were also doing well so how on earth do you tell at a few days old!

Hence why all the litter were docked and after seeing tail injuries I dont have a problem with it.