Bateared ACD Questions

I have an ACD with ears that are larger than they should be at 3 months. I was told that he would grow into them. Is that likely? When i pull the tip down it covers his eye past the lower lid.

Can you please send a picture of him so that someone who might know the breed, which I do not, can possibly give you some advice?

This is him. Cute huh?

Cute most definitely.

I'm not too familiar with this breed but if you put Australian Cattle Dog puppy into the search engine and look at the images, his ears look fine

A really cute ACD puppy, and I would just be thankful that his ears are up!
I'm sure that they will suit him perfectly by the time your boy reaches maturity.

Cute? Adorable!

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Well i guess i will postpone the templates and superglue. Thanks.

No, I was just wondering if the dog will grow into his ears as was suggested to me?

So what was your previous post

about?

That was just a poor reference as to how they remodel dogs ears like in the great dane or doberman breeds, in the past.

Are you hoping to show him?

I did not think that you would do it to your beautiful pup, but it puzzled me slightly! I hate, loathe and detest any form of ear-cropping or taping, and your pup has such adorable ears - just the sort that ask for ear-twiddles!

Lol - they do look big on him but very cute. I'm sure he will grow into them. My puppy (mutt breed) has very large, hairy, floppy ears that look weird on him. Too. I suspect he will grow into them as well.

I just hoped that a breeder might be able to tell me if heelers sometimes get big ears at 3-4 months then as they mature the ears become more normal in relation to their heads just as their mussels continue to elongate for some time. I have had 4 heelers before this one and never had one develop such large ears so i was surprised when i saw how large they look in some of his photos. I am sure he will learn to live with them though. It will be harder for everyone if he doesn't respond appropriately to housetraining.

They are very much a minority breed over here. You might be better asking his breeder, he/she should know what is in his bloodline.

It was suggested that he would grow into them but i would be more comfortable with a 2nd opinion. I was also told they were the smartest of dogs only to learn from several other opinions online that they are the 10th most intelligent breed. oh well, the dog may be not the sharpest knife in the drawer that i anticipated. the cat isn't all that impressed either.

All dogs are individual James so the breeds we think of as laid back and slow can turn out to be hyperactive little demons and vice versa.

Love the dog you have and you won't go far wrong

I have a club-mate who farms, breed shows, does obedience, and works KC Working Trials to a fairly high standard. Dogs have to be bright to be able to do all this well. I have only known her have ACD's, but up to the latest, she has only had one at a time.

Lol the ears are fine , I have an almost 7 month old pup who had /has large ears and as his head is widening they are becoming more relative to his head size. So yes puppies can go through goofy looking stages .

About them being the smartest dog , a lot of people say that here in Queensland Australia too.

don’t worry at all about them being stupid , that’s about as opposite to the truth as it gets.

in my experience underestimate their intelligence , and its the human who is lacking .
Begin teaching and you’ll realize the more time and effort you put into it ,
The more they will prove how quickly they can understand .

they love to work and play , are great problem solvers and even mind readers.

Well,said, and I’ll provide a hearty second!

ACDs are very intelligent, and I give no credence to whoever made the “tenth” comment.

Our first family dog was a pup we found at the pound when he was about 5 months old. I always thought that Aussie was an Australian Shepherd. He grew to be 79 pounds, with a bobbed tail, and ears that stood up about halfway, then flopped forward. Anyway, he was very smart, and though I’d used him to herd the cows a time or two (with no training), he’d never bark at, or go after, them, even when they walked right by him on the other side of the fence; unless directed to.

On occasion, the front gate’d be left open by a certain lad when he got home from school, and sometimes the cows would get in the yard. Aussie’d just ignore them, until I’d give him the command to “get them out of the yard.” Then he’d round them up and move them out the front gate.

He developed an extensive vocabulary, and was very gentle with other animals, be they kittens, or any of the various baby bunnies and squirrels that the wife would find. She’d nurse them back to good health, and eventually transition them back outdoors, until they’d eventually link up with some of their own kind, and move on. Aussie never “went after” anything.

He was almost 17 years old when he passed, and I always thought that he was my true “once in a lifetime “ dog.

Then, some 15 years later; I got Kyrie. As she matured some, I realized that her coarse outer coat was exactly like Aussie’s. So apparently, I’d had the best of both worlds; an Australian Shepherd/Cattledog mix!

Now that Kyrie’s matured a bit; I’ve come to realize that she’s my second “once in a lifetime” dog; I’ve been doubly blessed!

So, to bring this ramble to a close; Aussie had floppy ears and a bobbed tail. Kyrie has ears that stand tall, and a long tail. Both are truly great dogs, and that has noting to do with their ears, or tails.

I’ll bet you dog turns out to be a great, and maybe “once in a lifetime,” dog, too! Trust me; those floppy ears won’t matter at all...