Most breeders remove dew claws before pups leave. I do not. People always ask me why and think it is a money thing. First, breeders do it themselves, so there is no money to be lost. I DO understand why some people feel the need to remove them. I have heard a lot of stories of ripped off dew claws. My own Pepper got his caught a couple of months ago. It is painful. BUT, I am also one of those who just don't want to do unnecessary stuff. I don't like the tail docking, ear clipping, ect either. So, bottom line, I leave the dew claws on my pups and that way the new owners get to make that decision themselves. Marsha
----- Original Message ----- From: AnneL To: [email protected] Sent: Monday, January 29, 2007 11:28 AM Subject: Re: [Chihuahuas] More About Dewclaws > Some vets refuse to remove any dew claws as they say it is against > their code of ethics to do unnecessary surgery on an animal. My vet doesn't do any surgery on an animal for nonmedical purposes (i.e. tail docking, declawing cats, ear cropping, debarking). He won't do dewclaws unless there's a specific problem, i.e. it keeps getting caught on things and hurting the dog. Besides his personal view on these procedures (he's got a bigger soap box than I do, even), he told me once that any vet who performs purely elective procedures like that is taking a crazy risk, because anesthesia is a risk even in dogs, and far more so in cats. If a dog or cat experiences surgery-related complications or even dies, it's a heck of a lot easier to defend if the surgery was *necessary*. Anne
