Dew Claws

[Adrianne Matzkin]

I have read that some breeders remove dew claws to their puppies. Can anyone tell me why? health concerns? cosmetic?  I do know that some doodles have had it done due to a medical reason.

I can't find anything written as to pros/cons. Just curious if anyone knows the reasoning.

 

[Frannie & Callie]

OMG - I love those giant doodle boy paws!

[Leslie and Halas]

Look at those big doodle paws!  I love them.

[Linda and Murphy]

BEAR PAWS lol

[GBK]

Buddy's paws are just like that and he has his dews too.  He will hold my hand like a person, the dew claw feels like a person thumb. Have you noticed that with Murphy Linda?   It is quite a weird feeling :)  Kona had her's removed as a pup.

[Ginny Nightingale]

Wow--a big boy!!

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

HMMMM-I thought ALL dew claws were removed as puppies when they are very young, I guess I didn't know it was an option but I'm glad mine don't have theirs they have enough issues already!

[Tina, Clover, Plus 5 More]

IMO dew claws are useful and should only be removed in certain circumstances.  Some people see them as an inconvenience.  What I mean by that is extra expense if injured, grooming and most of all scratching.  Dogs use them like thumbs and it can them keep their footing doing field work.   All my dogs have had their dew claws removed when we got them except for two.  Clover is one of the two and she still has her dew claws.  Weiner was the other one and we had his removed.  They were lose and not secure attached to the bone like Clovers.  He kept injuring them and it was painful. 

Plus if you have a dog that likes to shred things, dew claws are very handy for them in completing this task quickly, LOL. 

[Adrianne Matzkin]

Thanks for the truly LOL giggle!!!  The visual is hysterical!

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Luna definitely uses her dew claws to hold things, such as when she catches toys in her paws mid-air. I can see that they would cause some difficulties when grooming a shaggy haired doodle, but groomers should expect a dew claw to be there and be able to work around it.

 

The weirdest thing I've seen with dew claws was a husky with dew claws on the BACK legs... I'd never seen that before.

[Leslie, Dexter & Kirby]

Apparently they can be ripped out (of course it would be an accident) so some remove them so this is never an issue.

Both D&K have theirs and I honestly wish they had them removed.  They are a pain to cut :)

[Adrianne Matzkin]

Samantha will sit so quietly for me to do her nails but when it comes to the dew claws, she fidgets. I win, of course, but I hate to distress her.

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

This is a link to how dew claws are removed:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YO8dX6gJE7o

 

Boomer & Mariner have dew claws Shayna's were removed. We have never had a problem.  Given the choice I would not have the dew claws removed.