08/27/2025
I get asked this frequently, so I will post it once and for all. Tail docking...why do it?
I can only answer for myself, but I will also give reasons that I've seen other people give as well.
4.)People report that the tail serves as a wrecking ball in their house...leaving a path of destruction. My house is Boerboel proof, so I would not crop for this reason alone.
3.) Historically they were cropped in SA because their tail could be a detriment to them against predators..primarily baboons. Depending on where they live out their lives..they could still be a detriment with predators. I don't have an issue with predators, so I would not crop for this reason alone.
2.) Their tails are long, thick, and unbelievably strong.... I have had dogs with full tails that were repeatedly injuring them on doorways, tables, you name it. Literally spraying blood and risking infection. The reality is that an injury like that causes them more pain, for a longer period of time than tying their tails off...multiply that by several times, and it's a no brainer for me.
1.) This is selfish of me, I know...but I have a spinal cord injury, and when I get hit in my legs which are ultra-hyper sensitive..it literally feels like getting hit with a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire. I keep pups out of virtually every litter..so if I want to spend a significant amount of time loving, training, working with them, and living with them..I can't be getting whipped by the tail.
As I said, usually keep pups out of every litter. If I wasn't and I had deposits for all the pups and those people wanted natural tails...I would absolutely not dock them at their request.
My current litter was the first litter in which I banded the tails myself. When you first apply the band, they absolutely yelp in pain. From my close observation, they have pain for about 24 hours (it decreases over that time frame) and discomfort for another 24 hours. I am not a fan of that, however as I previously said ...I have seen tail injuries that resulted in much more pain.
I posted to explain why I dock...nothing more, nothing less. There is no standard that deducts for docked or undocked.
