Advice on redoing ear glue.

GlennR

GlennR

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So, the glue came out of both ears over a week ago. So far, there's no indication that they are going to stand up and have stayed tipped over. Is it possible that she's naturally tipped?

If not, when should I expect that they'll stand up again? She's nineteen weeks old. I was going to reglue at the first indication that they were straightening up.
 
I'd suggest that you not wait....they'll go up and the longer they're up the greater the risk they'll stay up. My experience with Shelties is more limited than others but while both of mine had periods where they stayed down (especially when younger) they did go up.
 
Did you take the glue out, or is there residue there that's weighing the tips down? We always recommend keeping them in until the puppy is completely through teething...9 months to a year old. Naturally tipped Shelties are, unfortunately, at this point very rare. If it were me, I'd reglue to be safe. You're fine leaving the ears out for a day or two or three if they aren't going up but it's almost inevitable that they will go up if they stay out.
 
If naturally tipped Shelties are very rare, why would tipped ears be a breed standard? My intuition is erect ears are more functional because they can hear better. Animals in the wild (wolves, foxes, tigers, cheetahs) all have erect ears.
 
Well, for better or worse, Willow's ears are reglued. They hadn't come up in a week and a half so perhaps she's a natural and gluing isn't really needed. The only way to tell would be to keep leaving her ears unglued to see if they rose up again but gluing wasn't that difficult so why wonder. :)
 
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Sunflower77 said:
If naturally tipped Shelties are very rare, why would tipped ears be a breed standard? My intuition is erect ears are more functional because they can hear better. Animals in the wild (wolves, foxes, tigers, cheetahs) all have erect ears.
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Back in the early days of the sheltie, tipped ears were the norm. However, as breeders bred for other desirable traits, tipped ears just weren't high on the list because it was something that could "easily" be fixed. They placed their genetic emphasis on other things and thus now we have less dogs with naturally tipped ears.

And, the reason that tipped ears were desirable is on the windy Shetland Isles, tipped ears kept dirt out of them, but still allowed the sound to enter and rebound inside the ear so they could hear better.
 
corbinam said:
Back in the early days of the sheltie, tipped ears were the norm. However, as breeders bred for other desirable traits, tipped ears just weren't high on the list because it was something that could "easily" be fixed. They placed their genetic emphasis on other things and thus now we have less dogs with naturally tipped ears.

And, the reason that tipped ears were desirable is on the windy Shetland Isles, tipped ears kept dirt out of them, but still allowed the sound to enter and rebound inside the ear so they could hear better.
Click to expand...

How much should the ears tip? Luna's ears tip at the very end, but that is all. She is eight months old. I do glue them and when the glue comes out they gradually go up but the very tips stay bent. She was at "board and train" for three weeks while I was out of town and they came unglued. They tried to reglue them, but even four professional trainers could not out wit a determined Sheltie puppy. I use a lick pad covered in peanut butter to keep her occupied while I glue.
 
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