When should a Sheltie puppy's ears start coming up?

[SRW]

I've had the ears glued for about two weeks. I had to keep gluing the moleskin down as he continually scratched it loose. Finally yesterday he got one off, so I took the other one off just to see how things are going. His ears seem more forward and maybe up a little, but I wasn't able to get them to stand up with the moleskin as the point at which they "flop" over was so far down in his ear that I couldn't get the moleskin down that far. Here are two pictures, one before we started and the other today. I'm not sure how much of the change we accomplished versus how much just happened naturally.

IMG_0389

• SRW
• Sep 9, 2018

Devon, 8/7/2018

IMG_0487

• SRW
• Sep 9, 2018

Devon, 9/9/2018 -- after removing moleskin from ears.

I guess my question is whether or not it's of value continuing to try to glue his ears up, if at the completion of the procedure, they aren't actually in the standing position while glued. We may have helped pull the ears forward though, as the yarn brace was tight most of the time for a week or so, but then afterward it was loose fairly often, which I take as an indication that his ears were more often forward as time passed.

Comments and suggestions welcome.

 

[Phoebe'smom]

I never messed with Phoebe's ears in that she is not a show dog. They changed a lot as she grew. See photos at 7 weeks, 3 1/2months and 2 1/2 years.

 

[Piper's mom]

It certainly looks like the ears are more on top of the head than on the side now, while they do tip a fair bit they look better now than they did before. They don't look as much like a hound ear anymore, he's got much more of the Sheltie expression now. I'd give him a few days to see what the ears are going to do but you may have to brace again at some point because as they grow the ears may go back to the side again. Such a cutie!
They are amazingly smart when it comes to getting the ears free lol.

 

[SRW]

I never messed with Phoebe's ears in that she is not a show dog. They changed a lot as she grew. See photos at 7 weeks, 3 1/2months and 2 1/2 years.View attachment 13870 View attachment 13868View attachment 13869

It's interesting that her ears looked higher at 3 1/2 months versus 2 1/2 years; but either way at least they weren't hanging down the side, which is what I was worried about because of the picture of the father I saw whose ears were just hanging at the sides.

 

[SRW]

It certainly looks like the ears are more on top of the head than on the side now, while they do tip a fair bit they look better now than they did before. They don't look as much like a hound ear anymore, he's got much more of the Sheltie expression now. I'd give him a few days to see what the ears are going to do but you may have to brace again at some point because as they grow the ears may go back to the side again. Such a cutie!
They are amazingly smart when it comes to getting the ears free lol.

Yes, I was going to wait a few days before deciding whether to do it again. But you think that just bracing the ears, even if they are still flopped over while glued and braced, was at least in part responsible for the change in their appearance rather than it just having happened naturally?

 

[corbinam]

Yes, I was going to wait a few days before deciding whether to do it again. But you think that just bracing the ears, even if they are still flopped over while glued and braced, was at least in part responsible for the change in their appearance rather than it just having happened naturally?

I definitely think so! His ears are some of the heavier I've seen. I'm crazy about tipped ears (though I have one with prick ears, but he's my first so I get a pass! lol) so I'd recommend keeping up with the bracing. The nice thing about using yarn or even a tied piece of tape is that if they start to fall you should be able to continue to pull up and tighten along and along.

 

[Ann]

I agree with everyone else. You won't get results in two weeks...or even two months! It's a process that you need to keep up with until the puppy is done teething at least. We keep puppies' ears in until their first birthday, sometimes longer. Once the ears are set, you can't change them, so if you want a certain result, it's really worth the effort now...especially if you're seeing some results.

 

[SRW]

I definitely think so! His ears are some of the heavier I've seen. I'm crazy about tipped ears (though I have one with prick ears, but he's my first so I get a pass! lol) so I'd recommend keeping up with the bracing. The nice thing about using yarn or even a tied piece of tape is that if they start to fall you should be able to continue to pull up and tighten along and along.

Well, it looks like I should keep doing it then. Unfortunately he scratches at them so much that I have to re-glue part of the moleskin back down every couple of days, so it's a major time commitment, in addition to the difficulty in getting him to hold still while I do it, especially if I'm doing it by myself.

As I write this the thought just occurred to me that perhaps there might be something better than moleskin. I originally tried the Japanese tape, but that didn't cause his ears to stand up either, and Devon got that loose quicker than the moleskin. I switched to moleskin (I'm using two pieces per ear, glued together with the yarn sandwiched in between) thinking that the extra stiffness would be better for propping his ears up, but since that didn't do the trick, perhaps because the moleskin is adding extra weight to the ears, and as you say if they are heavy to start with then the moleskin's weight may be adding more to the problem than the stiffness is solving. Are there any other materials that I might consider using? Unfortunately the point at which the ears break is very low inside the ear where all the wrinkly textured skin is, and I don't think I'm going to be able to tape or glue anything in that area. If there were something lighter than moleskin but stiffer than tape that I could try, that might be better.

 

[SRW]

I agree with everyone else. You won't get results in two weeks...or even two months! It's a process that you need to keep up with until the puppy is done teething at least. We keep puppies' ears in until their first birthday, sometimes longer. Once the ears are set, you can't change them, so if you want a certain result, it's really worth the effort now...especially if you're seeing some results.

When is a puppy done teething? I can't remember when Baron got his final permanent teeth.

 

[Calliesmom]

My second puppy - I was using the glue method which worked great on the first puppy. Second puppy was actually dog number 3 at that point and glued ears stay in better when other dogs aren't involved. I was gluing his ears every night. we switched to Japanese tape and I though it was the best stuff ever- only had to redo once a week. I was told that his ears were a little thick and we might not get the good tip. and they only tip a little but that's ok.
For stiffness with strength, I've heard some people use breathe right strips to support the ears. haven't done that so don't know the details.....