Ear cropping and tail docking are cruel, unnecessary procedures that dogs should not be forced to go through. Ear cropping involves cutting off the floppy part of a dog’s ears while they’re still a puppy and then taping the ear to a hard object so that they heal upright. Tail docking is done to puppies without anesthesia and involves cutting off all of or a part of a dog’s tail while it’s still ‘soft.’

These things are only done to make dogs look a certain way. They are completely unnecessary otherwise. ‘Elective’ surgery is just wrong when it comes to animals because they are not the ones electing to have the surgery done. People are selecting for them based on vanity “tradition.”

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) opposes the procedure because it poses unnecessary health risks, but the American Kennel Club (AKC) promote it. They state it’s “integral to defining and preserving breed character” in certain breeds. It’s all about ensuring that certain dog breeds look a certain way. This is a problem in itself. When humans try to make sure that dogs look a certain way, they either dangerously breed them or cause harm in different ways like these procedures.

Just think of dogs with short snouts. They did not always look that way, but were bred so that they do and now they suffer from many health problems as a result. It’s the same concept with the procedures endorsed by the AKC. This also influences pet owners around the world and leads to more procedures being done on the average pet. If they did not condone it, the number of procedures done would likely decline.

Dogs should not be forced to meet these vain standards imposed on them by humans. If you agree, sign this petition to ask the American Kennel Club to stop promoting cruel procedures like ear cropping, tail docking, and dewclaw removal.

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