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As long as there are Collies, there will always be ear tipping problems.
The collie ear. It is an enigma in itself! Some owners go through their collie’s whole life without realizing how important ear structure was in the development of collies. For most collies, if left to its own, their ears will prick straight up towards the sky. However, the breed was historically developed to have a slighly bent ear – 3/4′s erect with the upper 1/4 part tipped forwards. Their particuar ear circumference, along with the cupped base and tipped ear provided maximum sound absorbance – something that was extremely important for collies who herded in the sheep fields. They needed to be able to listen acutely for preditors that might sneak up on them or their charges. As mentioned, it is unfortunate that today, due to poor breeding stock and methods, most collie ears do not tip on their own, but instead must be trained in puppyhood. Some show professionals believe that a pointed ear ruins the collie’s natural expression and a lot of energy and time goes into different means of ear tipping their collies.
However, if your collie’s ears do not tip naturally, do not fret! A collie, is a collie, is a collie. He will love you, adore you, and provide many years of affection with or without the top 1/4 of his ear tipped. Would you get angry at your daughter if her hair curled instead of fell strait? Of course not! The tipped ear, outside of historical significance in the field, is something a regular, every day pet owner should not need to concern themselves over.
Do remember though, if you get a collie with the intention of one day showing them, you should invest the time to make sure their ears do tip to maximize your collies chances of winning in the ring. Read books, google searches on collie ear tipping, and – best of all – talk to your collies breeder to find out the best course you should take in your ear tipping endeavors.
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3 Responses to To Tip or Not to Tip (Collie Ears)
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I do believe that the tipped ear is essential to the Collie’s beauty. Yes, I do love appearances–in addition to its wonderful temperament and intelligence, I think the Rough Collie is the most beautiful of all animals.
I owned a Rough collie whose ears did naturally tip–perhaps a tad too much, according to his breeder. He was gorgeous–championship quality but couldn’t be used for breeding because he was a monorchid (sob!). When I was a kid we owned a lovely Shetland Sheepdog whose ears did not tip–I always wished they did!
I’ve wondered if surgery could be possible on non tipping ears? Has that possibility ever been explored??
I have to wonder why anyone, with any breed, would have to resort surgery just to make it estecially pleasing? I have shown dogs for many years and have come up aganist handlers, professional and non, who confessed to cosmetically altering a dog just to win. What is sad is that these dogs are then bred, just because they are champions, but the underlying problem still exists. I currently own a collie who has one ear that tips naturally and one that doesn’t. When he was a puppy I was worried about this and tried differnt techniques to tip the ear…all were extremely uncomfortable to the dog and I stopped. Today he is a knock-out even with his semi-straight ear. I love him (and he loves me) just the way he is! Like the article says would you love your child any less if their hair were curly instead of straight? Looks aren’t everything.
Betsy, I agree that as a dog that is judged heavily on their expression, and a properly tipped ear is essential to this. Surgery is absolutely against the rules and you’ll be booted out of the ring and that dog will never show again. Not only is it unnecessary, but it is considered very bad form by all who hold the Collie dear.
There are very effective braces that don’t cause the puppy any discomfort and if kept up, you’ll have a nicely tipped ear by adulthood. With your next dog, have your breeder show you how to do it so you can have that nice ear and expression that is essential to proper Collie type.
Marie, I agree that it’s sad and wrong when they are surgically altered and old-time judges used to run a thumb under the ear to check for just that. With a proper ear brace as a puppy, those ears should should tip. There are so many ways to do it that don’t cause a dog discomfort, I have to wonder what methods you were using. Puppies will help each other out of their braces, but that’s puppies for you.