More than 1,100 dogs are reported to have undergone a cruel and unnecessary procedure of having their ears cropped in the last three years, new figures from the RSPCA shows.
The animal welfare charity is releasing the figures as part of its Cancel Out Cruelty campaign – to raise awareness about how to stop cruelty to animals for good – and to highlight the barbaric procedure which, in many cases, is carried out illegally in the UK solely for the aim of making the dog look “tough”.
But it doesn’t benefit the dog in any way – and can actually be detrimental to their health. The figures from the RSPCA shows that 1,191 reports of ear cropping have been made to the RSPCA since 2020.
Shockingly, these figures are likely to be an under representation of the actual number of dogs who are having their ears cropped as not all cases are reported to the RSPCA, as some people may not realise that this isn’t a dog’s natural ear shape or that it is an illegal procedure in this country.
Dr Samantha Gaines, dog welfare expert at the RSPCA, said: “Ear cropping is a painful and unnecessary practice in which a dogs’ ears are removed or surgically altered and sadly many owners who do this do it because they think the look is glamorous or it makes their pet look tough.
“But it can be detrimental, in the short and long term, to their health, behaviour and welfare – they do not benefit from having it done, and the way it is illegally carried out in the UK – by people who are not vet professionals – is highly likely to lead them to suffer.”
Despite it being illegal in the UK, there are social media accounts which promote the practice.
Samantha added: “We don’t want this cruel procedure – which is essentially dogs being mutilated for money – to be normalised. We are concerned that it is a growing fashion trend and it needs to be stopped.”
Ian Muttitt, chief inspector in the RSPCA’s Special Operations Unit – which investigates ear cropping – said the team have seen “horrific” DIY ear cropping kits at homes of people who carry out the cruel practice. He said: “The idea of a person cutting off a dog’s ears with a pair of scissors and no pain relief or anaesthetic is stomach-churning – but that is exactly what they do. And it is even more sickening to know that they are only doing this because they think it will make the dog look ‘tough’ or they can sell the dog for more money.
“We have seen dogs who have suffered because of the after effects of this cruel procedure. They are at a high risk of infection and discomfort – what’s trendy or fashionable about that? Absolutely nothing.”
“It’s done purely for cosmetic purposes and sadly can lead to puppies being sold for much more money. We’d urge the public and anyone looking to buy a puppy to remember that this is an illegal procedure which has hugely negative impacts for the dogs themselves.”
Illegal practice still happens in UK
Whilst ear cropping is an illegal practice in the UK, it still happens. And shockingly, it isn’t illegal to import a dog with cropped ears into the country – making it harder to prove illegal cropping at home and leaving a loophole for owners to source dogs with cropped ears from abroad.
The UK Government had pledged to ban the import of dogs with cropped ears as part of its Kept Animals Bill – but sadly, the UK Government scrapped the bill in May, prompting the RSPCA to urge Ministers to find a viable alternative plan to ban it as soon as possible.
The RSPCA is urging people to write to their MP to ask for an urgent change in cracking down on imports of dogs with cropped ears.
The RSPCA has joined forces with Welsh charity Hope Rescue on the campaign which is aimed at reminding the public about the laws on cropped dogs and the welfare issues the procedure can cause pets.
To find out more about the campaign, visit the Mutilated For Money campaign page.
Man deleted images on social media showing dogs with ears intact
A man who posted photos of his XL bully dogs on Instagram was banned from keeping animals for 15 years after being convicted of arranging illegal ear cropping procedures for the dogs. Warwick Crown Court heard last month that an RSPCA inspector visited the man’s previous address, in Nuneaton, following a report being made to the charity about his dogs having cropped ears.
Inspector Louise Marston said in a witness statement that, although he was not in during that visit, she was able to observe two XL bullies in his garden and could see that they had cropped ears.
But photos of the same dogs posted on social media just weeks earlier by the man showed them with ears intact.
Following the RSPCA’s initial visit, a search warrant with the police was obtained and, on Wednesday 28 September 2022, inspector Marston, an RSPCA animal rescue officer, a council dog warden and a police officer attended the man’s address.
An ear splint was also found during the search, and there was blood splatter across a wall in the dining room, likely from one of the dogs shaking its head.
A notebook was found on the man’s bed, with his Instagram profile name written on the first page, and also including a brief family history of each puppy along with “£5,500” written underneath their names.
Research by the RSPCA’s intelligence team concluded that images on the man’s social media pages of XL bully puppies – with their ears intact – were the same dogs. Enquiries also showed that the man had deleted posts, including images of the dogs as puppies.
Inspector Marston made enquiries with the man who sold the dogs to the man, who confirmed the dogs didn’t have cropped ears when they were sold, and that he was unhappy that the dogs he bred ended up as they had.
As well as the 15-year ban on keeping animals, the man was also given an 18-week prison sentence suspended for 18 months.
