Breeder Louis Dobermann had wanted to streamline the look of the dog by giving it a fierce and sleek appearance by cropping the ears and docking the tail. Other people may see docking as an aesthetic or cosmetic aspect and totally unnecessary but Doberman enthusiasts are also trying to avoid the dog from “broken tail” injury due to the thin tail bone that can break by excessive wagging or striking an object unintentionally.

Breeders who are strict in following the standard have the tails docked as early as a few hours after the puppies have been born. There isn’t any real scalpel surgery done but an orthodontic-type band is placed around the tail cutting the blood circulation to it. In a few days the tails eventually just fall off.  Future owners who want undocked tails will have to search for breeders who will allow as many are stuck with the standard, sleek that comes after docking.

Dobermans are very strong and powerful dogs and it can be one’s pride when showing its sleekness while going on an afternoon walk. However walks can turn into disaster when the Doberman darts out and drags the owner to the ground. How can this be remedied to further prevent harm as well to the Doberman? Well, obedience training is the solution. Here are some techniques: train the dog with commands to STOP and SIT while they are on the leash without any strong pulls. Hopefully they will do the commands as you stop walking. Another is tug on the leash with a verbal command as the dog starts to pull.  If it persists, walk the other way and pull harder on it, Dobermans learn fast and this may help.  Pinch collars can also be utilized however, they cause pain and if the dog keeps dragging the owner; the spikes will cut into the skin. Pain is not a healthy form of positive reinforcement.

If you want proof of just how extraordinary the relationsip between man and his best friend can be then you really must read a stunning new book called One Dog At A Time. It has been written by a British Marine and dog lover called Pen Farthing and tells of his time serving in the violent Helmand Province of Afghanistan.

While dodging the bullets and mortars, Sergeant Farthing witnessed the cruel and barbaric Afghan tradition of dog fighting. Rather than standing by as many would have done, he risked his life by breaking up the fighting and freeing the dogs. One of them, a big, battle-scarred mastiff he christened Nowzad after the town he was stationed in, found his way into the Marine compound where he befriended his liberator. As Farthing’’s tour of duty continued, he and Nowzad became inseparable buddies. The tough British soldier and the powerful dog formed an odd couple in the middle of the war zone. They were soon joined by other dogs who were drawn to the sanctuary the Marine compound provided. At one point, one dog pushed her litter of newborn pups through the wall of the compound so that they could be safe from the Taliban bombs and general cruelty of the Afghans towards the dog.

By the end of his time in Afghanistan, Farthing had more than a dozen dogs and puppies living in his makeshift sanctuary. As he prepared to leave, he was faced with the heartbreaking prospect of leaving them all behind.

We won’t spoil the ending of this powerful book, but suffice it to say that two of the dogs he rescued are now living with Pen Farthing in England. He has also set up a fantastic charity to rescue other abused dogs in Afghanistan. His work is truly inspirational and is winning the admiration and support of dog lovers everywhere. Part of the proceeds from the book will go towards his charity.

If you only buy and read one dog book this year, make it One Dog At A Time.

One in five dogs snore. That’s what a group of scientists discovered when they did a study on canine sleeping habits.

They also discovered that dogs dream. In a series of tests vets recorded dogs experiencing Rapid Eye Movement or REM sleep, which in humans indicate a dreamy state. Interestingly, the vets also discovered that dogs tend to doze in on-off sequences, snoozing for an hour then waking for half an hour. During the waking period dogs are often highly active and do things like pacing around and barking. No one yet has explained whether this is related to their dreams.

Not all dogs are able to control their sleeping habits so well.
Dobermans were bred by a German tax-collector who wanted to produce a dog so fierce that it could protect him on travels through bandit-infested countryside and persuade reluctant debtors to pay up. One line of the breed didn’t quite work out according to plan, however.

This unfortunate strain of Dobermans suffer from narcolepsy- an inherited condition which makes them drop sound asleep whenever they get excited. Even the sight or smell of a favourite snack is enough to send them into a deep slumber.

For more odd and interesting scientific facts about man’s best friend you should read ‘ ‘Play It Again Tom: Curious Truths About Cats And Dogs’ by Augustus Brown
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Also, dog training is an integral part of a working dog’s life for them to be able to assist humans in activities like hunting and police work. Training dogs is a specialized skill since the key difficulty lies in how to communicate efficiently with them.

All training of dogs is a repetition of the basic principle of reward and punishment in various forms and combinations. Communication of these signals is the key to proper training. One very important thing to remember is consistency of signals. The reliability of the training depends on how well a dog is able to be sure of what your signals mean.

It must also be mentioned that different dog breeds take to training differently. Dogs like the iconic German Shepherd are very easily trained due to their high intelligence. Another important factor is the emotional state of the dog. A dog that is frightened, anxious, or insecure doesn’t train well and this reflects the importance of factors like proper socialization of Doberman puppies.

A lot of studies have shown that proper puppy socialization goes a long way towards ensuring a good temperament and receptivity towards training. Lots of handling, petting and generally being around humans in their everyday life goes a long way towards making a dog well behaved and easy to train.

Training Doberman puppies should not begin too early however, as there is evidence to show that before a certain age, the brains of puppies are not significantly developed enough to process complex learning.

Professional dog trainers are best when it comes to training your dog as they will ensure that the proper habits are set for life, including how to behave around strangers. For the safety of your dog, it is your duty as an owner to ensure that he or she is well trained.

There are several websites competing for the dog training keyword and many sells training material/services. It is so hard to choose which one you should go with. I started to listen to podcasts on iTunes and this is how I came across with Leerburg Training. The FREE podcast proved how professional and knowledgeable they are.  Well, I have spoken to several professionals and read many books. 

There is only one I can recommend and this is the Leerburg Training Materials. Here are just a few of my favorites:

http://leerburg.com/cart/affiliate.php?Model=120-D&affiliate=Euro Puppy

How to tape your Doberman’s ear?

After cropping your Doberman puppy’s ears, it is going to require regular ear tapings for quite some time. Proper taping will ensure the puppy less stress and beautiful ears. It takes patience and persistence for success.

1. Post the ears and leave them up six days, then take down and leave down for a few hours but never overnight. 
2. Re-tape and leave them up again for six days, then remove tape again. 
3. When the ears stand, you can leave them down until they start to drop, then re-tape as before and leave them for another six days. 
4. Search and smell the ears regularly for scent of infection. NEVER post infected ears. Also, remember always to clean the ears from glue after removing the tape.

Ears should not be taped until most of the scabs from the surgery have healed.  If there are just 1 or 2 scabs left, cover those with a little antibiotic powder, cover this with gaze and then tape over them.

There is no set amount of time that it takes before a puppy’s ears will stand; the average time for taping is approximately 4-5 months. Most pups have their ears up by the age of 9 months. That said, it isn’t unusual for some ears not to stand until the pup is a year old or more.  Some puppies have very thick ear leather, which means that their ears will take longer to raise. Also a long show crop that you can see in some of our champions takes it a few months extra to raise but it is well worth it!

Please keep in mind that you need 2 tampons (or sticks made out of rolled kitchen paper like ours) and a tape.

1. Put the tampon inside ear (so that it can’t fall out)

2. Start taping in this direction. IMPORTANT: when you tape you should start as low as you can, so that the muscle that supports the ear is taped and firmed. Do not tape too hard, because it can stop the circulation of blood into the ear. You’ll feel what’s OK.

3. All the way up - like this!

4. And now for second ear the same. Keep notice of the position - this is probably the easiest position in which your assistant can hold the puppy, since you have to keep his head still.

5. Look at the picture: taping should be performed when ear is pulled out (away) from the head, approx. 45 degrees.

6. Finally, connect the ears between. 

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO NOTICE AFTER A WHILE IF THE TAPE IS STARTING TO ROLL INWARDS AND THE EARS START TO POINT TO EACH OTHER INSTEAD OF BEING PARALLEL. THEN YOU SHOULD CUT THE STRING IN THE MIDDLE.

There are several ways of correcting the ear position on the course of months. If the ears start to pull/lay over the head, you don’t need to connect them like this - with a string in the middle, just tape the ear with bending problem 45 degrees away from the head.

The ear doesn’t have to be entirely taped, because when you remove the tape it takes some of the hair off - so you can tape it in 3 places - bottom, middle and top (or, like here taped in 2 places):

There are more tips individually for each puppy, so in case you are facing any problems, contact your vet or a breeder - sooner the better! 

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Don’t have a Doberman yet but would like to have one? Check out these outstanding European Dobermans.

Some people look for “King? Dobermans…

There is no such thing as a ?King? Doberman. Or a ?Superior? or ?Excelsior? Doberman either. These terms refer to nothing more than an oversized Doberman. Dobermans are medium-sized, agile dogs and they must be able to perform the job they were bred to do. Perhaps if one is looking for a 32-inch tall (or larger dog), than one should choose a larger breed.

Some people on the other hand look for Miniature Doberman Pinchers…

Again, there is no such thing as a miniature Doberman. Most people think (and hope?) that the miniature pinscher (Min Pin) - also a native German breed that has been known in that country for over 300 years- is actually a smaller, miniaturized version of the Doberman. Sorry, it really is another breed altogether! . The miniature pinscher is 10-12?” at the shoulder and was originally used as a barnyard ratter. They are in no way similar to a Doberman.