Ear Cropping Case

In November 2021 we were faced with a sweet innocent puppy who had been seized from his owner by our inspectors and assisted by An Garda Síochána. He had one of the worst cases of ear cropping that we had seen. Most of his poor ears were cut off. They were sore and red with open wounds. The suture material used to stitch his ears had cut through his skin leaving deep sore infected wounds. His left ear had 8 looped stitches and his right ear had 14.

3 of the stitches were pulled so tightly they were embedded into his skin. When our vet tried to clean any part of his ears he cried. It was absolutely heartbreaking hearing him whining and whimpering in pain. He was sedated and the thick blue suture material used to stitch his ears was removed.

On Tuesday, the owner was fined €3,000 at a Dublin District Court and avoided a jail sentence. The owner was not present in court but his solicitor advised that he bought the puppy 2 weeks before he was seized and his ears had already been cropped but Judge Halpin said. “The first thing he should have done was go to a vet who could have applied an antibiotic to the ears “to relieve the pain this dog was going through”. The DSPCA accepts the courts ruling.

Ear cropping is illegal in Ireland. It is an incredibly painful procedure and carried out purely for cosmetic reasons. The pain that poor Rolly went through was completely unnecessary and 100% avoidable. We cared for Rolly, relieved his excruciating pain and nursed him back to health. He is now a happy boy in a wonderful loving home.