I'm for tails. I sincerely doubt yorkies are used for ratting anymore. And the tiny little stump yorkies are left with now is useless for pulling the dog out of a rat holes - which was the orginal reason for docking. (the tail should be about 3-4 vertebrae long to be useful - like a JRT.)
I think the Hygeine issue is a bit redundant - Dixie is docked and she still gets dags. When Dougal had a long coat he'd get knots around the base of his tail but that's just cos I'm a slacker when it comes to grooming.
Tail damage - I think this is a pathetic reason - where are the stats on tail damage? Why not dock ALL dogs' tails then? Surely no one breed is more at risk of tail damage than any other? (whoops I didn't read Alaskayorkie's post properly and there are some stats, but I can't see ANY of those reasons applying to yorkies.)
I can't really comment on the breed standard argument because I don't know the first thing about showing and I don't want to cause offense but I feel that breeders would adapt, we're all smart people who want what's best for the dog - - surely!
Dixie was docked before I contacted the breeder - if I had my choice she'd have a waggy tail just like my Dougal baby.
Sorry if i'm a bit vociferous but I just don't understand why you'd want to deny a dog their tail.
The only thing that worries me about making it illegal for vets to do tail docking is that some people will try to dock their dogs' tails themselves. And I saw the horrible results of that on an RNZSPCA TV programme and I would not wish that on any dog. |