Why do people care if.....

[Maik]

Either or both ears don't stand up? Unless you plan to show the dog, who cares?
I see the lengths some folks go through, and I can't help wonder why are they so concerned as to glue or ate them up?

[mandiah89]

Well I cant speak for everyone else but GSD's are supposed to have erect ears, and when they dont I personally dont like the look of it and would go to any length to make sure they went up, if they didnt doesnt mean I wouldnt love the dog less but I like the look, and then you always would get " oh he/she isn't pure because the ears are not standing"... So yea, I like the look makes them look even more regal

[Courtney]

I'm going to be completely honest, I do care. For me it completes the look of a GSD. If my boys ears didn't go up I would have been disappointed but would love him all the same. He's a companion & I do not show him.

For those that can help the ears stand with product, more power to them. Some have soft ears & nothing can be done.

[Konotashi]

I hope I don't have issues with my future GSD's ears going up, but I think they're prettier with erect ears. They're cuter with soft ears, but I'm not getting a GSD to be cute. That's why I have a Pom.

[Maik]

I bring this up because one of my two pups has floppy ears. He is only 15 weeks, so there is plenty of time. His half sister has had her ears up since the day we brought her home....she is 8 months old. If my boys ears don't go up, I could not care less...I simply do not care what others think.

[Zookeep]

Personally, I prefer the one ear up and one ear down look.

[ksotto333]

We have the half soft ear..sometime up all the way..sometimes halfway down..

[CurvyOne]

I wouldnt do anything inhumane or anything that could possibly damage the ears. But I would try a few things to help them stand up if they were struggling. The look of the GSD is part of the reason I chose him. Of course temperament and personality are most important, but I love how regal GSDs look and the ears contribute to that. Personally I'm not that into the floppy eared look. I couldnt WAIT until Huter's ears stood, and I'm ecstatic now that they are up.
I do not show him, and of course I would love him no less if he had floppy ears. But hoping for erect ears is absolutely no different then looking for a certain "type" of gsd or any other dog. Some people like long haired GSDs, some like short. Some people like black labs over yellow labs. Its just preference. We all love our dogs most for whats on the inside

[DaniFani]

I used to not understand why people cared....then I got my gsd...and I LOVE his ears. I wouldn't love him any less with floppy ears, but those erect, at-attention-ears, are one of my favorite things about the GSD. I would have been sad if they didn't go up, and I would have gone to lengths to get them up.

[KZoppa]

The GSD is supposed to have erect ears. I like the look of the dog. They're serious dogs. Erect earred dogs arent generally deceptive to the public or other dogs. Look at the doberman for example. They're guard dog types. You see one with natural ears and likely think "oh how cute!". See one with cropped ears and the first thought that should run through your mind is something along the lines of "this dog means business". I wouldn't love my dog any less if her ears were soft but I'd be extremely disappointed because if I wanted a floppy earred dog, i'd have gotten a retriever or a hound.

May sound mean but a soft earred GSD (like a dobie) gives the wrong impression. They're not meant to be cute and cuddley looking, especially not to the random stranger on the street. They mean business. I don't want people getting the impression my dog is there for their enjoyment and floppy earred dogs tend to give off that impression (this excludes the rottweiler). I LIKE the fact my erect earred dog tends to keep people at a distance since I don't have a fondness for people. I like my space and I like the fact that my dog LOOKS intimidating. Nobody needs to know she's really a total lush. Floppy earred dogs don't allow for that.