Scratching Behind Puppy Ears A No-no?

[samoyedman]

While taking my pup for a brief walk tonight I came across another samoyed owner.

I had a conversation with this guy and he strongly advised me to avoid touching puppy ears while they were growing. And he didnt mean the floppy exteriors. He was talking about hands-off the head area between the ears and definitely no scratching behind the ears as this can damage/malform the ear cartilage.

Has anyone ever heard of this before?

PS one of my samoyed puppy's ears is partially up the other is still floppy. He is almost 16 weeks old. Is this normal for one to be different to the other?

Edited November 27, 2006 by samoyedman

[MTD]

I don't really agree You should get the dog use to touching these areas because if you every have to clean/medicate or even have the vet look in the ears it makes life much easier.

maggie just loves her ears being touched and massaged it really calms her down and sends her into some sort of hypnotic state.

[Akitaowner]

i was aware that the opposite is true - the more you massage floppy puppy ears the stronger the cartilage gets? Akita start with floppy puppy ears and they generally come up between 8 and 20 weeks depending on the individual - i tend to find they can go up and down a bit especially while they are teething - due to changes in the jaw.

obviosuly dont be too rough with puppy ears but gently scrathing behind the ears is (with a lot of dogs) very bonding and affectionate - i wouldnt stop!

[PAX]

Puppy ears are often funny until they finish teething.

[aki]

Our boy loves being scratched around the ears, I agree with the replies that touching (gently) and fondling allows you to bond with your pup, like magthedag, our 2 sammies love being scratched (even in the ear!!) which sends them into a really trance like state. as for one ear up and one down, my first male sammy had the same until he was about 6 months old, then hey presto one day the other ear was up, I wouldn't worry yet.