The American Kennel Club is the major organizing body for Dog shows in the US, including the popular Westminster Dog show. The AKC breed standards are used by virtually all other dog show organizations.   While we love dogs and dogs shows, many of the breeds have conformation requirements that requires surgical mutilation of the puppies if they are to be shown, specifically ear clipping and tail docking. 

   While there are certain cases where tail docking of working herding dogs can reduce the potential for on the job injury and loss of productive work time, the procedure is never beneficial to the dog.  For it to be a breed requirement for show dogs is unnecessary and gratuitous.  Ear clipping on the other hand is simply cruel and purely aesthetic and unnecessary in all cases.   Because of the AKC breed standard, most purebred dog breeders will perform tail docking and ear clipping on all puppies, even if they are not going to be shown, just to make their dogs look like the breed standards.   Dogs are cuter with ears and tails, and there is no reason to put a puppy through this for nothing but the owners vanity.   

  We are lobbying the AKC to immediately alter the standard so that the breed standards reflect the healthy and unmodified ear and tail structure of each breed.   Dogs modified prior to the change in standards could still be shown, but not dogs modified after the change in standard.   A voluntary change by the AKC would dramatically reduce these practices in the US and would eliminate the need to pursue laws to prevent the practices.