When Do German Shepherd Puppies Ears Stand Up
For most German Shepherds, their ears will stand up between the ages of 4 and 5 months.
However, it is possible for the ears to stand up later or earlier than this age.This is the standard advice and rough timeline that breeders give out.
In the early stages, it is common to see ears dancing around and you will likely see one ear standing up first and then flops back again.
When you notice that the right and left ears alternate between flopping down and standing up, there is no need to worry as this is normal.
Why Do German Shepherds Put Their Ears Down
Finally, theres the flat ear position where the ears will appear tightly pinned back and held tight to the dogs head. Many people believe this means the dog is sick. This is not entirely true sickness may coincide with the position but isnt usually the only cause. So, why do German Shepherds put their ears down?
German Shepherds put their ears down because of fear or anxiety. If your dog is afraid of his environment, another person or animal, or occasionally illness, you will notice his ears flattening and pinned tight to the head. Other signs include cowering, a hunched and rigid body, and whimpering.
Check out this dog in the below photo. His ears are down and pinned flat against his head. He is clearly anxious or afraid and hoping to be adopted.
Do German Shepherd Ears Stand Up Straight
All German Shepherds are born with floppy ears and your puppys ears will go through several weird stages before they become pointy and stand up straight.
You should expect your German Shepherds puppy ears to stand up and remain erect when he is finished teething. In most cases, the teething process lasts until the dog reaches five months of age, but it can last longer for some pups .
During this period, you will probably notice that your Shepherds ears are going through some funny changes. Its quite common for the ears to be up one day, just to drop down again the next.
If this happens, theres no need to be alarmed! In fact, this is a sign that your pups muscles and cartilage are developing properly.
Keep in mind that all puppies are individuals and develop differently. Thus, there is a big chance that your Shepherd puppys ears need seven months to stand up straight.
Generally, if your pups ears have gone up at some point and then dropped down again, they will stand up again and stay that way into adulthood. However, if the dogs ears dont go up by the time he is eight or nine months old, chances are that they never will.
Percentage of Ears Standing Up
According to owners, nearly one in five German Shepherd dogs have floppy ears . However, this doesnt mean that your GSDs ears wont stand up once hes finished teething.
Lets take a look at percentages of German Shepherd ears standing up by age:
| Age |
| 16% |
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Remove And Inspect Their Ears Weekly
Pick a day of the week to remove and inspect your dogs ears. Take off the wrapping and foam rollers and see if your dogs ears stand on their own naturally.
Also, look for any soreness from improper taping and if you see any issues dont keep applying the tape.
If your GSDs ears flop over then rewrap them the same way to offer more support for a bit longer. If they stand on their own then youre good to go and you can discontinue the ear taping.
Dont forget to check and change the tape weekly so you can see the health of your pups ears.
How Do You Tell If A Puppys Ears Will Stand Up
The best way to tell if a puppys ears will stand up is to examine its parents. If both parents have pointed ears, then theres a good chance that their ears will stand up, too. However, you should also inquire about the longer ancestral history of the puppy. If you discover that a floppy-eared dog is in that line, then theres always a chance that your puppy may also inherit floppy ears.
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What Do German Shepherd Ear Positions Mean
Ears up and down this is how your puppy offers their greetings to other pets and people. It may be accompanied by face-licking and tail-wagging.
Floppy and relaxed ears this means that your dog is completely relaxed and not stressed.
Forward-tilted ears your dog is trying to tell you that they are alert and confident, which is mostly associated with an attitude of being self-assured.
Backward-tilted ears your dog might be feeling fear or anxiety, especially when training them to show submission.
Constantly tilting ears in different directions your dog could be trying to figure out where the noise comes from.
Interested In Training Your German Shepherd The Right Way
If you havent trained your German Shepherd properly, then this is the perfect time to start. Whatever bad behavior your shepherd has, whether its barking at night or other bad behaviors, using the right training program is the key to having an obedient and happy pup.
The training program I love and highly recommend is Brain Training For Dogs.
With Brain Training For Dogs youll save yourself a ton of time and effort. Instead of banging your head against the wall trying to figure out why your dog wont listen, youll follow a path that has been tried, tested, and most importantly, thats given proven results. Not to mention the fact, youll be able to fit the course around your schedule, not fit your schedule around a trainer or obedience class.
So instead of worrying about whether theyre going to be well-behaved or not, youll only have to worry about how much fun youll have with them!
And in most cases its still going to be:
- Cheaper than hiring a professional.
- Cheaper than replacing everything they might break.
- And definitely cheaper than a lawsuit against you, if they decide to bite someone.
Just imagine how great it will feel to finally be able to trust your German Shepherd completely and never worry whether theyll be naughty or not. Instead, youll have the peace of mind that you have a well-behaved pup, and the boundaries you set for them, will always be there, EVEN IF YOURE NOT.
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When Should I Tape My German Shepherds Ears
You shouldnt tape your German Shepherds ears because taping rarely works when the problem is a genetic one. However, if you want to try taping your German Shepherds ears, then you shouldnt do it any earlier than a year after theyre born.
You need to give your puppy plenty of time to grow and build the cartilage in their ears naturally. Taping prematurely may damage their ears.
German Shepherd Ears Implants
When everything else has failed, there are two last solutions that you can consider: getting surgical implants or having your German Shepherds ear cropped.
Bear in mind that those two procedures are quite painful and take a long recovery time. There is no guarantee that your German Shepherds ears can go up even after they undergo the process.
So you need to consider whether its worth it or not putting your dog into such unfair situations, not to mention the trauma that can last for a lifetime.
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Why Has My Puppy’s Ears Suddenly Started Drooping
Puppy ears change as they grow. In many cases, ears standing up perfectly before three months will start to droop again when the puppy is teething. This is because nutrients being sent to the ears are now being diverted to the growing teeth.
Usually, after the teething process is done, the ears will stand right up again at around six months.
On the way to fully erect ears, the puppy may go through many very natural stages. What starts with tiny floppy ears in a German Shepherd might evolve into ears that flop to the side.
This may turn into “flying nun” ears, where one ear is down and one looks like it wants to fly away. Flying nun ears are usually followed by the comb-over stage, where they may be flopping over the top of the head. All of this is a normal part of the process of getting perfectly erect ears.
If you are concerned about a puppy having one ear up and one ear down, have your vet check for any trauma or inflammation in that ear, which may cause it to droop. If there is nothing physically wrong with it, check your puppy’s sleeping patterns.
They may always be lying on one side and squashing one ear. You can encourage them to lie on the other side to balance things out.
German Shepherd Floppy Ears
For every pet owner, there must have been a point when they wondered what the truth is behind German shepherd floppy ears. Sure, its cute, but is there a meaning behind it? Will it affect a German shepherds behavior?
Such questions often pop up in our minds the first time we see German shepherd floppy ears. So today, were going to talk about everything you need to know about German shepherd floppy ears and what to do when you start seeing them.
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Tapping German Shepherd Dogs
Tapping is a common practice to make the ears of a German Shepherd. This method is mostly used for the dogs used for shows and competitions.
The German Shepherd kept as a pet at home is not experimented with by this method. People just love to have a dog like German Shepherd. Floppy ears dont make any difference for them.
So there is no reason for using the taping method for your dogs ears if you have no concern about how the ears of your dog look like.
Why Do German Shepherd Puppies Go Ears Up Then Down
It’s common for a pup’s ears to perk up and then droop again within a few weeks. So, don’t let this alarm you. This is a sign that the cartilage and muscles are developing normally.
And this can happen several times during teething when the adult teeth are pushing through.
Although as I mentioned above, some puppies will not experience droopy ears during teething.
In my experience, if the ears perk up once and then droop again, they will come back up. So in this case just relax and wait for your pup to finish teething.
Some uneducated sources say this has to do with their bodies using calcium for bone and teeth development.
This is incorrect information because, in fact, their ears are cartilage and not bone, so calcium is not a factor in upright ears in fact, calcium supplementation can cause serious health issues.
In reality, this up and down see-saw of your puppy’s ears has to do with the development of the Temporalis Muscle, which I’ll get into a little further down, so keep reading.
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Why Do German Shepherds Move Their Ears
Before we get into specific German Shepherd ear positions that indicate different emotions, we have to address why dogs move their ears. Unlike human ears, dogs ears are controlled by voluntary muscles. In other words, their ear movements arent involuntary reactions but instinctual attempts at communication. So, why do German Shepherds move their ears?
German Shepherds move their ears to different positions mainly to indicate interest, submissiveness, or hostility. Several subtle movements indicate more complex emotions, and sometimes various emotions overlap in terms of their corresponding ear position.
You should look at your dogs ear position alongside other body language and behavior cues in the context of his environment when deciding why he is behaving a certain way. If you go by ear positions alone, you might reach the wrong conclusion as each position has at least two explanations.
In the sections below, we will look at the general possibilities for each position your dog puts his ears. You will also learn a few other metrics to determine which one of the possibilities is the actual reason behind the dogs ear movement.
Do All German Shepherds Ears Stand Up
If youve seen them up, theyll stay up. Most breeders and veterinarians will tell you that floppy ears are common while your German Shepherd is teething, which usually ends between 16 and 20 weeks. By then, the cartilage in the ear has become hard and strong enough for the ear to stand permanently.
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At What Age Do Yorkshire German Shepherd Or Chihuahua Dogs Lift Their Ears
The puppies of all dogs are born with small ears, folded down, and drooping. But some breeds of dogs naturally prick up their ears after a few weeks of life.
When? Usually, the ears are raised in 2 or 3 months, but sometimes it can take up to 5 or 6 months. For the ears to be stiff, the ear muscle must have a certain amount of force, which helps to hold the cartilage in place.
Depending on the breed of dog to which they belong, some of them have their ears raised, or erect, naturally, and without any type of surgical intervention. As examples we can mention the Pomeranian, German shepherd, Siberian husky, Dutch shepherd, Yorkshire terrier, or the mythical long-eared Chihuahua.
On the contrary, keep in mind that if you want to lift the ears of a Doberman dog, it will not be possible since this breed by nature has floppy ears. The only way to get pointy ears for a Doberman is through surgery. Remember also that in many countries it is currently forbidden to cut the ears of dogs for aesthetic purposes, therefore this operation can no longer be done.
So in summary, now that you know how to make a dogs ears stand up, make sure you know what can and cannot be done for your canine friend.
How To Deal With Your German Shepherds Floppy Ears
Whats the bottom line?
If its been over eight months and your German shepherds ears still arent standing upright at all, then this is an indication that there might be some kind of problem.
At this point, you can start taking steps to fix their ears if you want.
However, unless your German shepherds floppy ears are being caused by some sort of serious medical issue, you dont have an obligation to try and fix them.
Floppy ears on their own dont cause your German shepherd to suffer at all, nor do they cause any sort of hearing issues.
If you just want your German shepherds ears to stand up for aesthetic reasons, there are a few things you can do to help this happen.
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Your Dog Does Not Communicate Like A Human
Your German Shepherd will respond to many different stimuli. Your body language and tone of voice being the two most important.
In time, your dog will understand certain commands such as sit, stay and come, drop etc.
But, dogs only understand single direct commands. Use language your dog will understand. Calm, simple commands and body language will make your message crystal clear.
German Shepherd Puppy Ears Timeline
As we mentioned in the introduction here, when your German Shepherd puppy was a newborn, your dogs ears were floppy. All dogs are born with floppy ears, so this is totally normal.
Bt as Sequoyah German Shepherds breeder explains a German Shepherd puppys ears should start to perk up soon after.
In some cases, your puppys ears might start the process of standing up as early as four weeks old! In other cases, it may take as long as four months before you see signs of the alert ears the GSD breed is known for.
Leerburg Dog Training explains that sometimes it can take until after a German Shepherd puppy has finished the teething process for the ears to begin to stand up on their own.
The American Kennel Club expanse that teething can take as long as six months to conclude and requires a lot of your puppys resources to complete.
The critical period to watch and wait for is the period between five months and seven months. If your GSD puppys ears are still flopping over by the age of eight months, it may be too late to assist the ears to stand up straight.
Read on to learn exactly what to do to help your puppys ears grow and stabilize in the upright position.
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How Long Does This Take
There are individual dogs that will take longer to get their ears to stand up. It is well known that puppies from the same litter have been known to take different times to develop this quality
There are individual dogs that could take as much as seven months trying to grow their ear. If the dogs ears refuse to stand up by the eighth and the ninth month, then it means that the dog most probably will not have ears that stand up. This stage is when the ears of a majority of German Shepherds have their ears take a permanent form.
Reports have shown that about 75% of examined dogs get their ears standing up within the first three to ten months. These reports also indicate that almost one out of five German Shepherds wont have straight ears. The number is usually higher than most people tend to expect.
Has Your Gsd Puppy Been Sick
We are talking about serious sickness or physical ailments here.
If your GSD puppy has been affected for a period of time from a sickness that means it cant absorb the nutrients from its food, it may affect how your GSDs body and ears develop.
Regular vet checks can help prevent this.
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