Wondering when do puppies ears stand up? You’ve come to the right place, and we’re going to try and give you a bit of guidance and knowledge, to help you understand whether the ears of your puppy will stand out or now.
First of all, find out if your dog breed is the type to have standing ears. Not all dogs have this particular trait, so your own puppy doesn’t have the right kind of breed behind it, it may not even be possible. If you know what type of dog breed he is, look up information on it, and whether it has pointy ears.
Even if it’s a mixed breed dog, you can sometimes tell if the dog will have ears that stand up. In some cases, only one of the mixed dog’s parents will have that kind of ears, so there is no way to know how it will end up, not until he grows at least.
To give you just quick examples of puppies whose ears stand up eventually, look for breeds such as German Shepherds, Corgis, Huskies and other similar types. In some cases, you will find that they have rounded ears that stand up, while in others they’re triangular shaped and pointy.
For other breeds, you don’t get pointy ears by default, and instead it’s mostly something that happens because their owners tape them up or cut them. It’s something that often happens with Pit Bulls, Dobermans and Great Danes.
Just because they’re coming from a certain breed, doesn’t guarantee that they will stand up though. Some of these dogs may simply be different, or some kind of health issue might prevent one or both ears from standing up. It’s something that can happen because of ear infections, and in fact I had a German Shepherd once that had one ear up and one down, due to such a health issue while he was still a puppy.
How can you tell by looking?
If you don’t know anything about the breed, you can simply check to see the positioning of the dog’s ears on the head. The higher they are, and closer together, the likelier it is that they will stand up as the puppy grows. Sometimes, you can also see the ears of a puppy perk up whenever they get excited, and once again that’s a sign that they might stand up in the future.
But, when do puppies ears stand up?
Initially, we’re talking about a puppy, which is not yet fully developed. You will find that puppy ears will stand up as he develops, which allows them to develop stronger ear muscles and tougher cartilage. In the beginning, they all have floppy ears which are soft.
How long until puppy ears stand up?
Usually, it’s going to be at least a couple of months, until you see them stand up. It might be just one ear initially, but unless there is a health issue, the other should go up as well eventually.
It depends on the dog and his genetic heritage, and it could be as much as half a year before you see the ears of the dog stand up. Beyond that, it might never happen, if it didn’t already.
Things to look out for – Teething
Initially, you find that the ears of the puppies stand up, but once the dog gets to the teething phase, you will notice that the ears droop back down. The organism relies on the needed calcium to develop his teeth then (about 4 months old), and it doesn’t go to the ear cartilage as a result.
This is a temporary setback, and soon enough you will find that the ears start going back up once the teething phase is over.
Helping Dogs Get Standing Ears
While a lot of it comes down to genetics and to leaving time do its thing, you do have some options, to give your puppy’s ears some help in developing the way you want them to.
Make Sure They Get Enough Calcium in Their Food
While the teething process takes away some of that calcium needed for the development of the ears, you can supplement the quantity of food which is rich in that substance. That could mean giving them just a bit of yogurt in their daily food, making sure that they have enough. Don’t over do it, having too much calcium in the diet can be a problem for their health long-term.
Don’t Play Too Rough With The Puppy’s Ears
This applies both to your own play sessions with the pup, and to those with other puppies when they’re playing together. Pulling too had on ears while they’re still developing can be detrimental. You obviously can control yourself from doing that, but you need to supervise any play time between your puppy and others, if it’s just for socialization purposes.
Give Him Chew Toys
This helps the ears stand up by making the muscles from their vicinity stronger. You just need to give dogs chew toys and bones, so that they can develop the muscle from the jaw. This will allow the dog to keep his ears up easier.
Taping Their Ears
If your puppy is from a breed that you know can keep their ears up, but for whatever reason his aren’t doing that after 6 months, there is always the option of taping the ears. Actually, this can even work on breeds like the Doberman, which doesn’t typically have standing ears.
As doing this reshapes the cartilage and changes the puppy’s ears, it’s a controversial technique. In some countries, it has been banned.