# Found pit bull, freshly cropped ears, need aftercare information.



## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

I found a pit bull puppy not far from my house last night. I spent the morning visiting vets around the area to see if they recognized him. None did. They say he's about 6-8 months old, which surprised me because he's small (22 pounds). I've posted all over facebook to try and find his owners, and have searched all over town for a lost/missing dog poster. I left my number with vets offices too. Anyway, his ears are cropped. They are still fresh. They're pretty scabbed and look like they hurt. It's causing the ears to...I guess crinkle a bit? Anyway, I wanted to know if there was a safe/effective way to clean them and keep them from becoming infected or if I should just leave them alone and let them heal. If I don't find his owners soon a rescue is set to take him in.


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## Inkedup22 (Jan 2, 2016)

Yeah, take him to the vet.


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

Inkedup22 said:


> Yeah, take him to the vet.


You think it's that bad? One vet took a good look at him and didn't say anything about the ears other than giving me names of vets that still do crops around my area (not many within a 50 mile radius). Part of my dilemma is deciding if I want to continue to look for the owners if the ear cropping was done at a home or hand him over to the foster family.


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## Alpha1 (Aug 19, 2015)

That is a dilemma, if you say that there are not many vets that still do crops around your area, you may find the one who might direct you to the owners. Try looking for them for a few more days and if you don't you can make a decision then. In the meantime You may also want to go to a different Vet to be advised on a way forward.


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## lovemybluegal (Jan 18, 2016)

That looks like a very bad crop. Could it be from a fight and bitten off?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## EckoMac (Aug 25, 2010)

lovemybluegal said:


> That looks like a very bad crop. Could it be from a fight and bitten off?
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


It's not likely that a dog bit both ears off in an almost straight line, on both sides.

OP, use the search function at the top of the page. There are several older threads reviewing crop after care.

Keep looking for the original owner. If they paid to crop, they'll want their dog back.


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## BCdogs (May 30, 2014)

Definitely not likely to be a bite wound. It does look a little fresh to be without sutures? 

I agree, keep contacting vets that do crops in your area. If there aren't many, you may find the one. Another thing to consider is it may have been done out-of-state by the breeder's vet, and the dog could have been imported from elsewhere recently. Hope you find the owner, I'm sure they're missing their bud.


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

It doesn't look like there were ever sutures? I've never seen cropped ears so I don't know what I'm looking for. I've tried to look up tricolor pit bull breeders to see if he resembles any from around the area. Nothing so far. Thanks for the help guys. I'll keep calling vets that do crops.


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

More pictures. His size next to my 4 year old twins for reference. I'm wondering if he may be a "pocket" pit bull.


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## Kenaii (Dec 22, 2011)

opaquelace said:


> More pictures. His size next to my 4 year old twins for reference. I'm wondering if he may be a "pocket" pit bull.


"pocket" pit bulls aren't a thing. APBTs are actually relatively small dogs already. He's probably just some kind of bully breed mix.

That crop looks like a home job. Poor guy  It probably hurts like crazy.
Keep us updated, I'm emotionally invested now lol


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## MSK (Aug 13, 2008)

He looks like an American Bully or and American Staffordshire Terrier maybe a home job or a laser job.. a friend of mine had his pup done with laser and it looked simular.. if this is a highdollar dog that got away from the owner its most likely their ears werent done local if there arent many vets that do crops in ur area. He doesnt look malnourished or abused id say someones looking for their dog you should really continue looking..


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

Kenaii said:


> "pocket" pit bulls aren't a thing. APBTs are actually relatively small dogs already. He's probably just some kind of bully breed mix.
> 
> That crop looks like a home job. Poor guy  It probably hurts like crazy.
> Keep us updated, I'm emotionally invested now lol


It looks like it hurts, but it doesn't seem to bother him. He seems like maybe he was on outside dog. It takes some coaxing to get him inside every time I bring him out to potty. Plus he was filthy and stinky. Dog fighting is a problem in my area, so I'm a little hesitant about possibly handing him to the wrong people.

Whoever he belongs to, or ends up belonging to, has a good dog on their hands. Good around my kids, very gentle and quiet. Eats, drinks, and likes to be lazy apparently lol.


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

MSK said:


> He looks like an American Bully or and American Staffordshire Terrier maybe a home job or a laser job.. a friend of mine had his pup done with laser and it looked simular.. if this is a highdollar dog that got away from the owner its most likely their ears werent done local if there arent many vets that do crops in ur area. He doesnt look malnourished or abused id say someones looking for their dog you should really continue looking..


Thanks. He's not malnourished at all. He's got all the jelly wiggle you'd expect in a puppy. His picture has been shared a lot on facebook pages for lost/found animals and I haven't gotten a nibble yet. Currently trying to email vets around here to see if they recognize a picture of him.


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

Update: the puppy's owner was never found. Found puppy signs, many calls to vets and emails to vets near and far yielded no information on who he is. There are Facebook pages for lost and found animals in my surrounding area and despite being shared hundred of times I never heard anything. Not a peep, not a check this out, nothing. I posted to Craigslist about him as well. I took him to a vet to be checked for intestinal worms and sure enough he had them. Had him dewormed and ask about ears. It wasn't professionally done, not by a long shot. They're healing, but they're a jagged mess. Tomorrow he is going to the vet to be neutered and checked for heart worms (which I hope he doesn't have) and then he will be picked up by a local rescue who fosters animals in local homes. He will be adopted out only after a home visit is done. We named him Ragnar and we will miss him. Thanks for all the information. I feel pretty confident now considering how dirty he was, the extent of his intestinal worms, and the condition of his ears that handing him off to a rescue is the right choice.


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## redog (Oct 14, 2005)

That's good enough for me, I wish you would consider keeping him. He's had it pretty rough up until you found him


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

redog said:


> That's good enough for me, I wish you would consider keeping him. He's had it pretty rough up until you found him


I would love to. He's gentle with my four year old twins, he's mild mannered and he's such a sweet dog. However my husband lost his job in October and his new job barely covers the necessities while I'm in college. That's why he never had a full vet check (just the deworming since he was going to be in our house) and why I contacted the rescue so fast. I'm going to be a blubbering mess dropping him off at the vet tomorrow morning. We've already decided if things pick up as far as jobs go we will adopt him if he's still available.


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## redog (Oct 14, 2005)

Damn, wish I could help


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

redog said:


> Damn, wish I could help


Thanks. It's a foster type rescue so that's something I'm happy about. I wouldn't have brought him to a shelter, not even a no kill one. He'll be at a foster home with a few other dogs and a stay at home mom. Hopefully he gets adopted out fast. I think he will. He's a charmer.


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## CesarT (Jan 4, 2016)

Hes a good looking pup! Wish you guys could keep him!


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## opaquelace (Feb 15, 2011)

He was officially adopted! He spent a little over a week and a half at the foster home waiting for a home that was good enough (several were declined). He went to a home with two little boys ages 6 and 8 and a big fenced in backyard.










This is the picture the foster sent me on his way to his new home.


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## CesarT (Jan 4, 2016)

Awesome Thanks for keeping us updated!


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## Goemon (Jun 27, 2012)

That dog looks like it had a ghetto crop by some scumbags. Scissors is the tool for thugs in Chicago. 
Those idiots think cropped ears give an advantage in matches, not knowing an ear dog will always go for the ear and, when cropped, the damage is worse. 

Clearly not professionally done, either way. Just another back yard breeding in the streets of America. 

Judging by the mask on face it is a mix.


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