![]() ![]() Dewclaws can get caught, torn, and damaged and can bleed a lot. Dewclaws may need clipping more frequently than your dog’s other nails. Hind dewclaws are often more floppy with less of a boney attachment. Removing front dewclaws can impact health: Physically active dogs which have had the front dewclaws removed are prone to developing arthritis at the carpal joint, sometimes sufficiently severe and early to end a performance event or working career. Key points All dogs are born with dewclaws on their front feet, but some also have them on their rear feet and even double dewclaws. All but one wild dog species (the African Wild Dog or Painted Wolf) have front dewclaws, including all those most closely related to domestic dogs. They are used for self-grooming and to help steady objects a dog may hold between its forepaws when lying down. Even though these toes don’t reach the ground when a dog is standing or trotting, they are functional, stabilizing the carpal (wrist) joint, especially when moving at speed or making sharp turns. It's similar to the position of the human thumb on a hand. As it stands, yes, all breeds have them on their front legs, though not all breeds have them on their back legs. The front dewclaws are equivalent to our thumbs. The dewclaw is the toe and nail that sits a little higher up than the rest of your dog's toes. Do All Dog Breeds Have Dewclaws Many people are surprised by how many breeds have dewclaws. The breed standards allow it but there is compelling reason not to remove them. People remove front dewclaws for easier grooming or to make the front leg look smoother some feel it presents an unnecessary risk of injury to dogs working in rough terrain. They may be inherited and should be considered faulty but because they are integrated into the musculoskeletal structure of the rear leg they shouldn’t be removed without medical cause. There are reports of functioning rear dewclaws with skeletal and muscular attachment to the leg in Aussies, though these are rare. The Norwegian Lundehund breed has one or two functioning rear dewclaws. In rare instances, dogs may have functional rear dewclaws. In field conditions they may snag on things and tear. They are encased in flaps of skin that protrude from the leg and lack continuity with the remainder of the skeleton. Rear dewclaws, remnants of the first toe, are virtually always non-functional and should be removed in breeds where they aren’t required (including Aussies.) Rear dewclaws typically do not attach to the other bones in the rear legs. However, they obviously occur often enough – or at least did historically – for them to merit mention requiring removal in most breed standards.įront dewclaws are allowed to be removed per most breed standards, but shouldn’t be for functional reasons and there are many Northern European countries where it isn’t allowed at all. There are no statistics on rear dewclaws, but they don’t appear common. Whether they are “normal’ or not depends on the breed. Rear dewclaws are abnormal for members of the dog family in general (wolves, foxes, etc.), but do occur in domestic dogs. Sometimes a dog may have triple rear dewclaws. Double rear dewclaws are required in some breeds. They emerge along the side of the lower leg and do not touch the ground when the dog is in a normal stance. Dewclaws are fifth toes on either front or rear legs. ![]()
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