Cutting A Pet’s Tail Is Already Illegal In Many Countries

After 30 years behind  the European Convention ,  cutting the tails of pets has become illegal in Spain. For most people, there is no debate about whether it is okay to allow dogs to have the tail they were born with as well as the ears. In Brazil, the practice was also banned by the National Council of Veterinary Medicine.

What many of the critics of these customs assert is that it is totally useless. The procedure tends to cause side effects in animals. But it is also an action that in itself contains a high dose of sadism.

Cutting our pet’s tail or amputating, the first of the dilemmas

Animal rights advocates say there is a prior issue of terminology. It is not “cutting” part of the tail, ears, etc., but “amputating”. That would be the correct term, in all its dimensions.

To illustrate this point, these people use a graphic example:  Dog hair is trimmed for hygienic  and, in many cases, aesthetic purposes as well. However, this does not generate any pain as it will eventually grow back.

In the case of the tail and ears, it is not simply to reduce the size of the organ. In addition to the skin, there is cartilage, nerves, blood vessels and a lot of tissue that will not grow back. Therefore, this attests that it is an amputation. And finally, it  is an extremely painful and traumatic action .

Origin of the “tradition” of tail trimming in pets

Some scholars indicate that  the first written indication, the reason for this controversial tradition, took place in Rome. It is attributed to Lucius Moderatus Júnior, better known as ‘Columela’, the Roman agronomist and writer who lived between 4 BC and 70 AD

According to this man, one of the best known in the ancient Roman Empire,  the tail of dogs should be free from rat bites, so that rabies would not be transmitted.

evolution of history

• Prevent rats from biting Terriers’ tails. For a long time, this breed gained fame as a rodent exterminator. Some illustrations show rats hanging from the dogs’ tails, which is why it had to be amputated. No case of dogs with a sore tail due to a rat bite has ever been documented.
• Prevent herding or agriculture-related work dogs from getting their tails caught in weeds.
• Facilitate hunting work and prey tracking in open fields.
• It also reduced the possibility that, in a possible dogfight, this would cause fatal injuries.
• The most common among today’s motifs: for aesthetic purposes. Some dog breeders argue that a dog of certain breeds with an intact tail will never win a dog beauty contest.

European Community Regulations

The European Convention for the protection of pet animals, approved in 1987 in Strasbourg. It took the Spanish government 30 years to ratify it.

In September 2015, after years of pressure from the animal rights sectors, at the initiative of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment, the text finally came out of the drawer.

Before its conclusion, the ratification of the legislation still had to overcome obstacles within the legislative power. The intention of some “traditional” sectors includes a “reserve” allowing that, as long as certain considerations are met, the practice of trimming the tail of hunting dogs is allowed.

Experts consulted on the subject precisely blame these sectors for the delay in ratifying the Convention. They point out that hunting sports associations continue to have great power in many areas of the political sphere.

Other things that are not allowed by law

As well as tail docking, which is illegal in Spain,  the Convention on the protection of pet animals includes other prohibitions, among which we highlight the following:

• Non-curative surgical interventions of any kind are not allowed in animals.
• It is strictly forbidden to cut off the tail and ears, remove the vocal cords, nor will it be allowed to remove the cats’ claws.

In addition,  the legal framework makes the owners of the animals responsible for the care given to them. On the other hand, it limits the participation of dogs, cats and other species in advertising activities and in public shows. So now you know, clipping your pet’s tail is obviously illegal, but not in all countries for now.