Expression: It’s All About The Ears

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202 – April, 2024

By William Given

The basic size and shape of the dog’s ear was, obviously, inherited from its wild ancestors. Nature designed and developed the dog’s ears for hearing and their sense of hearing is about four times more acute than humans. Their ears can move independently and that makes it easier for dogs to pick up sounds and determine the direction from which sounds come.

It was through the process of selective breeding that we humans have been able to transfigure the shape of the Wolf’s ear into the variety of different sizes and shapes we have today. There are a few breeds of dogs with pretty unique ears like the bat ears of the French Bulldog, V-shaped ears of the Vizsla, and Filbert-shaped ears of the Bedlington Terrier. There are, however, I believe, five basic ear shapes in dogs. Those are pricked (as with the German Shepherd Dog), dropped (as on the Beagle), rose (as seen on the Greyhound), button ears (as found on the Airedale), and tipped (as with the Collie).

If you were to ask me one feature–and one feature only–that would make or break a Collie’s chance for success in the conformation ring, I would have to respond, “the ears.” Oddly enough, despite any thoughts or discussion about type and soundness, bite, bone or coat, the first thing a judge is going to notice is the correctness of the ears. And remember the old saying, “first impressions are lasting impressions,” and the amount of time you will have in the show ring is limited.

Starting with the Head

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202 – April, 2024

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