Here is a puppy with ears taped after ten days of
wearing the wraps.
Notice, though the tape is
soiled by now, the ears are still held erect on top of the head.
Supply List (Shown below)
Curity Porous 1 inch Tape is the very Best, but Johnson
and Johnson Zonas Porous is OK, but does not
have the sticking quality that Curity brand has.
14”
Cable ties that have tinsel
strength of 120-cut to size. They can be found at (Fry's) (Home Depot &
Lowe’s- electrical supply dept). The size and flexibility of the Tie is important, the size is
a little harder to find than the smaller thinner ones. It is just a little
slimmer than a popsicle stick. The nice quality about the plastic cable tie as
opposed to a wooden popsicle stick, is that the plastic is flexible, will bend,
but will not break.
Scissors
Cosmetic Square Cotton Pads
Rubbing Alcohol
Foot Powder
Krylon Adhesive Spray (optional). Important to get this brand cuz some others have a diffent
compound that breaks down and gets gummy.
Thoroughly clean ear inside
and out with rubbing alcohol.
Do this before
you start making your stays and setting up your strips of tape to ensure the
ears will have time to dry before the taping begins.
Prepare the “Ear Stays”
Cut plastic stays
the size you need, measuring from deep down inside the ear to the tip of the
ear.
Gently round one
end of each stay with clippers or dremmel. This is
the end that will be inserted into the ear.
Cut Two strips of
tape for each stay, two inches longer than stay. Lay on table sticky side up. Cut
another piece approx. 3”. Then cut up the middle of the strip to create two
narrow pieces as shown.
Leaving a ˝” of
tape at the top, place the square end of the plastic stay on the sticky side of
tape, as shown, leaving 1 ˝” piece of
tape at the end of the stay with the curved edge.
With the sticky
side up, place the matching second piece of tape on top of the piece with the
stay. When finished, there should be a sticky side and a non-sticky side. Keep
the sticky side facing up. Wiggle the tape and stay side to side, this makes
the two pieces of tape stick together better so the stay firmly will be secured
in-between the two pieces of tape, as shown below. Sometimes running the
scissors along the outside edge of the stay outline helps make the two pieces
of tape stick together to secure the stay inbetween
Using a Cotton
make-up removal pad as shown, fold pad in half.
Apply the
cotton pad to the end of the stay with the extra tape. Lay 1” of the sticky
side of the tape across the pad as shown. Then fold back the tape so the stay
is in the center of the pad. This prevents the stay from pushing through the
cotton. If this should happen, it would be very sore and uncomfortable for the
puppy.
Then fold the
cotton piece in half again so there is cotton on both sides of the stay as
shown below.
Then wrap one of the skinny pieces of tape around the top of the cotton to
permanently hold the cotton swab in place at the end of the stay.
Holding the stay by the cotton swab, lightly
spray the sticky side of the stay with the adhesive spray. This gives it a
little more adhesion so the stay will stay in place for a longer period of
time.
Here I show you the completed made up stay,
along with the amount of tape roughly needed to tape one ear. Cut each piece of tape smaller than the one before.
Multiple pieces of tape are used for wrapping up the ear to prevent wrapping to
tightly, which is prone to happen when using one continuous piece.
Dip the cotton portion of the stay into
medicated powder or foot powder. If
the ear is sore inside, you can insert a dab of Neosporin into the ear canal
first.
This part is very important: With the sticky side facing toward the ear,
stick the cotton end of the stay into the ear as far as it will go by gently
pushing down and wiggling around. Pull the ear up straight. With a slight bow
in the stay, press the top of the stay to the tip of the ear, folding the ˝”
piece of tape over the tip of ear. While pulling up on the ear, press the rest
of the stay to the ear. With ear between fingers, smooth the tape upward,
making sure stay is stuck firmly to ear.
The reason it is
VERY IMPORTANT to have the stay go down as far into the ear as possible is
because it will pop out and the stays will teepee together at the top of the
head. If that happens, remove tape...start all over again.
Here is a picture of an ear
after the stay has been inserted in the ear. Notice how the ear is nice and
straight.
While holding the ear up tightly (continue
to keep ear stretched through entire process), reach for the first piece of
tape, starting with the longest piece. The first piece of tape you wrap around
the ear is the most important one. Starting
on the stay, way down in the ear, place the end of the first piece of tape
on the stay, preparing to wrap toward the front
of the dogs head. The ear has a
natural fold, so when wrapping around the dogs ear, allow the fold to be folded
over. Wrap snuggly, NOT tightly, or
the circulation in the ear will be cut off. Pinch the tape to the ear to make
sure it sticks to the ear. With the next piece of tape slightly overlapping the
first piece, repeat the wrapping process. Continue winding up and around the
ear, using smaller pieces as you go, each time overlapping and pinching tape to
the ear. When you get to the tip of the ear,
DO NOT FOLD TAPE
OVER THE TOP. LEAVE OPEN AT END. THIS IS TO MAKE IT EASY FOR YOU WHEN YOU
GO TO REMOVE THE TAPING. When ear is all taped, curve the ear around the stay a
little to maintain the natural curve.
When you go to
remove the old tape. With a pair of bandage removal scissors start at the backside
base of the ear where the natural fold has created a little pocket for you to
insert your scissors. Start cutting up the ear, with scissors guided away from
the natural fold, up to the tip of the ear and out of the opening at the end.
THAT PART IS
EASY now just peel off all
the tape at one time, the stay will come out of the ear, still attached to
the tape.
ALL DONE!!
You know
that you have done a good job, when the ears stand up straight. If
they should tip outwards it is an indication you are not winding the
tape around properly, or you did not insert the stay into the ear far enough.
You can leave the tape on the
ears as long as two weeks. Make sure the tape does not get wet. If the puppy is
shaking his head excessively, it is an indication that the puppy has a sore
place in the ear, or even an inner ear yeast infection. You can medicate, and
rewrap. When first starting this taping process, only leave the ears taped for
4-5 days to check for infections or sore spots. Each time you retape, you can leave ears wrapped longer. Maximum is two
weeks in-between tapings. If ears show progress, leave wraps off until they
start tilting, then retape as needed. As we know,
each puppy is different. Some take longer than others to stand.... Persevere!. It will be worth it.
Here are some Telstar puppies who
now have beautifully standing ears.
Here are pictures of
the same puppies.........ears both standing!
Ch.Telstar's Foot Loose-n-Fancy Free
"Telstar' Flying
Scotsman" @ 7 months.
I never taped any more after
this point. He brought them the rest of the way up by himself.
If you should need any
further help or clarification of my method, please do not hesitate to ask.
Good Luck!
Jennifer Tellier
Telstar Boxers
858-672-2428