Ear posting success!

Dobie’s ears have only been posted for 4 weeks and they are standing beautifully! The trick my breeder taught me is to post for at least 3 weeks using a cup first. Then switch to the post. The reason this 2-stage process works well is that the cup helps the base of the ear set. If the cartilage doesn’t harden in an upwards position, the ears won’t stand vertically, parallel to each other.

The methodology is to start by developing a good foundation (base of the ear), ignoring the fact that the cup causes pockets. Pockets are easily removed by stretching the ear up the post. I can testify that these pockets were removed after 1 week of posting. And now, Dobie’s ears stand perfectly. I also did not need to bridge the ears. Since he had pockets and the ears leaned too far inwards, I was happy to see that the posts pointed the ears outwards.

I noticed immediately when I switched to the post that due to his low ear setting, his posts did not stand vertically. They pointed at the 11 and 1 o'clock positions. Some people opt to use a bridge (piece of tape to join the posts) to pull the posts into the vertical position, but the ears could easily lean more to one side. The cup is much more stable, doesn't move around on the puppy's head and ensures that both ears grow straight upwards.

TOTAL POSTING TIME: 3 weeks using a cup + 1 week in posts

Here he is, just shy of 4 months, and I have not posted his ears for 3 weeks: