I have a GSD 7 months. Her ears were up when she was younger, then went down when looseing her teeth. Now that she lost all her baby teeth and have her adult teeth one ear is up and other is down. when she is playing or running both ears go up, then one goes down. it is driving me nuts. then the down ear went up and the other down. help

Your at an age where you don't want to take any chances. If they were both up before teething most likely(unless a medical problem)they will come back up. To be safe you should tape the ear(s) - Ed has an extensive article on exactly how to do this. Make sure the dog is getting a good quality food or a natural diet. Deficencies can cause problems as well. Good luck.

what kind of deficencies could there be. I giving her extra calcium. I feed her Wellness puppy food. I am thinking of calling the Vet.

Calcium comes to mind as most prevelent but I wouldnt worry on that if u give it to her. I would definately have a vet check to rule any med probs out...but I'm a hypocondriac(sp) when it comes to my boy. Many things could cause it. Also I would check with your breeder...most reputable ones will guarantee the ears to stand but they have strict guidlines to follow if they are around 4 1/2 months and are not standing yet.
Tape it though...tape, tape, tape....always better safe than sorry. Also dont pet the ears...it can break it down as it starts to stand.

I would be very careful feeding extra calcium to a pup. Wellness is a very well balanced dog food and I don't think you need to add calcium to this diet. Excess calcium can be very harmful.

If your puppy's ears were standing and have only gone down because of teething, it is very likely that they will come back up once teething is done. This is caused by sore muscles not a lack of any nutrition.

Try chew toys and stimulating exercise.

At 7 months I would also tape the ear... and i would also give the pup lots of good meaty bones to chew on... Generally speaking.. if they were both up before teething.. they should come back up.. but if it were my pup.. i would tape.

Jody

Why is extra calcium harmful for my dog. Also I was told to massage the ears. How won,t touching them break them down?

Calcium wont be harmful...as long as you dont give too much...it is possible to overnurish. If you are concerned your vet can tell you a appropriate level.
Yes, meaty bones...marrow etc....make sure raw though.
I have heard over touching the ears will cause them to stay down.
Vitamin C is a good supplement as well, kelp, omega oils, etc.
Jody has alot of knowledge in this area...also Jody what is your take on the not touching vs. massaging?

You know.. I am not one to massage the ears.. but alot of people say they have luck with it.. I prefer to try to make the ears work.. like take a nice treat.. and kind of move it around a bit.and see if the pup will prick up his ears at it.. or a toy.. but the bones will also help.. If my pups ears are still down at 4 1/2 to 5 months.. I tape them.. I just hate floppy ears on a Shepherd dog.

Excess calcium is more of a problem for growing, large breed dogs. (Up to 1 year of age.) Excess calcium can cause more sever signs of osteochondrosis and decreased skeletal remodeling. It has been linked to deposits in the joints, kidney failure, constipation and is known to be a contributing factor to bloat and gastric torsion. Calcium is not harmful if you don't give to much. Wellness brand dog/puppy food already has plenty calcium for your puppy. (I am talking about excess calcium.) In fact, many commercial dog foods have more than enough calcium for your dog. (One of the many reasons that the B.A.R.F. diet may be better as you can control this yourself.)

Also, many people don't realize but when you add calcium to an already balance diet you must keep the calcium/phosphorus ratio at 2 parts of calcium to 1 part of phosphorus. Both of these (calcium and phosphorus) require the proper amount of vitamin D to be used by your dog's body.

When you massage the ears, I've been told that you don't actually touch the ears but you massage around the ears. Haven't really tried it myself. I'd go for the taping myself, but make sure you get some good directions first as this can also break down the ears if not done correctly.