Talk:Dewclaw

Importance of dewclaws in cats
I think something should be made for cats, since their dewclaws are used a lot more (hunting, climbing, etc.) -WS6Lethal —Preceding unsigned comment added by Ws6lethal (talk • contribs) 17:02, 27 September 2010 (UTC)

Lab and cat
MY LAB HAS HIS AND DOING FINE, IF NOT BROKE DONT FIX!! Shouldn't this be a biology article? It's definitely not just dogs; I'm staring at my cat's dewclaw right now.


 * Stop staring--don't you know that's rude? :-) Sure, the intro paragraph states that it occurs on mammals, but dogs is all the info that's been added.  Additional categories would be good to add, but it's nice to also have it in the dog category so that it shows up in the appropriate category list.  Elf | Talk 19:12, 25 Apr 2005 (UTC)

POV
Latest edits are quite anti-dewclaw-removal; I have tried to rewrite so that article is more NPOV. I'd say, based on those edits, that this person has never been around active dogs who have had repeated problems with tearing and breaking of the dewclaw, often leading to the decision to remove them rather than keeping the dog in continuous pain. It's not something that happens in most dogs, but it most certainly does happen. Elf | Talk 04:26, 13 July 2005 (UTC)

lacking dewclaws
Don't some dogs ie. Rhodesian Ridgebacks, altogether lack dewclaws?


 * Some dogs are born w/out dewclaws. Might apply in general to certain breeds but I don't know for sure offhand which. Elf | Talk 19:02, 29 March 2006 (UTC)

The AKC web site indicates for Ridgebacks that "Dewclaws may be removed" and Ridgeback breeder web sites tout that their puppies have had their dewclaws removed. This would indicate to me that they are born with dewclaws. Most dogs are born without rear dewclaws, however rear dewclaws are an acceptable characteristic in the Great Pyrenees. When a dewclaw is removed just after birth there is often little to no visible trace of a dewclaw which may lead someone to believe that it was born without. My Labrador Retriever had no sign of a front dewclaw but I know that the breeder had removed them at birth. --mtnkjn 20:05, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Rear vs. Front dewclaws in dogs
This article makes no distinction between front and rear dewclaws. Rear dewclaws appear occasionally in many breeds and are an accepted characteristic in breeds such as the Great Pyrenees. The article states that "dewclaws are a weak digit, barely attached to the leg" which in my experience is more true of rear dewclaws than front. The front dewclaws of my dogs contain a completely formed bone and are a very "strong" digit. My dogs obviously use this digit/claw as can be seen by the wear. On the other hand, the 6 month old mix breed that I rescued when she was 3 months old had her rear dewclaws removed yesterday while she was being spayed. Her rear dewclaws contained no bone and were dangling only by a thin piece of flesh and skin since birth. My dogs accompany me on backpacking trips in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. The jagged rocks on the trails would easily rip a dewclaw like hers while we were miles/days from the nearest vet. I would question the competence of anyone that recommended that I not have her rear dewclaws removed. Perhaps if a dog only walks on carpet, lawn, and city sidewalks this would be good advice, but very bad advice for my circumstances and for active field hunting dogs. --mtnkjn 16:38, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

Stub cat.
Should this article (which is a stub) be labeled as a carnivora stub? It's currently labeled as a mammal stub, and it's mostly about dogs. 128.139.226.37 09:20, 15 August 2006 (UTC)


 * As mentioned at the top of this Talk page, currently the information is mostly about dogs, but information about other animals may be added (and hopefully will be). If you open the Hoof article you'll find that other animals also have dewclaws. Retodon8 (talk) 02:51, 15 June 2008 (UTC)

Inside or outside of foot?
The current photos and text don't explain whether this claw is on the inside of the foot - comparable to human thumbs, or the outside.

It's the inside. A dewclaw is a hallux and therefore the first digit. The only example I can think of of a halluxiform digit on the outside is on some lizards (notably the american godzilla)
 * It was purely artistic license on the part of Patrick Tatopoulos,it should be noted that the dewclaw is not entirely vestigal,it is used in the mating act.Sochwa 23:44, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Dirt Jobs (Episode 6x10) reference
There was a dewclaw removal on sled dog puppies no the recent Dirty Jobs episode. This is what brought me to this article. The article doesn't seem to chime with what happens in the episode, especially regarding the necessity and complexity of the procedure. Particularly the mention of local anesthetic seems to contradict what happens in reality (in non-pet animals at least). Personally I'd love to know more about this, and perhaps this page will get more traffic due to this episode. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.158.58.242 (talk) 21:01, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Removed by a vet? Not always...
Referring to "that is with the dewclaws removed (as by a vet)", I have seen people remove the dew claws themselves. I'm not by any means saying this is alright, as I've also read about a puppy dying because the mom wouldn't stop licking the wound so it never clotted, but I thought it should be mentioned, and the risks also mentioned.

Also, apparently some dogs can be born without dew claws. I recently bred a shih tzu with an american cocker spaniel and the puppies had some dew claws on some feet and no dew claws on others, I found it fascinating. I know from having a litter of american cocker spaniels that they have dew claws and are usually removed from other people, we didn't do this, however I haven't had a litter of shih tzu's so I don't know if they had missing dew claws or not. We still have one of the puppies with us and I checked his feet, he has two dew claws on his front paws and none on the back, so not all breeds have dew claws on all of their paws. Our shih tzu has all four and one on his back foot is just there by tissue, there is no attachment to the leg. I think this should be added that where dewclaws and their numbers vary or something like that.

Also, "There is also some debate as to whether dewclaws should be surgically removed." Should this really need a citation? Anyone in the dog world knows everyone is always at each others necks when it comes to this, as well as other subjects. ItsWolfeh (talk) 01:51, 16 October 2010 (UTC)

Scientific Information
Information on what led to the dewclaw becoming vestigial would be welcome. Provide examples of other quadrupeds with a similar features, including any with a functional use of the digit. Clearly, this is a trait that had a function at some point in the evolutionary lineage of the sited domestic breeds. Was domestication itself what led to the digit becoming vestigial? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.113.175.15 (talk) 21:05, 14 August 2011 (UTC)
 * I was linked from Deinocheirus, so it is not exclusively from domestication. Actually, coverage of fossil dewclaws would be appreciated; I would do the research myself if I had the time. Arlo James Barnes 06:34, 21 March 2013 (UTC)

Inaccurate information and irrelevant citation on dewclaw removal
This is badly written:
 * Others say the pain of removing a dewclaw is far greater than any other risk.[citation needed]

First, I've never heard anyone say that. The risks involved with NOT removing a dewclaw include tearing of the skin, having a nail rip out, and infection.

Second, that sentence doesn't make sense! "The pain of X is greater than any other risk." Think about that. The writer is comparing pain to risk as though they're the same thing. You might as well claim your headache hurts more than your odds of winning the lottery. So not only is the statement unsupported, it's also nonsensical.

Then there's the next sentence:
 * For this reason, removal of dewclaws is illegal in many countries.[6]

Again, I've not heard of this being the case in any country (my job involves handling animal import and export between the U.S. and various countries). But more importantly, the citation is nonsense. If you follow the link (http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/ajantasa/1996/19960247) you'll find it's entirely in Finnish. If you translate and read it you can see that it doesn't forbid dewclaw removal. Here's the relevant passage:
 * Surgery or other similar causes pain measure performed on the animal only if it is an animal disease or any other similar reason necessary.

Basically, it's saying you can only have surgery (or similarly painful procedures) performed if it prevents or treats disease or injury. Dewclaw removal can prevent some very painful injuries.

It looks like someone is pushing their personal views in a very ham-fisted manner. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Volkspider (talk • contribs) 19:24, 19 February 2014 (UTC)

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Dog dewclaw facilitates climbing
I have no support for this other than personal witnessing. I was watching my sister's Labrador Retrievers one time and took them to a river to let them swim. I was completely amazed when suddenly the gold Lab climbed maybe a 5-8 foot almost vertical riverbank to get out. Much more than when running, that dewclaw had to be making contact and gripping the "wall" of the riverbank in order to pull herself up. I had no idea that a dog, particularly of that much size, had the ability to do a vertical climb like that with that much agility and speed (this was a "city" dog, never even trained or used for hunting, etc.). That dog definitely still had her dewclaws, and I'm betting that occasional climbing is the purpose for them. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Juliekadams (talk • contribs) 14:03, 1 April 2018 (UTC)