I think to have a dog’s tail docked or ears cropped for aesthetic reasons is absurd. On the other hand, we had to have our springer spaniel’s tail amputated after she was a year old because she kept hurting it. She would bloody the end of it, sling blood all over the furniture, carpet and people, and then lay on the floor and chew the end of it until it was worse. In her case it became a necessary surgical procedure. We have another springer spaniel that is 5 years older than her, and we’ve never had a problem with her tail.