After completing my Doctorate of Veterinary medicine at Oklahoma State University, I joined my father’s mixed animal practice in Newcastle, Oklahoma. I was the primary surgeon at the practice and performed a variety of specialty surgeries including cosmetic dehorns and reconstructive hernia repairs on show livestock. I mentored a number of veterinary student preceptors and students of the local 4-H and FFA chapters. I have recently established my own practice in Oklahoma City, Barker Veterinary Surgery LLC, where I offer a select set of elective surgeries. Through the DPCA program I was able to mentor with well-respected veterinary ear croppers and now offer ear cropping at my practice.

My wife, Sondra, and I have always had purebred dogs and became involved in conformation shows after getting our first Irish Water Spaniel, Bayes, in 2013. Bayes was groomed, conditioned, and handled by us throughout his career and is a multi Best in Show winner. We are now enjoying presenting Bayes’ offspring to the fancy. From the first two litters he has sired, we have piloted one pup to his championship and multiple group placements and another to her grand championship and multiple Best in Shows. Another pup that we co-own from the first litter is now the youngest Irish Water Spaniel to achieve her senior hunt title. We are members of the Irish Water Spaniel Club of America and I serve on the Health and Genetics and Cardiac committees. We chaired the 2021 IWSCA National Specialty in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Thank you again to the DPCA and a special thank you to Dr. Kay Backues and Dr. Anne Midgarden for your mentorship and your continued support! I look forward to being a part of this educational process in the future!

Since childhood, Dr. Bessert very much wanted to be a veterinarian who worked with both large and small animals. She has always loved the “traditional” ways of doing things in veterinary practice and has worked hard in her practice to keep the “old ways” alive in the new generation of medicine.

Ear cropping has been an interest of hers since graduation, but finding the right mentor has been proven to be a difficult task. Upon learning about the ear cropping program sponsored by DPCA, she was elated and began quickly trying to find the right mentor. She is forever grateful for the opportunity to learn from Dr. Kay Backues. The techniques she has acquired through this program will be provided at Live Oak Veterinary Clinic in Jacksboro, TX.

In her spare time you can find her outside with her 2 dogs letting them play in the sunshine and chasing birds, Or cuddling her 2 cats indoors.

Dr. Eubanks has always had a love for Dobermans. After doing the DPCA Mentorship, she looks forward to be able to offer ear cropping at her clinic.

In her spare time, Dr. Eubanks enjoys long-distance running, cycling, and spending time with her family and two Dobermans.

She is practicing and will perform croppings at….

Bradfordville Animal Hospital
6714 Thomasville Rd,
Tallahassee, FL 32312
(850) 893-3047

I am a mother of three young children, a wife to a dog trainer and never get to enjoy alone time. I enjoy surgery and realize that there is a need for veterinarians to continue with the art of ear cropping. I currently practice in Kansas and have a strong interest in surgery, client relationships and behavioral training. I am hoping to continue learning the skills of cropping and start offering this in my facility in the next few months. I am incredibly thankful for the opportunity that The Doberman Pinscher Club of America is offering students and vets. Without this program, it is very unlikely I would have ever thought to attempt ear cropping. They provided a safe place for me to ask lots of questions, see the procedure done repetitively and properly. I look forward to meeting you and providing care for your loved pet.

Dr. Gerst is actively cropping since completing her mentorship.

I have owned, shown and loved dogs in a few other breeds; American Cocker Spaniel, Spinone Italiano, Weimaraners, and Briards, including a past #1 Briard/#7 Herding Dog.

Within the last decade, I have enjoyed adding Maine Coons to my home and have the beginnings of a small in home cattery. Several of my cats also attend CFA shows.

My personal life with purebred animals flows quite well into my professional life as a reproduction veterinarian. I have been doing all things repro since I graduated from The Ohio State University in 2003 with top honors and awards in Theriogenology. I have been doing ear cropping for several breeds for many years, such as Briards and Bouviers. I wanted to expand my skills to other breeds as I see it easily becoming a lost art and it is important to support the purebred dog world and it’s needs. I spent time studying with Dr. Anne Midgarden to learn the more difficult crops, such as Dobermans, Great Danes and Boxers. It was a wonderful experience and hope it will add a great service to my wonderful breeder clients and those who may be looking for someone to do crops for them.

Dr. Kwiecinski currently practices in Georgia and is grateful to have completed the ear cropping program after learning proper technique from Dr. Larry Branch. Dr. Kwiecinski has a long time love for Dobermans and recently adopted her first Doberman, Huckleberry, who has taught her a lot about the cropping process first hand. The techniques she has acquired through this program will be provided by Northside Animal Hospital in Columbus, Georgia, and two of the current five veterinarians will be offering this service.

My time in cutting-edge areas of human medicine developed in me a profound appreciation for the interconnectedness of human and animal health in addition to the opportunity to gain valuable insights into the scientific and therapeutic aspects of the medical sciences.
Later, upon returning to the veterinary field, I focused predominantly on small animal emergency and critical care and worked alongside outstanding board-certified veterinary specialists. As my journey progressed, I continued to broaden my scope of veterinary care, including general practice, wellness/preventative medicine, canine reproduction and behavior. As a result, I have developed extensive skills in delivering a broad scope of interventions to veterinary patients.

My life-long involvement with dogs makes me greatly appreciative of the importance of pure-bred dogs, their history and function. Purebreds are purpose-bred dogs! The characteristics that make each of these dogs unique also help them perform specialized functions for which they were bred. The physical appearance of these pure-bred dogs clearly illustrates this and is also an important part of each breed’s development and history. Ear cropping is an elective surgery currently implemented in approximately 20 dog breeds, including Dobermans, Great Danes, Boxers, Schnauzers, Corsos and others. Many owners of specific breeds wish to maintain their dog’s historic practical function by having their puppy’s ears cropped, tails docked, or dewclaws removed. While some people unfamiliar with the breeds believe that these practices are purely aesthetic and question their necessity, these procedures often actually enhance the dog’s ability to perform the tasks it is meant to do, and in many cases protect the dog from serious injury in life.

Unfortunately, the politization and groundless criticism directed at these veterinary procedures by animal rights groups have negatively impacted the way our society perceives ear cropping, tail docking and declaw surgeries in dogs. Consequently, nowadays, very few veterinarians comprehend the importance of these procedures. Furthermore, the surgical skills necessary to perform them correctly have been lost. This problem has also encouraged the same procedures to be performed on the black market, under unsafe, deplorable conditions by unqualified individuals.

By a stroke of luck, I met Dr. Anne Platt in Alaska, and she informed me of the DPCA’s Crop Externship Program. Through Dr. Platt, I am receiving outstanding mentorship on how to best harness the ear cropping skills for different breeds – all of this under safe, state-of-the-art veterinary care.

The ultimate goals: dispel the myth of animal cruelty for these procedures while preserving breed standard and function.

Dr. Lagoa lives in Anchor Point, Kenai Peninsula (Alaska) with his wife, daughter and 3 rollicking AKC champion Irish Setters. He is the owner and solo practitioner at Chugach Animal Clinic.

My life-long involvement with dogs makes me greatly appreciative of the importance of pure-bred dogs, their history and function. Purebreds are purpose-bred dogs! The characteristics that make each of these dogs unique also help them perform specialized functions for which they were bred. The physical appearance of these pure-bred dogs clearly illustrates this and is also an important part of each breed’s development and history. Ear cropping is an elective surgery currently implemented in approximately 20 dog breeds, including Dobermans, Great Danes, Boxers, Schnauzers, Corsos and others. Many owners of specific breeds wish to maintain their dog’s historic practical function by having their puppy’s ears cropped, tails docked, or dewclaws removed. While some people unfamiliar with the breeds believe that these practices are purely aesthetic and question their necessity, these procedures often actually enhance the dog’s ability to perform the tasks it is meant to do, and in many cases protect the dog from serious injury in life.

Unfortunately, the politization and groundless criticism directed at these veterinary procedures by animal rights groups have negatively impacted the way our society perceives ear cropping, tail docking and declaw surgeries in dogs. Consequently, nowadays, very few veterinarians comprehend the importance of these procedures. Furthermore, the surgical skills necessary to perform them correctly have been lost. This problem has also encouraged the same procedures to be performed on the black market, under unsafe, deplorable conditions by unqualified individuals.

By a stroke of luck, I met Dr. Anne Platt in Alaska, and she informed me of the DPCA’s Crop Externship Program. Through Dr. Platt, I am receiving outstanding mentorship on how to best harness the ear cropping skills for different breeds – all of this under safe, state-of-the-art veterinary care.

The ultimate goals: dispel the myth of animal cruelty for these procedures while preserving breed standard and function.

Dr. Lagoa lives in Anchor Point, Kenai Peninsula (Alaska) with his wife, daughter and 3 rollicking AKC champion Irish Setters. He is the owner and solo practitioner at Chugach Animal Clinic.

After practicing for 30 years in general medicine at All Creatures Animal Hospital in Cincinnati, she decided to open up a reproduction/pediatric clinic. Dr Linda has been breeding Puliks for over 30 years. She got into showing her Puliks about 15 years ago, and has more recently begun showing her Komondor, Pumi and Kuvasz. She has been invited to Westminster multiple times, and more recently was invited to Crufts Dog Show with her Komondorok, Big Al.

After being asked many times whether she did ear cropping, she decided to take the DPCA Crop Grant Mentorship course. She is excited to now offer ear cropping services at her practice since completing the externship. Her practice, Breed All About It, is in Cincinnati OH. For scheduling information call 513-832-0132.

Dr. Julie has a strong interest in canine and feline reproduction, canine sports medicine and rehabilitation, feline medicine/surgery, dentistry, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), zoo animal and wildlife medicine/rehabilitation. Dr. Julie is also a Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist through the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society and is working (in all of her spare time) toward certification in canine rehabilitation. She was a Founding Fellow of the International Association of Cat Doctors and is a member of a multitude of veterinary and professional associations as well as an executive director of the Montana Veterinary Medical Association. Dr. Julie was the staff doctor at Guide Dogs of America for over 4.5 years and was very excited to see the advancements and growth of the GDA veterinary program during that period. She has also been an active board member of several purebred dog breed clubs.

Outside of work, Dr. Julie loves spending time with her husband and their two young daughters, friends, and family, and enjoys competing with her AKC champion Labrador retrievers in the AKC conformation ring, AKC and HRC hunt tests, obedience, rally, and other performance venues. Dr. Julie has also been a veterinary columnist in the world-renown Labrador Quarterly magazine. She also enjoys movies, books, photography, SCUBA diving, art, and the outdoors- hiking, camping, fishing, shooting, gardening, rock-climbing, and exploring the wilderness. While, with her busy life, she appreciates her chosen “wash and wear” breed, she is excited to be able to provide the purebred and working dog communities with humane yet artful cropping procedures. She was mentored by the renowned Dr. Ann Platt.