Cropping Mini Schnauzers Ears

Question
My mom has a  mini schnauzer that's about 4 1/2 months old now.  She is absolutely beautiful, but her ears stand straight up...3 full inches!  She didn't have Kali's ears cropped because they stayed flopped over a majority of the time.  Now her ears stand straight up and she's beginning to regret not having them cropped.  There seems to be some debate over cropping a dog's ears after a certain age because of excess bleeding and pain.  She would NEVER crop Kali's ears if it would be considered cruel because of her age alone.  Can you please offer your advice/opinion on this matter??

Thanks,
K.M.

Answer
Since her ears are already standing, there should be no problem in getting them to stand, which is the primary problem in cropping them later. I had one ear cropper who routinely cropped ears for me at 16 weeks; it is much easier to put a nicer (adult) ear on a puppy when it is over three months of age. The oldest I had cropped was five months old.

In the future, please remember that it is the breeder's responsibility to have the ears cropped; there is always a chance that the puppy will not handle the anesthesia well.

Karen