The above photographs are identical in size. I did not change the body of the bitch in any way. The only difference between the two is that I removed the handler and gave her cropped ears and a shorter tail. (by courtesy of Paint Shop Pro)

Cropping and docking can make a visual difference to how people view a dog, as there is no doubt that the cropped dog looks taller and therefore gives the illusion of being more elegant. Judges and breeders alike, must learn to judge the complete dog, not just the illusion and not to let their preferences get in the way of judgement!

In the two head studies above of Ch. Encore's Sheridan, Cheryl Cates lengthened his ears to that of a normal crop. He was sold uncropped as a puppy, then received a horribly short crop. After he returned to Encore, she had his ears recropped, and although they did not prevent him from finishing, they certainly changed his look. She has given him back his ears in the second photo above.

Many thanks for this example Cheryl!

NB: Many dogs in Europe do have a shorter crop so please keep this mind when judging or viewing photos!