Everything you need to know about Boxer dogs: the famous ringside breed

Do you know why Boxer dogs are called Boxers? While it might at first appear as an unrelated homonym, a coincidence, and an oopsy to think the two related, it turns out that they in fact are. 

So let’s begin by clearing up the obvious: Boxer dogs aren’t sparring on the side when you’re not looking, or believe them tucked away in bed. Not as such, anyway. Infact, the stance (standing on their hind legs with forelegs poised for combat) is actually one of their favourites for playing and defending.

And it makes a lot of sense, if we think about their heritage - the grandmothers and fathers of these canine cuties were bred for centuries to take on beasts far bigger than themselves. It was wild boar, bears, and deer among their victims.

It’s safe to say though that Boxer dogs have left their ferocious past in the past but hold onto their rapport with the Sapien world instead. Nowadays, they’re one of the most popular breeds in the family home and for service work, and we can see why. And despite being classified within the American Kennel Club’s working group, they’re mostly found chilling at home with their pack of Sapien sidekicks.

So whether you’re simply an enthusiast of our four-legged friends, you’re house sitting a Boxer or you’re a pet parent with pet sitters arriving soon, find out all the important stuff on these high-energy hounds in this handy breed guide.

Boxer breed characteristics 

• Origin: Germany
• Size: Female Boxer dogs reach 23.5 inches at the shoulder and weigh around 60 pounds, while males reach 25 inches and weigh up to 70 pounds.
• Character: These cuties are playful, energetic and loving. They’re great around children, can get on with other pets and make for the perfect furry companion for any active household.
• Health needs and grooming: Their short, slick coat needs minimal grooming - just a quick brush once a week to help with shedding, nail clipping and ear cleaning will do the job.
• Training: They’re clever pooches who need consistent training to stick to your rules. Socialise and train them from a young age and you should be onto a winner.
• Energy levels: Boxer dogs are pretty energetic - they’re ex-hunting dogs so love exercise, walkies, challenges and games.
• Intelligence: Their working past means they’re a great choice for the service dogs of today. Boxers also love agility training and playing games to keep those intelligent minds stimulated.
• Lifespan: 10-12 years.
• Barking/howling: Boxers aren’t prone to excessive barking or howling. With the right training and socialisation, you shouldn’t have a noise problem with these cuties.

What do Boxers look like?

Boxers are sturdy-looking dogs (because they are), with square jaws, large, beady eyes and ever so slightly droopy chops. Their snouts are on the shorter side with medium-sized ears that can easily stand right on end. Their athletic, medium-sized build is covered in a short coat.

The two main colours that Boxers are found with are fawn and brindle - both can have white markings, too. If they’re without any white marking, they’re referred to as plain Boxers. Fawn Boxers can range from a light tan shade all the way to a deep mahogany colour. Brindle Boxers are found with tiger stripes - black on top of fawn.

Both fawn and brindle Boxers can be found with or without white markings, and some are almost completely covered with them. White markings are most commonly found on the belly and feet, but when it’s spread onto the neck and/or face, they’re called flashy fawn or flashy brindle Boxers. Talking of the Boxer’s face, they’re found with a black mask and sometimes a white stripe following from the muzzle all the way through the middle of the face. 

Like with any dog, the Boxer’s size is determined by their age and sex. Female boxer dogs tend to reach up to 23.5 inches at the shoulder and weigh up to 60 pounds, whereas males reach 25 inches and 70 pounds.

Personality of Boxers

These square-jawed cuties are known for their alertness and watchfulness - two classic Boxer traits. And it makes sense, if you think about their history (take a look below for a full low-down on this - it’s fascinating). Despite their strong-looking stature and square jaws, Boxers are incredibly friendly pooches. While they can be wary at first of any new Sapien strangers, they’re often polite or even friendly towards them. And those they know and love? Well they’re playful, affectionate and calm. What about the aggressive reputation? It isn’t completely untrue. While they’re loving to those they know well and polite to those they don’t, they can be aggressive when feeling the need to defend their family and their home - another Boxer trait that’ll make sense if you get stuck into their history below!

Boxer dog temperament

Like with all of our fluffy friends, temperament will be affected by their previous experiences with people and other animals. The level and consistency of training they’ve had as well as socialisation as a puppy will also have a knock-on effect to how well they tolerate people and other pets.

More generally though, Boxer puppies tend to be curious about the world (like many other fur babies), as well as playful and friendly towards familiar and new human friends. One way to scope what the temperament of your new Boxer puppy will be like is to meet their parents, brothers, sisters, and any other relatives you’re aware of. While it’s no guarantee they’ll turn out the same, it can give you a good idea as to what their temperament will be like as an adult.

Boxer behaviour and training tips

Boxer dogs are high-energy hounds and need somewhere to positively channel all of those go-go-go instincts. They need lots of exercise and activities to stimulate their intelligent minds as they do get bored easily. So, make sure you change-up your walkies, games and even toys to keep them guessing and following your house rules.

To keep those clever minds happy, ticking and problem solving as they love to be, get your pooch involved in canine sports. They love to get stuck into obedience training, agility and even herding. Their high energy and dedication to any task at hand means they make for fabulous service, assistance and therapy dogs, like search and rescue as well as drug detection.

As we’ve mentioned, early socialisation of Boxer puppies is vital for a happy adult dog. As well as meeting different people, animals and situations, consistent training is important, too. Choose your house rules and stick to it, rewarding your pup to create those healthy habits you’re after. Whether it’s a local puppy training class or puppy training from home, consistency and rewards are key.

Boxer dog breed history

If Boxer dogs are your new favourite breed and you love a bit of history, you’re in for a treat with this one. We can trace Boxer origins all the way back to the Assyrian empire in around 2,500 BC. Boxers of today can be traced back to the Bullenbeiser, a dog descended from Mastiffs and the Bulldog. It was breeding and mixing in the late 19th and early 20th century that formed the Bulldogs we know and love today, but the Bullenbeiser can be traced back to Medieval times. They were then Germany’s top big-game hunter, employed by noblemen to catch and hold down bison, wild boar and even bears.

Skip ahead to the early 1800s, the nobles were out of favour (politically speaking) and their large estates were broken up. The new situation trickled down to their Bullenbeisser hunting sidekicks and the partnership came to an end as the Bullenbeisser was no longer needed. Instead they were adopted by butchers and farmers to not only guard but to also drive cattle.

Now let’s trot ahead to where the breed we know today truly came into action. It all started in the late 19th century when a man named Georg Alt from Munich bred a brindle-toned female Bullenbeisser (cutely named Flora) with a dog of an unknown breed. From the litter was a fawn and white cutie who they named Lechner’s Box. He was then bred with Flora, and from their litter came a female called Alt’s Schecken who was registered as a Modern Bullenbeisser, otherwise known as Bierboxer.

She was then bred with a separate breed - an English Bulldog called Tom which produced the first Boxer dog to be entered into the German Stud Book. The pooch was named Flocki (cute) and he won a show in Munich which earned his status. His sister (Piccolo von Angertor) was then mated with a grandson of Lechner’s Box. They gave birth to a female called Meta von der Passage - a pooch who’s thought of as the mother of the Boxer dog.

Fast forward to 1894, three people from Germany set out to stabilise the breed by exhibiting a Boxer at a dog show in Munich, 1985. And the following year, they formed the very first Boxer Club. Word spread of the Boxer breed across Europe in the late 1890s and in about 1903, the first Boxers were shipped to the US. A year later, the first Boxer dog to be registered by the American Kennel Club was Arnulf Grandenz.

During World War I, Boxers worked as messenger dogs in the military, positioned as attack and guard dogs too. Between World War I and II, the American Boxer Club (ABC) was formed in 1935. Their popularity then soared in the 1940s as US soldiers welcomed their sidekicks back home with them. The rest, as they say, is history.

Boxer dog health

The Boxer dog lifespan is 10-12 years, and in that time, they’ll be playful, loving and enjoy problem solving and exercise. Alongside that though, there are a few health problems that can crop up (like any of our other four-legged friends). So, if you’re thinking about adopting a Boxer puppy, here are the health conditions that this breed can sometimes be prone to.

• Hip Dysplasia: It’s a common condition for many dog breeds and occurs when the thigh bone doesn’t fit as well as it should into the hip joint. If your pooch has it, you might not notice any signs of pain or discomfort. But if you do, it will most likely show up as pain and a lack of movement in the back legs. While it’s a hereditary condition, hip dysplasia can be caused by a high-calorie diet which has resulted in ultra fast growth, or from injuries. While some Boxers can get by with medication to help with hip function, others may need a complete replacement.
• Hypothyroidism: Caused by an ineffective thyroid hormone, hypothyroidism can result in lack of energy, mental sluggishness, obesity and infertility. Another sign to look out for is a change in fur texture - Boxers with hypothyroidism can develop rough, brittle fur which will eventually fall out, exposing tough, dark skin beneath caused by the condition. Luckily, hypothyroidism can be treated with lifelong medication.
• Cancer: The sorts of cancer that Boxer dogs are unfortunately prone to developing include brain tumours, mast cell tumours and lymphoma. If your Boxer is white or has a lot of white markings, they can also be prone to skin cancer. So, if your pup is light-coloured, find a dog-friendly sun cream to protect their ears, nose and coat from the sun’s sometimes harsh rays.
• Aortic stenosis/subaortic stenosis (AS/SAS): This is a super common, inherited heart condition in Boxers, and if your pooch has been diagnosed with it, do not breed them. AS and SAS occur when the aorta narrows below the aortic valve which causes the heart to work much harder to pump blood around the body. It can cause fainting and sometimes even sudden death. Despite being an inherited disease, AS/SAS is picked up when a heart murmur has been diagnosed. 
• Boxer cardiomyopathy (BCM): Another inherited heart condition, dogs with BCM will sometimes have an erratic heartbeat caused by an electrical conduction disorder (otherwise known as arrhythmia). It’s a difficult condition to detect which is why it can cause sudden death. Other signs to look out for include weakness and collapse. Just FYI, BCM is also sometimes referred to as Boxer Arrhythmic Cardiomyopathy (BAC), Familial Ventricular Arrhythmia (FVA) and Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy (ARVC). Like AS/SAS, Boxer dogs with known BCM shouldn’t be bred.
• Demodectic Mange: This occurs in Boxers when the mother passes a small creature, a demodex mite, onto her pups in the first few days after birth. While they usually live in hair follicles and cause no harm, demodectic mange can develop if your pup has an immune system that isn’t functioning properly. There are three forms of the condition: generalised, localised and Demodectic Pododermatitis. The generalised form affects older Boxer puppies and young adults, covering the whole body with patchy skin, bald spots and skin infections. The localised form spreads across the head, neck and front legs with red, scaly skin and hair loss. If left untreated, it can progress into the generalised form of the condition. The last form of the disease we’ll mention is Demodectic Pododermatitis which only affects the dog’s paws but can result in deep-rooted infections.
• Corneal Dystrophy: It refers to a variety of eye diseases that occur when the layers of the cornea turn opaque. While it’s not usually a painful condition, ulcers can develop which can result in discomfort and pain.
• Deafness: It’s most common in white Boxer dogs and dogs with white spotting.
• Gastric dilatation-volvulus (GDV): More common among older, deep-chested dogs (like Boxers), GDV is caused by stomach bloating with gas or air which then twists. This traps the air in the stomach, meaning the dog can’t burp or vomit it up. That then results in a lack of blood returning to the heart, causing low blood pressure, shock and sometimes even death. It’s thought that this can be more likely in dogs who are only fed one large meal a day, eat quickly, drink lots of water after food, and then head off for intense exercise. Things to look out for include an enlarged abdomen, retching without vomiting, and more drooling than usual. 
• Allergies: If you notice your pooch has itchy or scaly skin, take them to the vet to find out what they’re allergic to - it could be environmental or food-related.

Caring for a Boxer dog

While your Boxer dog will thrive off stimulating activities and lots of exercise, they’re indoor dogs. With short coats, they love getting cosy indoors with their favourite Sapien sidekicks. If you’re wondering how much exercise your dog needs, go for walkies or get them involved in active play at least twice per day for around 30 minutes at a time (minimum). They’ll appreciate a long ramble as well as agility challenges and of course, a classic game of fetch. As we mentioned when chatting about how to maintain positive behaviour, exercise and stimulation is vital for these clever, high-energy hounds. And remember - consistent training and socialisation from a young age is vital for making sure your Boxer puppy turns into a well-behaved adult dog.

What to feed a Boxer dog

Make sure that the food you choose is high-quality and suited to medium-sized breeds with lots of energy. While it can be tempting to reward your pup with dog treats throughout training, it’s important to remember that they can gain weight when overfed. So, find other ways to reward your pooch (like stroking, their favourite toy, and other forms of fuss). 

Like all of our four-legged friends, your Boxer dog’s diet will change throughout their lifetime - from puppyhood and adulthood, all the way to their older years. So, if they’re about to go through a transition period, ask your vet for a food recommendation.

And when it comes to when you should feed your Boxer, avoid cramming all the food into one meal a day. It can cause bloating which can result in gastric dilatation-volvulus (head to our section on Boxer breed health for more info on this sometimes fatal condition).

Grooming a Boxer dog

Boxers are short-haired dogs which is ideal if you don’t have heaps of spare hours to spend grooming. In fact, they’re known for being clean dogs who sometimes groom themselves (much like our feline friends). But if you do fancy giving them a spruce up every now and then, rub their fur down with a chamois cloth to shine it up.

And do Boxers shed? Unfortunately, the answer is yes, they can shed quite a bit. But with weekly brushing, you should be able to avoid following your pup around the house with a vacuum cleaner. 

Along with fur care, your pooch will also need their teeth brushed a few times a week. Boxers will also need their nails trimmed twice a month if they haven’t worn down enough naturally. You’ll know they’re too long as you’ll be able to hear a ticking noise along the floor (we know it’s cute, but your pooch’s nails need a trim if you can hear it!).

If you’ve had dogs at home before, you’ll know some can be a little touchy when it comes to grooming. That’s why we’d advise getting them used to all the grooming practices they’ll experience as an adult, as a pup. In fact, make it something they look forward to where they’re rewarded with a small treat or their favourite toy afterwards.

And while grooming is the perfect chance to neaten up your pup, you can also take the time to check for any rashes, red patches or sore areas. Make sure their ears aren’t smelly or filled with heaps of wax. If you’ve got any concerns after your at-home once over, head to the vets. Not sure what you’re looking for? Scroll up for a brief overview of the sorts of conditions Boxer dogs are sometimes prone to.

Do Boxer dogs get on with children and other pets?

Boxers are great with children, especially slightly older children who they can play with. Remember, Boxers love their pack as much as they love exercise and games, so anyone who can come along for the ride is a winner in their eyes. Of course, take caution around smaller children as Boxers are strong, so could easily knock them over without meaning to. And like any dog, always keep an eye on your Boxer around any children, no matter how loving and friendly they are. 

When it comes to other pets, Boxer dogs can get on well with other dogs and cats. You’re best off raising your Boxer puppy alongside the animals you’d like them to befriend, as adult Boxers may find it harder to adjust. And interestingly, some pet parents have found that Boxer dogs are happier around other Boxers of the opposite sex, rather than the same.

Boxer dog name ideas

• Apollo
• Atlas
• Bruiser
• Hilda
• Roxie
• Maximus
• Sasha
• Stella
• Tank 
• Rex

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