REFLECTIONS ON BREEDING BOXERS

After I first met the Boxer and fell in love with them, before I got my first one, I started going to different Boxer breeder sites, and forums to do “general” to not so general research on them and their pedigrees to a certain extent.  Boy have I seen some slamming, dunking, banging and finger pointing. Some where minds come together and where others sharply divide. Some I agree with and many I just shake my head and wonder at their pious intent. There are people out there who take great pleasure in telling you what constitutes a good/reputable breeder, many do so with honest intent, and still fail to see the big picture.

  So with such a large picture to see and still never see the half of it, I’m not going to add to their numbers.  I hope that having decided on adding a Boxer to your family that you have done your own research and know what is or is not acceptable to you on a personal level - I pray that whatever your reasons for wanting a Boxer are, that first and foremost will be to love and provide a wonderful loving FOREVER home for it, wherever and whomever you choose to get it from.

While Boxers are predisposed with their own set of health issues that sometime don’t manifest until past breeding age, (that no amount of testing and instituted counter measures have proven to eradicate, and that seem to have many factors pointing to “environmental” / "lifestyle" causes...), we tested our founding boxers with the OFFA recommended tests for the breed, with  the hopes of lessening the impact of those diseases in our own dogs and continue to educate ourselves on other areas that impact the health of the boxer breed in general and try to share that information with our new pup owners. There is much we can all do to reduce the issues that seem to plague the boxer breed.  It sometimes requires stepping outside the box of standard procedure, but pays off in the long run.    We raise our boxers as naturally as we can, with proper species appropriate diet, no poisoning their bodies with chemical pesticides the vets are so fond of talking us into, no removal of their vital hormones that regulate many of the bodies communication systems,  no over vaccinating etc... It is my hope that Boxer owners will start taking the reins of raising their boxer back from the Vets, groomers and boarding facilities. and into their own hands and use common sense, learn to say no thanks I'll pass on that med, or I"ll titer before getting more jabs etc. and research everything before they put it into their boxers bodies. The Vets are bombarded with “newer better stronger” drugs from the pharmaceutical industry, (most not even FDA approved for dogs or for the specific ailment it's being given for and are used off label), who swear they are “safe”--- until they are not, and your dog is left seizing on the floor, lame in the rear end, or thrown into kidney or liver failure. How many Vets have told you of the numerous studies showing the risks of some of the worse cancers increasing greatly when we remove the hormones, or tell you of the newest study that suggests boxers if you really must get them fixed, should at least not have it done before 24 months of age? In all my years of going to the various Vets, not once have any mentioned the risks, they see you with a new pup and one of the first questions is “when should we schedule the spay/neuter?” Or they tell you it should be done by six months before their first heat. I’ve had 11 female boxers in my lifetime, and most got their first heat between 15- 18 months old. Two were closer to two years old. Heat cycles are not near as scary or horrible as they lead you to believe, and there are many cute products on the market  that your female can wear to lessen any mess during those two weeks that occur approximately twice a year...There are also alternative sterlization methods available that leave the important hormones. As the saying goes, "when we know better we do better", part of my aim is helping you with the "know better" aspect and praying you are movitated enough to handle the "do better" aspect of that wise saying.

The past is the foundation upon which the present stands and the future will be built.