How to Care for a Boxer

Boxers love to be around people, especially children. They also make excellent watchdogs. This breed does not do well in extremely cold or hot climates. If you keep your dog indoors, make sure she gets plenty of daily exercise.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Dental Kits (for Dogs)
• Dog Beds
• Dog Bones
• Dog Brushes
• Dog Collars
• Dog Crates
• Dog Dishes
• Dog Food
• Dog Leashes
• Dog Shampoo
• Dog Tags
• Dog Toys
• Nail Clippers For Dogs
• Dog Shampoo

1. Vaccinate your boxer when you first get her, then get her yearly booster shots. Consult your veterinarian about flea-control products and worming your dog.

2. Make sure meat is the first ingredient in your boxer's dog food. Crude protein should be no less than 30 percent and crude fat no less than 20 percent. The fiber content should be 4 percent or less.

3. Bathe your boxer infrequently. Because of her short-haired coat, she'll rarely get dirty.

4. Brush your boxer's coat occasionally with a firm brush. Trim her nails regularly.

5. Consider getting a crate for a new boxer puppy. It is helpful in house training and serves as a quiet place for the puppy. Crates are also good tools when you are training your puppy not to chew, and they help remedy separation anxiety.

6. Obedience-train your boxer when she's young. Boxers are highly intelligent and quick learners, but they can be mischievous if left untrained. They also love to jump up on people and need to be trained out of this behavior early.

7. Understand health problems that boxers are prone to, such as hip dysplasia (a malformed ball and socket in the hip joint), bloat, aortic stenosis (a heart condition), tumors and hypothyroidism (a condition that causes the body to slow down). When you adopt your dog or puppy, find out what type of screening has been done for these problems.

8. Be prepared to enjoy a fruitful 9 to 12 years with your boxer, as this is the boxer's average life expectancy.

Tips & Warnings

• This breed doesn't bark much - except with justifiable cause.
• Boxers are generally content to lie quietly with their owners for hours.
• Contact the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals to learn more about hip dysplasia in boxers.
• Keep your boxer indoors if you live in a climate that's hot and humid, or cold. A boxer should do well indoors as long as she has a backyard to play in or is taken on daily walks.
• Boxers are sometimes prone to snoring and gas.

[pretty12345]

on 8/19/2009 First time with a boxer I find her on the street. She was not in GOOD shape she was realy skining. Pretty eat real good but it take her a long time to eat and gain weght what such i feed her to help her gain weght Pretty is every loving i just need some tips how to take better care of her

[beboboxer]

on 4/19/2009 are estrogen useful for a 10months old boxer bitch for growth?

[beboboxer]

on 4/19/2009 i have a 10 months old boxer bitch,she weighs 20kgs,i think she`s undergrown,is it because she suffered from parvo when she was young?we recently gave her an estrogen injection for her growth but nothing happened;what do i do now?

[constantinople]

on 12/29/2008 my 18 month old boxers ears ere clipped before i got him but they are not healing properly as he shakes the scabs and scratches them off, the problem is the bleeding, any suggestions out there how to stop it?

[RyanDFW]

on 12/16/2008 I just got a 8 week old boxer puppy, hes not letting me type right now, he is really attached. My question is when are the appropiate time to crate him? In the morning when I go to work, at night, when he poops inside? Thanks