BOXERS AROUND THE WORLD

THE MAJOR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN
NORTH AMERICAN, BRITISH AND EUROPEAN BOXERS

UNITED KINGDOM - BODY TYPE

The current FCI and British standards have omitted the words SUBSTANCE WITH ELEGANCE - therefore in essence type has changed somewhat!

The Boxer that our forefathers designed was a powerful dog of sound conformation and good musculation, but without the loss of elegance!

Although most of the older breeders still breed for elegance, it worries me that many new breeders will interpret the standard differently and breed much more substance and less elegance!

I personally think it is a pity that they have omitted the word ELEGANCE, as the Boxer needs to be thought of as elegant but substantial, to lift him from the ranks of other brachycephalic breeds of a similar size, such as the Bullmastiff and the Dogue de Bordeaux. If people want a heavy guard dog these breeds will fit the bill, as a Boxer's uniqueness comes from his ability to be quick as well as tough!

The United Kingdom puts the emphasis on NOBILITY and the dog
is "posed" four square, usually baited but not "stacked".


This bitch conforms to the English standard, is well balanced and possesses good breed type.

VIRTUES AND PROBLEMS

VIRTUES IN THE BEST BOXERS
Good boning:	Well boned right down to the feet without losing elegance.
Well angulated fronts;	Correct angulation with well laid back shoulders and good length of upperarm. Forechest is plainly visible forn the side with good fill between the front legs.
Well angulated rears:	Strong rears with equal length of first and second thigh, both having good width.
Excellent feet:	I think the best feet in the world! Short TOES, with high knuckling, a real cats foot!
Short rear pasterns:	Short rears pasterns create good drive and propel the dog forward without effort.
Excellent temperament:	Calm, but ready to protect when needed. Most get on well with other dogs and animals.

Summing Up: The top winning British dogs are very typy. The forechest is evident and the rear is well angulated with good second thighs. The have excellent feet, well knuckled up, with short toes and short rear pasterns. The temperament is usually very good.

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DEPARTURE FROM TYPE
Long coats:	The coat of the British dogs is not as short and tight and smooth as the standard asks. In fact I have found many dogs that have an exceptionally long thick coat.
Loose jacket:	Many British dogs have very loose skin particularly under their neck. The standard asks for the neck to be clean cut with no dewlap.
Thick necks:	Their necks are often thick, not long enough and lack the elegant arch down to the withers.
Too wide between shoulder blades:	The fronts of many of the British dogs look well angulated but up close you find that the shoulder blades are short and lie too far apart at the top of the withers. This causes flatness across this area creating wrinkles and spoils the smooth flow from neck into withers.
Too short in ribcage and long in loin:	Although the back can measure square the ribcage can be short and the loin long.
Unbalanced:	Front and rear do not match in angulation or substance eg, heavy fronts and weak rears.

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Next we will look at the virtues and departure from type of the European dogs.....