bought a boxer pup, tell me everything!

[AngryBeaver]

We get him in about 6 weeks.
We have never had a puppy before, but feel it's time.
I have 4 children between 1-9.

Any and all advice very welcome!

Good luck! From bitter experience he'll grow up when he's about 16!
They need a lot of consistent training and exercise, also tend to be very boisterous and strong dogs. Not one for a child to take for a walk alone.
Personally I would not have one with small children.

I've had a few and they're as mad as a box of frogs when they're young and they'll drive you mad. Boxers are the best dogs ever though and wonderful with children, probably because they never grow up themselves

My sister had one, so incredibly boisterous. They are good with children but they don't know their own strength so a bouncy, boisterous, bulky boxer and small children is not a good mix. Your children will get knocked over a LOT. You need a lot of very robust chew toys as they're chewers (my sisters was anyway, he chewed EVERYTHING. Not just as a puppy either, he chewed all through adulthood).

Good luck.

Oh lord we looked after one for a while. Crazy dog - ate anything in sight - bars of soap, 4 boxes of Edinburgh rock, loo rolls etc. Puppy training classes need to be a long term commitment as do firm boundaries. Good luck.

when i was a vet nurse our policy was to not even LOOK at a boxer until it had been examined by the vet. The slightest eye contact and you have a crazy, wriggly, bundle of mental. Cute but not practical.

A boxer is a brave choice as a first dog so i hope you have lots of energy.

never met a nasty boxer though. They are strong and have no brains. so socialise and train early.

mist important of all - get pet insurance.

My boxer is now 2. She has cost us a bloody fortune replacing things she has eaten/chewed, including 3 pairs of headsets, 2 pairs of glasses and numerous shoes/flip-flops/slippers.
They really don't like to be left alone and will show their displeasure by wrecking your house.

They are the best dogs though.

Good luck. Be very, very patient.

Mental but lovely. We got our boy at 10 weeks and he was 4 when DD was born, he was amazing with her from day one and seemed to know he needed to be calm around her. He did eat the kitchen door when he was a baby, oh and he also dragged a bag of courgettes off the kitchen work top and ate them and then shit every were, I still remember the day as I could smell the shit when I opened the front door.
He finally calmed down at about 6 years old and he sadly went to the bridge earlier this year, 1 day before his 10th birthday. DD mentions him every day and I miss him everyday.

Boxers have never ending energy and need lots of exercise and mental stimulation, as others have said a very brave choice especially with 4 young dc.

Hope you have considered how you will fit at least an hour of brisk exercise (once fully grown) and add on top of that mentally stimulating training. Its a breed you really need to tire out every day.

I've only known 2 boxers (one a childhood friends dog, another recently while walking our lab), both were very fast, very energetic and nippy/not particularly dog friendly. Both also had skin conditions around their nose so make sure you've got good pet insurance.

Oh I also knew another one, he lived to 13, he had so many health problems it was unreal. No insurer would touch him with a bargepole. He had cancers, allergies, skin problems, had to have mega expensive food, he had breathing problems. His owner spent 10's of thousands on him over the years. Not a week went by that he wasn't in the vets having some sort of procedure. She could've just been unlucky with him though. But she was lucky he didn't destroy the house when she went out.

Can I be horribly frank about what came to mind when I saw this? I truly apologise if I've made wrong assumptions...

• you've committed to a boxer pup and paid a shit-load of money probably you're asking questions? Did you do any research into which breed is right for you? (if any)

• Have you thought about costs? Vets, insurance, flea/worming, neutering food, kennel/dogsitter, accessories and toys. Some are one-off like neutering but others are ongoing for many years.

• You've got 4 children. You must be bloody busy. Have you got time for this? Toilet training, training, socialisation, training the children about how to behave around a dog... training, training, training.

• Rain, snow, heat, sick children, knackered, ill yourself - you will still need to walk the dog unless you can arrange/pay for others to do it

• Do you want a dog? It has to be you, because you will end up doing it all. Training, cleaning, vets visits, flea/worming treatment. This will all be up to you. Kids will coo and cuddle the dog. When it nips, chases and is a general pain, they will hate it and cry for you to come and deal with it.

• Again, 4 kids (is is obvious that I only have 2?!). You must have days out, cinema trips, shopping trips etc. You will have to arrange for someone to come in and look after the dog if you're out longer than about 4-5 hours, much more when the dog is still young.

havetowearheels - what a beautiful boy! I am so sorry for your loss

For reasons that I can no longer remember I let my 17 year old daughter adopt a rescued boxer. No ill treatment or horror story, just a family who couldn't cope with him!

He lived with us, and drove us mad for 4 years and then she took him abroad to live with her now husband.

For the last few years his best friend has been a very large, grey stallion.
He sits in front of the stable door and the horse picks him up by the scruff of his neck, and then drops him, and then he jumps up at the horse so the horse does it again! And again!

It's quite the most bizarre thing, dog is coming up to 13 years old and is a family legend.

We had a boxer, the most amazing friendly dog but as mad as anything ( he is the only dog I know to be expelled from puppy training)
As said previously boxers need lots of exercise, we had a 300 ft garden that he galloped around all day and hestill needed 2 long walks a day.
Our boxer was great with kids but they are big dogs so can easily knock smaller children (and grown men) over, they can also jump higher than you would expect so a baby gate won't keep him in a room

My aunt breeds boxers. They are nuts. Lovely but nuts. Like others have said a brave first dog choice and maybe I would have asked questions first before paying out money.

Like others have said they are bouncy, they will knock the kids over, they will chew things etc. They are strong and hard work on walks unless you put a lot of training in.

Wow!!

Ok well, to answer questions.
Yes, I am busy. I also have a fledgling business.

But I am home all day and am willing to put in the time and commitment to train.
We live 2 mins away from the beach and bush, so plenty of space to give him long runs and walks.
We are an active family. I run, and love tramping (hiking) we can bring the dog most everywhere with us.
We live on an island in the hauraki gulf and only get off about once a month.
In which case he can go and stay with my husband in his office in the city.
If we go on holiday it will mainly be in the same country and we hire a Bach (holiday home) where dogs are welcome.
If not, I know a lady that will come and house/dog sit for free.

I did a bit of research before we paid for him. The boxer breed consistently came high in the breeds best for families.
I know that I will have to be consistent with training and that's fine.

I understand that it will all come down to me. It's daunting.

I had NOT heard about the chewing (or shitting courgettes- I will actually vomit if such a thing occurs!!!)
We will get pet insurance, of course. And microchip him and de-sex him.
And generally love him.

I DO worry about him knocking the baby over.
I had never heard that they can be nippy.

I have read that I must socialise him early with other dogs to prevent any aggression towards males later on.

Do you think I would be able to train him to stay on our property without fencing?

lol no - to your last point

Aw, havetowearheels, he is just gorgeous. I'm so sorry :(

We have a 16 month old boxer. He is crazy. And tireless. Or when he is tired he has a super-fast recharge so yeah, he pretty much is tireless He thunders around our place (we're on 1.5 acres in the Waikato) and sounds like a herd of really ginormous elephants. Feels the heat terribly though, has dug a crate under part of our hedge that he collapses in to cool off as part of his recharge programme...

He's such a cool boy though and we do love him. We did get off to a rocky start and for a while things were very stressful but I'm very glad we persevered; it wasn't him, it was me - I had trouble coming to grips with everything about having a puppy again

Very trainable, he absolutely loved his two obedience courses he did, which he aced, and I'm trying to push DH to find something else for them to do this summer.

Our boy goes to doggy day care two or three times a week so he gets good socialising and wears himself out a little, although every day at around 5pm he comes up to the door with whichever toy he wants to play with - not sure if he thinks we'll be sad if we don't get a little bit of a run-around or what. He is funny with his toys - I put them on his outside raised bed and if he seems me messing with them he will go and do an inventory to make sure I haven't snuck anything away.

With you being a runner/tramper and being an active family in general with the beach so close your boxer is going to be a lucky boy! Piccies when he arrives :) Oh, and who is his breeder? Just being nosey, our boy is a Gremlix boy from Glenbrook way.

lol no - to your last point

What she said. Our boxer has lots of room and walks and still takes any opportunity offered to escape and hare off up the mountain.
Our girl has never nipped anyone, but she does try and lick all and sundry. So, not anyway dangerous but rather wet and can be a bit gross. (We have to be careful of laughing while she does it, in case we accidentally French kiss the dog. Not that I've ever done that.oh no. )

Also, remember that puppies shouldn't have two much exercise when they're very young as it risks damaging their bones. Short bursts are better than long walks at the start.

I've never met or heard of a nippy Boxer. Except as puppies obviously, all puppies are nippy.

Despite their craziness they are a fanatic breed and well worth persevering with during the early stages.
I remember once when our second boxer who never showed an aggressive side to her personality was on a walk with me. I think I was about 14 and it was dark. Out of nowhere a man appeared and whilst I'm not normally spooked I was really, really scared. My brilliant boxer gave a low, loud growl, bared her teeth and I swear she'd have ripped out his throat had he come any closer to me. I found out later some girls has been attacked in my area around that time. My beautiful boxer girl was my protector that night.

Boxers are in fact highly intelligent and used as police dogs in Germany

They are very trainable , but it has to be done from a young age and correctly

We have always had boxers, I even know of one used as a sheep dog

So yes you can very much train your dog to stay on property with no fencing, my friend has a horse yard and his two boxers live there day and night and never leave the place

They can be very destructive dogs if left alone so keep that in mind , it's due to seperation anxiety as they really do see themselves as part of the family and expect to be treated as one. So if left in isolation that's when trouble can arise.

They are fantastic with children and yes they well may knock your 1 year over some times but it's not the end of the world , I'm sure your child will just pick themselve up and carry on

The truely are the clown of the dog world and your home will be filled with laughter

Good luck op

I have 2 Boxers (they are 8 and 9)....They are not nippy or slobbery....but they are over 30kg each and don't realise it...

They do have a penchant for eating random stuff, but have never bin raided, though they are consumate counter surfers.

They are very active and can easily do 10 miles and still want more. Obviously puppies and elderly dogs don't need this much exercise.

We've never had many problems with their health, though they are prone to lumps etc.

Watch out for that whippy tail and kiddies faces

It will be hard work but worth it I'm sure.

Ah, well thanks for this. That gives me hope. We are a family that will WORSHIP and ADORE a dog, trust me.
It's just that I need to know how to deal with the puppy stages, toilet training etc.
totally totally will I and able to put the time in.
And, I have 6 weeks to read up.

Shal I get crate, do you think? That seems to be the new thing. But, I was thinking of a playpen and then just sleeping on a lancet so where. I don't like the idea of a big ugly crate.

Hi kiwijude! We used To live in the Waikato (cambridge) your boy sounds "awesome" as they say here
Our breeder is in Canterbury. We looked at Bavaria kennels in Hamilton, and a nice kennels in Auckland, but they don't do litters that often and the timings didn't work out.
Costing quite a by to fly him up on top of buying him, and then all the jabs etc eek.

I have a pic of him already, and he is soooo gorgeous, but I'm in the mn app, so I can't work out how to show you! (His name is Grunion)