Boxer dogs - tail docking

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Yesterday I saw two beautiful boxer dogs but they both had long tails and I didn't like them
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I much prefer the boxer with a docked tail as was my mums. The owner was saying they also preferred docked tails but its illegal here now and they would have to have bought in Ireland if they wanted a docked tail puppy.

I'm wondering if its because i'm not used to seeing them like that but imo it spoilt the look of the dogs.

Anyone else got a boxer with a tail and do you get used to it.
 
I peronsally love them with tails, makes them look really cheeky but then I saw a dobe with a tail yesterday and it looked very strange!! I once read an interesting article about a guy who was breeding bob tailed Boxers but he had done a cross with a corgi generations ago so they obviously weren't prebred but he did create a dog that looked like a Boxer with a short tail.... will see if I can find it if anyone is interested.
 
My boxer Wesley has a tail and I think he looks great. There tails are lovely, his has a lovely curl at the end. Having had a boxer before with a docked tail, I wasn't sure at first but no I quite like them with tails.
 
Bossdog the OES people wanted to breed with Australian Shepherds to make a natural bobtail Bobtail
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but agree, what a shocking overproduction of puppies in the interim generations and what a closed gene pool.....

Out of interest, read the Kennel Gazette, there are a large number of showline boxers who seem to be having unfortunate accidents, resulting in their owners having to apply for a docking permit
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Just been having another read through the article, he has shown and won with his KC reg bobtails, I don't know enough about the KC system to understand how, I wouldn't have thought they were classed as pure bred?
 
I wouldn't say that was possible under KC regulations, did he show them in the UK? It was probably at exemption level or outside of KC rules.
Is he calling them Bobtails? Because the Old English Sheepdog people would not be happy about that
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QR To be honest I used to think spaniels looked odd with tails but I wouldn't change Henry now - I love that he has his tail. It's different if there is a proper reason for docking (eg working dogs, to avoid injury) but I don't agree with docking just for aesthetics.

I'm sure that people used to find the sight of horses with undocked tails odd but we seem to have become used to that now...
 
Horses are still docked and have their forelocks shaved in some parts of Spain - it does look very severe, you're right, maybe one day we will feel the same about dogs.
I know seeing cropped ears makes me wince!
 
I must admit I loathe boxers with tails, they look horrible IMHO
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Same goes for Dobermanns
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But I know that it is deemed cruel to dock a dog now
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so wont bother getting into that debate again
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I certainly have got used to seeing undocked tails in both of my breeds and never thought I would. My male parson was born days after the ban and has a full tail, I used to hate it but now think he would look very odd docked! He has a very nice straight tail for a terrier as well, it doesn't curl over his back and would never affect him working. My female parson is the odd one out in our family now being the only one docked, equally she would look strange to me with a tail! Flora is our first undocked Vizsla and I got used to that really quickly although I would still prefer she didnt have it as it is broken on the end but shes never split it. The show world has helped with me accepting the look of a vizz with a tail as all the young dogs coming up have them so it doesn't look out of place.
I do have to admit to thinking that boxers, dobes, rotties and other dogs previously docked very short do look odd as anything with full tails! I have found that in general dogs like this that in recent history have only been docked for aesthetic reasons and not working reasons are harder to get used to with tails, the working gundog breeds I've found much easier to get used to, but maybe thats because I see more of them.
Wow that was a long old nonsensical ramble from me for a monday morning...I do apologise!!
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eta; the bobtail boxers are interesting, thanks for posting bossdog.
 
I'm not normally bothered about docked tails but a breeder at Crufts made a very vaild point about Corgis. The are mainly seperated by the fact one has a tail and one doesn't. A lot of Pembrokes are born with half tails and unless they really condese the gene pool your going to end up with a lot of Pembrokes that aren't wanted for showing/breeding. They're an unpopular breed as it is so you can't really afford that kind of a knock on. Also they may end up as one breed again if they both have tails
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Personally, I prefer dogs with tails as I don't like to see their a-holes! My Dad has dobermanns, both docked.

I can see why corgis are not popular, my nan had one and it put me off ever having one myself.
 
i had 2 boxers, both docked. i cant stand seeing these breeds which are used to having docked tails now having to be docked. we "tail" the lambs when they are a few weeks old, apart from the welsh, so wheres the difference? EU and Defra interference yet again!!
 
I have a boxer and really struggle with the thought of him having a tail. Its the one breed that I think look strange with a tail. But its just personal preference for me.
 
I am not a fan of undocked terriers at all (well the ones that are usually docked)
One of my grans dog has a horrid long wispy tail and I think she looks horrendous
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Never seen an undocked boxer etc but don't think I'd like those either.

Cropped ears turn my stomach though.
 
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Horses are still docked and have their forelocks shaved in some parts of Spain - it does look very severe, you're right, maybe one day we will feel the same about dogs.
I know seeing cropped ears makes me wince!

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I saw a docked horse in the juniors' class at this year's Hampton Classic. Looked most strange. And I hate to see docked ears on dogs, especially Boxers.

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sorry to hijack, but why would you dock a horses tail? i can see why for the cart horses so it does not get trapped but why for a "regualr" horse? (note - i know nothing about horses so sorry if it is a silly question!)
 
It may well have been paralysed or otherwise damaged in an accident - I've heard horror stories of horses losing tails to too-tight bandages, though I'm not sure how much truth is in them!

I must admit to admiring some of the docked cobs in my Welsh Cob book, then realised what I was doing and felt a bit disgusted with myself.
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I saw my first undocked boxer just the other day and I must say I didn't really like the look either, they seem to have such thin whippy tails for a big dog. On the other hand the few undocked rotties that I've seen have looked all the better for having a tail, theirs seems to be much shorter and sturdier and suits the look of the dog. I'm not sure I have an opinion on terriers, the two that I've dealt with personally both had tails but they weren't used for working or indeed from working stock.
 
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sorry to hijack, but why would you dock a horses tail? i can see why for the cart horses so it does not get trapped but why for a "regualr" horse? (note - i know nothing about horses so sorry if it is a silly question!)

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I have no idea. It was the only horse I saw all day that was docked, so maybe it was imported, or maybe it was due to a medical condition.
 
In the place I was in Spain, they shave the forelocks and then put on bridles with a fly fringe
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The man we rode out with had an amazing stallion that he used to bullfight on, I am not sure if that has anything to do with it?
 
I have an undocked boxer
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i do much prefer them without and if i had a choice Alf's would def have gone!! he can clear a full coffee table if he wants! The problem with boxers is they are so excitable so the tail is constantly going and with some force!!!

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I prefer dogs with natural tails, already when I begun to look through breed books before I bought my first dog, on my "list of wishes", I had written down that I preferred breeds with undocked tails. Not as if it was the most important point but more like that, if the choice was between a docked breed and an undocked breed, I would choose the one with a natural tail.

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There has been quite some talk through the years about perhaps crossing e.g. Doberman with Smålandsstövare ( Image from Wikipedia of a Smålandsstövare ), a Swedish hunting dog with somewhat similar looks to Dobermans but with a natural short tail.

Basically I think there has been talk about crossing almost any docked breed with Västgötaspets (Swedish Vallhund), Pembroke Welsh Corgi and other breeds carrying the gene for natural short tails...





Actually we've had a docking ban since 1989 and we did go through the unusual increase in tail damages ending up in docked tails. Strangely enough, suddenly many dogs, especially Rottweilers and Dobermans, got the urge to run around in low and thorny bushes and stand in doorways just as the door shut...
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So since 1997 we have a specific rule saying that no Rottweiler or Doberman born in Sweden from 1 January 1997 and later and registered in SKK, are allowed to be shown docked on a SKK dog show, regardless of the reason for the docking.




Then suddenly many breeders, of especially Rottweilers and Dobermans, decided to let their brood bitch give birth to her puppies in another country, peculiarly enough only in countries without a docking ban...
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Some years later, it came a rule saying that if the owner of the brood bitch lives in Sweden, it doesn't matter which country the bitch is in when she has the litter, the puppies must be undocked to be SKK registered.





And then there was only a few complaints left to deal with. One was from breeders of previously docked breeds, that ever since the first docking ban came 1989, have said that there is not much point in showing a dog with undocked tail, especially if the judge is from a country without a docking ban, because almost always/usually, if there is as much as one imported dog with a docked tail in the class, it wins.

Which probably is/was not helped by the "sudden" amount of imported dogs with Swedish owners, competing in our show rings.
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Unscientifically I have randomly picked 2 Swedish dog shows (it was the two first older catalogues, from two different years, that I found and I have no idea who won) and simply looked at were the Dobermans came from.
Show 1,
41 Dobermans born in Sweden.
30 Dobermans born in other countries. 10 in Russia, 8 in Serbia, 3 in Ukraine, 2 each in Italy and Latvia, 1 each in Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Finland and Norway.

Show 2,
18 Dobermans born in Sweden.
18 Dobermans born in other countries. 6 in Russia, 5 in Serbia, 2 in Norway and 1 each in Denmark, Finland, France, Italy and Yugoslavia.


Obviously they must breed Dobermans of a very good quality in Russia and Serbia, since we seem to import quite a few from there!
For all I know, that could very well be a true statement, maybe it is just a coincidence that we're importing from countries like Russia, that does not have a tail docking ban and Serbia, that from what I've heard, it doesn't matter if their kennel club have a ban or not, because if the breeder wants it, they get it done.


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The latest SKK rule states that dogs born from 1 January 2008 or later, that is Tail docked or Ear cropped, are not entitled to participate in a SKK dog show, regardless of whether the dog is born in a country that allows such docking or cropping or if it was done for health reasons on a dog born in Sweden.
The only exceptions is a few breeds in the Gun dog group. (I'm sorry The Henmeister but I support a complete ban.)
If you have an imported and legally docked e.g. Rottweiler, born after 1 January 2008, it is entitled to at on one occasion, be shown outside competition and get a written critique with the judge's opinion.


Somehow I doubt it is the last rule change...

*sigh*
 
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It may well have been paralysed or otherwise damaged in an accident - I've heard horror stories of horses losing tails to too-tight bandages, though I'm not sure how much truth is in them!


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I've heard of this too. I go round the stables taking tail bandages off after shows because the grooms just can't be arsed
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I must admit I loathe boxers with tails, they look horrible IMHO
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Same goes for Dobermanns
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But I know that it is deemed cruel to dock a dog now
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so wont bother getting into that debate again
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I know you said you didn't want a debate but
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lets say that I hypothetically thinks that all dogs with four legs looks horrible. Since they only need three to walk and run, I suggest we begin docking one leg on every dog, regardless of breed...




Luckily we don't have to agree about everything. Personally I think Boxers, Dobermans and Rottweilers etc. looks so much better with their natural tail!

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My little black greyhound Ellen had three legs, and she was just as gorgeous and lovely as a dog with four legs
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She was also as fast and as active...
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