Long Tailed Boxers

HE CAN’T BE A BOXER – HE HAS A LONG TAIL!

Twenty years ago, we never saw boxers with uncropped ears. “It doesn’t look like a boxer!” It took a while, but as more and more boxers were left “natural”, the public became accustomed to the look, and embraced it. Now, especially in middle Tennessee, it’s actually unusual to see a boxer with erect ears. We love the soft expression and feel of the floppy ears. And the dogs love not having part of their anatomy cut off, and the bother and discomfort of having their ears “posted” until they stand up.

Well, get ready – a new revolution in the boxer appearance is here! Straight from the up-and-coming European designers, and all the rage on the Continent, the natural tail is the cat’s meow (sorry cats – couldn’t resist that). We still hear people say, “It doesn’t look like a boxer!” But that just means they’re not up on the latest fashions.

The European Union, and many other countries, have banned the cropping of ears and the docking of tails, calling it unnecessary and cruel. It is amputation, and painful, with no benefits other than cosmetic expectations. Boxers with long tails, regardless of how gorgeous they might otherwise be, are often left languishing in rescue for months or years, before they finally find a place of their own. For this reason, to help the dog get adopted in a reasonable length of time, some rescues (and we are sorry to say we have done so, but will not in the future) will have the tail docked when a long-tailed boxer comes in, just because so few people thus far are open-minded enough to recognize that a long tail does not change the wonderful boxer personality, and even adds some nuances of its own.