Boxers are brachycephalic (they have broad, short skulls), have a square muzzle, mandibular prognathism (an underbite), very strong jaws, and a powerful bite ideal for hanging on to large prey.

Based on 2013 AKC statistics, Boxers held steady as the seventh-most popular breed of dog in the United States for the fourth consecutive year.

[7] Boxers were originally a docked and cropped breed, and this is still done in some countries,[8] but due to pressure from veterinary associations, animal rights groups, and the general public, both cropping of the ears and docking of the tail have been prohibited in some countries around the world, and is not recognised by the breed standard laid down by The Kennel Club of the UK.

A line of naturally short-tailed (bobtail) Boxers was developed in the United Kingdom in anticipation of a tail-docking ban there;[9] after several generations of controlled breeding, these dogs were accepted in the Kennel Club (UK) registry in 1998, and today representatives of the bobtail line can be found in many countries.

[10] In March 2005, the AKC breed standard was changed to include a description of the uncropped ear, but to severely penalize an undocked tail.

The extreme piebald gene, which is responsible for white markings in Boxers, is linked to congenital sensorineural deafness in dogs.

"[19] Reasons for euthanizing white pups include the view that selling a dog with "faults" is unethical, which is in stark contrast to the AKC preference for docked tails.

[20] Today, breeders are increasingly reluctant to euthanize healthy pups,[19] and may choose to neuter and place them in pet homes, instead.

General appearance Great nobility, smooth-coated, medium-sized, square build, strong bone and evident, well developed muscles.

[3] They are active, strong dogs that require adequate exercise to prevent boredom-associated behaviors such as chewing, digging, or licking.

Boxers, like other animals, typically respond better to positive reinforcement techniques such as clicker training, an approach based on operant conditioning and behaviorism, which offers the dog an opportunity to think independently and to problem-solve.

[26] In 1894, three Germans, Friedrich Robert, Elard König, and R. Höpner, decided to stabilize the breed and put it on exhibition at a dog show.

German citizen George Alt, a Munich resident, mated a brindle-colored female dog imported from France named Flora with a local dog of unknown ancestry, known simply as "Boxer", resulting in a fawn-and-white male, named Lechner's Box after its owner.

George Alt mated Schecken with a Bulldog named Dr. Toneissen's Tom to produce the historically significant dog Mühlbauer's Flocki.

[28][29] John Wagner, in The Boxer (first published in 1939) said the following regarding this female dog:[30] Meta von der Passage played the most important role of the five original ancestors.

The name "Boxer" is supposedly derived from the breed's tendency to play by standing on its hind legs and "boxing" with its front paws.

German linguistic and historical evidence finds the earliest written source for the word Boxer in the 18th century, where it is found in a text in the Deutsches Fremdwörterbuch (The German Dictionary of Foreign Words),[31] which cites an author named Musäus of 1782 writing "daß er aus Furcht vor dem großen Baxer Salmonet ... sich auf einige Tage in ein geräumiges Packfaß ... absentiret hatte".

Both the verb (boxen [English "to box, to punch, to jab"]) and the noun (Boxer) were common German words as early as the late 18th century.

The term Boxl, also written Buxn or Buchsen in the Bavarian dialect, means "short (leather) trousers" or "underwear".

[32] More in line with historical facts, Brace states that many other theories may explain the origin of the breed name, from which he favors the one claiming the smaller Bullenbeisser (Brabanter) dogs were also known as Boxl and that Boxer is just a corruption of that word.

[32] In the same vein runs a theory based on the fact that a group of dogs was known as Bierboxer in Munich by the time of the breed's development.

On the other hand, a German breeder of 40 years' experience states positively that the Boxer does not use his feet, except to try to extinguish a small flame such as a burning match.

Or perhaps, since the German dictionary translates Boxer as "prize-fighter", the name was bestowed in appreciation of the fighting qualities of the breed rather than its technique.

Boxer is also the name of a dog owned by John Peerybingle, the main character in the best-selling 1845 book The Cricket on the Hearth by Charles Dickens, which is evidence that "Boxer" was commonly used as a dog name by the early 19th century, before the establishment of the breed by the end of that same century.

[36] Leading health issues to which Boxers are prone include cancers, heart conditions such as aortic stenosis and arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (the so-called "Boxer cardiomyopathy"),[37] hypothyroidism, hip dysplasia, and degenerative myelopathy and epilepsy; other conditions that may be seen are gastric dilatation volvulus (also known as bloat), intestinal problems, and allergies (although these may be more related to diet than breed).

[38][39] Entropion, a malformation of the eyelid requiring surgical correction, is occasionally seen, and some lines have a tendency toward spondylosis deformans, a fusing of the spine,[40] or dystocia.

[45] According to a UK Kennel Club health survey, cancer accounts for 38.5% of Boxer deaths, followed by old age (21.5%), cardiac (6.9%) and gastrointestinal (6.9%) related issues.

[50] Boxers are also prone to dental problems, increasing their susceptibility for bad breath; dry dog food that is large and difficult for them to chew improves the likelihood for plaque removal.

[52] Dry dog food is often coated with polyphosphates, which further reduces plaque buildup by preventing calcium production in saliva.