Why Boxer size and builds vary so?

[Pryor]

It seems like the Boxer is one of those breeds that size and build seems to vary greatly. If the breed standard which I have read is the norm then why does this breed seem to vary even with the show boxers. I have seen very thin builds and very big boned builds along with height and weights that are so different.
Maybe I am just looking too closely.

 

[heidiho]

I don't know why but I prefer the breed standard. I have seen some smaller ones at agility trials, where standard doesn't matter. My guess, and again just a guess, is that someone bred 2 smaller ones and some people may prefer them to the breed standard. But really I don't understand it myself.

 

[Slugger6969]

Nope. You have a good eye. The explanation for BYB dogs is easy enough to explain. People who just breed b/c they have two boxers :mad: .

Within the show ring there are trends you'll see with all the breeds. When someone sees a type win a lot then they start breeding for that type. It also is geographical. When I moved to the South from CA., for example, my mom was showing a Long Haired Dachshund and on the West coast the coat was sleek with the long hair. We got here and the LHDs were really hairy all over. I'm noticing this ugly trend with Bulldogs where they're real fat looking and very short and compact. Boxers seem to be bigger boned now in the show ring.

But trends come and go. Who knows what will happen next.

 

[epdjr]

I have to agree. It's all dependent upon the breeders stock. If they keep breeding larger and larger dogs then those pups will tend to be bigger boned and vice versa. If you look at german boxers they have larger heads with shorter muzzles and shorter hind legs. The "breed standard" is just an average weight range and just like any average you can have outlyers and extremes.

 

[gmacleod]

In addition to the great many people who breed just because they've got two dogs - which has already been mentioned, even amongst those breeding to the standard, you've got to contend with individual interpretation of the standard. After all, it is simply a written description, and there is quite some variance in people's interpretation of that description and opinion of what makes a "good" boxer.

Just a quick look at the American vs European boxer can illustrate this. The standards being are bred to are almost identical, but in many cases, the results ar not. A typical American head, for example, is longer and lighter than its European counterpart - yet both meet the description of the standard which, inter alia, says the length of the muzzle is a third of the total.

All that being said, if you look at the very *best* that are bred across all countries then you'll find far less variation in type. In short, we're all aiming for the same result but its hardly an exact science (and there'd be nothing left to aim for if it were).

 

[Jaelle]

You know, even if some show boxers vary from style, they respect the same standard. European boxers, who tend to look heavier, are the same size and weight than American...

But when you talk about every day boxers, from anywhere including puppymills and byb, it's sure that they vary a lot from size and weigh: the persons who breed them usually know nothing about standard!!!