˃ѵըeT Q&A CONTINUED FROM PAGE 241
WITH DAVID AND STEPHANIE ABRAHAM, ALBERTO BERRIOS, HOWARD ENGEL, ANN GILBERT, THOMAS J LATTA, JANET AND LARRY SINCLAIR, SHARON K. STECKLER & JUDITH VORAN
“BOXERS ARE LOYAL FAMILY DOGS
HE: Temperament is an issue that needs to be addressed in different ways. In general, Boxers are a happy, outgoing breed that accepts strangers readily. Shy dogs should not be rewarded but dogs wary of new people but willing to stand their ground can be accepted. Aggressiveness, towards people, is totally unacceptable. AG: The Boxer is a great family dog but that does not mean every family should have one. Lots of patience is required along with lots of love. I often tell people that a bored Boxer is a busy Boxer so you are wise to keep them active and engaged. J&LS: Boxers are loyal family dogs and are good with children. They should have an outgoing personality but under control. Some can be trained and are able to com- pete successfully in many of the newer activities offered by AKC. SKS: The playfulness, companionability and bidability of the Boxer cannot be overstated. A Boxer will do almost anything to please its master, no matter how nutty the request may seem to the Boxer. JV: The Boxer is one of the most free spirited of any breed. Any Boxer that lacks this temperamental trait should never be given preference regardless of any other consid- eration. There is no place for shyness in the Boxer breed. As a personal protection and border guard dog, the Boxer has no equal. The Boxer will not, under most circum- stances, ever “give chase” or “attack” an intruder. The Boxer will “alert” to every sound or strange occurrence. Should someone be invited into one’s home and the Boxer, after sufficient time to evaluate the invitee, holds back, be sure to count the “silver” when the guest leaves. The Boxer knows! 9. And, for a bit of humor: what’s the funniest thing you’ve ever experienced at a dog show? D&SA: We well remember a torrentially wet morning at Trenton when there was flooding on the roads and the grounds were a sea of mud. Into that morass trotted David, showing a young bitch we owned. Everyone at ringside was drenched, except for one Boxer breeder who had remained miraculously dry and immaculate— until one of David’s shoes was sucked into the mud and then sailed through the air to splat right in the middle of the immaculate lady’s white outfit. She was not at all amused—but everyone else was! AB: When I was starting to judge the Working Group at a show, all the dogs were lined up and a dog came in to join the lineup. The dog did not looked like it was anything that belonged to the group. Well, everybody laughed since it was a Chow Chow. It was obviously an honest mistake by a new exhibitor. I proceeded to explain to her when it would be her time to come into the ring and judging proceeded well. AG: The funniest thing I ever saw at a dog show did not involve Boxers at all but it still leaves me laughing every
AND ARE GOOD WITH CHILDREN.”
time I think about it. My husband, children and I were at an outside show in Denver many years ago. A number of the rings were outside. That day we watched several breeds and on that day we stopped to watch the Irish Setter ring which was located right next to a pond in the park area. Suddenly a flock of geese swooped down onto the pond and the Setters went wild. Two broke away from the handlers and dove into the pond after the geese. Chaos erupted as handlers waded into the pond to recover their dogs. Judging did continue eventually, wet dogs and handlers combined. J&LS: This just happened to Larry last weekend. He asked for a cup of coffee after judging had started in the morn- ing. When delivered, unknowing to him, the cover was not on the cup securely. Therefore, he wore the cup of coffee on his shirt for the rest of the day. SKS: From my own handling experience, I had a Boxer that, for reasons known only to him, found small, long-haired dogs particularly loathsome. We were making our way to our ring in a crowed grooming area, next to a lady who was holding an adorable Toy dog with a flowing plume of a tail. I heard a tiny yelp and looked down to see what the problem was. There was my Boxer, looking completely innocent, but now possessing several strands of long, flowing hair that looked very much like a Fu-Manchu moustache. Needless to say, I whisked the evidence away and nearly ran to the ring. JV: Boxer people tend to be rather stoic, business-like and serious at dog shows and their dogs tend to mimic them. But when the business is over, give a Boxer time to express his joy, free spirit and tag-wagging ability, noth- ing brings more joy and happiness to his human than being just being a happy, fun-loving dog.
t4 )08 4 *()5 . "(";*/& 0 $50#&3
Powered by FlippingBook