After quite a lot of debate and discussion, we decided to breed Gloria to Hunter, and we have confirmed pregnancy with puppies due October 5, 2013. X-rays show at least seven pups, with perhaps an eighth hiding behind the ribs.
We decided, in lieu of simply writing about why we decided on this breeding, we’d put ourselves to the test and answer our breeder questions regarding this litter.
Puppies available now?
We are expecting a litter the first weekend in October. Puppies will be available after Christmas (and potentially New Years).
Males or females?
Don’t know yet!!
Color and Markings?
Again, don’t know yet. We could get brindles and fawns from this breeding, with 0-100% white markings.
Temperament?
Of course we don’t have a crystal ball, but we expect the puppies will have friendly, outgoing temperaments.
Where are they being raised, and what kind of socialization have they had?
Our puppies are raised in our home. The first three or four weeks they are in the guest bedroom with their dam; after a week or two, depending on how things are progressing and how the dam feels about it, they might get the occasional visit from our other adult dogs. Once they’re older (and escaping from the whelping box!) they’re moved into the main part of the house. We have a room that we transform into a Puppy Playroom that they’re in when we’re away from home, sleeping, or can’t be vigilant about keeping them out of mischief. The rest of the time they’re either in an ex-pen in the family room, where we spend most of our awake time, or they’re running loose around (most of) the house. (We keep some areas closed off for their safety.)
Will they be vet-checked for heart murmurs and parasites before you place them?
Absolutely. Our puppies see a board-certified veterinary cardiologist to check for heart murmurs, and we have fecal screens done to check for intestinal parasites.
At what age will you be placing them, and how many shots will they have had?
Our puppies stay with us until they’re 12 weeks old. Depending on the litter and on the buyer(s), they may have had one parvo-distemper only shot prior to leaving us, or they may not have had any. Our veterinarian recommends vaccination at 12 and 16 weeks, so typically the new owners have the first vaccination done by their veterinarian. We cover this in more detail in our “Caring For Your Boxer” booklet that we provide with each puppy.
Cost?
Pet puppies are priced a little higher than the average for this area, but we keep our puppies longer and do more socialization with them than the average breeder in this area. See our Pricing page for more details on how we determine our prices; we aren’t giving exact prices now simply because we don’t know if we may have unusual expenses with this litter (knock wood that we don’t!).
Who are the sire and dam, and what are their lines?
The sire is CH. CR-Newcastle’s Bird In The Hand (Hunter) and the dam is Newcastle’s Phoenix Song At Shaeward (Gloria). Hunter is from full North American lines, building on the Cameliard foundation with his sire, CH. Weston’s Cry For Freedom, SOM, and pulling in some California lines through his grandsire, Am/Can CH. BJay’s Traveling Man, SOM, who goes back to the famous CH. Bridgewood’s BK Kahuna, SOM, LOM through CH. Bayview Strides Ahead, SOM, LOM.
Gloria is a full-UK breeding, out of our first UK bitch, Emma. Emma’s grandsire is the top-winning red (fawn) dog in the UK, CH. Tartarian Gold Dust, and goes back to CH. Faerdorn Finneas Fogg; her sire is a grandson of my all-time favorite Boxer bitch, CH. Roamaro Scotch Mist of Winuwuk, through her son CH. Winuwuk Lust In The Dust. A half-sibling to Gloria’s sire Harley is CH. Winuwuk Lust At First Sight, the top-winning Boxer of all time in the UK and the first (and thus far, only) Boxer to win the Group at Crufts.
Do you own both of them?
We do. It’s not typical that the dog you need is right in your own home, but we brought Emma and Hunter home (at different times) with the intention of combining the UK and NA lines. Emma’s second breeding was to an NA dog from the same lines as Hunter, and we’re pleased with how that turned out, so we’re hoping for the same success with this combination.
What kind of temperament do the parents have?
Hunter is a typical goofy, loving Boxer boy. He loves people, loves to snuggle, loves to go anywhere with you. He’s never met a stranger but he is protective of the house and on guard if people are outside. We often say we should have named Hunter “Pogo”, because when he’s excited about something he’ll launch himself, all four feet, straight up into the air again and again and again. (He constantly entertains bystanders at dog shows and vet’s offices, if there are other dogs, especially small fluffy ones, nearby!)
Gloria is a little more laid back and self-controlled, and as is typical of the UK lines, is more correct as far as the ‘deliberate and wary with strangers’ part of the standard goes. She’s not shy or afraid, just a bit stand-offish. She’s a very sweet, gentle girl, but when she gets playing she’s not afraid to get a little crazy. When she’s on guard duty, she’ll surprise you with her deep, resonant bark – she sounds like a dog twice her size!
Do the parents or grandparents have any heart murmurs or VPCs? Have you seen hip dysplasia, DM, or hypothyroidism in the lines? What are their coats and skin like? What are their bites and teeth like?
We’re fortunate (knock wood!) to be working with largely healthy lines, cancer being the most common cause of death (but no common form of cancer among those). There have been some murmurs and VPCs in the line, of course, but low numbers; we have not seen significant issues or early death from heart problems. We have not seen hip dysplasia or hypothyroidism in the lines; not all of the dogs have been tested, of course, but we know of no symptomatic cases. There has been DM in the line on Hunter’s side – the closest affected relative in the direct pedigree is four generations back; there are a couple of other affected relatives not in the direct pedigree, a few more generations removed. We do not know of any cases of DM on the UK side.
We feed a raw diet so coats and skin are quite good; if anything, coats are perhaps a little too soft (and the UK line is a little longer-coated – not significantly, just a bit). Bites are the main reason we went with this pairing; Gloria’s bite is wide and straight but a little too undershot, while Hunter’s bite is moderately wide, straight, and properly undershot. Hunter also has a history of correctly undershot bites behind him, which we’re hoping will carry through. Teeth are decent but could be bigger all the way around.
Why did you decide to breed those two? What were you hoping for from this breeding?
Again, we obtained Hunter with the idea of breeding him into the UK lines at some point, and he and Gloria have matured to complement each other nicely, in addition to their temperaments and bites (discussed above). Gloria has everything we wanted from breeding Harley to Emma – typey, square, with ample bone and a nice wide bottom jaw, excellent pigment, lovely expression, good upsweep of chin and width and depth of muzzle, proper turn of stifle and front and rear angulation and nice big, tight feet. Hunter is also typey and square with bone, and has elegance and size, both of which Gloria could use a touch more. Hunter has a pleasing head and expression, good pigmentation, and tight cat feet. His could use a little more angle, a little more chin, a little more width and depth of muzzle. We are hoping, of course, to combine the best of both dogs, and get typey, square puppies with balanced bone and elegance, correct heads with muzzle properly developed in three directions, ample chin, wide straight bites that are slightly undershot, correct angulation front and rear, deep pigment, tight feet, and stable friendly temperaments.
Have they been bred before? What kind of puppies did they produce?
This is Gloria’s first breeding. Hunter has been bred a few times in the past, and we’re very pleased with what he’s been producing. Of four litters, two had two puppies each that went to show homes. The two puppies from his first litter finished their Championships at less than 18 months, breeder-owner-handled (no small feat for a Boxer!) and one just finished her Grand Championship (her brother will be going after his Grand shortly). The two puppies from the second litter are both pointed, one just needs his majors and the other has a major Reserve under her belt, at not yet 2 years old. Both show litters were linebreedings; we are excited to see what Hunter produces from this breeding, which will be an outcross.
Do you show your dogs?
Yes, we show in conformation, both as the occasional owner-handler and using a professional handler. Our focus over the last few years has been on bringing in qualities that aren’t as common in North America, through our UK lines, and that has had an effect on our success in the ring. (Primarily because we haven’t cropped our full-UK dogs, and they have been owner-handled for the most part. Hard enough either way, but exponentially so with both. Throw in the fact that our first full-UK keeper pups are plain and there’s a whole heck of a lot going against the dogs before they even get to the ring! We knew and expected this going into it, but correctness is more important to us than show wins.) We have one homebred AKC Champion, one homebred UKC/IABCA Champion, one co-owned Champion, and several pointed dogs we’ve owned or co-owned.
Do you belong to any Boxer clubs?
Yes, I am a member, past officer and current Board member of the Michigan Boxer Club, and a member and current Public Education chair of the American Boxer Club.
Do you breed any other breed besides Boxers?
Not at this time, and no concrete plans for any other breeds in the future.
Are you involved in Boxer rescue?
We are unable to foster dogs at this point in time, but we support rescue through the Michigan Boxer Club’s various fundraising programs.
What written guarantees do you offer?
We guarantee we’ve done what we feel is best to produce happy, healthy, typey, stable, long-lived Boxers. Even so, we cannot guarantee that the puppies we produce will never develop an illness, genetic or otherwise. We do offer various options in the case of certain conditions that will affect the length or quality of the dog’s life; these are discussed in our contract, which all buyers are sent before they commit to a puppy.
Since this will not be a show-quality puppy, are you selling them with Full Registrations or Limited Registrations?
Generally speaking, non-show puppies are sold with Limited Registration. There may be some exceptions, such as a dog sold to Canada to an owner that wants to register with the Canadian Kennel Club for performance events. (The CanKC will not register a dog with AKC Limited Registration.) We do have a non-breeding contract with significant penalties for breeding the dog outside the terms of the contract.
Do you take back your dogs if something did happen where I couldn’t keep her?
Always, no questions asked. In fact, we require that the buyer contact us before they place or sell the dog anywhere, even with family.
Do you use a sales contract? If so, what’s in it?
We do use a contract, crafted to protect the best interests of the puppy. We try to clearly explain the obligations of both the buyer and the seller, both to the puppy and to each other, and discuss what remedies are available if one or the other does not live up to the terms of the agreement.
Could you give me the names of other breeders who I could call for references — breeders who belong to Boxer Clubs or other kennel clubs?
Certainly. Our “Family & Friends” page has many links to other breeders we have known and/or worked with over the year. If you’d like additional referrals, shoot us an email.
