How are boxers in heat?

Question
How long are boxers in Heat?

Answer
Jerri, Boxers, like most every other breed, are in heat anywhere from 4-6 weeks, depending on the individual dog. The first signs that your dog is coming into heat is that her vulva will swell. With a boxer, this is EASY to notice. Then, a few days later, she will start to bleed from her vulva. This lasts for about a week (sometimes longer). When you first notice blood, you should begin keeping her away from other intact male dogs, and never allow her off leash OR out of your sight when you take her outside. Whenever you leave the house and leave her at home, you should crate her inside. Dogs have been known to leap through windows to be able to breed! Dogs can also breed through fences, so you must not leave her unattended outside even if your yard is fenced. That goes for kennels, too. Keep her inside when you are not home.

From the first day you see blood, it will be about 3-4 weeks before it is safe to let her around other dogs. Even then, however, you should be careful and if you notice male dogs still giving her attention, you should assume she is still in heat and continue to keep an eye on her so she does not breed.


I would suggest that, unless you are showing your dog at dog shows, or participating with her in working trials, you have her spayed. As I was explaining to another person just yesterday, dogs who do not have show or working titles should not be bred. If you >>are<< participating with her in dog shows or working trials, then you should not breed her until she has been finished, and you should only breed her to a male that has been shown to be an exemplary example of the breed as well. >>ONLY<< dogs that have been proven in the show ring and/or have attained breed-specific working titles should be bred. Unproven dogs, no matter how nice their pedigree may be, and pets, should NEVER be bred. There are already far too many homeless dogs out there (yes, even purebred ones - do a search on http://www.yahoo.com for 'Boxer rescue' and see how many purebred dogs are in rescue and needing a home; do a search for Boxers on http://www.petfinder.com) to even >>consider<< breeding a dog with no titles. Also, this question alone tells me that you do not yet have the knowledge to be breeding dogs, if that is what you were thinking of doing. If you do not even know how to tell if your dog is in heat, or how long she will be in heat, are you going to know what to do when she becomes pregnant? What about during the whelping process? What if she rejects the puppies? There is a lot to breeding besides putting a male and female together to make puppies.  

What I am saying is that you should arm yourself with the necessary knowledge first, and get involved in showing if you are truly interested in furthering the breed by producing puppies. Find a breeder that can mentor you (you should be able to easily find one by attending dog shows) and help you learn. You may not ever breed >>this<< particular dog - you may learn that she is not a good example of her breed when you get involved with showing her - but you can use her to gain show ring experience, and learn what a dog that IS a good example of the breed looks like, by actively participating in shows. You can then have your girl spayed, and consider buying a dog that IS breedworthy, and go from there, with the help from your mentor.