Boxers are known as dogs who create indestructible bonds with their owners. You might wonder how this particular trait manifests in a boxer’s behavior. For instance, are boxers protective?
Boxers do have an innate urge to be protective of their home and their families. These people-oriented dogs love nothing more than making their human families happy. Boxers can be trained to become excellent guard dogs, but that type of training should only be implemented by a professional.
Understanding how your boxer manifests their protective tendencies is ideal when it comes to training and socializing them. This will ensure you know how to reign in their behavior when necessary.
Are Boxers Protective?
Boxers are, by nature, protective of their families. That being said, they are not aggressive by nature. They might look tough, but these dogs would prefer playful interaction as opposed to fighting. This doesn’t mean they wouldn’t hesitate to protect you in a physical manner should that need ever become a reality.
Boxers are bonders, and once you’ve established a mutually respectful relationship with each other, your boxer is going to remain loyal to you for life. It really can’t be stated enough just how affectionate boxers love to be. They crave praise, attention, and physical touch, and they will reward you with endless protection when you give it to them.
Boxers are very observant dogs, and will usually take the time to take in their surroundings to assess their current situation. Boxers have the ability to differentiate between potential and real threats as they don’t lead with aggression.
Reasons Boxers Are Protective
Boxers are loving dogs, but beyond that, there are particular traits within this breed that lead to their protective nature. Boxers are descendants of mastiffs. Mastiffs are dogs who were bred for the particular purpose of standing guard and being able to protect either property or people, among other duties.
Therefore, it’s ingrained within these dogs through their bloodline to have particular instincts that lead to being able to and willing to protect their families. While boxers that have been domesticated are much more easygoing, they still have a propensity for being brave in the face of danger or threats.
Boxers have also historically enjoyed being given duties, tasks, and jobs. They have a good work ethic within them even if their purpose isn’t to be a working dogs.
Are Boxers Protective Of Their Owners?
Boxers are very protective of their pet parents and are also known to be quite protective of children. They are also quite gentle with children, so long as they are treated kindly by your kids. These big dogs have an incredible amount of patience with children, and even other dogs.
Before boxers became the wonderful house pets that they are, they would work alongside humans in a variety of jobs. They have always had a very warm disposition towards people. Since they are such people-oriented dogs, they have an innate desire to want to keep you safe at all times.
Are Boxers Protective Of Children?
These giants are truly gentle, especially when it comes to smaller humans. They have this incredible ability to tolerate a child’s crazy antics and have a wonderful amount of patience with children. Boxers also feel the sense that they need to protect children, and they will do so if the situation requires it.
Boxers also seem to love to cuddle with children, even babies. A boxer that has been socialized into families with young children is perfectly content being a pillow for your small child to lay on. Your boxer will also know that they have to be gentle with the young kid, and will feel a sense of duty towards your kids to keep them safe.
Boxers can be jumpy sometimes, so getting that potential habit under control is very important before you let your boxer free around your children. Boxers don’t jump to be aggressive; they are trying to hug you. These big pups don’t always realize they are as big as they are, and that children can’t handle their jumping hugs.
How Boxers Can Protect Their Owners
It’s suspected that boxers get their names from their ability to stand on their hind legs and use their arms, either for playing or for protecting, if need be. Most domesticated boxers will simply watch over your home, alerting you to anyone who may be approaching. That being said, boxers aren’t loud barkers. Some boxers might just make noise or growl very quietly under their breath.
In the worst-case scenarios, boxers are able to use their strength to be forceful if needed. Boxers can also look intimidating to outsiders, given their size and body structure. They also have the ability to be quite athletic and agile if they need to chase someone or something away.
Are Boxers Good Guard Dogs?
Boxers might act silly, but they are actually very intelligent dogs. They can become very proficient at problem-solving as well. All this combined with their desire to keep their loved ones safe, boxers can make very good guard dogs when they are trained to do so.
If your boxer sees someone approaching your home and hasn’t been trained as guard dogs, they might possibly bark in the general direction of the person. However, they are not prone to attacking people who enter the house. Your boxer will have a pretty decent understanding of who is friendly versus who is not because of their inbred instincts.
On one hand, they might be a little wary of the person and may be cautious in approaching them. After your boxer is socialized towards visitors, they are most likely to run towards them to get some pets and give some kisses.
Why Some Boxers Aren’t Very Protective
Just because breeds are predisposed to certain behaviors, it doesn’t mean all of them will have the natural ability to play into those traits. Furthermore, there are factors that lead to dogs not feeling comfortable giving into their instincts. The same can be said for boxers and their protective nature.
Boxers aren’t fans of adverse weather, so they might hesitate to run outside to protect you if it’s raining, snowing, or super cold. The same can be said for weather that is overly hot. Some boxers also refrain from being vocal unless absolutely necessary. Thus, they might not always alert you when someone’s at the door or at your window.
Boxers also have somewhat erratic attention spans, and they can be easily distracted by sudden movement or activity in another area. This can make it hard to get them to focus on training. This also leads some boxers to have some stubborn or lazy tendencies that you will have to help them overcome.
Boxers are also, overall, very nice dogs. Anyone who knows boxers knows that isn’t an understatement. When they have a family that treats them extremely well, they might be more inclined to approach other humans with kindness first. This may not be ideal when you are in need of protection.
Why Professionals Should Train Boxers To Stand Guard
There is a lot of information available online if you want to try and train your boxer to be a guard dog or watchdog. If you have experience with other dogs in this regard, it could be worth trying. It’s usually recommended to consult professionals that train using rewards rather than dominance if you don’t know how to properly train your dog.
This is because you don’t want to accidentally turn your dog into an aggressive dog. You also don’t want your boxer to get confused about when they should be standing guard and when they should back down.
Furthermore, there are potential legal implications that you could face if your boxer were to unnecessarily lash out at somebody, even if their intention was to protect you. Having professionals take over this training – and only if it’s absolutely necessary for you to have a guard dog – will help you navigate these tricky situations.
Otherwise, it’s best to just let your boxer be a pet and not have any further expectations of them. They are happy to just be a part of your family, and can expend their pent up energy elsewhere through fun walks in the park and playing in the backyard.
Final Thoughts
Are boxers protective? When push comes to shove, they can be and they will be. Their first priority is always to their families. Many boxers would prefer to just play and cuddle, and some boxers can be a little bit hesitant to act protective when a threat isn’t immediate.
Having a boxer in the home can help you feel much safer and secure inside your home. You will always have a companion that will want to stay by your side and reassure you that everything’s okay. Even if they don’t lash out at every possible threat, just knowing they are there for you can be all the protection you need.