Regardless of her age, your boxer probably acts like she’s a pup.
She looks a bit imposing with her big, muscular body, but you know she’s a pure softie.
Now, let me guess why you’re here:
Someone told you that this stuff called CBD oil can greatly improve your Boxer’s overall health, but you’re not too sure just yet.
So I’m here to help.
We’ll review how CBD might help with your dog’s specific problems, and also discuss how it is helping tons of other dogs.
Personally, our dog had great results with CBD, so I’ll share that story as well.
Our Pick:
One brand I love to recommend for bigger dogs is HempMy Pet. Their oils have amazing ingredients and get great customer reviews.
Bonus for Boxers: Download a free checklist which reveals if your dog will benefit from CBD. I'll also send you my full report on CBD for Dogs that you can download and read later. Boxer owners can get access here.
Boxers are Puppies for Life
The first ever Boxer bred and registered in Germany was named Flocki.
Flocki was born in the late 19th century and was a descendant of the legendary Bullenbeiser (“bull biter” in German).
The Bullenbeiser was a big, powerful dog bred to be used to hunt big game, with similar features to the modern Dogo Argentino and Alano Espanol.
A handful of Boxers came to the the US in the early 20th century, where they were used as military dogs, and German immigrants brought more Boxers into the country after WWII.
Today, Boxers are treasured companions, loved for their boundless energy, happy temperament, and loyalty.
They make great family dogs, but need lots of training and early socialization.
They can be very protective and alert, making them popular guard dogs as well.
And while they might look aggressive thanks to their square faces, pointed ears, and muscular bodies, Boxers are true softies at heart.
Common Health Problems Affecting Boxers
Boxers are naturally active dogs.
Given a balanced diet and plenty of exercise, Boxers are naturally muscular and can live long, happy lives.
However, just like any other dog breed, Boxers can deal with health problems, especially as they get older.
Below are some of the more common conditions affecting Boxers:
- Arthritis: Arthritis is common in active dog breeds like Boxers, especially as a result of old age. It causes chronic inflammation and swelling of the joints, leaving your dog in chronic pain.
- Boxer Cardiomyopathy (BCM): This is a rare condition caused by an irregularity in the dog’s heart beat. This leads to cardiovascular problems, which can in turn cause sudden weakness, fainting, fatigue/lethargy, and sudden death.
- Cancer: Cancer is a big issue for Boxers. Like other dogs, Boxers can develop all kinds of cancers, although they seem to be more prone to lymphomas, brain tumors, and mast cell tumors. White or light coloured boxers are also more prone to skin cancer.
- Colitis: Colitis isn’t overly common in Boxers, but it tends to affect them more than other dog breeds. It is caused by chronic inflammation of the large intestine and produces a variety of symptoms, including diarrhea, and bloody stools. One of the most common forms of colitis affecting dogs is ulcerative colitis.
- Epilepsy/Seizures: Epilepsy is also relatively common among Boxers. Dogs with epilepsy suffer from regular, uncontrollable seizures.
- Hip Dysplasia: Hip dysplasia is a genetic condition that can affect all kinds of dogs, especially larger breeds like Boxers. Hip dysplasia can produce a variety of symptoms, but it can also be asymptomatic and eventually develops into chronic arthritis and inflammation of the hip joint unless caught early.
- Hypothyroidism: Boxers are prone to suffering from an overactive thyroid, which causes chronic metabolic hyperactivity. As a result, your Boxer might become overweight, drink excessive amounts of water, have an increased heart rate, suffer from vomiting, or lose weight unexpectedly.
How Can CBD Help My Boxer?
Now that I’ve covered some basics about the common health problems affecting Boxers, let’s start talking about CBD.
But before I go on, you’re probably wondering why I’m so excited about CBD pet supplements in the first place.
It's been years, but it feels like yesterday when I received heartbreaking news:
Rosie, our amazing family dog was diagnosed with hip dysplasia and cancer.
Rosie was always a happy, active and energetic dog.
But her condition quickly made her weak and lethargic, and left her dealing with chronic pain.
So from then on, I focused on one thing:
Making Rosie’s remaining years as enjoyable as possible.
And thanks to CBD, we were not only able to help Rosie become more active and deal with less pain, but also help extend her life beyond our vet’s estimates.
Now, I want to show you how to do the same with your Boxer.
Below I’ll show you how CBD can help you manage 2 specific problems:
Arthritis and colitis.
But remember, CBD has a wide variety of health benefits, and can help your dog deal with cancer, epilepsy, anxiety, and much more.
So if your Boxer is not suffering from inflammation, CBD can still be very beneficial for a list of other reasons. For a closer look at the health benefits of CBD for dogs, click here.
CBD for Boxers With Arthritis
Arthritis is really common among large, active dogs like Boxers.
It causes chronic inflammation around the joints, leaving your dog in constant pain.
As a result, you’ll usually notice your once lively Boxer lounging around the house, sleeping more than regular, and possibly avoiding walks, exercise, or play time.
Some other symptoms you might notice in your Boxer if he/she is dealing with arthritis include:
- Difficulty getting up or laying down
- Limping and stiffness in the affected joints/limbs
- Reluctance to jump into the car, onto the couch, etc
- Reduced mobility
- Tender or overly-sensitive joints
Remember, arthritis doesn’t just affect your dog physically. It can cause big changes to their temperament and lifestyle.
One of the first things you’ll notice in your Boxer, for example, is their lack of energy.
My dog Rosie developed arthritis as a result of having hip dysplasia, and I immediately noticed her become less active.
Rosie loved playing outdoors, swimming in the pool, and going for walks.
But once her arthritis kicked in, she became lethargic, lazy, and quickly put on weight, which can lead to all kinds of other complications for dogs.
Luckily, CBD supplements helped Rosie deal with the pain from both her cancer and arthritis and also increased her energy levels.
That’s because CBD is both a powerful anti-inflammatory and pain killer.
By stimulating the endocannabinoid system, CBD can help fight the inflammation around your dog’s joints as well as suppress pain signals in the brain.
A recent study by the University of Kentucky, for example, showed that CBD could help treat arthritis in rats.
After inducing arthritis in rats, the researchers treated the animals with transdermal CBD gels of varying strengths for 4 days.
The study found that the CBD gels reduced inflammation in the affected joints, while also helping suppress pain signals in the animals’ brains.
I noticed similar results with Rosie, too.
Within just a few days of using CBD with Rosie, she seemed like her old self again.
Not only did she have less difficulty getting up and moving around the house, but she also regained her love for exercise and play-time.
Before her treatment with CBD, she’d only really come with us on short walks before she’d want to turn back around and go home.
Once we started her treatment, however, her stamina quickly went back to normal, and she’d also actively seek out play-time or run around in the backyard playing by herself.
Hence, if your Boxer suffers from arthritis, I highly recommend using a CBD pet supplement.
We saw great results with products from King Kanine.
I used both King Kanine’s CBD oil and balm, and both had positive effects on Rosie.
I've outline my experiences with this particular brand on a review page I created. You can click here to read my thoughts on King Kanine.
To learn more about inflammation and arthritis in dogs, check out this previous article I wrote on the topic: CBD for Dogs With Joint Pain
CBD for Boxers With Colitis
As I mentioned earlier, Colitis is another common condition affecting Boxers.
Just like in humans, colitis is caused by chronic inflammation of the colon (or large intestine).
One of the most common signs of colitis is frequent, small, and semi-formed bowel movements.
Dogs with colitis will also commonly strain when defecating, often passing bright red stool.
If your dog has colitis, you might also see them excreting mucus or fat, which is usually the sign of a chronic infection.
There are a number of causes of colitis, including:
- Stress
- Infections (usually by Salmonella, Clostridium, and E. coli)
- Parasites (like Giardia, Cryptosporidium, and whipworms)
- Trauma
- Allergic reactions, especially to food
- Inflammatory bowel disease
There are many different treatments for colitis, and the exact treatment will vary depending on the underlying cause of the condition.
And while most of these treatments are effective, I highly recommend considering CBD to help your dog manage his/her condition.
Again, that’s because CBD is a powerful anti-inflammatory.
And just like it can relieve the inflammation of arthritis and joint issues, it can also help reduce the inflammation caused by colitis.
In fact, there is lots of research suggesting CBD can be a reliable, safe, and natural way to help manage the inflammation of inflammatory/irritable bowel diseases like colitis.
A 2011 study by researchers in Italy looked at the effectiveness of CBD in treating intestinal inflammation.
It found that CBD not only helped reduce inflammation after it had been induced but could also prevent inflammation from occurring when administered beforehand.
There are plenty of other studies looking at CBD and inflammatory bowel diseases like colitis in more detail.
You can check them out here.
When using CBD to treat these conditions, I generally recommend using CBD oil, capsules, or treats.
These will target the inflammation directly, offering long-lasting relief from some of the symptoms I listed above.
Are Other Boxers Benefiting from CBD Supplements?
I’m excited about the benefits of CBD, and I'm not the only one.
In fact, dog owners everywhere are catching on to CBD and using it with great success.
Ozzie, for example, is an 11 year-old boxer diagnosed with cancer, who uses CBD oil to manage chronic pain.
Ozzie's owners have stated that after using CBD from Canna-Pet, his energy levels are way back up, and he's doing much better.
Marley, on the other hand, is dealing with a variety of issues, including glaucoma, aggression, gastritis, and arthritis.
Marley's owners started with CBD because of Marley's bad arthritis. But they're happy to report that she's no longer sleeping all day and wants to go outside and play!
Consider These CBD Brands With Your Boxer Today
Watching your pet deal with health problems is devastating.
But I can tell you from personal experience that CBD can help with certain issues.
In terms of actual companies to order from, I have a few suggestions.
My first choice right now is a company called King Kanine. I belive our dogs have seen the best results with their products.
As of right now, their best product King Kalm CBD is on sale for 23% off. You can save through this link.
Available as oil, treats, balms, or spray, King Kanine products are really easy to administer and as I said before, worked wonders on my dog Rosie. Read about our experiences here.
I do also recommend supplements from Canna-Pet, as I stated above. For a large breed like yours, I would recommend Canna-Pet's Advanced MaxLiquid Hemp which is on sale for $20 off. Click here to save.
I hope these recommendations are helpful, and that your pup sees some great results from CBD.
Take care!
